Vivienne Jolie-Pitt has taken out newspaper ads to advance her legal bid to drop “Pitt” from her last name.
The 18-year-old published notice of her petition in the Los Angeles Daily Journal once a week for four consecutive weeks, from July 24 to August 14, according to court documents. The ads fulfill a California state requirement for legal name changes and call for anyone opposing the change to submit written opposition before her final hearing.
Vivienne, who signed her petition on July 12, the day she turned 18, requested her name be changed from Vivienne Marcheline Jolie-Pitt to Vivienne Marcheline Jolie. She listed the reason as “personal.” Her next court hearing is scheduled for November 2, where a judge can approve the request if no one objects.
Marcheline Bertrand, whose name Vivienne carries as her middle name, was Jolie’s late mother. She died in 2007 after battling ovarian and breast cancer. Angelina has previously drawn connections between her daughter and her own mother, telling E! News in 2023, “Viv reminds me of my mother in that she isn’t focused on being the center of attention but in being a support to other creatives,” She added, “She’s very thoughtful and serious about theater and working hard to best understand how to contribute.”
Vivienne had already been using only “Jolie” professionally. In 2024, while working as an assistant to her mother on the Broadway adaptation of “The Outsiders,” she was credited as “Vivienne Jolie” in the show’s Playbill. The program noted that she was “a theatre student and supporter of the arts” working alongside her mom on her “first theatrical producing venture.”
Vivienne is now the fourth of the six Jolie-Pitt children to take formal legal steps to remove their father’s surname. Her sister Zahara, 21, and brother Maddox, 24, also took out ads in the Los Angeles Daily Journal in recent months to meet the same state requirement. Zahara has a scheduled September 28 court hearing for a judge to rule on her motion. Maddox’s next hearing date has not been publicly reported.
Shiloh, 20, was the first to make the change official, filing to drop “Pitt” on her 18th birthday in May 2024. She “hired her own lawyer and paid for it herself,” Entertainment Tonight reported at the time. Her lawyer, Peter Levine, later said that Shiloh had made “an independent and significant decision following painful events” and was “merely following legal process.”
In the viral moment that sparked broader public attention to the family rift, Zahara introduced herself without the Pitt surname during her Alpha Kappa Alpha sorority induction at Spelman College in August 2024. “My name is Zahara Marley Jolie,” she said in a video shared by Essence. “And I landed all the way from the Golden State in the city full of angels: Los Angeles, California.” She had already dropped “Pitt” when her name was read at her May 2024 graduation ceremony.
Maddox has also moved away from using Pitt professionally, appearing as “Maddox Jolie” in credits for his mother’s 2025 film “Couture,” where he served as assistant director. He had previously been credited as Maddox Jolie-Pitt on her 2024 film “Maria.”
The wave of name changes follows years of reported estrangement between Pitt and his adult children. All six kids have reportedly distanced themselves from the “Fight Club” star since his 2016 split from Jolie. A source said in July 2024 that Pitt has “virtually no contact” with his adult children. Jolie, 49, filed for divorce from Pitt, 62, in September 2016 after two years of marriage; they were declared legally single in 2019 and finalized their divorce in December 2024 after contentious proceedings including allegations of an altercation on a private jet.
Earlier this month, Pitt told Esquire that he felt “suicidal” while navigating “family stuff” a decade after the breakup. “The pain was so oppressive that — I wasn’t going to act on this, but I could feel — I could feel the cold steel of the bullet in my head, and it felt like relief,” he said.
A source close to Jolie emphasized to E! News that the actress “hasn’t been fighting and isn’t angry” about her children’s decisions. “She just wants everyone to heal,” the source said.
Vivienne’s November 2 hearing in Los Angeles will determine whether her name change becomes official.