Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt’s children, Zahara and Maddox, have taken another legal step toward removing “Pitt” from their surnames, completing a key California requirement before their name change requests can be approved in court.
The latest filings come as several of the former Hollywood couple’s children have increasingly chosen to use only the surname “Jolie” in recent years.
Court documents show that 21-year-old Zahara and 24-year-old Maddox published notices of their proposed name changes in the Los Angeles Daily Journal, as required under California law.
Zahara’s petition appeared once a week for four consecutive weeks on June 16, June 23, June 30 and July 7. The legal notice also invites anyone opposing the request to submit written objections before the final court hearing.
Her hearing has been scheduled for September 28, where a judge will decide whether to approve her request if no objections are received.
Maddox completed the same legal process earlier, with his notices published on June 10, June 17, June 24 and July 1. According to separate court filings, his hearing is scheduled for September 14.
New legal names requested
Zahara is seeking to officially change her name from Zahara Marley Jolie-Pitt to Zahara Marley Jolie. Meanwhile, Maddox has requested that his legal name be changed from Maddox Chivan Jolie-Pitt to Maddox Chivan Jolie.
Earlier court filings indicated that Maddox cited "personal" reasons for requesting the change.
Under California law, publishing the petition in a newspaper of general circulation is a mandatory step before a court can approve a legal name change.
Zahara had already stopped using ‘Pitt’
Although the legal process is still underway, Zahara has publicly used the surname Jolie for some time. She introduced herself simply as Zahara Marley Jolie during a 2024 Alpha Kappa Alpha sorority event at Spelman College.
More recently, during her May 17, 2026 graduation ceremony at Spelman College, where she earned a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology, her name was announced as Zahara Marley Jolie, despite the commencement programme listing her as Zahara Marley Jolie-Pitt.
Maddox also dropped the surname professionally
Maddox informally stopped using his father's surname earlier this year. He was credited as Maddox Jolie while serving as an assistant director on Angelina Jolie’s latest film, Couture.
The drama stars Angelina as an American film director diagnosed with breast cancer after arriving in France to make a video during Paris Fashion Week.
Reports dating back to 2021 also suggested Maddox had already been using "Jolie" instead of "Pitt" on non-legal documents.
One report noted that Angelina Jolie did not support her son's decision at the time.
Zahara and Maddox are not the only children to distance themselves from Brad Pitt’s surname. Their sister Shiloh became the first sibling to officially complete the legal process after filing to remove "Pitt" from her name on her 18th birthday in May 2024.
According to Entertainment Tonight, she hired and paid for her own lawyer during the process.
A Los Angeles Superior Court later approved the request, and she now legally goes by Shiloh Jolie. Their younger sister Vivienne also appeared to stop using the Pitt surname.
She was credited as Vivienne Jolie in the Playbill for the Broadway production The Outsiders, which she helped produce alongside her mother in 2024.
Family shares six children
Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt share six children together:
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Maddox, 24
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Pax, 22
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Zahara, 21
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Shiloh, 20
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Twins Knox and Vivienne, 17 (some reports identify Vivienne as 18 following her recent birthday)
Brad Pitt adopted both Maddox and Zahara after beginning his relationship with Angelina Jolie in 2005.
In January 2006, a Los Angeles judge approved a petition changing both children's surnames to Jolie-Pitt after Pitt formally adopted them.
The legal name changes come after years of reports describing a strained relationship between Brad Pitt and several of his children.
People magazine previously reported that Pitt has "virtually no contact" with his adult children, although he maintained visitation with his younger children until they became adults.
A source close to Pitt described the situation as "an incredibly sad reality," claiming it resulted from what was described as a prolonged campaign of alienation.
Following Shiloh’s legal name change, another source said Pitt was aware of the decision and was deeply upset.
"He loves his children and misses them," the source said.
Divorce and custody battle followed 2016 split
Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt began dating in 2005, married in 2014, and separated in 2016 after more than a decade together. Their split followed an alleged incident aboard a private flight from France to Los Angeles.
During later divorce proceedings, Jolie alleged that Pitt physically assaulted her and one of their children during the flight, claiming she had to restrain him in a chokehold after he allegedly lunged toward one of the children.
According to the documents, Jolie told investigators that Pitt’s behaviour frightened their children, who were between eight and 15 years old at the time.
Pitt denied the allegations.
The FBI investigated the incident but declined to pursue charges after completing its review. The former couple's divorce proceedings also included lengthy disputes over child custody and ownership of their French winery, Château Miraval.
Their divorce was reported as finalized in December 2024, while another report stated the pair reached a divorce settlement in January 2025.
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