Proof You Might Be Pronouncing Anya Taylor-Joy's Name Wrong

Anya Taylor-Joy shared the right way to pronounce her name in a new TikTok video. Find out how to truly say the Queen's Gambit star's moniker.

By Gabrielle Chung Dec 05, 2023 3:26 AMTags
Watch: Anya Taylor-Joy and Malcolm McRae Are Married!

It's no gambit: You may have been mispronouncing Anya Taylor-Joy's name all this time.

While unveiling the trailer to her upcoming movie Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga, the 27-year-old pronounced her first name as "anne-ya," not "awn-ya."

"Hello everyone, I'm Anya Taylor-Joy," she said in a Nov. 30 TikTok video, before costar Chris Hemsworth introduced himself. "So many wonderful artists worked on this film. We worked on it really, really hard and now it's yours."

But the Queen's Gambit star won't be furious if you have been pronouncing her name incorrectly. After all, she once let it slide for an entire production before correcting the crew on the true pronunciation during their last day of filming.

"My first director got so angry with me because we had gotten through the entire film and finally I was like, 'That's not my name," Anya recalled in 2021 interview with Extra, admitting that it's not her nature to confront people over the gaffe. "I can't get myself to do it."

She added with emphasis at the time that her name is "anne-ya."

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Anya Taylor-Joy's Best Looks

However, Anya is not the only celeb with a name that's been mistakenly botched by fans and colleagues alike. Charlize Theron, who played the original Furiosa in 2015's Mad Max: Fury Road, can also empathize.

 

Swan Gallet/WWD via Getty Images

"It's like music to my ears," she told Tonight Show host Jimmy Fallon after he pronounced her last name as "there-in" during her 2014 appearance. "It's so beautiful."

Noting that many people "screw it up" by pronouncing her surname as "thur-own," the Oscar winner joked at the time, "I almost want to make an audiotape on how to pronounce my name."

To learn how to properly say some of Hollywood's most commonly mispronounced names, keep reading.

Travis Kelce (Pronounced: Kels)

Travis and brother Jason Kelce debated on their New Heights podcast whether to go by "Kel-see" or "Kels," with Travis deciding to do the latter.

Taylor Lautner (Pronounced: Lout-Ner)

Speaking with E! News in February 2022, Taylor revealed the first syllable of his last name rhymes with "out" instead of being pronounced as "lot." 

Emily Ratajkowski (Pronounced: Rat-Ah-Kof-Sky or Rat-Ah-Cow-Skee)

After much speculation surrounding her moniker, the model set the record straight in a TikTok shared by Tory Burch, where she provided "the Polish way" to say it. She has also introduced herself by pronouncing her last name "Rat-Ah-Cow-Skee."

Raven-Symoné (Pronounced: See-mon-ye)

While Raven-Symoné's character could see the future on That's So Raven, fans likely didn't see this coming. The actress revealed in a January 2023 TikTok that her name has been mispronounced for years and is actually pronounced See-mon-ye.

Brendan Fraser (Pronounced: Fray-zer)

After Adam Sandler accidentally mispronounced the Oscar winner's last name during a December 2022 interview for Variety's Actors on Actors series, the George of the Jungle star swung in with a trick that can help fans remember how to say the moniker correctly: Fraser rhymes with razor.

Adele (Pronounced: Uh-Dale)

During a Q&A in October 2022, the powerhouse singer praised a fan for "perfectly" pronouncing her name as "uh-dale" when asking a question.

Lindsay Lohan (Pronounced: Lo-Wen)

For her introductory video shared to TikTok in February 2022, Lindsay Lohan inadvertently set the record straight on how to correctly pronounce her last name, which is "Lo-wen."

Alicia Silverstone (Pronounced: Uh-Lee-See-Uh)

The Clueless actress set the record straight on how to pronounce her name on TikTok. Alicia said she's not bothered if fans don't get it right, noting, "But my sweet mama didn't like it... so for her... get it right! Ali-SEE-yuh."

Kesha (Pronounced: Keh-Sha)

"My name is Kesha. Keh-sha," the singer said on TikTok. "Not Keisha. Not Ketchup. Kesha."

Justin Theroux (Pronounced: Tha-Roo)

The Leftovers actor's uncle revealed in an interview with Apple TV+ that we've all been pronouncing "Theroux" incorrectly, including Justin himself! 

"The main character is played by Justin Theroux, my nephew," Paul Theroux explained of the actor starring in his novel's television adaptation. The novelist later poked fun at his nephew, saying, "Sometimes he calls himself Justin tha-row [laughs]. It's a French name, it's Theroux."

Ariana Grande (Pronounced: Gran-Dee)

The pop star dropped jaws in 2018 after she explained the correct way to say her last name. When speaking about her engagement to Pete Davidson at the time, Ariana discussed whether or not she'd take his last name in an interview with Beats 1's Ebro Darden. That's when she blurted out the "gran-dee" pronunciation when describing her own last name.

Chrissy Teigen (Pronounced: Tie-Ghen)

The Cravings cookbook author blew everyone's mind when she shared the real way to say her last name. During an appearance on Live With Kelly and Ryan in 2018, the model admitted it was her "fault" for the mispronunciation. "It's been 25 years, I'm tired of correcting people," she expressed.

Gal Gadot (Pronounced: Guh-Dote)

The lasso of truth! The Wonder Woman actress chatted with Jimmy Kimmel about the pronunciation (guh-dote) and the meaning of her last name, which is "Riverbank" in Hebrew. "The Gadot used to be Greenstein," she confessed of her original last name, but her parents "felt" it had more oomph.

Jake Gyllenhaal (Pronounced: Yee-Len-Hey-Lo)

Prepare to be mind blown. During an appearance on Conan in 2012, the actor shared the "only two places that that is pronounced correctly, my last name, is in Sweden and in Ikea." 

Ralph Fiennes (Pronounced: Ray-F Fines)

The star has openly discussed just how frequently people screw up his name. However, in 2011, he told The Hollywood Reporter he'd never change it because he was named after his step-grandfather, who pronounced it in the same way.

Sade Adu (Pronounced Shar-Day)

According to the legendary singer's IMDb page, her stage name is pronounced shar-day.

Steve Buscemi (Pronounced: Boo-Sem-Ee)

In 2014, the Fargo alum confirmed his last name is pronounced boo-sem-ee during a panel for Running Late with Scott Rogowsky. However, he said he doesn't "correct people" if they say boo-shh-em-me because "it's not wrong."

Charlize Theron (Pronounced: There-In)

In 2014, the Oscar winner told Jimmy Fallon on The Tonight Show that her last name is always botched. "They screw it up," she quipped. "I almost want to make an audiotape on how to pronounce my name."

Anya Taylor Joy (Pronounced: Anne-Ya)

Check(mate) your pronounciation of the Queen's Gambit star, who says her name like anne-ya—and not awn-ya.

Amanda Seyfried (Pronounced: Sigh-Frid)

The Mean Girls alum has us all feeling like Karen because she revealed in 2012 during an interview with Hollywood Streams that the correct pronunciation of her last name is sigh-frid. Although, she admitted that her "sister says it differently" than she does.