Vivienne Jolie-Pitt’s role in ‘Maleficent’ was a hit and it turns out the young Jolie-Pitt secured the role because she was the only kid not afraid of Angelina Jolie while in her costume.

Angelina Jolie has been a Hollywood superstar since she was a teenager – and these days, Jolie is known as much for her large brood of children as for her acting. Jolie started her family well before she met Brad Pitt, adopting her son Maddox in 2002. Once Pitt and Jolie got together, the two expanded their family together, eventually welcoming five more children.

Vivienne Jolie-Pitt (L) with mother Angelina Jolie and siblings Zahara Marley Jolie-Pitt, Shiloh Nouvel Jolie-Pitt and Knox Leon Jolie-Pitt smiling

In 2008, Jolie gave birth to twins, in a media event that made waves around the world. The twins have remained mostly out of the spotlight, but in Jolie’s 2014 film Maleficent, fans got a good look at young Vivienne Jolie-Pitt. The young girl had a small role in the film, and as Jolie revealed in a 2014 interview, her daughter was clearly the only one for the job.

Who did Vivienne Jolie-Pitt play in ‘Maleficent’?

Maleficent is a loose retelling of the classic Sleeping Beauty fairytale. With Jolie as the title character, Maleficent, the dark fairy, the movie tells the classic story from a new perspective, giving more context to the role of Maleficent in Aurora’s life.

In addition to Jolie, the movie stars Elle Fanning, Imelda Staunton, and Juno Temple. While Fanning portrayed the character of Aurora as a teenager, there’s also a scene featuring a toddler Aurora. Vivienne Jolie-Pitt played Aurora in this scene, sharing a sweet moment with Maleficent, as played by her mother.

In a 2014 interview with Entertainment Weekly, Jolie opened up about why she allowed her daughter to appear in Maleficent. As reported by Vanity Fair, Jolie said:

“… we think it’s fun for our kids to have cameos and join us on set, but not to be actors. That’s not our goal, for Brad and I, at all. But the other three- and four-year-old [performers] wouldn’t come near me. It had to be a child that liked me and wasn’t afraid of my horns and my eyes and my claws. So it had to be Viv.”

Five-year-old Vivienne played the role of young Aurora to perfection, following Maleficent around and smiling at her – with no evident fear of her terrifying costume. However, Jolie’s other children were more apprehensive. As Jolie told Entertainment Weekly:

“When Pax saw me for the first time, he ran away and got upset—and I thought he was kidding, so I was pretending to chase him until I actually found him crying.”

Ultimately, Jolie’s kids were able to overcome their fear of the costume, with both Pax and Jolie’s eldest daughter, Zahara Jolie-Pitt, landing small cameos in the finished film.