All the things Angelina Jolie's six kids have said about their estranged father Brad Pitt from explosive rant to officially dropping his last name

By LILY JOBSON, SHOWBUSINESS REPORTER Published: 00:02, 15 July 2026 | Updated: 00:25, 15 July 2026 Brad Pitt may be considered as one of Hollywood's most prestigious stars, but his private life has been marred with bitter family spats. The actor and his actress ex-wife Angelina Jolie were once seen as the industry's 'It' couple during their relationship. After meeting on the set of the 2005 film Mr. and Mrs. Smith, Brad and Angelina tied the knot in 2014 during a secret ceremony in the South of France. Angelina and Brad share three biological children: Shiloh, 20, as well as 18-year-old twins Knox and Vivienne. They are also parents to Maddox, 24, Pax, 22 and Zahara, 21, through adoption.  Brad, 62, and Angelina, 51, were married until 2019, but their relationship came to a tumultuous end years before their divorce was finalised in 2024.  The former couple came to an explosive end in 2016 after the pair got into an alleged physical altercation while on a private flight with their six kids. Brad has denied this.  Angelina claimed that Brad 'physically and verbally assaulted' her and their children during the flight.  Since they split, the two stars have been embroiled in one of the most publicised legal battles in Hollywood history over custody of their children, as well as the winery that they once owned together. Brad Pitt may be considered as one of Hollywood's most prestigious stars, but his private life has been marred with bitter family spats Brad and Angelina Jolie's kids have distanced themselves from their father by removing his last name. They share six children: Shiloh, 20, Zahara, 21, 18-year-old twins Knox and Vivienne, Maddox, 24, (L-R) and Pax, 22 Brad, 62, and Angelina, 51, were married until 2019, but their relationship came to a tumultuous end years before their divorce was finalised in 2024 (pictured in 2014) In the last few years, their children have moved forward with distancing themselves from their father by removing his last name. Just this week, Zahara and Maddox have published notices revealing their intentions to drop 'Pitt' from their last names, according to court documents obtained by the Daily Mail. Angelina opened up about her and Brad's tumultuous divorce and his estranged relationship with their children last year. 'I had kind of quit acting before my divorce. I was focusing on directing, and I thought I'd be doing my international work,' she told Variety. 'But then suddenly the only way to be home more and for short periods of time being away or to make a good amount of money, was to go back to acting. I was only taking things that were short or close by or I could take [my children].' Discussing her return to acting, she declared that her 'fighting spirit' is finally back and that her children are to thank for it, gloating that her kids 'still like [her], which says a lot.'  'I think my fighting spirit is finally back. I lost it for a bit,' Angelina explained. 'I got kind of taken down a little bit and it's coming back in large part thanks to my children, who are now older, and encouraging it.' His dynamic with his children has been strained for years, with the siblings making several steps to avoid contact with their estranged father. Here, the Daily Mail details everything his children have said and done within their strained relationship... Brad and Angelina share three adoptive children: Pax, Zahara and Maddox (pictured L-R in 2024) Maddox, 24, who is Brad and Angelina's oldest child, spent the first seven months of his life in an orphanage in Cambodia, where he was born. Angelia was married to Billy Bob Thornton at the time when she adopted Maddox on her own in 2001. Several months after returning home, the couple called it quits and Angelina raised Maddox as a single parent. When Angelina and Brad began dating in 2005, the actor started the process to also adopt Maddox. In 2006, Maddox officially changed his surname to Jolie-Pitt. Their rocky relationship hit fever point following a volatile incident on a private flight in 2016, where Angelina claimed that he 'physically and verbally assaulted' her and their children. Brad denies the claims. Just months after Angelina and Brad's divorce was officially finalised in 2024, Maddox filed to drop the actor's last name. In February this year, Maddox was listed in the end credits of his mother's movie Couture as Maddox Jolie, rather than Maddox Jolie-Pitt. Previously on Jolie's biopic Maria, Maddox was credited as Maddox Jolie-Pitt.  Now, Maddox and his sister Zahara have taken the final steps to drop Brad's last name officially. Zahara (pictured with Angelina in 2025) has filed to drop her father's surname like her siblings Zahara, 21, was adopted by Angelina in 2005 when she was just seven months old in Ethiopia.  After they returned home Brad officially filed to adopt Zahara, leading to her hyphenated name.  Like her older brother Maddox, Zahara has made final steps to drop Brad's last name officially. Last month, Zahara filed a petition requesting that her new name be Zahara Marley Jolie.  Zahara publicly dropped the last name three years ago when she joined a sorority at Spelman College.  'My name is Zahara Marley Jolie. And [I] landed all the way from the Golden State in the city full of angels: Los Angeles, California,' she appeared to say while introducing herself to sorority sisters, via People.  She also went by Zahara Marley Jolie during her graduation ceremony. Her name was read at the ceremony as Zahara Marley Jolie, rather than as the hyphenated Jolie-Pitt. Brad allegedly skipped his daughter's graduation, according to TMZ. 'Nothing prevented him from showing up for her. Or ever visiting her. The day was about all she accomplished. Not whether he was willing to attend,' a source close to Jolie told the publication. However, multiple sources have spoken to the Daily Mail exclusively in defense of Brad, insisting that he is not the absent father he has been portrayed as, and he wants a relationship with his six kids. On her 18th birthday, Shiloh hired and paid for her own lawyer when she filed to drop Brad's surname Shiloh, 20, is Angelina and Brad's first biological daughter. On her 18th birthday, Shiloh hired and paid for her own lawyer when she filed to drop Brad's surname. Three months later in 2024, Shiloh was officially granted a name change from Shiloh Nouvel Jolie-Pitt to Shiloh Nouvel Jolie. Brad was said to be 'hurt' by his daughter's decision to legally drop his last name and at the time hoped of a reconciliation with his children once the 'dust had settled'.  'He knew this was coming and there is nothing he can do about it right now,' a source exclusively revealed to DailyMail.com. 'It's sad but Brad's strained relationship with his kids and Angelina is just a way of life for him now.' The insider added that Brad will always leave the door open for his estranged children should they be willing to reconnect in the future. The source continued: 'He respects Shiloh's decision. He loves her and no matter what happens, he is always only a phone call away. 'He will be there for Shiloh and any of his kids whenever they need, no questions asked. But it's up to them to make the next move.' Pax once called his dad a 'world class a**hole' and 'despicable person' who made his four youngest children 'tremble in fear' in a scathing Instagram post shared on Father's Day  Pax, 22, was born in Vietnam in 2003 where he spent the first few years of his life in an orphanage. Angelina adopted Pax at the age of three in 2007. Brad formally adopted him a year later after their wedding. Following his parents' extremely messy and public divorce, Pax has suffered two horrific e-bike crashes in recent years. The nepo baby, who is a voice actor, famously sided with his mother during the fallout, unleashing a shocking tirade against Brad in 2020. The then-teen called his dad a 'world class a**hole' and 'despicable person' who made his four youngest children 'tremble in fear' in a scathing Instagram post shared on Father's Day. In the cutting post, Pax added: 'You time and time and again prove yourself to be a terrible and despicable person.  'You have no consideration or empathy toward your four youngest children who tremble in fear when in your presence. 'You will never understand the damage you have done to my family because you're incapable of doing so. 'You have made the lives of those closest to me a constant hell. You may tell yourself and the world whatever you want but the truth will come to light someday.' Then he sarcastically added: 'So Happy Father's Day, you f*****g awful human being.' It is not known if Pax has stopped using Brad's last name, like his siblings. Brad and Angelina pictured in 2011 with their six children Knox and Vivienne, both 18, are Angelina and Brad's biological twins.  Vivienne dropped the last name 'Pitt' from her moniker in The Outsiders Playbill in May 2024. According to People, the former couple's daughter was listed as Vivienne Jolie in the literature, instead of Vivienne Jolie-Pitt.  It's unknown if she has legally changed her name.  This summer, Knox also dropped his father's surname in the wake of his other siblings doing the same. He removed the last name of Pitt from his high school diploma as he graduated from Fusion Academy in Los Angeles. Instead, the teen's name was simply listed as Knox Jolie on the official certificate.