Angelina Jolie has made good on her promise to leave the United States, relocating to Cambodia to continue her humanitarian work with the Maddox Foundation.
The Oscar-winning actress, 51, took to social media on July 22 to share that she has been spending more time in Cambodia. The move fulfills a promise she made in 2024, when she told The Hollywood Reporter she planned to leave Los Angeles after her twins, Knox and Vivienne, turned 18. They reached that milestone on July 12, 2026.
“I recently returned to Cambodia, where we’ve been building the @maddoxfoundation — a 100% locally led organization — since 2003,” she wrote on Instagram.
Why Cambodia?
Jolie adopted her son Maddox Chivan Jolie, now 24, from an orphanage in Battambang, Cambodia, in 2002. A year later, she created the Maddox Foundation in his honor. She was granted honorary Cambodian citizenship in 2005 for her humanitarian work.
The foundation’s work began with clearing landmines left over from years of conflict, enabling locals to live and farm on the land again. Today, the organization:
– Employs locally recruited rangers to patrol the Samlaut forest against logging and poaching
– Supports women through sustainable beekeeping programs
– Provides a dormitory for students from remote villages to finish high school
– Operates a health center caring for mothers and young children
“All of this is led by the people who live in the community,” Jolie wrote.
Why She Left the US
Jolie’s custody arrangement following her divorce from Brad Pitt required her to maintain her primary base in Los Angeles. In 2024, she told The Hollywood Reporter: “I am here because I have to be here from a divorce, but as soon as they’re 18, I’ll be able to leave. I’ll spend a lot of time in Cambodia.”
Several of Jolie and Pitt’s six children have filed to legally drop their father’s last name. Shiloh was the first to do so, followed by Maddox, Zahara, and Vivienne.
The Foundation’s Impact
Since its founding, the Maddox Foundation has reduced the threat of landmines in the area, made strides in conservation, elevated forest rangers to government officials, and built infrastructure for environmental preservation and education.
The foundation later shared on social media that it had received a massive influx of support and partnership ideas over the past 24 hours alone.
The Bottom Line
Angelina Jolie has moved to Cambodia after her twins turned 18, fulfilling her promise to leave the US following her divorce from Brad Pitt. She will continue her humanitarian work with the Maddox Foundation, which she founded in honor of her son Maddox. The foundation focuses on landmine clearance, conservation, education, and healthcare in rural Cambodian communities.
