In recent months, it’s become clear that Brad Pitt has either became totally alienated from most of his six children, or that, at the very least, they’ve all chosen to align themselves with their mother, Angelina Jolie.
As reportedly painful as the situation has been for the “Fight Club” star, he now has new source of hurt and worry, according to a report this week. It is possible that one or more of his six children will want “to tell tell their story” in an interview or in some other venue, In Touch Weekly reported.
“There’s nothing to stop them from doing it,” a source told In Touch. “And when they decide to go ahead and talk, Brad will just have to sit back and take it.”
The exes have six kids together: Maddox, 22, Zahara, 19, Pax, 20, Shiloh, 18, and twins Knox and Vivienne, who turn 16 on July 12.
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – SEPTEMBER 30: (L-R) Pax Thien Jolie-Pitt, Shiloh Nouvel Jolie-Pitt, Vivienne Marcheline Jolie-Pitt, Angelina Jolie, Zahara Narley Jolie-Pitt and Knox Leon Jolie-Pitt arrive at the premiere of Disney’s “Maleficent: Mistress Of Evil” at the El Capitan Theatre on September 30, 2019 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Kevin Winter/Getty Images)
“If these kids eventually do want to turn around and get the ultimate closure by laying it all out in the open and telling the world what they’ve been through, it’s going to be Brad’s worst nightmare and no doubt will be the ultimate humiliation for him,” the In Touch source also said.
It’s been nearly eight years since Jolie, 49, dramatically left the marriage after she alleged that Pitt, 60, drunken and abusive, terrorized the family on a private plane ride from France to Los Angeles. Pitt has long denied being abusive, and he was never charged with a crime, but he acknowledged in interviews that had to overcome problems with alcohol and managing his anger.
A settlement has yet to be reached in one of the most protracted and bitter divorces in Hollywood history, with the couple’s legal battle now centered on the chateau and winery in the South of France that they once owned together and which was supposed to be the family’s refuge from the pressures of celebrity.
Another new report in People said that Pitt has “virtually no contact” with the couple’s three older adult children, Maddox, Zahara, and Pax. But per a custody agreement with Jolie, the “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood” star has visitation with the younger kids” — though his contact with them has been “limited” because of the filming schedule for his new racing movie, “F1,” People said.
Still, court-ordered visitation or not, it’s become apparent that Pitt’s relationship with his younger children also may be strained. His younger children also are his biological children, while the three oldest were adopted, initially by Jolie.
Actor Brad Pitt and children Pax Jolie-Pitt (hidden) and Shiloh Jolie-Pitt (front) arrive for the U.S. premiere of Universal Pictures “Unbroken,” December 15, 2014 at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood, California. AFP PHOTO / ROBYN BECK (Photo credit should read ROBYN BECK/AFP via Getty Images)
News broke in May that Pitt and Jolie’s daughter, Shiloh, took a major step in distancing herself from her father when she turned 18 and hired a lawyer to petition the court to legally drop “Pitt” from her surname, People and other news outlets reported. She will henceforth be known as “Shiloh Jolie,” not “Shiloh Jolie-Pitt.”
“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,” a source told People. Another source told In Touch that Pitt, who once had a close relationship with Shiloh, was “blindsided” and “heartbroken” by her decision to drop his last name.
“But he wasn’t surprised,” the In Touch source said. “He feels that Angie has slowly but surely turned their kids against him. She absolutely influenced their decisions to distance themselves from their dad.”
US actress Angelina Jolie and her daughter Vivienne Jolie-Pitt arrive for the 77th Tony Awards at Lincoln Center in New York on June 16, 2024. (Photo by ANGELA WEISS / AFP) (Photo by ANGELA WEISS/AFP via Getty Images)
In a further possible insult, it also was reported in May that Vivienne had dropped “Pitt” in her Playbill credit for the new Broadway musical “The Outsiders,” which her mother produced.
“The reminders that he’s lost his children, is of course not easy for Brad,” a source told People earlier this month. “He loves his children and misses them. It’s very sad.”
Over the past eight years, Jolie and Pitt have each revealed their versions of the divorce drama in legal documents and leaks to media outlets. But neither has said much directly about the break-up in the numerous on-the-record interviews they have given, either because they are hemmed in by private legal agreements or by a sense of discretion.
The children would not be bound by any such agreements, the source told In Touch.
“(The children) have stayed totally quiet so far, but at some point down the line it’s very plausible that they’re going to want to tell their side of the story,” the In Touch source said. This insider also said that Jolie has made it “very clear” that “this is not something she’s trying to encourage.” The “Maleficent” star also “insists” that she didn’t push Shiloh, Vivienne and Zahara to remove “Pitt” from their surnames, the source said.
Zahara was the first to go public with a name change. In November 2023, while participating in a ceremony to join the Alpha Kappa Alpha sorority at Spelman College, Zahara introduced herself as “Zahara Marley Jolie.”
The source said that Pitt is “in a very tough spot” because his difficult relationships with his children mean “it’s not like he can even try and talk to them” about whether or not to do a tell-all interview, the In Touch source said. If Pitt tried to talk to some of them, “that could only make things worse,” the source said.
“So all he can do is wait for the hammer to drop and try to put it out of his mind,” the source said. Pitt has kept busy producing films, starring in “F1” and re-teaming with his “Oceans Eleven” co-star George Clooney for the upcoming film, “Wolfs.” Pitt also is in a “serious relationship” with girlfriend Ines de Ramon, and the two are now living together, People reported this week.
When it comes to his children, Pitt has regrets, In Touch reported. “He’s sorry for everything that went down, and he knows he wasn’t a model husband or dad during the time they were together,” the source said.
