DiCaprio: Agent Wanted 'Lenny Williams'

On the New Heights podcast, Leonardo DiCaprio said his first agent told him his name was “too ethnic” and suggested he perform under the stage name “Lenny Williams” (using his middle name Wilhelm as a surname); DiCaprio said his father ripped up the headshot and refused the change. Co-guest Benicio del Toro confirmed he received similar early advice to go by “Benny Del.” The anecdote came up while DiCaprio and del Toro were promoting Paul Thomas Anderson’s One Battle After Another, which opens Sept. 26 and has drawn strong reviews; the film also stars Regina Hall. The story highlights long-standing Hollywood pressure to Anglicize performers’ names and recalls DiCaprio’s rise from child actor to Oscar-winning star known for roles in films such as What’s Eating Gilbert Grape, Romeo + Juliet and Titanic.