Brad Pitt Distressed as Daughter Shiloh Files to Drop His Last Name

 

American actor Brad Pitt is reportedly "upset and aware" that his daughter Shiloh has filed to drop his last name on her 18th birthday.

A source close to the 60-year-old Oscar winner told People that this move is another sign that Pitt feels he has "lost his children." The source added, "He’s aware and upset that Shiloh dropped his last name. He’s never felt more joy than when she was born. He always wanted a daughter."

Before Shiloh's birth, Pitt was in the process of legally adopting a daughter. Angelina Jolie, his then-partner, had traveled to Ethiopia in July 2005 to adopt Zahara, now 19, and Pitt accompanied her. By December 2005, Pitt was working on becoming Zahara's legal father, just a month before Jolie announced her pregnancy with Shiloh.

"The reminders that he’s lost his children are, of course, not easy for Brad," the source continued. "He loves his children and misses them. It’s very sad." The source also mentioned that the distance between Pitt and his six children—Maddox, 22; Pax, 20; Zahara; Shiloh; and twins Knox and Vivienne, 15—"pains him." However, the source noted that "he’s still happy with his girlfriend, Ines de Ramon."

Another source close to Pitt told the publication that the actor "still loves all of his kids tremendously," adding, "This whole process has been very hard for the whole family."

If Shiloh's request is granted, she will be known simply as "Shiloh Jolie" rather than "Shiloh Jolie-Pitt." Previously, People reported that Pitt's youngest daughter, Vivienne, listed her name as "Vivienne Jolie" in the Playbill for the Broadway musical adaptation of The Outsiders, where she assisted her mother, Angelina Jolie. It remains unclear if Vivienne has legally changed her name, but she would likely need parental consent or extenuating circumstances to do so before turning 18.

Zahara introduced herself as "Zahara Marley Jolie" when she joined the Mu Pi chapter of the Alpha Kappa Alpha sorority at Spelman College late last year. Pitt and Jolie's oldest sons, Maddox and Pax, reportedly have not publicly used their father's last name in years.

Pitt and Jolie began dating publicly after his divorce from Jennifer Aniston in 2005. Jolie filed for divorce from Pitt in 2016, and they were declared legally single in 2019. However, they have been involved in an ongoing divorce battle over assets and custody since then.