The Story Behind Harrison Ford’s Wild Hollywood Name Change That Almost Was

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Harrison Ford really needs no introduction, but how about Kurt Affair? According to the legendary actor, he was told to change his name early in his career, but, in true Ford fashion, was not going to play that game. Ford, who will soon return in Season 3 of Shrinking, which you’ll be able to watch with an Apple TV+ subscription, has always been a no-nonsense kind of guy. It turns out, he wasn’t afraid of using a little nonsense to tactfully avoid changing his name. Here’s how he did it.

Ford’s Origin Story Is Well Known, But Did You Know About His Name?

The Witness star was born Harrison Ford in Chicago in 1942. His first gig in Hollywood came towards the end of the studio system, when he was a contract player for Columbia Pictures in the mid-1960s. According to him, in an interview with Variety, he was making $150 a week and struggling to land many parts. When he landed his first role, in 1966’s Dead Heat on a Merry-Go-Round, he was told by a studio executive that his name “sounded too pretentious.”

Ford relays what the exec said to him,

He told me that I had no future in the business. Which was OK. And then he asked me to get my hair cut like Elvis Presley. That I didn’t go along with.

That wasn’t all, he also suggested Ford change his name, because his real name sounded pretentious. Ford devised a way to defuse the situation and keep his real name by coming up with a ridiculous one.

Ford Suggested “Kurt Affair” As A Stage Name

In a 2017 interview with GQ, Ford explained that he had no interest in changing his name, pretentious or not. So, he invented the name “Kurt Affair” because he thought it sounded terrible. Of the name, he told GQ,

It was just the stupidest name I could think of.

When asked if the studio actually had thought highly of the name (which they did not) whether or not he would have actually changed it, Ford was blunt:

Oh, I wouldn’t have done it. No, no, no. I was just fucking with them. Because they were fucking with me.

It’s impossible to imagine one of the stars of Star Wars being named “Kurt Affair.” Harrison Ford sounds like a star. Maybe it is the pretentiousness that makes it work, but I don’t think it’s all that haughty. Kurt Affair is a great name for a pro wrestler or an adult film star, but not for the actor playing Indiana Jones.

Obviously, it’s impossible to know if a simple name change would have altered the course of Hollywood, but Ford has been a part of some of the biggest franchises in history, even joining in on the fun at Marvel when he finally starred in an MCU movie, playing Thaddeus Ross/Red Skull in Captain America: Brave New World on the 2025 movie schedule.

So, let’s once again tip our hats to Harrison Ford for his uncompromising ideas on how an actor should comport himself.