Why Macaulay Culkin Legally Changed His Middle Name in 2019

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If you forgot about Macaulay Culkin’s name change, you’re not alone.

I was so excited to be at ‘A Nostalgic Night with Macaulay Culkin’ – it was the 35th anniversary celebration of Home Alone! Seeing Macaulay, who’s 45 now, was amazing. He actually reminded everyone of his real name during the event, which was held at the Long Beach Convention and Entertainment Center in California on November 22nd. It was such a fun night remembering Kevin McCallister and all the mischief!

Reminding everyone that his unusual full name came from a fan vote on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon back in November 2018, he jokingly introduced himself to the audience as, “Macaulay Macaulay Culkin Culkin.”

The poll was part of a running joke where fans got to suggest a new middle name for Macaulay. He pointed out that the choices were pretty funny, going from things like “The McRib is Back” to “Kieran,” which was a reference to his brother, Kieran Culkin.

“Macaulay Kieran Culkin. That would be great,” Macaulay told the audience. “I love my brother.”

I was so thrilled to see Kieran win his Oscar for A Real Pain! Macaulay, who’s a dad to Dakota, four, and Carson, two, with Brenda Song, made a funny comment afterwards. He joked that between the two of us, we’ve only got one Oscar between us!

Fans ultimately decided to use Macaulay’s entire name as his middle name. It just wouldn’t be Macaulay Culkin if he didn’t go all in, would it?

He explained that the final vote officially made his name Macaulay Culkin. “So, my full name is actually Macaulay Macaulay Culkin Culkin,” he said. “That means if anyone asks me at the airport if I’m Macaulay Culkin, I can tell them Macaulay Culkin is my middle name.”

Although the name change might confuse some fans, the actor from Changeland says he did it simply for a good joke.

“I did it all for that one joke,” he admitted, as well as “a bit on Fallon.”

Macaulay isn’t the only celebrity who goes by a different name. Keep reading to discover more stars with surprising real names.

Congratulations to Post Malone! He chose to include his actual last name when creating his stage name. However, he prefers his close friends to use his given name when addressing him.

At the 2024 MTV VMAs, Taylor Swift called Post Malone “Austin” after they won the award for Best Collaboration for their song, “Fortnight.”

Aubrey Anderson-Emmons, who played 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 admitted she liked that it was shorter than her full name, ‘Aubrey Anderson-Emmons,’ which is quite a mouthful.

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. However, he’s always been known simply as 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 Sterling Brown Jr. and his grandfather is Sterling Brown Sr. He decided he wanted a name of his own because ‘Sterling’ felt like a name for an older man.

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

He explained that after his father died when he was ten, he hadn’t heard anyone say his father’s name in over five years. By the time he turned sixteen, he just wanted to hear the name again, so he asked people to start calling him Sterling.

Brothers Andrew, Matthew, and Joey Lawrence all decided to change their last names professionally. Joey, whose middle name is 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 just nine years old, long before she appeared on an episode of Sex and the City in 2000.

Kat Dennings, known from 2 Broke Girls, shared on the March 13, 2025 episode of Kylie Kelce’s 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 French wife of Lloyd Alexander, the author of The Black Cauldron. She explained that Alexander was a close friend of her mother’s.

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.

In her 2024 memoir, Cher: The Memoir, Part One, the singer Cher wrote about how her mother, Georgia Holt, reacted when she found out.

When she told her mother – who had her at 19 – about it, 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 misspelling of his last name on his high school records in Virginia.

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

Cardi B got the nickname ‘Bacardi’ because people started calling her sister Hennessy. She later shortened it to the name we know today, which she felt better suited her.

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

Shania Twain recently revealed how she came up with her stage name. Born Eilleen Regina Edwards, she was later adopted and became Eilleen Regina Twain. When she started her professional singing career, she realized her name sounded too much like her grandmothers’ – both were named Eilleen and Regina. She didn’t want to be associated with their names onstage, so she chose a new one. She met someone named Shania and loved the sound of it, ultimately combining it with her adopted last name to create “Shania Twain.”

Chappell Roan, the singer behind ‘Good Luck, Babe!’, has always approached performing as a distinct artistic persona—a ‘drag project’—which helps her maintain personal boundaries and keep her private life separate from the demands of her career.

Interestingly, Gigi Hadid didn’t choose her stage name herself! In school, her teacher kept mixing her up with a classmate named Helena. To solve the confusion, Gigi asked the teacher to simply call her “Gigi” – a nickname her mother used at home – and the name just stayed with her.

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

Miley Cyrus earned the nickname “Smiley” as a child because of her cheerful grin. Over time, the name was shortened to Miley, and that’s what everyone started calling her.

Okay, so get this – before he was the Bruno Mars, he actually reminded people more of Bruno than Peter! His dad noticed it, and just started calling him Bruno, and it totally stuck! Seriously, can you imagine if he’d gone by Peter Mars? It just doesn’t have the same ring, you know? It’s like fate or something! From that moment on, he was Bruno, and the rest is history. I’m obsessed with the story!

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 given first name is Daniel, after his father. However, to avoid confusion with another family member, his mother began calling him by his middle name, Jason.

Emma Stone chose to use a stage name because another actor was already registered with the Screen Actors Guild under her real name.

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

Every artist has a different side to their public image, and for Lana Del Rey, that persona is the one she presents to the world.

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

Many fans don’t realize that Tina Fey, the creator and star of 30 Rock, was actually born Elizabeth. She playfully honored her given name by naming her character on the show Liz Lemon.

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

It seems the singer known for “Royals” has a strong interest in nobility, which is why she decided on the name Lorde, adding a feminine ‘e’ to the traditional spelling.

Let me tell you a fun little fact! Before he became the global icon we all know and love, Ricky Martin – yes, that Ricky Martin – actually went by a completely different name before hitting the big time. It’s amazing to think about how stars start out, isn’t it? It just goes to show you never know what the future holds!

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

People were surprised when Taylor Swift publicly thanked her then-boyfriend, Adam, during a speech, which prompted many to realize that Calvin Harris wasn’t his real name. Harris later explained to Shortlist magazine that he chose the stage 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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2025-11-24 19:18