Angelina Jolie has turned some of her recent business ventures into a family affair.
The proud mom has gushed about her unbreakable bond with her six children, whom she shares with ex Brad Pitt, in multiple interviews. She described them as her “close friends” while speaking to WSJ. Magazine in December 2023 and she has been partnering with them recently on her many passion projects.
She worked on the Broadway play “The Outsiders,” which opened earlier this month, as a producer beside 15-year-old daughter Vivienne, who was a volunteer assistant, according to People.
Prior to the show’s debut on April 11, Jolie opened up to the publication about teaming up with her daughter, revealing that Vivienne actually introduced her to the production.
“She saw an early workshop a few times and then invited me to it,” she shared.
Jolie praised her daughter’s creative talents. “Viv is a young artist who focuses her efforts on her support of others,” she said.
“She has been there to assist in any way she can and has learned so much from (score and co-book writer) Justin Levine and the whole creative team,” she added.
The mother and daughter duo posed for photos together at the opening night of “The Outsiders” on April 11 at The Bernard B. Jacobs Theatre in New York City.
The “Salt” actor wore a gold gown and brown cape that she paired with chunky gold earrings. Her daughter sported a blue jumpsuit and sneakers.
They previously attended a preview showing of the play on April 3 and snapped photos with the cast and crew.
This isn't the first time Jolie has collaborated with her children — Zahara and Pax helped her launch Atelier Jolie, a fashion venture, last year, she shared in her September 2023 profile for Vogue.
In recent years, Jolie has been working more behind the camera and on other projects as she focuses on supporting her children.
Jolie, 48, adopted her first child, Maddox, from Cambodia in 2002, and then she adopted Zahara from an Ethiopian orphanage in 2005. She gave birth to her first biological child, Shiloh, in 2006. Then Jolie adopted Pax (who is actually her second-oldest child), and she gave birth to twins Knox and Vivienne in 2008.
“I don’t really have…a social life,” Jolie told WSJ. Magazine in the December 2023 interview.
"I realized my closest friends are refugees,” she explained to the outlet. “Maybe four out of six of the women that I am close to are from war and conflict." Aside from the refugees she aids, she said she mostly spends time with her children.
“They are the closest people to me and my life, and they’re my close friends,” she said. “We’re seven very different people, which is our strength.”
Pitt and Jolie were together for 12 years and split in 2016. Jolie and Pitt’s divorce was finalized in 2019, and Pitt was awarded joint and legal custody of their five minor children in 2021. A legal battle over a winery the two once shared is ongoing.
In her September 2023 cover story for Vogue, Jolie reflected on her role as a mother. “My entire life changed,” she said. “Having children saved me — and taught me to be in this world differently."
“I would’ve gone under in a much darker way had I not wanted to live for them,” she added.
She confirmed at the time that Zahara and Pax had been “heavily involved” in Atelier Jolie. In fact, it was Zahara who found the retail space for the shop, located in The Big Apple. Meanwhile, brother Pax was busy helping his mom shop for a New York City apartment.
Jolie has certainly encouraged her children to discover themselves as they grow. “I don’t tell the kids how to dress. Even when they were little, I just put things in front of them,” she told Vogue.
In the feature, she described a pivotal family moment of self-expression to illustrate her point. For a 2021 red carpet premiere of her Marvel movie, “Eternals,” five of the Jolie-Pitt children dug through their mother’s closet and selected their own outfits. Shiloh chose a Gabriela Hearst dress, Zahara picked Elie Saab and Knox selected vintage gear.
“I don’t think any one of us is overly ‘fashionable,’ but because we live in our clothes, it is so much a part of who we are, and something that’s important to explore, especially for young people,” Jolie shared in the interview.
Jolie seemed to eagerly anticipate the next phase of motherhood as her children come into their own. She said, “I see them taking over so many different aspects of our family.”
So, what have her six children been up to these days? Read on to learn more about the Oscar-winner's family.
Maddox Chivan Jolie-Pitt, 22
Maddox was the first child to come into Jolie’s life. In 2002, she adopted him as an infant from his birth country, Cambodia, where she also filmed "Lara Croft: Tomb Raider."
At the time, Jolie was still married to Billy Bob Thornton, though months later, she and the “Sling Blade” actor parted ways.
At the age of 4, Maddox was adopted by Jolie’s then-partner Pitt.
The eldest of the Jolie-Pitt kids turned 21 in August 2022 and studied biochemistry at Yonsei University in Seoul, South Korea.
“I’m so happy for him that (Maddox has) grown up into such a good man,” Jolie told Entertainment Tonight shortly after he went off to school. “I say that ‘cause he’s smart and he’s doing his work, but he’s also wild.”
In 2017, Jolie directed the film "First They Killed My Father," based on a memoir about the Cambodian genocide. At the premiere in Cambodia, Jolie spoke to the role the country had in her life.
“Without Cambodia I may never have become a mother. Part of my heart is and will always be in this country. And part of this country is always with me: Maddox," she said with her children in attendance, per People.
Zahara Marley Jolie-Pitt, 19
Jolie adopted daughter Zahara from an Ethiopian orphanage in 2005, per People. “Maddox and I are very happy to have a new addition to our family," Jolie told People in a cover story.
Pitt traveled to Ethiopia with Jolie in 2005 to adopt Zahara. He formally adopted Zahara the following year, at the same time he became father to Maddox.
“I have learned so much from her,” Jolie said of the teen during a Time 100 Talk in 2020. “She is my family, but she is an extraordinary African woman. ... Her connection to her country, her continent, is very — it’s her own and it’s something I only stand back in awe of.”
On July 31, 2022, Jolie posted on Instagram to reveal that Zahara started attending Atlanta’s historically Black liberal arts college Spelman. "A very special place and an honor to have a family member as a new Spelman girl," she wrote.
Dropping her off in August 2022, Jolie got emotional. “I’m gonna start crying. I have not started crying yet,” Jolie told vice president for student affairs, Darryl Holloman, in a video posted to his Instagram, which is now private.
But they weren't apart for long. By October 2022, Jolie and Zahara were spotted together at Spelman homecoming. “Angelina Jolie just casually walking around with her daughter at Spelman during Homecoming,” one woman wrote on Twitter.
On Nov. 15, 2023, Essence shared a video from Spelman College where Zahara announced she had been initiated into Alpha Kappa Sorority, Inc., the first Black historically intercollegiate sorority in the U.S. In the video, the then 18-year-old proudly announced her name is Zahara Marley Jolie and that she hails from Los Angeles.
Shiloh Nouvel Jolie-Pitt, 17
Born in 2006, in the African nation of Namibia, Shiloh was the first of the three biological children Jolie and Pitt welcomed together during their relationship.
At just 16 years old, Shiloh, who was spotted attending a rock concert with her mother in 2022, has already gained a degree of fame of her own — as a dancer.
In June 2022, Hamilton Evans Choreography shared a clip of the teen showing off a variety of hip-hop dance moves to Doja Cat’s “Vegas.”
Pax Thien Jolie-Pitt, 20
While he was the fourth child to enter Jolie life, Pax is actually the second-oldest in the family.
Born in 2003, in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, Pax was adopted by Jolie in 2007 when he was three. He was adopted by Pitt in 2008, per People.
Knox Léon Jolie-Pitt, 15
Born in Nice, France, in 2008, along with twin Vivienne, Knox the youngest of Jolie and Pitt's sons.
Along with Pax, Zahara and Shiloh, Knox had small voice roles in Jolie's 2016 animated film "Kung Fu Panda 3."
But Knox isn't breaking into showbiz, according to his famous mom.
“They don’t want to be actors," Jolie told Entertainment Tonight shortly after the film's release. "But I didn’t want them to miss the opportunity.”
Vivienne Marcheline Jolie-Pitt, 15
Vivienne was also born in Nice, France, in 2008 alongside Knox.
Prior to this year, details of the 15-year-old’s life remained largely private. But she has been making recent public appearances with her mom due to their collaboration on the play "The Outsiders."
Jolie’s involvement with the show was reported by People in August 2023.
At the time, the publication also reported that Vivienne was working as her mom’s volunteer assistant on the production. The actor and filmmaker praised her daughter’s work ethic in a statement obtained by People.
“Viv reminds me of my mother in that she isn’t focused on being the center of attention but in being a support to other creatives,” she said. “She’s very thoughtful and serious about theatre and working hard to best understand how to contribute.”
“The Outsiders” play is based on the 1967 book of the same name by S.E. Hinton that was turned into Francis Ford Coppola’s 1983 movie starring Matt Dillon, Emilio Estevez, Ralph Macchio, C. Thomas Howell, Patrick Swayze, Rob Lowe and Tom Cruise. Dillon was also in attendance for the preview on April 3. He was included in the cast and crew photo with Jolie and Vivienne.
