Joe Manganiello refused to change his name, but his reason ended up backfiring

Joe Manganiello thought people would figure out how to pronounce his name, but they never did.

The actor, known for his roles in the Magic Mike movies and on TV’s True Blood, as well as for his hosting gig on Deal or No Deal Island, said as much Wednesday on the season premiere of Celebrity Wheel of Fortune. Along with Tiffany Haddish and Matt Walsh, Manganiello was part of the season premiere of Pat Sajak’s final season hosting the show.

The veteran host asked Manganiello during the introductions whether he had ever considered changing his name, since it’s not spelled exactly as it’s pronounced.

“No,” Manganiello responded. “They did ask me to change my name, my original manager, but I said, ‘Ya know what, people are gonna have to learn how to pronounce it and spell it.’ And here we are 20-odd years later and no one can pronounce it or spell it.”

Manganiello earned his first credits at the start of the millennium with work in projects that also included One Tree Hill, Pee-Wee’s Big Holiday, and How I Met Your Mother.

He was also featured on a 2023 episode of Finding Your Roots. Among other things, he learned that his last name isn’t actually Manganiello. He was surprised to discover that he’s descended from slaves and is part Black.

Since he participated on the ancestry show, the actor has continued to dig into his past and his connection to the name that Sajak asked about.

“It’s opened up this whole world,” Manganiello told TODAY.com of his Finding Your Roots experience. “I’ve hired several historians to continue the work. I continued taking genetic tests. I made my Ancestry.com and fleshed out the entire family tree. I started writing messages to people who were connected to me. I’ve found very, very close family members.”

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On Wheel, Manganiello took the win, earning $198,000 for the charity he played for, UPMC Children’s Hospital Foundation of Pittsburgh.

Manganiello’s latest project is Nonnas, a movie about an Italian restaurant that hires only local grandmas as chefs. Starring Vince Vaughn, Lorraine Brocco, Brenda Vaccaro, Talia Shire, Susan Sarandon, and Linda Cardellini, it premieres May 9 on Netflix.