Why Did Charlie Sheen Change His Name?

Since Charlie Sheen emerged in the mid-1980s with memorable roles in such films as "Red Dawn," "Ferris Bueller's Day Off," and "Platoon," fans have naturally associated the actor with his showbiz legend father Martin Sheen. At the same time, it was a well-known fact that Charlie Sheen was the brother of fellow actor Emilio Estevez, causing some confusion as to why the siblings have different surnames.

The truth is, Emilio is the only actor in the trio who kept his birth name of Estevez. Charlie Sheen was born Carlos Irwin Estevez on September 3, 1965, in New York City to Janet Sheen and Martin Sheen — whose real name is Ramon Antonio Gerardo Estevez. The elder Sheen has been performing under his stage name for his entire career, dating back to his screen debut on the daytime drama "As the World Turns" in 1956.

"I think there's a better balance with Charlie Sheen the way it has a, you know, nicer ring to it," the younger Sheen said while explaining his stage name to CBC in 1986. "And as far as the established name, having Emilio opt for the family name, I figured that with how pop has established 'Sheen' in this business, I should probably carry it on after he's history, you know, or has retired, I should say."

According to the State Journal-Register, Charlie Sheen didn't change his first name, at least, because of acting. In fact, the publication reported, he changed his first name to Charlie at age 4 to avoid confusion with his uncle, Carlos.

While Sheen continued using his stage surname on such hits as TV's "Two and a Half Men," he did manage to take a break from it in 2010 when he was cast in the 2013 "Machete" sequel "Machete Kills." TMZ broke Sheen's name change for the film, as the publication obtained an early screengrab that pictured Sheen with the billing, "And Introducing Carlos Estevez." Since Sheen was born Carlos Estevez and "Machete Kills" was the first film he appeared in under his birth name, the billing, for all intents and purposes, was technically correct. In the film, Estevez played the gun-toting U.S. commander-in-chief, simply known as "Mr. President."

The move finally, at least for one project, found both of Martin Sheen's sons using their birth names — something that Emilio Estevez was intent on doing all along.

In a 2019 interview on Talk Stoop with Nessa, Emilio Estevez — who is about two-and-half years older than his brother, Charlie Sheen — explained why he kept the family's original surname as a performer, echoing a decision his father, Martin Sheen, had to make when he was breaking into showbiz.

Estevez recalled that his father's agents and other people told him that he'd need to have more of an Anglo-sounding name instead of his Hispanic name if he wanted to work in the business. Martin Sheen, did, of course, change his name, but found out how hurtful it was to his father, who was originally from Spain. Estevez said that his grandfather traveled from the family's home in Dayton, Ohio, to see his father perform on Broadway in the mid-1960s, and the heartbreak he experienced eventually led the actor to perform under his real surname.

"[He] looked up on the marquee and saw the three names that were starring in the play and one of them was Martin Sheen and not Ramon Estevez," Estevez explained. "My grandfather just looked up and shook his head and [was] so disappointed and my father saw that. And so, when I began to get into this business, we had that conversation, and he said, 'Don't make that same mistake.'"

Martin Sheen previously recalled his father's disappointment on James Lipton's "Inside the Actor's Studio." As quoted by the State Journal-Register, Sheen told Lipton, "One of my great regrets is that I didn't keep my name as it was given to me. I knew it bothered my dad."