A major blow to Brad Pitt.

TPO - Five out of six of Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie's children have dropped their father's surname from their names. This is considered Brad Pitt's biggest shock, reflecting the breakdown and tragedy that has lasted nearly a decade between the seemingly perfect man of American cinema.

A heavy blow to the perfect man.

In Hollywood, tumultuous divorces are not uncommon. Child custody battles, protracted lawsuits, and public accusations are all familiar. However, the case of Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie is still considered one of the most unique family tragedies in the world of entertainment.

Over the past two years, each of the celebrity couple's children has successively dropped the surname "Pitt" from their names, from Shiloh, Zahara, Vivienne, Maddox to the latest, Knox.

Knox, the most private son of the Jolie-Pitt family, has dropped his father's surname and used the name "Knox Jolie" on his high school diploma. This move has drawn attention because Knox has previously remained largely uninvolved in his parents' public disputes and has never expressed any feelings of love or hate towards Brad Pitt.

Pax Thien is currently the only one of the six children who has not changed his name or publicly used the surname Jolie instead of Jolie-Pitt.

Brad Pitt's youngest child has dropped his last name, leaving only Pax Thien.

That doesn't mean the relationship between Pax Thien and Brad Pitt is better than the others.

In 2020, in a Father's Day post, Pax Thien called Brad Pitt "the world's number one jerk," accusing his adoptive father of making his children live in fear. The post was reportedly written after the family tragedy of 2016 – the time when Angelina Jolie filed for divorce and accused Brad Pitt of violent behavior on a private flight carrying the family from Europe to the US.

That was the harshest statement ever recorded from one of Brad Pitt's children.

While Pax Thien has publicly criticized his father, Maddox has long had the greatest distance from the actor. Maddox stopped contacting Brad Pitt years ago, and in May 2026, he applied to change his name to Maddox Chivan Jolie.

Shiloh, once described by the American media as Brad Pitt's most beloved and highly anticipated daughter, is also the first to legally change her name immediately after turning 18 in 2024.

For many years, Zahara used the name Zahara Jolie in public events before filing to drop the Pitt surname. Vivienne used the name Vivienne Jolie in the production team introduction for the musical The Outsiders.

This is almost an unprecedented case in Hollywood.

A A-list star with a career spanning over three decades, an Oscar winner, once considered a role model father to a large family, now sees almost all of his children publicly disown him.

This is "shock after shock" for Brad Pitt. Many sources close to the actor say he is heartbroken by his children's decisions but still hopes that one day he can mend the broken relationship.

The fact that one child changed their surname was already noteworthy. When that number rose to five, it was no longer simply a personal choice but became a symbol of the deep rifts within what was once Hollywood's most famous family.

The humiliation of children abandoning their father's name one by one.

Brad Pitt's story isn't just about his children changing their names. The pain lies in the fact that the breakdown occurred after nearly a decade of disputes, lawsuits, and unsuccessful attempts at reconciliation.

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When Angelina Jolie filed for divorce in September 2016, Brad Pitt was determined to remain a father figure to their six children. In the years that followed, the actor continuously pursued legal proceedings regarding custody and visitation rights.

In an interview with The New York Times , Brad Pitt admitted to past mistakes, including alcohol abuse during a period of marital discord. He participated in rehabilitation programs and psychological treatment, attempting to repair the damage to his family.

But over time, the gap between Brad Pitt and his children widened. Within two years, Brad Pitt witnessed five of his six children drop his last name one after another.

In Hollywood, there are no shortage of cases of parental and child conflict after divorce. However, the fact that almost all of the children publicly or quietly renounce their father's surname is so rare that many American newspapers have described it as an "unprecedented" situation for an A-list star.

Jolie's life revolves around her six children, while Brad Pitt is living a new life with his girlfriend.

According to Dr. Joshua Coleman, a family psychologist and author of " Rules of Estrangement ," the phenomenon of adult children cutting off or limiting contact with their parents is becoming increasingly common in the United States. In most cases, this is the result of a long-term buildup of hurt, frustration, or a loss of trust over the years.

In the case of the Jolie-Pitt family, the incident on the private flight in 2016 is considered the biggest turning point. Although the FBI and law enforcement agencies did not prosecute Brad Pitt, the incident became the focus of a legal battle that lasted nearly a decade. Angelina Jolie claimed that she and her children were victims of domestic violence from her ex-husband. Brad Pitt consistently denied these allegations.

To this day, the public still doesn't know the full story of what really goes on behind the doors of one of Hollywood's most famous families. But the undeniable fact is that the children are all grown up and have the right to make their own decisions, and most of them choose to side with their mother.

Many family experts believe that time plays a crucial role in this process.

In an interview with Psychology Today about post-divorce families, psychologist Carl Pickhardt noted that children often form stronger emotional bonds with the person directly present in their daily lives. This bond is built through small but consistent interactions such as dropping them off at school, caring for them when they are sick, accompanying them through developmental stages, or simply through their constant presence.

That's also what many observers see in Angelina Jolie.

After her divorce, the actress dedicated most of her time to her six children. The public frequently sees Angelina with her children at airports, international events, schools, and on humanitarian missions. In interviews, she has repeatedly stated that her life revolves around caring for and being with her children.

In 2023, in an interview with Vogue , Angelina Jolie said her family was still in the process of healing from years of hardship. The actress stated that her children were the biggest reason she kept moving forward.

Meanwhile, Brad Pitt is also entering a new chapter in his life.

The actor continued his film projects, rebuilding his career after years of crisis and publicly revealing his relationship with jewelry designer Ines de Ramon. In the public eye, Brad Pitt's image in recent years has been more associated with new films, business deals, and appearances with his girlfriend than moments with his children.

That doesn't mean Brad Pitt is an irresponsible or uncaring father. Many sources close to the actor confirm that he still hopes for reconciliation and is heartbroken by the current estrangement. However, in protracted divorces, desire alone is often not enough to maintain the relationship.

Dr. Stephanie Sarkis, a family relationship expert in the US, once stated that in highly contentious divorces, what matters is not who is right or wrong in the public eye, but who makes the child feel safer, more secure, and more understood.

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From that perspective, the fact that the children successively chose to keep the Jolie surname can be seen as symbolic of their attachment to the person who has been most present in their lives for almost a decade.

Of course, the opposite perspective also exists.

Some family law experts and Brad Pitt supporters have referred to the concept of "parental alienation," a phenomenon where a parent unintentionally or intentionally causes their children to become increasingly distant from the other parent after a divorce. In previously released documents related to the child custody case, some experts consulted by the court argued that maintaining a relationship with both parents is crucial for a child's development.

However, those debates never had a definitive answer.

Angelina Jolie denies influencing her children. Meanwhile, several sources close to the actress suggest that the children's decisions are a result of their own personal experiences and emotions over the years.

But whatever the cause, the ultimate outcome has been a subject of much public attention. Nearly 10 years after the family broke up, Brad Pitt has almost completely lost touch with his children.

Even in his 60s, Brad Pitt remains one of Hollywood's most powerful stars, possessing a fortune worth hundreds of millions of dollars, a stellar career, and a status that many actors only dream of.

But amidst the successes, his family story remains the biggest scar in the actor's life.

Source: https://tienphong.vn/don-giang-manh-vao-brad-pitt-post1851204.tpo