Angelina Jolie is back in the spotlight after the actress made a striking remark about the bond she shares with her children amid their reported estrangement from their father Brad Pitt. In a candid interview, Angelina said her children “still like” her and want to be around her, while also encouraging her to step back out into the world.
The actress, 51, spoke about the support she gets from her six children after several of them chose to drop Pitt from their surname.
She shares Maddox, Pax, Zahara, Shiloh, and twins Knox and Vivienne with Brad Pitt.
Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt family rift back in focus
Speaking to Variety, Angelina said: “I think my fighting spirit is finally back.” She added: “I lost it for a bit. I got kind of taken down a little bit, and it’s coming back in large part thanks to my children, who are now older, and encouraging it.”
She then made the comment that has raised eyebrows.
“They know me more than anybody, and they still like me, which says a lot,” Angelina said.
She also explained that her children want to see her travelling more and doing new things.
“My kids are almost all 18, so now they want to see me traveling the world, they want me to get out and do things,” she said. “I think they’re very encouraging of me kind of getting back to aspects of myself that maybe I hadn’t felt as free to do.”
How Angelina Jolie says her children helped her move forward
Angelina also revealed that she nearly walked away from acting after her split from Brad Pitt. However, she said family life shaped that decision because she needed work that kept her close to home.
“I was focusing on directing, and I thought I’d be doing my international work,” she said. “But then suddenly the only way to be home more and for short periods of time being away or to make a good amount of money was to go back to acting. “I was only taking things that were short or close by, or I could take [my children].”
Angelina and Brad began their relationship in 2005, married in 2014 and split in 2016. Their divorce battle then dragged on for years and included a bitter custody dispute.
Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie’s children change surnames
In the years since the breakup, their children have increasingly distanced themselves from Brad Pitt’s surname. According to the report, Shiloh was the first to legally remove “Pitt” from her name.
Meanwhile, Maddox and Zahara have also taken steps to drop the surname. Vivienne left off “Pitt” in her credit for The Outsiders in 2024, while Knox reportedly used “Knox Jolie” at his high school graduation in 2026.
What Brad Pitt has said about his children
Brad Pitt has largely stayed quiet in public about the reported distance between him and his children. However, he previously admitted he wanted to do better as a father.
In a 2017 interview with GQ, Brad said: “It’s hit me smack in the face with our divorce: I gotta be more. I gotta be more for them. I have to show them. And I haven’t been great at it.”
He added: “When I get in that busy work mode, I’m not hearing. I want to be better at that.”
Angelina’s latest remarks have once again put the family dynamic under the spotlight, especially as more of the couple’s children appear to be moving away from the Pitt name.
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