Who Are All Of Brad Pitt And Angelina Jolie's 6 Kids?
In a world where nuclear families are becoming less and less common, former celebrity couple Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt chose to grow a family bigger than most. With six children in total to fill out their household, three of them are adopted, with two of them hailing from Asian countries and the other from Africa. Having grown up under the same roof, the six siblings seem to share a close bond. As the Jolie-Pitts grow up, they're all slowly becoming successful in their own fields and are pursuing their hobbies as passionately as they can.
Throughout the years, the multicultural family has been in the spotlight with multiple controversies surrounding the kids, be it about their adoptions or their clothing choices. Find out all about Jolie and Pitt's six children, including the details of their adoption or birth, their achievements, what ignited the controversies associated with them, and some lesser-known facts.
Maddox Chivan Jolie-Pitt
Angelina Jolie adopted a seven-month-old Maddox Chivan from a Cambodian orphanage in 2002. Jolie adopted him on her own, as she was married to her second husband, Billy Bob Thornton, at the time. As the actor recalled to Vanity Fair, Maddox was the last baby she met at the orphanage and the only one who she immediately developed a bond with.
However, two years after Jolie brought Maddox home, Lauryn Galindo — who organized the adoption procedure for the actor — was accused of buying children from impoverished Cambodian families, having them adopted by Americans, and pocketing a significant amount of money in the process. When Galindo was convicted for falsifying information to get U.S. visas for the children, the case led to serious controversy surrounding Maddox's adoption. At the time, Jolie stated, "I would never rob a mother of her child. I can only imagine how dreadful that would feel" (via The Sydney Morning Herald).
Maddox — who was brought up single-handedly following Jolie's 2003 divorce from Thornton – was adopted by Jolie's then-boyfriend, Brad Pitt, in 2006, with his surname being changed to Jolie-Pitt. During his teenage years, Maddox served as a production assistant for 2015's "By The Sea" and an executive producer for 2017's "First They Killed My Father." Both the films were directed by his mother, with the former starring Pitt alongside Jolie. The eldest of the Jolie-Pitts entered South Korea's Yonsei University in 2019 and is reportedly pursuing a degree in biochemistry.
Zahara Marley Jolie-Pitt
Born in January 2005, Zahara Marley was adopted by Angelina Jolie from an Ethiopian orphanage as a seven-month-old and by Brad Pitt a year later, having her last name altered to Jolie-Pitt. That said, just like the adoption of her elder brother Maddox, Zahara's adoption became a much-discussed topic back in 2007 when a woman claiming to be her birth mother demanded that the child return to her biological family.
Mentewab Dawit Lebiso, Zahara's alleged birth mother, claimed that she conceived the child after being sexually assaulted and was so poor that she gave Zahara up for adoption. In 2017, Lebiso drew people's attention once again as she asked via the Daily Mail for a chance to be involved in Zahara's life or at least meet or talk to her. The actors never publicly responded to Lebiso's claims or demands. Ultimately, the adoption agency claimed that an investigation by the court found the adoption to be legal, and multiple witnesses testified that Zahara was an orphan.
Much like her mother, Zahara is also a philanthropist. Back in 2019, she collaborated with jeweler Robert Procop to launch the accessory line, Zahara Collection, the profits of which were donated to an organization offering shelter to abused women and children in Los Angeles. In 2022, she enrolled in Spelman College – a historically Black women's college in Georgia — and became a member of the Alpha Kappa Alpha sorority.
Shiloh Nouvel Jolie-Pitt
Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt welcomed the fifth member of their family and first biological child in Namibia in May 2006. Since her childhood, Shiloh unfortunately caught the attention of the media. However, this time, the controversies surrounded something as trivial as her fashion choices. For most of her life, the public had seen Shiloh in traditionally men's clothing, and as Pitt revealed in a 2008 interview with Oprah Winfrey, she even wanted to be called John or Peter due to her love for "Peter Pan." Her preferences seemingly changed as she grew older, and she started wearing more feminine clothes to events, repurposing her mother's awards shows dresses in most cases.
In 2010, Jolie spoke to Reuters about her daughter's fashion sense. "I think [Shiloh] is fascinating, the choices she is making. And I would never be the kind of parent to force somebody to be something they are not. I think that is just bad parenting," the actor explained. "Children should be allowed to express themselves in whatever way they wish without anybody judging them because it is an important part of their growth."
In 2008, baby Shiloh appeared in the Pitt-starring film, "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button," and she voiced a character in 2016's "Kung Fu Panda 3." She's also an avid dancer, who has been in multiple YouTube videos posted by the Los Angeles-based dance studio Millennium Dance Complex.
Pax Thien Jolie-Pitt
Born in 2003, Pax Thien was raised in a Vietnamese orphanage until Angelina Jolie adopted him in March 2007. He was left at a hospital when he was a baby, and the orphanage was unable to identify his biological family. With adoption laws in Vietnam not being entirely supportive of unmarried couples, Jolie adopted Pax on her own. Brad Pitt legally adopted him the following year and had his surname attached to Pax by a Los Angeles County Children's Court.
In 2007, Jolie told MSN (via People), "[Pax] spent three 1/2 years of his life in one place, in one room, in this one little iron bed with 20 other kids, and having no choice for himself to do things ... And suddenly, here he is in a very free situation with new brothers and sisters and a mom and dad. He's learning English and he's so loving and he's wild and free 'cause he suddenly has freedom so he's a little wild and crazy. But what a tough, remarkable little person."
Pax is said to have a knack for photography, which proved to be pretty fruitful on the set of his mother's 2017 film, "First They Killed My Father." In 2022, he shot the behind-the-scenes videos for Jolie's upcoming movie "Without Blood" and helped the assistant director department alongside brother Maddox. Regarding her sons' involvement on set, Jolie told People, "We work well together. When a film crew is at its best, it feels like a big family, so it felt natural."
Knox Léon Jolie-Pitt
In July 2008, Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt welcomed their fifth and sixth children – fraternal twins Knox Léon and Vivienne Marcheline. Jolie gave birth via a C-section at a hospital in Nice, France. The first twin, born just minutes prior to the second, was Knox. The names of the twins, especially that of Knox, were decided with a lot of thoughtfulness. Knox shares the last letters of his first and middle names with his older brothers. All their first names end with "x," while their middle names end with "n." Knox's name also holds a great deal of value to his parents. "Knox" was the middle name of Pitt's grandfather, while "Léon" came from Jolie's side, being the name of her great-great-grandfather.
Although Knox is often spotted alongside his family members at various events as well as on the streets, he seemingly keeps a low profile, and there is a lot yet to be known about the youngest Jolie-Pitt son. In 2016, he lent his voice to Ku Ku in "Kung Fu Panda 3," which also featured the voices of Jolie, Zahara, Shiloh, and Pax.
Vivienne Marcheline Jolie-Pitt
The second-born of the twins Angelina Jolie birthed in 2008 is Vivienne Marcheline. Since the twins were born in France, Jolie and Brad Pitt decided to go with the French version of "Vivian" for their youngest daughter, naming her Vivienne. As for her middle name, it comes from her mother's side just like that of Knox. The choice was made to honor Jolie's mother, Marcheline Bertrand, who died a year before the twins were born.
Vivienne has already made her mark in the entertainment industry, as she made her film debut by appearing as a younger version of Aurora in the Jolie-starring 2014 film, "Maleficent," when she was just 4 years old. Explaining how little Vivienne was cast in the role, Jolie told Entertainment Weekly, "[Brad and I] think it's fun for our kids to have cameos and join us on set, but not to be actors ... But [Vivienne] was 4 at the time, and other 3 and 4-year-old [actors] really wouldn't come near me. It had to be a child that really liked me and wasn't afraid of my horns and my eyes and my claws. So it had to be Viv."
In August 2023, Jolie announced that she'd be producing a 2024 Broadway musical titled "The Outsiders," with Vivienne as her volunteer assistant. Praising the teenager, Jolie noted in a statement (via People), "She's very thoughtful and serious about theatre and working hard to best understand how to contribute."
The parenting styles of the actors allegedly caused their divorce
The parenting methods of Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt have always been different, according to the actors themselves. In 2012, Jolie explained to OK!, "I used to be the tougher parent. But since the birth of the twins, Brad's had to play bad cop more often." Three years later, Pitt told the Telegraph, "I am [the disciplinarian] with the boys. Girls do no wrong, so I don't have to be" (via E! News).
When Jolie and Pitt split in 2016, an insider claimed to TMZ that the breakup was largely caused by their varying parenting styles and Pitt's anger issues. At the time, Jolie's representative told Us Weekly, "Angelina Jolie Pitt has filed for dissolution of the marriage. This decision was made for the health of the family."
Although reports claimed that the former couple had resorted to peaceful co-parenting by 2020, things got bitter again in 2022. In 2022, when Pitt filed a lawsuit against Jolie for selling her share of a vineyard they jointly owned in France without Pitt's consent, Jolie sued him back, alleging domestic violence she faced was also inflicted on their children. Although Pitt was never convicted for these allegations, the lawsuit became a topic of speculation. While some chose to believe Jolie's narrative, others defended Pitt.