Actors using both first names

[HelloDenise]

Skye Lucia Degruttola
Ella Maisy Purvis
Millie Bobby Brown
Ella Lily Hyland
Sarah Jessica Parker

Just a few. Obviously there's loads more. Most of the younger actors seem to use both names.

I just wondered why it's a "thing". Ella Lily doesn't flow properly it's all lalala.

Possibly as with Equity here, you have to have a unique name to register with the actors’ union or guild or equivalent, hence stage names. I can imagine it’s much harder to have a unique first name-surname combination in the US due to the sheer size of the population, so that could explain the use of a middle name as a distinguisher.

It is because you can't have exactly the same name as another actor for various legal reasons. Many actors don't want to have a stage name, they want to use their own name but might have to swap names round, use an initial or second name, use a parent's maiden name, there are various options.

As above. I also think having a more unique / memorable name, probably helps.

I’d assume there is already an actor of that name so they go with middle too or a stage name.

That’s a very small handful, hardly proves your point.

Well for a start Millie Bobby Brown was born Millie Bonnie Brown and is now Millie Bobby Bonjiovi. SJP was given that name from birth. I dont know about the others but one of mine has two first names not double barrelled and if they were famous I assume would just use both.

It is exactly as others have said - you need a unique name. Hence also Samuel L. Jackson and Michael J. Fox. Emma Stone is actually called Emily Jean Stone but Emily Stone was taken.

When you apply to join Equity in the UK, you have to give 3 name options in case yours is already taken, so you often don't have the choice to keep your normal name.

I did say there's lots more.

Exactly as others have said. That’s why Michael Keaton is Michael Keaton and not Michael Douglas 2. Assume there was already a ‘Millie Brown’ etc registered.

Not that weird

It is because you can't have exactly the same name as another actor for various legal reasons

I'm not sure this is true anymore. I think it used to be because you HAD to join Equity to work professionally and Equity has this rule about not having two actors with the same name.

I'm not an expert so this could be wrong but I think after the closed shop system ended with the Employment Act 1988 that it was no longer a requirement to be a member of Equity.

Practically though it would make sense to have a distinct name in the same way that calling your coffee shop Starbucks is better business sense than calling it The Coffee Shop.

You can have the same name as another actor - but it's not very sensible.

Most people who are serious ensure that they can have Spotlight and Equity match and that way it is likely anyone else coming along who is equally serious will pick something else to avoid confusion.

US Equity and UK Equity don't have crossover though. Also the case in the USA that if you are SAG-AFTRA you can't work on non-union productions easily.

The Sarah Jessica one is interesting.
I could never imagine her being called Sarah.
She doesn't suit it at all.
She suits Jessica and Sarah-Jessica but, nope, not Sarah 😁

Catherine Zeta-Jones is missing. Zeta is her middle name. She only picked up the hyphen when she moved to the U.S.