Angelina Jolie has been targeted by an anonymous claim over her Hollywood reputation as two of her grown children take legal action to remove her. Brad Pittsurname from their names. The development comes as the former couple’s long-running legal dispute continues years after their split.According to a Daily Mail column published on July 19, an anonymous person described as a Hollywood source made several claims about Jolie’s current status in the entertainment industry. “People hate her,” the source said, though the column did not name any specific actors, filmmakers, studio executives or other industry figures who shared such an assessment of the actress and filmmaker.
The actress is back in the spotlight as two of her grown children seek to legally remove Brad Pitt’s last name. Image credit (Instagram)
Maddox Chivan Jolie and Zahara Marley Jolie are pending name change petitionsAccording to court documents obtained by PEOPLE, two of Jolie and Pitt’s adult children have filed petitions to legally change their last names. Maddox requested to change his legal name from Maddox Chivan Jolie-Pitt to Maddox Chivan Jolie. Zahara searches for the name Zahara Marley Jolie. A hearing to consider Maddox’s petition is scheduled for September 14, while Zahara’s petition will be considered on September 28.
Zahara filed a petition to legally remove Brad Pitt’s last name, joining her siblings in public using the name Jolie. Image credit (Instagram)
The two have completed the necessary step of announcing their proposed changes published in the Los Angeles Daily Journal. Maddox’s proof of publication was recorded on July 7, with Zahara following on July 9. No adult child described the petitions in that way or publicly explained the personal reasons behind the requests.Both children publicly used versions of their requested names before filing legal petitions. Maddox is known as Maddox Jolie because of his work as an assistant director in his mother’s film ‘Couture’. Zahara was introduced as Zahara Marley Jolie when she graduated from a historically Black college in May, after previously using the same name during her sorority induction.
The completed process of changing the name of Shiloh Nouvel Jolie
One of Jolie and Pitt’s children has completed the legal process to remove Pitt’s last name. Shiloh filed to become Shiloh Nouvel Jolie on her 18th birthday in May 2024. A Los Angeles judge approved the petition in August, making her the first of the former couple’s publicly known children to complete the legal process of formally changing her name.Another child was identified as Vivienne Jolie in the program for a Broadway production in which she worked with her mother. However, there is no public court record that proves the professional credit reflects a legal name change.
Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt’s divorce history and ongoing disputes
Jolie filed for separation in September 2016 after an incident on a family flight. She later alleged that Pitt physically assaulted her and two of their children during the incident. Pitt denied the allegations, and federal authorities did not file criminal charges after their review.
Fresh attention has been drawn to the former couple as legal petitions involving their children’s surnames continue to make headlines in the years following their divorce. Image credit (Instagarm)
The former couple was declared legally single in 2019, with their divorce settlement finalized in December 2024. However, separate litigation between the two over the French vineyard they owned continued beyond the resolution of their previous divorce proceedings.Jolie continues to work as an actor, director and producer. Her representatives did not respond to the column or suggest that she directed her children’s legal petitions.
