13 Celebrities Who Were Named After Other Famous People

Naming a child is an important and special decision, and parents often name their babies after other people they admire. Sometimes, such a name is especially fitting because their baby grows up to pursue a similar career to their namesake.

Here are 13 celebrities who were named after other famous people:

1. Taylor Swift was named after a '70s music icon — "Fire and Rain" singer James Taylor.

In 2024, James told USA Today, "I met her perhaps it was 15-16 years ago. We did a benefit for [the Candie’s Foundation], an organization that tries to help with teenage pregnancy, and it was interesting. We were both just there with guitars and played a couple of songs. I was performing with my wife and may have had a friend of ours playing cello, and Taylor was there just playing by herself. She was just a teen. She told me she had listened to my music a lot and that her folks had named her with me in mind."

2. Karlie Kloss was named after another '70s music icon (and James Taylor's ex-wife) — "You're So Vain" singer Carly Simon.

3. Selena Gomez was named after the late Queen of Tejano Music, Selena Quintanilla.

4. Jordan Chiles was named after basketball player and fellow Olympian Michael Jordan.

5. Cole Sprouse was named after jazz singer, pianist, and actor Nat King Cole, whose voice you likely recognize from his iconic version of "The Christmas Song."

6. Dylan Sprouse was named after Welsh poet and writer Dylan Thomas, who's known for works like "Do not go gentle into that good night" (and was also referenced in Taylor Swift's "The Tortured Poets Department").

7. Leonardo DiCaprio was named after Renaissance painter Leonardo da Vinci.

8. Marc Anthony — whose real name is Marco Antonio Muñiz — was named after famous '60s singer Marco Antonio Muñiz.

9. Sebastian Stan is named after Baroque composer Johann Sebastian Bach.

10. Rachel Zegler was named after Jennifer Aniston in a roundabout way — she was named after Rachel Green, the actor's iconic Friends character.

11. Willow Smith is seemingly named after her famous father, Will Smith.

12. Willow's brother, Jaden Smith, is seemingly named after their famous mother, Jada Pinkett Smith.

13. And finally, Anne Hathaway was named after the famous poet who shares her name — Anne Hathaway, who's also known as William Shakespeare's wife.