Maddox Makes It Official: Brad Pitt's Son Legally Drops His Father's Surname

If you needed a sign of just how deep the rift runs between Brad Pitt and his family, look no further than a Los Angeles courthouse filing from Thursday.

Maddox, the 24-year-old eldest child of Brad and Angelina Jolie, has legally removed 'Pitt' from his surname. He will now be known simply as Maddox Chivan Jolie — and the reason listed on the filing? Just one word: personal.

This didn't come entirely out of nowhere. Back in February, Maddox appeared credited as 'Maddox Jolie' in Angelina's film Couture — a quiet but telling shift from the 'Maddox Jolie-Pitt' credit he used on her 2024 film Maria.

Now the legal paperwork has caught up with what many suspected was already his reality.

Maddox is the fourth of Brad and Angelina's six children to distance themselves from their father's name. Shiloh made headlines in 2024 when she dropped 'Pitt' after turning 18, with her lawyer noting she had made "an independent and significant decision following painful events."

Sisters Zahara and Vivienne have done the same. Zahara was introduced as 'Zahara Marley Jolie' at her Spelman College graduation, while Vivienne went by 'Vivienne Jolie' on the playbill for Broadway production The Outsiders.

Sons Pax and Knox have yet to make any public move regarding their surnames. But all six children are reportedly estranged from their father — a situation that has quietly become one of Hollywood's most painful family stories.

Brad and Angelina's relationship collapsed in 2016 following an alleged incident on a private plane, the details of which have never been fully disclosed publicly. A lengthy custody battle followed, stretching across eight years of divorce proceedings.

With Maddox now 24 and fully in control of his own identity, it's clear which direction the family is heading — and it's firmly away from the Pitt name.