Having bundles of talent is and working hard are, of course, the main components for success in the world of Hollywood. However, there are without a doubt many other factors which can contribute to the possible success of an actor or actress in the industry. One that could be considered to help is having a marketable and catchy name which is easy to remember and attracts the attention of the public.
Reasons for changing names depends on the actor in question but reasons can range from hiding their background to avoid possible discrimination, or some think they'll stand out from the crowd with a catchier name. Other examples include the fact that they just really dislike the names their parents gave them at birth, or in some cases, a handful of actors have been forced to change their names because their respective unions only allows one person to be registered under that title.
So, here are 15 actors that have made the decision to change their name and the reasons behind the changes.
1 Ben Kingsley is Krishna Banji
The Yorkshire born actor, Ben Kingsley, decided to change his original name, Krishna Banji, to a more commercial name. Kingsley decided to change his name because he feared a foreign name would hamper his career. Ben Kingsley is a mixture of his father and grandfathers nicknames.
2 Michael Caine is Maurice Jospeh Micklewhite
Michael Caine's original birth name was in fact Maurice Micklewhite. The actor firstly used the name Michael White, but his agent told him it didn't work well. The actor saw a poster for the film 'The Caine Mutiny', which starred his favourite actor Humphrey Bogart, and that was that. Since then he has starred under the name Michael Caine. He recently decided to change his name legally to Michael Caine due to identification problems at airports after increased security checks.
3 Nicolas Cage is Nicolas Kim Coppola
The American actor changed his name from Coppola so that he wouldn't be associated with his uncle, the screenwriter, Francis Ford Coppola. The actor, who was a huge fan of the Marvel Comics character, Luke Cage, didn't have any trouble choosing a new surname to use in the world of cinema. From then on in, he has been known as Nicolas Cage.
4 Whoopi Goldberg is Caryn Eliane Johnson
The hilarious Whoop Goldberg is one of the more original examples when it comes to an actor or actress choosing a new name. The actress' idea at first was to change her name from Caryn Elaine Johnson to Whoopee Cushion. However, her mother convinced her to change her last name to Goldberg so that people took her seriously.
5Marilyn Monroe is Norma Jeane Mortenson
The legendary actress didn't hesitate in changing her name from Norma Jeane Mortenson to Marilyn Monroe in order to stand out in the industry. The star didn't change her name legally to Marilyn Monroe until 1956, although she'd been known by the name publicly since 1946.
6 Vin Diesel is Mark Sinclair Vincent
Vin Diesel, the heart and soul of the 'Fast and Furious' saga, is actually called Mark Sinclair Vincent. He gave himself the name Vin Diesel at the age of 17 when he started his career as an actor. Vin is short for his first name, Vincent, whilst Diesel is reference to his energy levels.
7 Jamie Foxx is Eric Marlon Bishop
Jamie Foxx started his career as a comedian but came to the conclusion that his real name, Eric Marlon Bishop, was not the best name to triumph in the industry. So with that in mind, the American decided to honour the comedian Redd Foxx by taking the same last name as him.
8 Natalie Portman is Neta-Lee Hershlag
The Israelian actress was born under the name Natalie Hershlad but decided to changer her last name to Portman for commercial reasons. She thought Hershlag was a difficult last name to pronounce and that Portman would be better for her career.
9 Michael Keaton is Michael Douglas
The actor from Pennsylvania, Michael Keaton was born with the same name as Michael Douglas. This dilemma lead to the actor changing his last name to Keaton, in honour of the actor Buster Keaton.
10 Kirk and Michael Douglas are Issur and Michael Danielovitch
Issur Danielovitch decided to name himself Kirk Douglas at the start of his career in the film industry. Following in the footsteps of his father, Michael Danielovitch also used Douglas for his acting career. The pair thought that an American surname would open more doors for them in the industry than their Russian surname, and it has certainly worked.
11Woody Allen is Allan Stewart Königsberg
Allen Stewart Königsberg is the real name of Woody Allen. The Jewish filmmaker decided to change his name at the age of 17 to Hewwood Allen. The change in name was influenced by the complicated relationship that his parents had.
12 Meg Ryan is Margaret Mary Emily Ann Hyra
Margaret Mary Emily Anne Hyra is Meg Ryan's real name. Four first names seemed a bit too much for the actress to handle so she decided to give herself a more commercial name which ended up as Meg Ryan.
13 Martin and Charlie Sheen are Ramón and Carlos Estévez
With his father coming from Galicia in Spain, Ramón Antonio Gerardo Estévez decided to change his original birth name to Martin Sheen when he started his career. The Ohio born celebrity ended up having two children and his eldest decided follow suit with the name change. Known worldwide as Charlie Sheen, the actor was originally called Carlos Irwin Estévez.
14 Winona Ryder is Winona Laura Horowitz
Similar reasons to the example of Natalie Portman, Winona Ryder also decided to change her name for commercial reasons. The actress swapped her last name Horowitz, which came from her fathers Russian background, and changed it to Ryder which is how everyone knows her today.