Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt created a huge buzz in the media when they first started dating. Whether you loved them, disliked them, or didn’t care at all about the relationship between two of Hollywood’s most stunning stars, you couldn’t escape seeing their pictures in every magazine.
Even with all the gossip about cheating and secret romances, this famous couple stayed together for 12 years, raising their three biological kids and three adopted ones. One of them is Shiloh Jolie-Pitt.
Angelina Jolie, known for her role in “Tomb Raider,” already had two adopted sons, Maddox and Pax, when she met Brad Pitt while filming “Mr. & Mrs. Smith” in 2004. At that time, Brad was still married to Jennifer Aniston.
“Because of the film, we ended up being brought together to do all these crazy things, and I think we found this strange friendship and partnership that kind of just suddenly happened. I think a few months in I realized, ‘God, I can’t wait to get to work.’ … Anything we had to do with each other, we just found a lot of joy in it together and a lot of real teamwork. We just became kind of a pair,” Angelina Jolie shared with People in 2006.
Back then, there were many rumors about a possible romance between Pitt and Jolie, but the two stars didn’t say much about it.
“We spent a lot of time contemplating and thinking and talking about what we both wanted in life and realized that we wanted very, very similar things,” Angelina mentioned.
Later, Angelina decided to adopt Zahara Marley from Ethiopia in 2005, and Brad Pitt joined her in adopting Zahara in 2006.
Shiloh Jolie-Pitt
In 2006, they confirmed they were a couple when Angelina said she was expecting a baby with Brad. To escape the media chaos that would have definitely followed, she and Pitt went to Namibia for the delivery.
The news that Brad and Angelina, known as “Brangelina”, were having a baby together became a big deal around the world.
Photo agencies reported that the first picture of the baby was thought to be worth $1 million – so it makes sense that a lot of paparazzi tried their best to get close to the couple.
“Not since Jesus has a baby been so eagerly anticipated,” said New York magazine.
The couple welcomed a healthy baby girl named Shiloh Nouvel on May 27, 2006. Their daughter was born at a private hospital called The Cottage Medi-Clinic, located in the coastal town of Swakopmund, Namibia.
“Angelina had a planned cesarean because the baby was in a breech position,” Dr. Rothbart told PEOPLE at that time and added:
“The baby weighed a healthy 7 lbs. Brad was with Angelina in the operating room the whole time and cut the umbilical cord of his daughter. The surgery and birth went perfectly.”
Turned 18 in May
Brad and Angelina sold pictures of their beautiful baby for a huge amount of money, and they gave all the money to UNICEF.
“While we are happy about the birth of our daughter, we know that 2 million babies born every year in poorer countries die on their first day. These kids can be saved, but only if governments around the world make it a priority,” the couple said in a statement.
The special situation this little girl was born into made it tough to go anywhere without the media watching, but even with all the attention, the couple has tried hard to keep their kids’ lives private.
Of course, everyone was focused on Shiloh. It makes sense, considering who her parents are. In May of this year, Shiloh turned 18 years old. She is growing up quickly. The teenager is said to be close to her older brothers and sister, as well as her younger twin siblings Knox and Vivienne, who are now 16 years old.
None of them use social media, so not much is known about the famous family, but one interesting fact is that the couple’s oldest biological child hasn’t been called Shiloh since she was very young.
Instead, she has chosen to go by the name John Jolie-Pitt. During a 2008 interview with Oprah Winfrey, Pitt shared that Shiloh asked him to call her John instead.
“We had to cut her hair”
“She just wants to be called John. John or Peter. It’s like a Peter Pan thing. So we have to call her John,” he said. “So we have to call her John. ‘Shi, do you want …’ – ‘John. I’m John.’ Then I’ll ask, ‘John, would you like some orange juice?’ And she replies, ‘No!’ So, you know, it’s just that kind of stuff that’s cute to parents, but probably really annoying to other people.
Her parents, who split up in 2019, totally support their kid’s choice of name and back John’s wish to wear matching clothes with her brothers.
“She wants to be a boy,” Angelina told Vanity Fair. “So we had to cut her hair. She likes to wear boys’ everything. She feels like she’s one of the brothers.”
Mom Angelina is okay with the name change even though Shiloh has a special meaning for her.
“It was a name my parents almost gave to their first child — there was a miscarriage: Shiloh Baptist. My dad was shooting in Georgia, and that was the most southern name [my parents] could think of,” she explained.
Shiloh Jolie-Pitt’s relationship with her parents
“I’ve always liked that name. I used to check into hotels with it: Shiloh Baptist. I used it when Brad booked hotel rooms for me.”
Even after Brad and Angelina split up, Shiloh has kept a good relationship with both of her parents. Plus, reports say that Brad Pitt is really proud to be a dad.
“Brad’s kids mean everything to him. He tells his friends that he learns a lot about life from them,” a source shared with Entertainment Tonight, adding:
“He and Angie have been getting along much better since they figured out the custody arrangements. They’ve made a lot of progress.”
Doesn’t Shiloh look a lot like her dad? Many people also think she got her mom’s lips.
“Brad is super proud of Shiloh and who she is becoming. He loves that she stays true to herself and is really nice to her siblings,” another source told ET.
Shiloh Jolie-Pitt surgery
Fast forward to March 2020, Angelina Jolie shared that her daughter had surgery. She wrote an article for Time related to International Women’s Day.
“I have been in and out of surgeries for the past two months with my oldest daughter [Zahara], and just a few days ago, I saw my younger daughter [Shiloh] have hip surgery.
“So on this day, I hope we appreciate girls. Take care of them. And understand that as they grow stronger, they will be healthier and will contribute more to their families and communities.”
In 2011, Shiloh Jolie-Pitt caught everyone’s attention again when she attended the U.K. premiere of Marvel’s “Eternals”.
As reported by People, she wore the same black-and-white Dior dress that her mom wore in 2019 when Angelina went to a press conference for “Maleficent: Mistress of Evil”.
Shiloh Jolie-Pitt today
Shiloh’s new appearance and choice of clothing made many raise their eyebrows. But this was not the first time Shiloh had borrowed her mother’s dress. In July 2021, Shiloh wore her mom’s Gabriela Hearst dress when she attended the US. premiere of ”Eternals”.
We can all learn a lot from Brad and Angelina’s handling of this situation; allowing Shiloh to embrace what she’s comfortable wearing and how she wants her hair styled.
This way, there’s no pressure to conform to any ideal, and Shiloh can take her time figuring out who she wants to be. After all, it’s all any young person is trying to do. Please share!
