Inside Pax And Brad Pitt's Relationship Today
When Angelina Jolie filed for divorce from Brad Pitt in 2016, it left Hollywood in a state of shock. The actors were parents to six kids, which included a blend of three adopted children and three biological children. One of their children includes Pax Jolie-Pitt who was adopted by Jolie in 2007 and formally adopted by Pitt just a year later. At just 3 years old, he was adopted from an orphanage in Vietnam. Jolie hoped to provide the young child with a loving family and a life of stability. "It will take him a while to realize he has a family, that his new life is permanent and it won't keep changing," she told Hello! after bringing him home. Part of that large family unit included Pitt as a loving father.
However, following the couple's split and messy custody battle, reports of the fractured family began leaking to the press. Rumors soon circulated that the six Jolie-Pitt children began taking sides, and there have been plenty of rumors that Pax and his father have been estranged since the split. Between sources leaking stories to the press and one scathing message to his father, here's everything we know about where their stands relationship today.
The plane altercation was the beginning of the end
The breakdown of the Jolie-Pitt family can be traced to a 2016 incident on a family trip. While on a private jet, Brad Pitt allegedly began verbally and physically abusing Angelina Jolie. Their eldest son Maddox intervened and defended her from an angry and intoxicated Pitt. In Jolie's testimony about the incident, the actor claimed that Pitt reacted violently to Maddox. Per NPR, he allegedly lunged at their eldest son and choked him. In the report, Jolie went on to claim that Pitt allegedly struck another of their children. Despite a DCFS investigation later clearing Pitt of any child abuse allegations, Jolie declared their marriage over. She filed for divorce, citing her family's health, and requested primary custody of their six children. The fallout from this incident didn't end there.
As the NY Daily News reported, each child was later interviewed by the FBI about the incident. The children's statements were never made public, however, in 2021 Maddox gave a testimony in the custody battle and it reportedly "wasn't very flattering to Pitt," a source told Us Weekly.
Brad's family visits seem to go well
Seven months after Angelina Jolie filed for divorce and was granted sole physical custody of her children, Brad Pitt was granted his first overnight visit with all six children, including Pax. As Entertainment Tonight reported, the family therapist recommended that the visit include the children's nannies (employed by Jolie) staying overnight. A week before the overnight visit, the six children had an evening visit at Pitt's California home. This was reportedly the first time the children entered the home since news broke of the divorce. The frequent visits with Pitt were part of the custody agreement that both parents agreed to in December 2016. As part of the agreement, Pitt was ordered to take random drug and alcohol tests and attend therapy. The six children were reportedly attending individual counseling as well. It was also reported that every visitation that Pitt had with the kids included a therapist monitoring them.
While Pitt worked to repair his relationship with the children, a source told the outlet that the children heavily leaned on Jolie during that time. "Angelina has not left the children's side since the plane incident. She still has not completed her film [First They Killed My Father]. She has been with them the whole time trying to make sure they heal," the source revealed.
Angelina's shocking allegation about Brad
In 2018, Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt were still in the midst of a vicious custody battle and each accusation they threw at each other was more shocking than the last. In June 2018, a judge ordered Jolie to tell the six children that they were safe around Pitt, per CNN. In hopes of rebuilding the children's relationship with Pitt, the judge suggested she remind the children how critical it was to have a relationship with both parents. In the ruling, the judge warned Jolie that if the children "remain closed down to their father," she would be at risk of losing primary custody. This ruling seemed to follow an accusation of Jolie bad-mouthing her ex to their second eldest son, Pax. A source told Us Weekly that she allegedly told Pax that Pitt never wanted to adopt him (via The Daily Beast).
According to Jolie, Pitt was furious in 2007 when she went ahead with Pax's adoption. Pitt denied not wanting to adopt Pax, but a source claims the actor was concerned about adopting the 3-year-old so soon after their daughter Shiloh was born. The disagreement over the adoption reportedly caused a strain in their relationship. "[They] almost ended the relationship, but Brad stayed," the source added. Jolie allegedly telling Pax this revelation caused tension between him and his father. "It's harmed his and Brad's relationship, though Brad denied having said that specifically," the insider claimed (via Daily Mail).
Pax and Brad reportedly attended family counseling together
In June 2017, with Angelia Jolie and Brad Pitt's divorce still underway, both parents were taking the necessary steps to prioritize their children. Both actors spoke publicly about wanting the family to heal privately from the incident that caused the breakdown of the marriage. "[The children have] been very brave. They were very brave. In times they needed to be," Jolie told Vanity Fair that year. "We're all just healing from the events that led to the filing. ... They're not healing from divorce. They're healing from some ... from life, from things in life."
In public, there were signs that Pitt wanted to bring his relationship with Pax back to a good place. The father and son were spotted by Radar Online arriving separately at the same family therapy office in Los Angeles. It's unclear whether or not it was a joint session, but from the looks of it, both were committed to family counseling.
This seemed to signal that the two were working on repairing their relationship. At the time, Pitt was also attending AA meetings and hoping to maintain a healthy lifestyle. An insider told Radar Online that the children were his biggest motivation. "He talks about his kids and his family non-stop and has photos on his cell phone of the children. He never ever stops bragging about them," the source told the outlet. "Brad tells everyone that they are the real reason he decided to get sober."
Brad and Pax's relationship seemed to have improved
After a tumultuous two years following their divorce announcement, things seemed to be getting better between Brad Pitt and Pax, since his relationship with Maddox and Pax was allegedly strained after the airplane incident in 2016. In 2018, a source told Hollywood Life that Pitt's relationship with his two sons seemed to finally be moving in a good direction. Despite fighting for custody in court, the actor reportedly had to work on a personal level to repair his relationships with his sons. "Brad's relationship with the two older boys has improved significantly since the split. While things are not perfect, they are all getting along well and the boys and Brad are in a good place" a source revealed.
When the holidays rolled around, Pitt had planned for all six of his kids to come over for a low-key celebration. Yet the actor's plans didn't seem to go that smoothly. A source told Us Weekly that not all of the Jolie-Pitt kids were there. "Maddox refused to go, and Pax didn't go either," a source alleged. Despite reports that the relationship between Pax and Pitt was improving, it seems that Pax still had some hesitation when it came to spending time with his father.
Pax skipped out on Christmas with Brad again
During the custody battle with Angelia Jolie, Brad Pitt's lawyers always fought for the actor to have more time with his six children. Spending time with them during the holidays seemed to be especially important to the "Bullet Train" actor. In 2019, Us Weekly reported that the actor once again planned to host all six children at his home for Christmas Eve. This Christmas Eve celebration was the first time post-divorce that Pitt would be with his children without a monitor present. However, the guest list at the Pitt home was missing someone else: Pax. According to the outlet, Pax, along with his two adopted siblings, Maddox and Zahara, were not feeling so jolly and decided to opt out of spending Christmas at the Pitt home.
While those three opted out, Pitt and Jolie's three youngest children Shiloh, Knox, and Vivienne chose to attend. This was the second year in a row that Pax allegedly turned down spending Christmastime with his famous dad.
Brad claims Pax is being influenced by his older brother
Since 2016, Brad Pitt's relationship with Pax Jolie-Pitt has reportedly been strained and the actor had one person in mind to blame: His eldest adopted son Maddox. In 2020, Us Weekly reported that the two sons were still estranged from their father. A source alleged that Maddox's relationship with Pitt was "nonexistent" despite Pitt's many attempts at reconciliation. However, despite the breakdown of his relationship with his eldest son, Pitt reportedly remained hopeful that he could one day repair his relationship with Pax. "With Maddox overseas [for college], Brad is also hopeful that Pax will also be interested in reconnecting without the influence of his older brother," the insider explained.
According to The Hollywood Life, the two brothers grew close following their parents' tumultuous divorce. Maddox's stance on Pitt has remained clear, especially after his "unflattering" testimony against him in court. However, Pax's hesitance to reconcile with Pitt could be due to his own experiences with his father. In his explosive 2017 interview with GQ, Pitt recognized the things he needed to improve on as a father. "I grew up with a Father-knows-best/war mentality—the father is all-powerful, super strong—instead of really knowing the man and his own self-doubt and struggles," he said. "And it's hit me smack in the face with our divorce: I gotta be more. I gotta be more for [the children]. I have to show them. And I haven't been great at it."
Pax wished Brad a not-so-happy Father's Day
The Jolie-Pitt kids may have grown up with a lavish lifestyle, but they live very lowkey lives. The children of Hollywood's most recognizable actors have never given interviews in public. As the second eldest, Pax weathered the very public storm of his parent's divorce in silence — at least until Father's Day in 2020. Just four months after Pitt won an Oscar, Pax allegedly posted a photo on his private Instagram with a scathing message to Pitt attached. "Happy Father's Day to this world class a**hole," he captioned a photo of Pitt accepting his Oscar. "You time and time again prove yourself to be a terrible and despicable person." Despite Pitt thanking his children in the speech, Pax's post paints a different picture of the family's dynamic. "You have no consideration or empathy toward your four youngest children who tremble in fear when in your presence," he wrote, referring to Zahara, Shiloh, Vivienne, and Knox.
The screenshot of his lengthy rant was obtained by Dail Mail who confirmed the private Instagram account belonged to Pax. It's unclear what prompted the harsh words, but it's clear that there's still a rift between the two. "You will never understand the damage to my family because you're incapable of doing so," Pax's post continued. "You may tell yourself and the world whatever you want, but the truth will come to light someday."
Brad's inner circle found Pax's rant depressing
When Pax's not-so-nice Father's Day 2020 message to Brad Pitt resurfaced in 2023, many wondered how the Oscar-winning actor would react. For the last couple of years, Pitt has been very open about attempting to repair his relationship with his six kids, but this alleged message by Pax suggested that he still has plenty of work to do. When the post went viral, Pitt's inner circle revealed that Pax's harsh words definitely stung, even if they believed it was untrue. "Brad has great respect for all of his children and it's depressing to see this dragged up," a close source to the actor told The Sun. "It's frustrating to see Brad being painted as some kind of 'bad person' when it's far from the truth."
The actor himself hasn't responded publicly. "He chooses to keep a dignified silence and that speaks volumes," the source continued. Whether Pitt reached out privately to Pax about the post is unclear, but an insider revealed they haven't spoken about much of anything lately. "As far as Maddox, Pax and Zahara go, the word is that they are totally in support of their mother and Brad doesn't hear from them these days at all — certainly not the boys, and it's been that way for a very long time," the source explained.