Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie’s son Maddox Chivan Jolie-Pitt wants to legally drop “Pitt” from his last name.
Maddox, 24, filed to remove his father’s surname from his own, according to legal documents seen by Us Weekly on Thursday, May 28.
If the request is granted, Maddox will legally be known as “Maddox Chivan Jolie” in future. (Us has reached out to Pitt’s representatives for comment.)
Hours before the filing made headlines, news broke that Pitt, 62, landed a victory in his legal battle with his ex over their Château Miraval winery, with a judge granting in part the actor’s motion to “compel” former Stoli general counsel Todd Culyba for further deposition.
“It’s not a surprise this news was released shortly after Brad had a significant evidentiary victory in the Miraval case,” a source tells Us of Maddox’s request.
In February, Maddox cut “Pitt” from his name in the credits of Couture, the movie he worked on with his mother.
After working as Couture’s assistant director, Maddox was listed as “Maddox Jolie” in the project’s credits.
Angelina, 50, and Pitt, 62, were married from 2014 to 2016 and have been embroiled in messy legal battles in the years following their split.
During their relationship, the former couple welcomed six kids together: Maddox, Zahara, 21, Shiloh, 20, Pax, 22, and twins Vivienne and Knox, both 17.
While the children all initially used the surname Jolie-Pitt, several of Maddox’s siblings have denounced the Pitt suffix following their parents’ separation.
In June 2024, Zahara appeared to use the moniker “Zahara Marley Jolie” when she joined the Alpha Kappa Alpha sorority.
The previous month, sister Vivenne went by “Vivienne Jolie” in the Playbill when working on the play, The Outsiders.
Meanwhile, Shiloh distanced herself from the Moneyball actor by legally filing to drop Pitt’s surname from hers on her 18th birthday. The request was granted in 2024.
“[Shiloh] hired her own lawyer and paid for it herself,” a source exclusively told Us Weekly in June 2024, adding that Angelina “can’t speak” for the legal proceedings.
A second insider told Us at the time that Pitt was “devastated by this choice.”
Referencing Shiloh’s name change, the source continued, “To him, it was more than a change of name — it was a symbol of a deeper estrangement that has been brewing for years.”
Pitt previously opened up about his shortcomings as a parent during an interview with GQ in 2017.
“I grew up with a Father-knows-best/war mentality… instead of really knowing the man and his own self-doubt and struggles. And it’s hit me smack in the face with our divorce: I gotta be more. I gotta be more for them. I have to show them. And I haven’t been great at it,” the actor said.
The Fight Club star also spoke to the magazine about his desire to prioritize his family, adding, “People on their deathbeds don’t talk about what they obtained or were awarded. They talk about their loved ones or their regrets.”
