Angelina Jolie's kids: Everything you need to know

Angelina Jolie is one of the most glamorous, talked-about movie stars of her generation, from her Oscar-winning performance in Girl, Interrupted to blockbuster roles in Lara Croft: Tomb Raider and Maleficent.

As a result, the star's personal life has also often been in the spotlight, especially her headline-grabbing relationship, marriage, and highly tumultuous divorce from Brad Pitt.

But throughout the years, the 47-year-old's children with Pitt have also regularly caught the public eye. Join HELLO! as we explore everything we know about the couple's famous kids.

How many children does Angelina Jolie have?

Angelina has six kids in total: Maddox, Zahara, Pax, Shiloh, and twins Knox and Vivienne.

The Hollywood A-lister adopted her first child, seven-month-old Maddox, in 2002. Born in Cambodia, Angelina fell in love with her first son's country while filming for Lara Croft: Tomb Raider in 2001, and chose to adopt Maddox after returning to the country later that year and visiting the orphanage where he was living.

READ: Angelina Jolie reveals problem son Maddox is facing during lockdown

While the actress was in a relationship with Billy Bob Thornton at the time she adopted her first son, Angelina chose to adopt Maddox on her own. When she and Billy split later in 2002, the Changeling actress became a single parent.

In July 2005, Angelina adopted her second child and first daughter, six-month-old Zahara. Having now met her partner Brad Pitt, the couple adopted Zahara from Ethiopia together. The Ocean's Eleven actor also adopted Maddox at the same time.

Brangelina's next family move was to conceive a child together, and their third child, Shiloh, was born in 2006 while the couple were in Namibia.

The long-time UNHCR ambassador then adopted her fourth child, Pax, from Vietnam in 2007. Despite the fact they adopted their second son following the birth of Shiloh and their adoption of her older sister Zahara, because Pax was born in 2003 he became the couple's second oldest child.

SEE: Angelina Jolie steps down as UN refugee envoy amid controversy - details

Pax was only adopted by Brad once the couple and their kids had returned to the US in 2008. Angelina had to adopt Pax as a single parent due to a law in Vietnam at the time preventing unmarried couples from co-adopting children.

Later in 2008, Angelina gave birth to their twins, son Knox and daughter Vivienne.

How old are Angelina Jolie's kids?

Angelina's kids are all quite grown up now. Maddox is 21 years old, Pax is 19, Zahara is 18, and Shiloh is 16 years old. Meanwhile 14-year-olds Knox and Vivienne are also fast heading towards their mid-teenage years.

The 47-year-old regularly brings her children along with her to public events, such as when she took all six of her children to the various premieres of Maleficent: Mistress of Evil in 2019.

MORE: When Angelina Jolie's children steal the show – see their cutest red carpet moments

Why did Angelina Jolie adopt?

The Hollywood actress, whose father is Oscar-winning actor Jon Voight, has spoken often about why she chose to adopt. Speaking with Vogue India in 2020 about her first adoption, Angelina said: "In 2001, I was in a school programme in Samlout playing blocks on the floor with a little kid and as clear as day I thought: 'My son is here.' A few months later I met baby [Maddox] at an orphanage. I can't explain it and am not one to believe in messages or superstition. But it was just real and clear."

Moving on to address her adoption of Pax from Vietnam in 2007, the actress and director admitted: "I did originally think not to adopt from Vietnam because Mad was Cambodian and the two countries have a complex history," but she added: "I thought of my own country and our involvement in south-east Asia. I thought of focusing on a future where we were all family… I am very blessed to have been allowed to be their mom. I am grateful every day."

DISCOVER: Angelina Jolie's tattoos and the sweet meanings behind them

In 2020, she also opened up during an interview with Ugandan climate activist Vanessa Nakate for TIME's 100 Talks series about her pride in Zahara's connection to her African heritage. "I have learned so much from her. She is my family, but she is an extraordinary African woman and her connection to her country, her continent, is her own and it’s something I only stand back in awe of," Angelina said.

Later in her 2020 interview with Vogue India, Angelina addressed how she balanced raising a family made up of both adopted and biological children. "Each is a beautiful way of becoming family," she stressed. "What is important is to speak with openness about all of it and to share. 'Adoption' and 'orphanage' are positive words in our home.

READ: Angelina Jolie shares rare photos of daughter Zahara during museum trip

"With my adopted children, I can't speak of pregnancy, but I speak with much detail and love about the journey to find them and what it was like to look in their eyes for the first time," she continued.

What are Angelina Jolie's kids doing now?

The Maleficent actress' eldest child Maddox is currently studying biochemistry at South Korea's Yonsei University, where he is also learning Korean.

Speaking with Entertainment Tonight in 2019, Angelina gushed: "I'm so happy for [Maddox] that he's grown up into such a good man… He's smart and he's doing his work, but he's also wild. He's balanced in his teenage years."

Zahara also recently headed off to college, and although she's sticking closer to home by attending Spelman College in Atlanta, Angelina admitted while visiting the college with her eldest daughter that Zahara leaving home had left her thinking: "I'm gonna start crying!"

While Pax keeps more of a low profile, he did recently join his brother Maddox in working with their mother who was directing Without Blood in 2022. Speaking with People magazine about working with her sons on the movie, the LA-born creative revealed: "We work well together. When a film crew is at its best, it feels like a big family, so it felt natural."

As teens, the A-lister's youngest Shiloh, Knox and Vivienne are still growing up and, besides occasional appearances with their mother at red carpet events, remain out of the spotlight.

However, Knox did star alongside his mother in 2016's Kung Fu Panda 3, as he voiced the character of Ku-Ku. Pax, Zahara and Shiloh all also had small roles in the film. Meanwhile, the actress' lookalike daughter Shiloh appears to also have an interest in dance, as she has appeared on several posts on LA-based dance studio Millennium Dance Complex's social media.

In October 2022, Angelina filed a counterclaim against her ex-husband Brad during their ongoing legal battle about Miraval, a French winery which they both own. In the court papers, the actress alleged the 59-year-old actor assaulted both her and her children on a private plane flight in 2016. Brad has always denied the allegations.

Read more HELLO! US stories here

Don't want to miss a story? Sign up to the Family Hub newsletter to get other stories like this delivered straight to your inbox.

ncG1vNJzZmivp6x7qbHLpaammZeWx6q6xGeaqKVfnbKiuNOhmKeckpqutsDYaKSorJiav26tzZ1km5mSrnx1hJhta2pnkaO0prjIp5hmop%2BhtqZ5yqKbrGWVq7KzxdOhoKefXa68tnnNnpydZaSkeqy6zrBm