Brad Pitt reckoned with loss of children before Shiloh dropped his last name: report

Even before Brad Pitt was made aware that his daughter Shiloh was dropping “Pitt” from her last name, the actor had been coming to terms with being estranged from all six of his children with Angelina Jolie.

“The reminders that he’s lost his children, is of course not easy for Brad,” a source told People Monday. “He loves his children and misses them. It’s very sad.”

There have been news reports over the past several years that indicated that Pitt had probably become estranged from his older adopted children — Maddox, 22, Pax, 20, and Zahara, 19 — amid his contentious and protracted divorce from Jolie. But it’s become apparent in the past week that he may no longer have relationships with his three biological children, Shiloh, 18, and 15-year-old twins, Vivienne and Knox.

Last week, Shiloh celebrated her 18th birthday by hiring a lawyer to help her petition the court to legally drop “Pitt” from her surname and to henceforth be known as “Shiloh Jolie,” not “Shiloh Jolie-Pitt,” People and other news outlets reported. People also reported last week that Vivienne had dropped “Pitt” in her Playbill credit for the new musical “The Outsiders,” which her mother produced.

The news about Shiloh hiring an attorney to officially distance herself from her father has proved to be especially painful for Pitt, according to the People source.

“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,” the source said.

Indeed, Shiloh’s rebuke of her father is no doubt a reminder to him — and to his fans — of happier times, when he and Jolie reigned as one of Hollywood’s most famous and glamorous super couples and were raising their six children to be humanitarian-minded global citizens.

The birth of Shiloh, their first biological child, also was treated by the media as an international news event. Just a year or so into Pitt and Jolie’s relationship, the globe-trotting duo made the the unusual decision to travel to the African nation of Namibia for Shiloh’s birth in May 2006, CBS News reported at the time. Following the birth, the couple held a joint news conference with Namibian journalists, during which Pitt called the arrival of their daughter “truly peaceful.”

The privilege of publishing the first photos of Shiloh Nouvel Jolie-Pitt also became the subject of a fierce bidding war among news and entertainment outlets. People magazine won the rights to a cover story on Shiloh’s birth by paying a reported $4 million, which Pitt and Jolie said would be donated to charity.

According to People’s cover story, the six photos taken of Shiloh revealed that she has “Dad’s baby blues and just a soft crop of fair hair.” But the story pointed to Shiloh’s lips that showed “a super-size pout,” identifying her maternal lineage.

“Yes, Shiloh Nouvel Jolie-Pitt is definitely her mother’s daughter,” People reported.

The storied union between Pitt and Jolie came crashing down in September 2016 when Jolie filed for divorce and reports began circulating that the split was prompted by an altercation involving the couple on a private plane ride from the South of France to Los Angeles.

Several of the actors’ children also reportedly were involved in the incident, according to a subsequent FBI report. Since then, Jolie has has accused the “Fight Club” actor of being physically abusive on the plane ride and during their two-year marriage and 12-year relationship.

Details about the private-plane confrontation and Pitt’s alleged abuse emerged in a 2022 Freedom of Information lawsuit Jolie filed against the federal law enforcement agency, as well as in court papers related to their protracted child-custody battle and their legal fight over their French winery, Chateau Miraval, the Los Angeles Times reported.

People magazine reported this week that Shiloh’s decision to drop her father’s last name was in part motivated by her mother’s allegations related to her father’s “abuse history.” Pitt has long denied the abuse allegations and his representatives have pointed out that he was never charged with a crime.

When Jolie filed for divorce, she requested sole physical custody of their six children. Pitt tried to fight back, both in family court and in the court of public opinion.

As he was campaigning for his Academy Award for “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood” in 2019 and 2020, he went on an apology tour of sorts and admitted in interviews that he worked to overcome a drinking problem and issues with anger management.

Pitt also has given periodic interviews, often on the red carpet for awards events or movie premieres, in which he has tried to make it appear that he was still on good terms with his children.

In August 2022, he came off sounding like Shiloh’s adoring father while speaking to a reporter for Entertainment Tonight at the premiere of his film “Bullet Train.” The reporter asked Pitt, “rocking a mint green suit,” about a recent video in which his aspiring dancer daughter showed off some of her impressive moves.

“It brings a tear to the eye, yeah,” Pitt said of Shiloh and her love for dance and performance, adding that she’s “very beautiful.”

“I don’t know where she got it from. I’m Mr. Two-Left-Feet here,” Pitt added with a laugh.

Behind the scenes, though, Pitt was struggling to maintain a connection to his children amid his legal battles with his ex-wife, People reported in 2022.

“Since Angelina filed for divorce, Brad has been focused on having the best relationship possible with his kids,” an insider told People.

But the insider also said: “It’s been very difficult for him. Many times, there have been long gaps where he didn’t see the kids at all.”

Pitt’s lack of connection with his children has been “a sad situation for years,” the insider also said.