Imagine if his name was something like ‘Jack Gas’ or ‘Steve Clutch’—it just wouldn’t have the same impact. It’s hard to picture the Fast & Furious franchise without Diesel driving the action.
But as perfect as his name sounds for Hollywood, it turns out it’s not his real name at all.
Instead, he actually opened up about his real name during an appearance on The Ellen Show back in March 2005. This was just a year before The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift hit theaters, adding another chapter to the iconic franchise.
When Ellen introduced him on the show, she wasted no time in questioning whether ‘Vin Diesel’ could actually be his real name. She seemed pretty sure that it just wasn’t possible.
He then went on to reveal his real name, and to everyone’s surprise, it had almost nothing in common with the one he’s famous for.
Diesel said: “My real name is Mark Vincent.”
Back then, he and his co-workers would take on ‘fictitious names’ just in case they ever found themselves in trouble on the job.
“They just started calling me Vin Diesel, for some crazy reason,” he recalled.
Ellen quickly guessed that ‘Vin’ must have come from his actual last name, but she was stumped when it came to figuring out where ‘Diesel’ originated.
The nickname stuck with him throughout his nine-year career as a bouncer, and when it came time to step into the world of acting, he decided to keep it.
Even though he first shared this revelation on Ellen nearly two decades ago, it seems that some fans are only now learning the truth about his real name.
“He actually got vin from Vehicle Identification Number,” another user joked, while a third added: “I had just accepted it. Diesel is the actual last name of the guy who made the first diesel engine.”
While he may have been born with a different name, to most of us, he’ll always be Vin Diesel.
