Overview

• DiCaprio said a first agent called his surname “too ethnic” and proposed the stage name Lenny Williams when he was about 12 or 13.
• He recalled that his father, George DiCaprio, tore up a headshot bearing the proposed name and said, “Over my dead body.”
• The actor shared the story on the New Heights podcast while promoting Paul Thomas Anderson’s One Battle After Another, released September 26.
• Co-star Benicio del Toro said he received similar advice early on to go by “Benny Del,” which he also declined.
• Opinion coverage used the anecdote to highlight a long history of name changes in entertainment, citing examples such as Martin Sheen and George Michael.