Angelina Jolie celebrated turning 51 on Thursday, surrounded by her children, shortly after her son Maddox made headlines by officially removing Brad Pitt’s surname from his own.
The actress embraced a relaxed style, donning a grey sweater, trousers, and glasses, as she stepped out with her sons Knox, 17, and Pax, 22, in Los Angeles.
Knox caught attention with his vibrant orange and red hair, complementing his look with a cream shirt and white joggers as he assisted his mom in unloading items from the car.
Pax was seen in conversation with Jolie, as the family geared up to celebrate her milestone birthday together.
This family outing follows confirmation by The Daily Mail that Maddox, 24, Jolie’s eldest son, had officially petitioned to remove ‘Pitt’ from his last name, opting for Maddox Chivan Jolie due to ‘personal’ reasons.
He had already begun using the name Maddox Jolie informally since February, as evidenced in the end credits of his mother’s film, Couture, where he was listed without the Pitt surname.
Angelina Jolie marked her 51st birthday with her children by her side on Thursday – after son Maddox became the latest of her brood to officially drop estranged dad Brad Pitt’s surname – seen with son Knox, 17
Pax, 22, was seen chatting with Jolie as the family prepared to celebrate her special day
In a heartbreaking blow to the Oscar winner, who has been estranged from his children, Maddox has joined several of his siblings in distancing themselves from the Pitt name, following his sister Shiloh’s legal name change last year.
His other sisters Zahara, 21, and Vivienne, 17, have also informally dropped the name.
Pitt, 62, and Jolie were married from 2014 to 2019, but their relationship came to a tumultuous end years before their divorce was finalized.
The Daily Mail reached out to Pitt’s representatives for comment at the time.
The sighting comes after Knox, Pax, and Maddox, were seen at sister Zahara’s graduation from Spelman College in Atlanta, Georgia – but there was no sign of Pitt whose last name Zahara ditched again at the ceremony.
Knox, his twin Vivienne and Shiloh, 20, were welcomed during Jolie’s relationship with Pitt which ended in divorce in 2016.
Zahara appeared to publicly remove Pitt’s last name for the first time in her Alpha Kappa Alpha sorority initiation ceremony in late 2023.
The actress opted for a casual look in a grey sweater, trousers and spectacles
Knox flashed his bold new orange and red hair paired with a cream shirt and white joggers as he helped his mom unload items from the car
Knox helped his mom unload the car on her birthday
Jolie looked stylish during the outing with her children
Knox was the spitting image of Pitt as he stepped out
Jolie was gearing up to mark her special day
Knox looked stylish as he headed out in LA
Pitt and Jolie’s adopted son Maddox Jolie-Pitt officially filed to drop the actor’s last name last month; Pitt seen in 2025
In their divorce, Jolie cited irreconcilable differences and later accused Pitt of abusing both her and their children, which he has denied.
Their lengthy, contentious divorce battle was finalized in late 2024, and since then, many of their kids have dropped Pitt’s surname amid their ongoing estrangement.
Shiloh also now goes by Shiloh Nouvel Jolie as she filed paperwork to legally remove her estranged dad’s surname from her own when she turned 18 in the summer of 2024.
Then, in February, Maddox dropped Pitt from his professional credits as he appeared as Maddox Jolie in the production notes for the film Couture and screenings of the movie Maria.
In May 2024, Vivienne was credited as Vivienne Jolie, not Vivienne Jolie-Pitt, on the playbill for The Outsiders, the Broadway musical.
Pitt made a shocking remark about his family after his bitter divorce with Jolie officially came to an end, but his fractured relationship with their six children remains unresolved.
Pitt, who believes his relationship with two of his children is ‘unfixable,’ opened up about how important family is to him, amid his ongoing and escalating estrangement from his kids.
Speaking at the F1 premiere in Mexico City, he said: ‘No matter the mistake, you just learn from [it] and move on,’ he told ET. ‘It’ll lead to the next success.’
The Daily Mail confirmed that Maddox filed for the name change on Thursday listing his reason as ‘personal’; Maddox seen with Jolie and Pitt in 2013
He has joined several of his siblings in distancing themselves from the Pitt name, following sister Shiloh’s, 20, legal name change; Jolie pictured with Shiloh (R) and her other daughter Zahara in 2021
The Oscar winner continued, ‘When you get to my age, you realize how important it is to surround yourself with the people you love, the people that love you back.’
‘Friends, family, and that’s it,’ he added. ‘From there, we get to go make things. It’s a pretty simple, I think, equation.’
The interview comes after a source exclusively told the Daily Mail how Pitt felt after Pax was pictured last month stumbling out of the Chateau Marmont, propped up by several friends.
‘He has zero concern with what Pax does or doesn’t do. [Pax’s] actions reflect who he is,’ the insider said.
