Actor Sam Neill has shared the sweet story behind the decision to change his name.
During an appearance on The Kelly Clarkson Show, the star of Jurassic Park and Peaky Blinders was asked to share the reason for the name change to Sam.
“It’s embarrassing that you know,” he said to Clarkson, who revealed his real name – Nigel John Dermot Neill.
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“I was christened Nigel Neill – it’s like my parents discriminated against me from the start,” joked Neill.
Although Clarkson said Nigel Neill would be a “strong” acting name, Neill insisted that no one “wants to be called Nigel.”
“It’s also called ‘Nigel No Mates,’ you know, ‘Nigel No Friends,'” he continued, recalling how he and his childhood best friend, also named Nigel, came up with different names.
“When I was 10, my best friend was called Nigel Nut – which is worse – and I was Nigel Neill,” said the actor.
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“We liked westerns and thought, ‘Let’s not just call ourselves Nigel, let’s give ourselves a nickname.’ So we called me Sam and him Bill, and that was the best decision I ever made,” he explained.
“There are no film actors named Nigel Neill, that will never happen,” he concluded.
Neill appeared on Clarkson’s show to promote his latest series, “Apples Never Fall.”
The thriller is based on the bestselling novel of the same name by Liane Moriarty and is about the married couple Joy (Annette Bening) and Stan Delaney (Neill), who want to enjoy their golden years of life after their four grown children have left the nest and they have sold their successful tennis academy.
Things go wrong when Joy disappears and the children are hesitant to report the disappearance as they begin to doubt their father’s innocence.
The four siblings are played by Brie Larson (GLOW), Conor Merrigan Turner (Thai Cave Rescue), Jake Lacy (Carol) and Essie Randles (Speedway).
The Kelly Clarkson Show is broadcast in the USA on NBC.
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