Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie's family are going through a high-profile split — and
one of their children may be putting her foot down and choosing a side.
The last five years have been hard for Jolie and Pitt amid their bitter custody
battle — and 2021 has been particularly eventful.
Pitt celebrated a legal victory in May, when the "Once Upon A Time in Hollywood" star
was granted joint custody of their five minor children. Before the ruling of a private judge
hired to oversee the case, Jolie held full custody of children Pax, Zahara,
Shiloh, and twins Vivienne and Knox, with Pitt maintaining visitation rights.
(Maddox, the couple's 20-year-old sixth child, is a legal adult and not subject to the agreement.)
The judge's decision was a win for Pitt — but the victory was short-lived.
In July, the judge was disqualified from the case following an appeal from Jolie, who successfully
argued that the judge had failed to disclose his business associations with Pitt's lawyers,
according to the BBC. The removal restored the original temporary agreement.
Pitt asked the California Supreme Court to review the decision,
but the high court sided with the appellate judges in October,
dealing a blow to Pitt's attempt to share custody with Jolie, People reported.
Throughout the whole ordeal, the Jolie-Pitt children have had little time with their father.
While the kids have been seen attending red carpet events with Jolie this year,
their time alongside their dad is spent largely indoors.
An insider told E! News in October,
"He spends low-key time with his kids at home. He keeps their time together private.
They are homebodies and have a good routine in place."
But that little time with Pitt is reportedly not enough for Shiloh, especially now.
An insider told OK! Magazine that Shiloh Jolie-Pitt has expressed a
wish to spend time with her father this holiday season. The source claimed,
"Shiloh's desperate to see her father,
but the circumstances make it impossible, other than a quick trip to his house here and there."
Of the six Jolie-Pitt children, Shiloh is reportedly the one who
has suffered the most in light of Pitt's absence,
with the insider describing her as a "daddy's girl." The source relayed,
"It's only Shiloh who defends her dad. She really wants them all to spend Christmas together,
and she's having a hard time accepting it won't happen."
Pitt infamously had a falling-out with his and Angelina Jolie's oldest child,
Maddox. Pitt was accused of verbally and physically abusing during a mid-flight argument
shortly before Jolie filed for divorce on September 19, 2016, People reported at the time.
Pitt was investigated and cleared of child abuse that November, according to Us Weekly. But Jolie
continues to affirm she felt unsafe in her marriage. Jolie told The Guardian in September,
"It took a lot for me to be in a position where I
felt I had to separate from the father of my children."
Pitt reportedly hopes his bond with Shiloh will help him restore
his overall relationship with his family. A source told In Touch Weekly in November,
"Brad is very touched that Shiloh wants more of a relationship with him.
That was always his hope, from all of his kids."
Shiloh Jolie-Pitt reportedly identifies a lot with Brad Pitt,
and seems to have inherited many of her father's personality traits. A source told In Touch Weekly,
"They not only look alike, but they have the same big heart [...] They're both very open, they
enjoy meeting new people. Shiloh seems to have somehow picked up Brad's midwestern demeanor."
Shiloh is said to be having a hard time standing by her father amid the deteriorating relationship
between Pitt and some of her siblings. A source told OK! magazine in December,
quote, "Brad tried so hard to fix things,
but Maddox and even Pax both blame him for the family fallout and refuse to see him."
Maddox, who turned 19 in August 2020, testified on behalf of Jolie in May
and according to Us Weekly, the testimony did not cast Pitt in the best light.
Pax, the second oldest child in the family,
also has had a strained relationship with Pitt since the divorce, Us Weekly reported.
Court documents from December 2020 noted that three of Pitt and Jolie's children were willing to
testify against their father, though their names were not given, according to Us Weekly. The judge,
however, refused to allow it. Jolie objected to that decision, calling it unfounded, based on a
California law that allows children older than 14 to give testimony, according to ABC News. Vivienne
and Knox were 12 at the time and would have been prevented from testifying, the report detailed.
It remains to be seen how the Jolie-Pitt drama will end, but now that members of the family are
taking sides in public, we can count on this family feud continuing for months to come.
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