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Brad Pitt’s estrangement from his six children just grew a bit more this week. Maddox, Brad and Angelina Jolie’s eldest child, has officially changed his name, dropping the Pitt surname. He is moving forward as Maddox Chavon Jolie. The legal decision is another telling sign that all the children Pitt shares with Jolie prefer to keep a safe distance from their famous father. Maddox is the most recent family member to change his name, but he’s not the first.

Maddox petitions to drop Pitt from his name

The name Jolie-Pitt has long symbolized one of Hollywood’s most high-profile families. It is also synonymous with one of the messiest divorces in the entertainment world. The split of Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt has been so complicated and chaotic that the kids have taken sides. Maddox Jolie-Pitt has recently made it very clear who he aligns with. The Daily Mail has reported that the 24-year-old has filed legal paperwork requesting a name change. The change isn’t a huge one, but it sends a clear message.

Maddox is requesting that a judge allow him to drop “Pitt” from his last name. He aims to move forward personally, professionally, and legally as Maddox Chavon Jolie. The name change actually reverts his name back to the one he was given when Jolie adopted him as an infant in 2002. Jolie adopted Maddox from Cambodia as a single parent. Pitt legally adopted Maddox in 2006, after he began his romance with Jolie.

The legal filing is a signal that Maddox doesn’t wish to be associated with Brad Pitt. The decision didn’t come out of nowhere. The 20-something has been using the last name Jolie for some time. Professionally, he was credited as “Maddox Jolie” for his work on Couture. He worked as an assistant director on the film.

According to TMZ, production notes provided to journalists during the Toronto International Film Festival, where Couture premiered in September 2025, also listed Maddox’s name as Maddox Jolie. It was the first time he had used the moniker professionally, though. Previously, he was credited as Maddox Jolie-Pitt.

Which Siblings Have Also Changed Their Names

Maddox’s legal change might be making headlines right now, but he’s not the first family member who has opted not to align himself with Brad Pitt any longer. Shiloh Jolie made the same decision back in 2024. Shiloh actually filed for a legal name change on her 18th birthday in May 2024. At the time, insiders reported that Brad Pitt was aware that Shiloh had filed for a name change, and that he was “upset” by it. A judge signed off on the petition in August 2024.

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As it stands, Shiloh and Maddox are the only two of Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt’s six children to make a legal name change, but a few others are using just Jolie informally. Zahara has been using the name since at least 2023. During a Spelman College ceremony, she was acknowledged as Zahara Marley Jolie.

The family’s youngest girl, Vivienne, made a similar decision. In May 2024, Vivienne was listed in the program for the Broadway musical The Outsiders as Vivienne Jolie. She is set to turn 18, along with her twin brother, in July. Little is known about how Knox Jolie-Pitt and Pax Jolie-Pitt are known personally. The brothers have opted to keep a lower profile.

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