Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie's children Zahara and Maddox take out newspaper notices to drop 'Pitt' surname
Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt’s children Zahara and Maddox have taken out newspaper adverts as the next step to legally drop ‘Pitt’ from their surnames.
Back in May, it was reported that Maddox Jolie-Pitt, 24, had officially filed a petition to change his double-barrelled surname and instead use just Jolie.
The following month, reports began circulating that his sister Zahara, 21, had done the same.
And it was revealed that she had been introduced as just Zahara Marley Jolie as she took to the stage to collect her diploma.
Advert
Court documents obtained by Page Six have now revealed that the siblings have taken another step closer to changing their last names, by taking out adverts in the Los Angeles Daily Journal that ran once a week for four consecutive weeks.
The two notices share similar wording with one reading: “Petitioner Zahara Marley Jolie-Pitt filed a petition with this court for a decree changing names as follows: Zahara Marley Jolie-Pitt to Zahara Marley Jolie.”
And the other stating: “Petitioner Maddox Chivan Jolie-Pitt filed a petition with this court for a decree changing names as follows: Maddox Chivan Jolie-Pitt to Maddox Chivan Jolie.”
Both notices invite dissenting parties to attend scheduled hearings over the matter, with Zahara's scheduled for 28 September and Maddox's on 14 September.
The notices are another step towards the siblings legally changing their names.
In California, those who want to change their name legally must publish a document requesting the name change, known as an Order to Show Cause, in a newspaper for four consecutive weeks before the court date.
The court documents reveal that Zahara’s notice ran in the Los Angeles Daily Journal on 16 June, 23 June, 30 June, and 7 July.
Meanwhile, Maddox’s notice ran in the same paper, on 10 June, 17 June, 24 June, and 1 July.
Although the legal side of things is relatively new, back in 2021 US Weekly reported that Maddox ‘doesn’t use Pitt as his last name on documents that aren’t legal and instead uses Jolie’.
He also went by Maddox Jolie for this assistant director credit for his mum's movie, Couture.
According to People, 'production notes for the film provided to journalists showed Maddox’s name was also listed as Maddox Jolie' when Couture premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival in September 2025.
Jolie and Pitt enjoyed a whirlwind romance after meeting on the set of Mr and Mrs Smith in 2003 and announcing their relationship once Pit and Jennifer Aniston’s divorce was settled in 2005.
They then married in 2014, but two years later, Jolie filed for divorce, accusing Pitt of ‘abusive behaviour’.
The pair share six children: Maddox, 24, Pax, 21, Zahara, 21, Shiloh, 20 and twins Knox and Vivienne, 17.
The divorce finally settled in December 2024, and since then several of the children have dropped ‘Pitt’ from their names.
Shiloh was the first to legally change her name in 2024, while Vivienne was credited as just Vivienne Jolie in The Outsiders, a Broadway musical Vivienne helped Jolie produce.
LADbible has reached out to reps for Brad Pitt for comment.
Topics: Angelina Jolie, Brad Pitt
Claire Reid