Why Martin Sheen “Begged” Son Emilio Estevez Not to Change His Name

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Forget the breakfast club, Martin Sheen didn’t want Emilio Estévez to join him in the stage name club.

Ramon Estevez, known for his role on The West Wing, revealed he didn’t want his oldest son, whose mother is Janet Sheen, to change his name when he started acting, hoping to avoid the pressures he faced with his own career.

In a recent interview on the Happy Sad Confused podcast with Josh Horowitz, 85-year-old Martin recalled that when his children began their careers in the entertainment industry, they considered using a different last name. He specifically mentioned that his son, Emilio, almost changed his name to Sheen.

The actor, 63, known for The Breakfast Club, decided to use his given name after seeing “Emilio Sheen” written down. He remembered his son didn’t like the name and said it just didn’t feel right. The actor even admitted he tried to convince his son to stick with it.

Like Emilio, Martin Sheen’s children Ramón Estévez, 62, and Renée Estévez, 58, also used the Estévez name professionally. His son, Charlie Sheen, 60, followed his father’s example and chose a stage name, though he briefly used his given name, Carlos Estévez, in the 2013 film Machete.

The Grace and Frankie actor is happy his children have thrived in Hollywood while proudly using their Hispanic surnames, but he deeply regrets changing his own name.

He began his acting career in New York City in 1959, a time when finding work was difficult for many actors. He added that having a Hispanic last name was a disadvantage then, as there was significant prejudice against the Puerto Rican community in the city.

He explained that he felt he needed to distance himself and avoid being identified by his nationality. Although it was a hard choice, Martin said he’ll always cherish the meaning behind his name.

He explained, “Technically, I’ve never legally changed my name. I’m still Ramón Gerard Antonio Estévez, and I actually really like it.”

Keep reading to see more celebrities’ real names… 

Congratulations to Post Malone! He actually added his last name to his stage name. But, he prefers his close friends to call him by his given name.

At the 2024 MTV VMAs, Taylor Swift called her co-artist ‘Austin’ after they won the award for Best Collaboration for their song ‘Fortnight’.

Aubrey Anderson-Emmons, known for playing Lilly on Modern Family, now goes by Frances Anderson as she pursues a career in music.

In a 2025 interview with TopMob News, Aubrey explained that ‘Frances’ is actually her middle name, a tribute to a longtime friend of her mother. She also mentioned she shortened her name because ‘Aubrey Anderson-Emmons’ is quite long, due to her hyphenated last name.

The Summer House star shocked Bravo fans by revealing his legally given first name isn’t actually Carl.

Carl, who has been on the reality show for all nine seasons, explained to PopViewers in August 2025 that his first name is William and his middle name is Carl, but he’s always gone by Carl.

Sterling K. Brown went by his middle name Kelby until he was a teenager.

During an April 2025 interview on The Kelly Clarkson Show, he explained that his father is named Sterling Brown Jr. and his grandfather is Sterling Brown Sr. He decided he wanted a name of his own, feeling that ‘Sterling’ sounded like an older generation’s name.

Years after his father’s death from a heart attack, the actor—known for his role in This Is Us—chose to go back to using his given first name as a tribute to him.

My father died when I was ten years old. By the time I was sixteen, it had been five or six years since I’d even heard his name. I just wanted to hear it again, so I started asking people to call me Sterling.

Brothers Andrew, Matthew, and Joey Lawrence all decided to change their last names professionally. Joey, whose middle name is also Lawrence, was the first to make the switch, prompted by feedback from a talent agent who didn’t like their family surname.

Kat Dennings started using a professional name when she was nine years old, long before she appeared on an episode of Sex and the City in 2000.

Kat Dennings, known for her role on 2 Broke Girls, told Kylie Kelce on her podcast Not Gonna Lie With Kylie Kelce that she prefers not to have her full birth name publicly shown, like on a poster.

The actress chose her stage name by combining elements from two sources: the character Kat, played by Christina Ricci in the movie Casper, and the last name of Janine Denni, the wife of author Lloyd Alexander, who was a close friend of her mother.

For over thirty years, Cher thought her full legal name was Cherilyn. However, when she requested her birth certificate in the late 1970s to legally change her name to simply Cher, she found out she was originally registered as Cheryl.

Oh my god, you guys, I just finished reading Cher’s memoir, Cher: The Memoir, Part One, and it was EVERYTHING! She talks about the moment her mom, Georgia Holt, found something out, and honestly, her reaction was just…wow. Cher described it all, and it was so fascinating to hear it from her perspective!

When she told her mother – who had her at 19 – what happened, her mother exclaimed, “Let me see!” Then, remembering her own experience after giving birth, she said, “I was just a teenager myself, and it was really painful. Cut me some slack.”

The country artist known as Shaboozey got the nickname – and eventually his stage name – from a simple mistake: his high school in Virginia misspelled his last name, and it stuck.

The singer first released music under her real name in 2001, but she decided to use the stage name Katy Perry—taken from her mother’s family name—believing it would appeal more to pop music listeners.

Oh my god, you won’t BELIEVE how Cardi got her name! It all started with her sister, Hennessy – everyone started calling her that, and then people just naturally started calling Cardi ‘Bacardi’ after her! But ‘Bacardi’ was a little long, so she decided to shorten it… and honestly, ‘Cardi B’ is SO much better, it just fits her, you know? It’s perfect!

Before she became the Duchess of Sussex, Meghan Markle was briefly known as Rachel. 

I’ve always been fascinated by how artists choose their stage names, and Shania Twain recently shared the story behind hers on Apple Music’s Home Now Radio, and it’s so sweet! She was actually born Eilleen Regina Edwards, and later became Eilleen Regina Twain after being adopted. But when she started singing professionally, she realized ‘Eilleen Regina’ sounded a little too much like her grandmothers – she’s named after both of them! She just didn’t want to go on stage with the same name, so she decided to create something new. She met someone named Shania, loved the sound of it, and combined it with her adopted last name – and that’s how Shania Twain was born! It’s a lovely story about honoring her family while still forging her own identity.

Chappell Roan, the singer behind ‘Good Luck, Babe!’, has always approached performing as a distinct ‘drag project.’ This helps her create clear boundaries between her stage presence and her private life, and keeps the pressures of the music industry at bay.

Interestingly, Gigi Hadid didn’t choose her famous name herself! When she was in school, her teacher kept mixing her up with a classmate named Helena. Because her mom always called her “gigi” as a nickname, she asked the teacher to just refer to her as Gigi, and the name stayed with her ever since.

If you’re looking for an explosive action-star name, how about Vin Diesel instead?

Miley Cyrus got her nickname, Smiley, because she was always so cheerful. Over time, people started calling her Miley instead, and that’s the name that stayed.

The singer resembled a Bruno more than a Peter, so his father began calling him Bruno, and that’s the name he’s been known as ever since – Bruno Mars.

Before the meat dresses and chart-topping music, Lady Gaga was just an everyday girl from New York.

Jason Sudeikis revealed on the Today show that his father’s name was Daniel, and he was originally named after him. However, to prevent confusion with another Daniel in the family, his mother began calling him by his middle name, Jason.

Emma Stone chose to use a stage name because her real name was already taken by another actor in the Screen Actors Guild.

Interestingly, Reese Witherspoon’s first name isn’t actually her middle name! She was named Reese after her mother’s family name.

Every artist creates a different public image, and for Lana Del Rey, that image is simply herself – she performs as the person she truly is.

In 2014, Frank Ocean legally changed his name because, why not? 

Many fans don’t realize that Tina Fey’s real first name is Elizabeth. She playfully honored her given name by naming her iconic character on 30 Rock, Liz Lemon.

This pioneer of West Coast rap would later go on to be known as Snoop Dogg.

I recently discovered something fascinating about Lorde! Apparently, she’s always been captivated by the world of nobility, which is actually why she chose her stage name. She took the title ‘Lord’ and simply feminized it by adding an ‘e’ – creating ‘Lorde’! It’s such a cool and clever nod to her interest.

Before becoming the famous singer Ricky Martin, he was known by a different, more common name.

It’s hard to believe that Iggy Azalea was born Amethyst Kelly!

People were surprised when Taylor Swift publicly thanked her boyfriend Adam during a speech, which then led to the realization that Calvin Harris isn’t his real name. Harris explained to Shortlist magazine that he adopted the name because his first song had a soulful sound and he wanted a name that didn’t reveal his background.

Before she became a household name, this was what erstwhile Friend Jennifer Aniston answered to.

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2025-11-05 00:50