Theo James Regrets Going by His Middle Name
Like many actors, Theo James has a stage name. The actor adopted a different version of his name in order to pursue his professional career. But unlike celebrities who go by their nicknames professionally (e.g. Shay Mitchell and Keke Palmer), James chose to use a part of his legal name and his nickname. The actor has relied on his middle name over the course of his career. However, it seems that The White Lotus star regrets his decision.
What is Theo James’ real name that he regrets not using?
Legally, James’ full name is Theodore Peter James Kinnaird Taptiklis. While on Live with Kelly and Ryan, the actor revealed this unique piece of trivia. “Sexy or weird one of the two,” the Divergent alum joked about his long name. Continuing on, James shared that he actually wishes he used his real last name, Taptiklis, in his career. “Yeah, James is my middle name, and I use that, and in a funny kind of way, I kind of regret it,” he revealed.
Why did the actor choose to go by his middle name?
But why did the Downton Abbey alum choose to use his middle name to begin with? The actor shared that early on in his acting career, he was encouraged to drop his last name because of the ethnicity attached to it. “You know, I was like — when I first started out as an actor, it was what 15 years ago, and I remember an agent saying to me, Taptiklis is too Greek, go with James.” Continuing on, James specified that the agent who gave him this advice is not his current agent.
Does James speak Greek?
Despite taking the agent’s advice and dropping his last name, James has never shied away from the fact that he is Greek. He has spoken many times in interviews about his paternal grandfather, who moved from Greece to New Zealand after he met James’ grandmother. Since James’ father was not raised in Greece, he doesn’t speak Greek and wasn’t able to teach his children the language. Meanwhile, on his mother’s side, the actor is both English and Scottish. However, as the youngest of five children, James has called out his “big Greek family” before.
Will James ever go by a different moniker?
At this point in his career, it seems unlikely that James will start going by Taptiklis. Since he’s established himself in the business using his middle name, changing it now could be tricky. As an actor, he is his own personal brand, and the general public now knows him as Theo James. Switching things up could cause unnecessary confusion. That said, the actor did joke about pulling a switcheroo a la Puff Daddy, who became P. Diddy and then just Diddy. “I could reinvent myself,” he declared on Live with Kelly and Ryan. “P Dog. That could be cool.”
