Olivia Wilde shares 'wild' story behind her last name

Think you know Olivia Wilde's real surname? Think again.

During a candid chat on the Armchair Expert podcast, the filmmaker revealed that her birth name has been confusing people for years—and even inspired plenty of childhood jokes.

“I’ll tell you something. And there’s no way you would know this. It’s pronounced Coburn (KOH-burn),” she explained.

Despite being spelled Cockburn, Wilde said the Scottish surname has always been pronounced differently.

“It’s spelled Cockburn. It’s a Scottish name. It’s very much like Boy Name Sue … like, it’s character building.”

Looking back, the actress laughed about the teasing she received growing up.

“I think it’s important — we should all give our kids devastating middle names. Just so that you can grow up with something to be totally bullied for.”

Rather than letting the jokes bother her, Wilde said they taught her an important lesson.

“I thought it was funny, too. I was like, ‘Oh, I get it.'”

The Don't Worry Darling director eventually adopted "Wilde" as her professional surname while still in high school, paying tribute to legendary writer Oscar Wilde and a family tradition of authors using pen names.

“I always thought having a pen name was so romantic,” she said. “I honestly didn’t foresee that people would look at it as a sexy name, like, ‘She’s wiiiild!'”

She also joked that headlines practically write themselves.

“Anytime a story is written about me, the title is usually some pun on my last name: ‘Born to Be Wilde’ or ‘Take a Walk on the Wilde Side.’ I don’t mind it; it’s just not something I ever considered when I picked the name.”

Turns out, the biggest surprise wasn't the spelling—it was the pronunciation all along.