Shiloh Nouvel Jolie-Pitt has recently petitioned to remove ‘Pitt’ from her double-barrelled surname following ongoing strife between her mother, Angelina Jolie, and father, Brad Pitt, in the wake of their divorce. Court documents submitted in Los Angeles County Superior Court show that the filing was made on 27th May, which incidentally is also her birthday and the same day that she turned 18 years old. Shiloh reportedly hired her own lawyer to instate the change and has already been referring to herself as Shiloh Jolie in recent public appearances.
The Kung Fu Panda 3 voice actor apparently takes after her older sister, Zahara, who had already ditched the surname as of last year when she referred to herself as “Zahara Marley Jolie” in a Spellman College video posted online. Further, Shiloh’s younger sister, Vivienne, has also followed suit, opting to drop ‘Pitt’ from her name when recently listed in a Playbill programme for a new Broadway musical that she helped produce called The Outsiders. This apparent trend amongst the Jolie-Pitt children towards distancing themselves from Pitt appears to be related to relational complications that arose during the end of his and Jolie’s marriage.
Jolie and Pitt first met in 2003 and soon thereafter commenced filming their blockbuster movie, ‘Mr and Mrs Smith’, in January of 2004. The pair began dating that same year, despite Pitt being still married to ex-wife, Jennifer Anniston, whom he officially separated from in 2005. Ten years later, the couple decided to tie the knot in 2014, holding the ceremony at their jointly owned winery, Chateau Miraval, which has since become the subject of extended litigation within their ongoing financial settlement proceedings.
Jolie first filed for divorce in September of 2016, claiming that the relationship had broken down beyond repair after a continued pattern of emotional and physical abuse from Pitt towards her and their children which was fuelled by alcohol misuse. According to court findings from 2022, Jolie referred in particular to an alleged incident on a plane journey in which Pitt had reportedly ‘grabbed her by the head’ while being physically aggressive with her and the children. At the time, Pitt strongly denied the allegations, supported by one of his reps who, although not authorised to speak publicly, said that the entire incident was merely, “another rehash that only harms the family”. Nonetheless, Jolie was clear in court that this incident is ultimately what lead to her making the final decision to end their marriage.
During proceedings, a judge granted Pitt 50/50 custody of the children after a closed-door trial during which these and other allegations were aired. However, after a motion from Jolie, an appeals court subsequently disqualified the judge for not disclosing possible conflicts of interest, thus nullifying the decision. The couple’s legal battle has been further protracted due to other complications surrounding the winery, Chateau Miraval, (where they were married) that the pair brought in 2008. Jolie had previously accused Pitt of wasting funds to make ‘vanity upgrades’ to the vineyard, shortly after which she opted to sell her own share without consulting Pitt. According to Pitt, this move was in direct violation of an agreement between Pitt and Jolie that stipulated he was to have first refusal on any sale. The case is still unresolved as litigation continues on both points.
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