Have you ever wondered why some of your favorite Hollywood actors go by different names on the big screen? From adopting more memorable or unique stage names to simplifying or anglicizing their birth names, these 30 stars took control of their careers and rebranded themselves with a whole new identity.
Tom Cruise
He’s the only Tom Cruise on the Hollywood scene, but the actor shares the same birth name as his father, grandfather, and great-grandfather. At his agent’s suggestion, Thomas Cruise Mapother IV began using his middle name instead.
Vin Diesel
It’s hard to picture the name Mark Sinclair as the Fast and Furious star. Mark didn’t change his name when he came to Hollywood. Instead, he switched to Vin Diesel as a teenage bouncer years before in New York City.
Natalie Portman
Before she became a household name and won an Academy Award for her Black Swan role, the star hailed from Jerusalem with the name Natalie Hershlag. According to rumors, she took her grandmother’s maiden name as a child actor to preserve her privacy.
Kirk Douglas
Born Issur Danielovitch, the son of illiterate and impoverished Russian Jewish parents, the late Kirk Douglas changed his name when he went to Hollywood. At the time, he felt it sounded too long and Jewish to make in show business. In 2015, he told People he wished he had kept his original, more interesting name.
Jennifer Aniston
While some people might think of the actress as “Rachel Green” from Friends, Jennifer Aniston’s real name is Jennifer Linn Anastassakis. The star didn’t change the name herself. Instead, when her Greek father, also an actor, went into show business, he Americanized his family’s surname.
Alicia Keys
It’s no accident that the singer and pianist’s name reflects her love for music. The multicultural musician changed her name from Alicia Augello to Keys, a name that echoes her skill on the black and white ivories.
Diane Keaton
Like many Hollywood stars, the Annie Hall actress took home an Oscar and a name change during her career. Like in the Woody Allen film, Diane Keaton’s real surname is Hall, and her nickname is Annie. Keaton used her mother’s surname to avoid confusion with another Diane Hall actress when she joined the Actors’ Equity Association.
Meg Ryan
Meg Ryan’s name may sound short and sweet now, but before she became a household name, her birth name of Margret Mary Emily Anne Hyra presented quite a mouthful. According to Entertainment Weekly, Meg used her grandma’s maiden name, “Ryan,” since it was shorter and easier to remember when she joined the Screen Actors Guild.
Whoopie Goldberg
Most celebrities shy away from names that sound like bodily functions, but the actor and TV personality, once named Caryn Elaine Johnson, thinks it’s perfect. The idea came because she broke wind, like a whoopee cushion, while acting at the San Diego Repertory Theater. When her mother suggested keeping her Jewish surname instead of calling herself Whoopie Cushion to get ahead in Hollywood, the name stuck.
Elton John
A name can make or break a celebrity. At least, that’s what Elton John, born Reginald Kenneth Dwight, believes. The singer created his name from blues legends Elton Dean, a saxophonist and singer Long John Baldry. When Elton changed his name legally in 1972, he added “Hercules” as his middle name.
Jamie Foxx
A gender-neutral reason prompted Eric Marlon Bishop’s name change. When the comic did open mic nights, he saw female comedians get called to the stage first. Inspired by actor and comedian Redd Foxx, the actor changed his name to boost his career success.
Tina Fey
One of the biggest names in comedy isn’t even going by her real name. The 30 Rock actress was born Elizabeth Stamatina Fey but decided to shorten and go by her middle name because it’s easier to say and remember.
Elizabeth Banks
The Hunger Games actress changed her name from Elizabeth Irene Mitchell to Elizabeth Banks to avoid confusion with Elizabeth Mitchells, the lead actress on LOST. After the Screen Actors Guild prompted her to change, the rest became history.
Demi Moore
Less is more when it comes to the Charlie’s Angels: Full Throttle actress. Born Demetria Gene Guynes, the star decided to shorten her first name to Demi. Her surname comes from her first marriage to the singer Freddy Moore.
Joaquin Phoenix
It’s hard to say how far the Oscar winner would have gone with his birth name, Joaquín Rafael Bottom, but the actor went through several name evolutions, including “Leaf,” before returning to his first name at age 15. When his parents left the Children of God cult in the 1970s, they changed their name from Bottom to Phoenix.
John Legend
There’s nothing like a legendary stage name to help make you famous. According to a 2008 interview for MTV, Legend explained that he switched from his birth name, John Roger Stephens, to his recognizable stage name after his friends nicknamed him “legend.”
Katie Perry
The pop star changed her name from Katheryn Elizabeth Hudson to avoid confusion with actress Kate Hudson. Back in 2001, Perry released her first album under her real name, “Katy Hudson,” but since then, she’s used her mother’s maiden name as her stage monicker.
Nicki Minaj
Born in Trinidad, the famous rapper tweaked and shortened her real name, Onika Tanya Maraj, to use as her stage name.
Charlie Sheen
When Martin Sheen’s youngest son, Carlos Irwin Estévez, started acting, he chose a twist on his father’s chosen stage name. His other three siblings, Ramón, Renee, and Emilio, continue using Estévez, their Spanish surname.
Miley Cyrus
Destiny Hope Cyrus shed some of her wide-eyed, girly, and glitzy persona during the Hannah Montana show when she changed her name to Miley in 2008. The name comes from “Smiley,” a childhood nickname.
Queen Latifah
There’s nothing like a fierce name to tell the world you’re a star. As a child, Dana Owens chose the name Latifah as her nickname. She later changed her full name to “Queen Latifah” when she signed her first record deal.
Winona Ryder
When asked how she wanted her name to appear in the credits for Lucas, her 1986 debut film, Winona Laura Horowitz chose Ryder as her stage name. That’s because she heard Mitch Ryder’s album playing in the background on set.
Michael Keaton
The Batman star had to swap surnames from Douglas to Keaton to become part of the actor’s union. That’s because a future Academy Award-winning actor, Michael Douglas, already had the same name.
Ice Cube
While the world knows the rapper by his stage name, his family still calls him by his birth name, O’Shea Jackson. The rapper adopted the name Ice Cube when his older brother told him he acted too cool for his age.
Bruno Mars
Bruno’s signature name isn’t the one originally on his birth certificate. While his parents named him Peter Gene Hernandez, his dad nicknamed his toddler “Bruno,” after wrestler Bruno Sammartino. According to Latina magazine, Bruno owned the nickname since it sounded bigger than life.
Dove Cameron
While the name on her birth certificate used to read Chloe Celeste Hoffman, the actress decided to change her legal name to Dove as a tribute to her late father, who gave her the nickname. She told Twitter in September 2017 that she still responds to both names.
Martin Sheen
The Badlands actor’s birth name is Ramón Antonio Gerardo Estévez. While he’s known by the name Martin Sheen, the actor never legally changed his name, he revealed to Closer Weekly in June 2022. Martin felt Americanizing his name would help him get ahead.
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