Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt’s children take steps to drop the Pitt name

Three of Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt’s adult children have filed legal petitions in 2026 to remove “Pitt” from their surnames. Maddox, Zahara and Vivienne are each seeking to use only “Jolie,” while their sister Shiloh legally made the same change in 2024.

Maddox and Zahara have completed the required newspaper-publication step, with hearings scheduled for September 14 and September 28, respectively. Vivienne signed her petition on July 12, her 18th birthday, but the paperwork wasn’t filed with the court until about a week later; her hearing is scheduled for November 2.

A new legal chapter begins quietly

Maddox and Zahara Jolie were adopted by Angelina Jolie long before she married Brad Pitt. Pitt later adopted both children, and they took on his last name as part of that process. Now, decades later, both are working through the courts to remove it.

The filings were made separately but follow a similar pattern. Maddox submitted his petition first, in late May of this year. Zahara filed her own request just days after her brother.

Neither sibling has given a detailed public explanation for the decision. Court paperwork lists only personal reasons for the change. Their choice comes as their family continues to move past old wounds.

Zahara follows her older brother’s path

Zahara, 21, filed her petition on June 4, 7 days after Maddox filed his request. She is seeking to change her legal name from Zahara Marley Jolie-Pitt to Zahara Marley Jolie. Her request followed the same court process required of any adult in California.

She had already used Zahara Marley Jolie publicly. When she graduated from Spelman College on May 17, 2026, she was introduced by that name, although the commencement program listed her as Zahara Marley Jolie-Pitt. She also introduced herself as Zahara Marley Jolie during her Alpha Kappa Alpha sorority presentation in 2023.

Zahara’s name-change notice appeared in the Los Angeles Daily Journal once a week for 4 consecutive weeks. She has filed proof of publication, and her hearing is scheduled for September 28. That process wrapped up in early July as well.

Maddox takes the first legal step

Maddox, now 24, filed his petition with the Superior Court in Los Angeles in May. He asked to change his name from Maddox Chivan Jolie-Pitt to Maddox Chivan Jolie. His filing was later confirmed by several entertainment outlets, including CNN and E! News.

This was not the first time Maddox dropped the name. He was already credited as “Maddox Jolie” in press materials when his mother’s film “Couture” premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival in September 2025, and that credit carried over when the film opened in French theaters in February 2026.

As required by California law, his petition needed public notice, which he published in the Los Angeles Daily Journal for 4 consecutive weeks; that notice period ended in early July, clearing the way for his September hearing.

California law requires public notice first

For most adult name-change cases in California, applicants must file a court petition and publish the court’s order to show cause in an approved newspaper once a week for 4 consecutive weeks. Limited exceptions apply, including certain confidential name-change requests.

Maddox and Zahara completed the publication requirement through the Los Angeles Daily Journal and filed proof of publication. No public objection has been reported in either case as of July 22, 2026.

Maddox’s hearing is scheduled for September 14. Zahara’s hearing is scheduled for September 28, exactly 2 weeks later. The court will determine whether to approve each petition.

Fun fact: Zahara was born in Hawassa, Ethiopia, and adopted by Jolie at just 7 months old in 2005.

Shiloh already made the same choice

Shiloh Jolie, another of the couple’s children, made this same move back in 2024. She filed her petition on her 18th birthday that May. Her request was to drop Pitt and go simply by Shiloh Nouvel Jolie.

Her case hit a small delay over an incomplete background check. The hearing was rescheduled from July to August of that year. In the end, a judge approved her name change without any objection.

Shiloh’s case set a clear pattern within the family. It showed the legal path her older siblings would later follow. It also hinted at a shared feeling among the children about their family name.

A pattern rooted in family history

Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt were partners for more than a decade. They married in 2014, separated in 2016, and reached a divorce settlement in December 2024 after approximately 8 years of proceedings.

Their separation was followed by a prolonged and heavily reported custody dispute. More recent reports have described Pitt as having limited or virtually no contact with some of his adult children, although family members have not publicly provided a complete account of their private relationships.

The pattern of distancing from the Pitt name predates this year’s court filings by several years, going back to Zahara’s 2023 sorority introduction and Maddox’s on-screen “Couture” credit.

What the court process looks like next

If their requests are granted, Maddox and Zahara will join Shiloh in legally using only the Jolie surname. They are not the only siblings pursuing that change: Vivienne signed her own petition on July 12, her 18th birthday, with the filing reaching the court about a week later, seeking to become Vivienne Marcheline Jolie. Her hearing is scheduled for November 2.

As of July 22, 2026, no comparable legal petitions have been publicly reported for Pax or Knox, leaving 2 of the couple’s 6 children, Pax and Knox, still carrying the Pitt name. A judge will ultimately decide whether to approve each of the pending petitions from Maddox, Zahara, and Vivienne.

Brad Pitt has stayed mostly silent

Brad Pitt has not issued an on-record public statement about the pending name-change petitions filed by Maddox, Zahara, or Vivienne. News organizations have reported seeking comment from representatives, but no on-record response from Pitt or his representative was included in the coverage reviewed.

When Shiloh changed her name in 2024, PEOPLE cited an unnamed source who said Pitt was aware of the decision and upset by it. That account was not a public statement from Pitt himself.

Pitt and Jolie also remain involved in a separate legal dispute concerning Château Miraval, the French winery they previously owned together. Their children’s choices add another layer to an already complicated family story.

Little-known fact: A judge approved Brad Pitt’s adoption of Maddox and Zahara in early 2006.

TL;DR

• Maddox and Zahara Jolie both filed petitions to remove “Pitt” from their surnames.
• Both completed the required public notices in the Los Angeles Daily Journal.
• Maddox’s hearing is set for September 14, and Zahara’s for September 28.
• Their sister Shiloh made the same name change back in 2024.
• Brad Pitt has not issued an on-record public statement about the 3 pending petitions.

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This article was made with AI assistance and human editing.

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