Vivienne Jolie-Pitt, the 18-year-old daughter of actors Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt, has published a legal announcement in the Los Angeles Daily Journal as she seeks to officially remove her father's surname.
The petition, filed with the Los Angeles County Superior Court on July 21, requests that her legal name be changed from Vivienne Marcheline Jolie-Pitt to Vivienne Marcheline Jolie.
According to court documents obtained by People magazine, the teenager cited personal reasons for the request. The mandatory legal notices appeared in the publication on July 24, July 31, August 7, and August 14.
The name change is not yet final, with a court hearing scheduled for November 2. Until that date, any person wishing to oppose the request must submit written arguments and appear before the court.
This is not the first time Vivienne has dropped the surname Pitt in public. In 2024, she was listed as Vivienne Jolie in the program for The Outsiders, the Broadway musical adaptation of S.E. Hinton's novel that she produced alongside her mother. While that credit was a professional decision, her current court petition aims to make the change legally binding.
Vivienne, who was born in July 2008 alongside her twin brother Knox, turned 18 this summer. She is the latest of the former couple's children to formalize her decision in court.
Legal steps by the Jolie-Pitt siblings
Her move follows similar legal steps taken by her older siblings. Zahara, 21, and Maddox, 25, both initiated court procedures this summer to drop Pitt from their surnames, with their respective hearings scheduled for September.
Zahara previously signaled her intention during her graduation from Spelman College, a historically Black liberal arts college for women in Atlanta, last May. Although the official graduation program listed her as Zahara Marley Jolie-Pitt, she was introduced on stage as Zahara Marley Jolie.
The most forceful precedent for the legal filings was set by Shiloh Jolie. In 2024, shortly after turning 18, she petitioned to legally drop her father's surname, a request approved by the court several months later. Her attorney, Peter Levine, said at the time that the choice was an independent and significant decision made following painful events.
Out of the six children shared by Pitt and Jolie, which also includes Pax and twin brother Knox, four have now taken public action to drop or cease using their father's surname. The decision comes in the wake of a long and contentious breakup between Pitt and Jolie, who married in 2014 after dating since 2004 before Jolie filed for divorce in 2016.
Response from Brad Pitt
From Brad Pitt's side, representatives have offered a different interpretation of the family situation. A source close to the actor told People last July that the name changes were the result of a prolonged campaign of parental alienation, adding that the actor lamented the ongoing deterioration of his relationship with his children.
Pitt has also spoken candidly about past career challenges, having previously described one of his film projects as the worst movie he had ever made, noting that filming it was a miserable experience.
For Vivienne, the surname Pitt remains part of her legal name for now. If the Los Angeles County Superior Court grants her petition at the November 2 hearing, the name will officially be removed from another of Pitt's daughters.
