Angelina Jolie recently surfaced near the Rwandan capital of Kigali, showcasing a serene demeanor during a visit to the Imboni cooperative farm. This appearance comes in the wake of legal actions by her children Maddox, 24, and Zahara, 21, who have filed petitions to officially change their surname from Jolie-Pitt to Jolie.
Jolie, 51, described the Imboni farm as being collectively run by its female laborers, many of whom are survivors of the 1994 genocide. An accompanying Instagram post featured Jolie dancing with the women. She noted that Giles Duley's Legacy of War Foundation, a 'dear friend's' organization, assists the collective by purchasing arable land and returning it to conflict survivors to foster climate-smart farming.
Jolie has long-standing ties to Africa, having adopted Zahara from Ethiopia. Her previous humanitarian efforts and travel to the continent, including a trip to Namibia for Shiloh's birth in 2006, have drawn significant media attention and scrutiny. During that time, media access to Namibia was reportedly managed with consent from the parties involved, and reports surfaced of security details and police conducting searches for paparazzi.
The public dropping of Pitt's surname by Maddox and Zahara is the latest development in the evolving estrangement between the actor and his six children, whom he shares with Jolie. Shiloh, 20, legally dropped the surname last year. Twins Knox and Vivienne, 18, have also informally adopted the surname Jolie. Maddox's legal petition to remove Pitt from his surname was submitted in May, formalizing a change he had already begun to implement, as seen in the credits for Jolie's February film "Couture," where he was credited as Maddox Jolie.
The legal and familial disputes between Jolie and Pitt have been ongoing since their split in 2016. Jolie filed for divorce in September 2016, following an incident on a private plane involving Maddox. An FBI investigation into allegations that Pitt became physical with Maddox on the plane concluded without charges. Jolie reportedly filed and later dropped a Freedom of Information Act request related to the FBI documents concerning the 2016 flight.
In April, court papers related to a property dispute revealed Jolie's accusations of Pitt's alleged abuse occurring "well before" the plane incident. Pitt has consistently denied these allegations.
Further complicating matters, Pax, 22, experienced a dirt bike accident in Los Angeles in July 2024, requiring hospitalization. Sources indicated Jolie was present, while Pitt was reportedly distraught but unable to reach his son. This incident followed a social media post by Pax from four years prior, in which he referred to his father as a "world class a**hole" and a "terrible and despicable person."
Jolie and Pitt are also involved in a legal conflict over the Chateau Miraval winery in the South of France. Jolie sold her share of the property to Russian billionaire Yuri Shefler in 2021, which Pitt contested, arguing she was contractually obligated to obtain his consent. Jolie has raised her past abuse allegations in the context of this ongoing legal battle, urging Pitt to drop the lawsuit for the family's potential healing.