Maddox Jolie-Pitt, the 24-year-old son of Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt, has made a significant shift in how he is publicly identified by dropping his father’s surname. In the credits of Angelina Jolie’s latest film, Couture, Maddox is listed as Maddox Jolie, removing the “Pitt” from his name. The drama, directed by Alice Winocour, features Jolie as Maxine Walker, a woman confronting breast cancer during Paris Fashion Week, and it premiered in French cinemas on Wednesday.
Earlier Credits and Family Name Changes
This change is notable compared to Maddox’s previous credit in 2024, where he was credited as Maddox Jolie-Pitt while serving as executive producer on Maria, a film about opera singer Maria Callas in which Jolie starred. His move follows a pattern among his siblings. Zahara, 21, similarly omitted “Pitt” from her name during her Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority induction at Spelman College in 2023, introducing herself as Zahara Marley Jolie. Additionally, Shiloh, 19, was credited as Shiloh Jolie in the Playbill for The Outsiders on Broadway, a production she helped produce alongside her mother in 2024.
Brad Pitt’s Emotional Response to Name Changes
The decision by Shiloh to drop Pitt’s surname reportedly affected Brad Pitt deeply. An insider shared with PEOPLE that Pitt felt profoundly saddened by the change and misses the closeness he once had with his children.
“He’s aware and upset that Shiloh dropped his last name. He’s never felt more joy than when she was born. He always wanted a daughter,”
the insider revealed.
“The reminders that he’s lost his children is of course not easy for Brad. He loves his children and misses them. It’s very sad.”
They added that Pitt
“still loves all of his kids tremendously”
and acknowledged that
“this whole process has been very hard for the whole family.”
Context of a High-Profile Family Rift
The background to these shifts in surname usage is the highly publicized and contentious split between Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt. Jolie filed for divorce in 2016, seeking full custody of their six children: Maddox, Pax, Zahara, Shiloh, and twins Vivienne and Knox. Although their divorce was legally finalized in December 2024, lasting personal estrangement appears to persist, particularly between Pitt and most of his children.
Sources close to the family have reported that despite multiple efforts by Pitt to reconnect, distance remains. The ongoing estrangement highlights the emotional complexity behind the choices by Maddox and his siblings to remove Pitt’s surname from their public identities.
Implications of Maddox’s Decision
Maddox dropping Brad Pitt’s name in film credits is a clear indicator of the personal and familial challenges within one of Hollywood’s most famous families. It signals an ongoing shift in family dynamics and the evolving identities of Jolie and Pitt’s children. As Maddox continues to carve out his own path in the film industry, this change may reflect deeper feelings about his parentage and public persona. How this will affect future interactions within the family or impact his career remains uncertain.
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