The Tragedy Of Maddox Jolie-Pitt Is So Sad

They say the eldest son bears the weight of the father, and so lies the tragedy of Maddox Jolie-Pitt, the first adopted son of Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt. Born in 2001 in Battambang,Cambodia, Maddox would meet his adopted mother one year after she fell in love with his home country while filming "Lara Croft: Tomb Raider." He was then whisked halfway around the world where Pitt would enter his life in 2005 and become his adopted father. As the son of Brangelina, Maddox has learned a lesson or two from his parents, even becoming an executive producer at the age of 15 on Jolie's adaptation of "First They Killed My Father," a film about the Cambodian genocide. He has lived his life in the spotlight, as we have seen him grow up from a young boy to the young man he is today, with Jolie happily telling Entertainment Tonight in 2019, "I'm so happy for him that [Maddox has] grown up into such a good man. I say that 'cause he's smart and he's doing his work but he's also wild. He's balanced in his teenage years."

But Maddox has had to endure plenty of tragedy to become the happy man that his mother is so proud of. Sadly, much of that tragedy stems from Maddox's father, with Pitt and Jolie's marital difficulties spilling over into his life, sometimes in violent ways. And while it may seem like Maddox has finally weathered the storm and is thriving, it's sad to look back and learn just how much he had to endure to get there.

Angelina Jolie adopted Maddox Jolie-Pitt in 2002 in Cambodia, where she described an almost magical moment that sealed their fate as mother and son. She explained of her instant bond with Maddox, "I always had so many things that made me feel like maybe I shouldn't be somebody's mom because certainly the world has an opinion of me and I'm not so sure about myself and am I gonna be the best mom? So, the fact that this little kid seemed at ease gave me the courage to feel like I could make him happy. And so we became a family right then" (via Buzzfeed).

But while their origins may have a fairytale beginning, tragedy has reared its head since, with the Daily Mail reporting that Maddox's parents may have still been alive when Jolie adopted him. The concerns arose from a 2021 documentary called "The Stolen Children" that investigated how some Cambodian children were either left by parents or sold to orphanages to be adopted. According to the Daily Mail, Sarath Mounh, a man who worked with the orphanage that Jolie adopted Maddox from, said, "I'm not 100% sure that Maddox was an orphan even though he came from an orphanage. At least one of the parents was possibly alive at the time of his adoption." It was also revealed that Mounh signed Maddox's papers claiming to be his father in order to expedite the adoption, even though he wasn't. Despite the worrying revelations, Jolie maintained that she knew nothing and believed Maddox to be an orphan, saying, "I would never rob a mother of her child. I can only imagine how dreadful that would feel." 

The world got a dark peek into Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt's marriage after a 2016 incident that charted a course for the end of their marriage and thrust Maddox Jolie-Pitt into a terrible position. On a flight back to Los Angeles, Pitt had been drinking when he grew angry with Jolie and their children, including Maddox, and according to an unsealed FBI report obtained by NBC News, "[Pitt] allegedly physically and verbally assaulted [Jolie] and the children, who have 'experienced lasting physical and mental trauma as a result of the assault." And while the six children's names are redacted in the documents, it is rumored that Pitt aimed his ire at not just at Jolie but also at their eldest son Maddox.

The report contains snippets of the terrifying incident, recounting that after assaulting and berating Jolie, one child asked if Jolie was okay, to which Pitt replied, "No, Mommy's not okay. She's ruining this family. She's crazy." It's then that some believe Maddox chimed in and came to Jolie's defense, saying, "It's not her, it's you, you prick." According to the report, Jolie then had to physically grab Pitt around the neck to stop him from attacking Maddox. No charges were ultimately filed against Pitt, but it's safe to say that witnessing the airborne incident would be enough to scar any child for life.

The same year as the plane incident, Angelina Jolie filed for divorce from Brad Pitt, stating irreconcilable differences and asking for sole physical custody of all six of their children. To bolster Jolie's custody claims, Maddox testified against his own father, with a source telling Us Weekly, "Maddox has already given testimony as [an] adult in the ongoing custody dispute and it wasn't very flattering toward Brad." While Maddox certainly had plenty of trauma to unload on the witness stand regarding his father's private plane outburst, it is still heartbreaking to have to tell someone who terrible your own (adopted) father is. Us Weekly also reported that it's not just Maddox who was willing to spill the tea, but documents show that all six children were willing to give "proof and authority in support" against their dad. Brad Pitt's relationship with his kids had clearly deteriorated.

Us Weekly separately reported that Pitt was cleared of any child abuse allegations. But Maddox and his siblings' support for their mother seems to underline what Jolie told Vogue in an interview, saying: "I separated for the well-being of my family. It was the right decision. I continue to focus on their healing. Some have taken advantage of my silence, and the children see lies about themselves in the media, but I remind them that they know their own truth and their own minds."

It appears that the fallout from Maddox Jolie-Pitt and Brad Pitt's altercation has left them not on speaking terms. A source told Us Weekly that the connection between them is now "nonexistent." It's a tragic state of affairs for a relationship that was built on Pitt deciding to adopt Maddox as his son almost 20 years ago. It's heartbreaking to go back and read about the moment their bond was solidified in a 2007 Vogue interview with Jolie, where she recalled: "[Maddox] just out of the blue called him Dad. It was amazing... We both heard it and didn't say anything and just looked at each other. And then we kind of let it go on, and then he just continued to do it and that was it. So that was probably the most defining moment, when he decided that we would all be a family."

Now that the family is separated, it may help that Maddox has been on the other side of the world after enrolling in Yonsei University in South Korea. InTouch obtained a video of someone speaking to Maddox on campus who asked if his mother and siblings were happy that he was at school in Korea, to which Maddox smiles and says, "Uh, yeah I think so..." But then he is asked, "How about your dad, is he going to come and visit? Do you want him to come and visit?" Maddox's mood changes, the smile disappearing as he says, "Oh I don't know about that..." He is then asked, "Is your relationship with him sort of over or..." to which Maddox then shrugs and says, "Whatever happens, happens." It's a sad situation to not care whether your dad comes to visit you, but based on Maddox's past history with Pitt, we don't blame him for his non-committal answer.

If Maddox Jolie-Pitt has it his way, he'll soon be dropping the "Pitt" from his last name. With what would, on paper, appear to be an official ending to Maddox and Pitt's relationship, Us Weekly reported that Maddox is thinking of becoming simply Maddox Jolie. A source told the outlet, "He doesn't use Pitt as his last name on documents that aren't legal and instead uses Jolie. Maddox wants to legally change his last name to Jolie, which Angelina has said she doesn't support."

Whether Jolie has had a change of heart or her kids are simply getting old enough to make choices for themselves, many of Maddox's siblings have already gone ahead and dropped "Pitt," whether publicly or legally. According to People, Shiloh Jolie, Maddox's sister, hired her own lawyer when she turned 18 to make sure that everything was in order to rid herself of her father's last name. Similarly, Hello reported that Maddox's other sisters have introduced themselves without the Pitt moniker, with Zahara going as "Zahara Marley Jolie" when she joined a sorority at Spelman College in Atlanta (which Jolie might have strong feelings about). And People reported that Vivienne Jolie dropped Pitt's last name on the Playbill for a production of "The Outsiders" that she helped her mother produce. It's a sad end for the siblings, and especially for Maddox, who once found a new father in Pitt to now wanting nothing, not even his name, associated with him.