Will Smith fans baffled after finding out his real name

Will Smith and his wife Jada have never been shy about giving fans an insight into their private lives.

In fact, you may well be sick of hearing about exactly why Will slapped Chris Rock at the Oscars and his secret seven-year-long separation from Jada.

But in turns out there are still some things you don't know about Will Smith - like his name, for instance.

Yep, Will Smith isn’t actually called Will Smith. And no, this isn’t just some cryptic way of saying his name’s actually William.

His kind-of-estranged wife Jada Pinkett Smith (that’s a whole other drama) revealed his true name in a previous birthday post.

Before her ‘shock’ admission in October that her and Will have been secretly separated for years, Jada posted a sweet birthday tribute to him on Instagram.

All wearing matching white outfits, she shared a throwback of the pair with their kids Jaden, 25 and Willow, 23, along with Trey, 31 - the Men In Black star’s son from his marriage to Sheree Zampino.

Jada wrote in the caption: “I am so glad you were born on this day. Without you I would not have experienced the greatest joy of my life… the love of our family.

jadapinkettsmith/Instagram

“On this Divine assignment we’ve chosen to walk together, I am grateful for the wells of laughter along the trails of tears we’ve shared.

“Thank you for helping me learn to embrace it all … with a smile. Here’s to 100+ more birthdays full of growth, acceptance and joy.”

And at the beginning of that caption, she referred to him by his full name of – drumroll – Willard.

Yep, bet you weren’t expecting that.

And neither were many of the King Richard actor’s fans as they wrote on X: “I just found out today that Will Smith’s full name is Willard not William.”

Matt Winkelmeyer/Getty Images

Baffled by the revelation, they said: “Will Smith’s first name is Willard?!?!?!?!? Wtf…”

Pointing out what most of us were thinking, another quipped: “Why did I think Will Smith's full name is William and not Willard?”

“I was today years old when I learned that Will Smith’s name isn’t short for William but Willard,” one wrote.

And plenty echoed: “Will Smith real name is Willard, lmao I didn’t know that,” and: “Bruh never knew Will Smith’s real name was Willard. That’s so funny.”

Named after his dad, the Fresh Prince of Bel-Air actor’s full name is Willard Carroll Smith II – sounds a lot fancier than just Will Smith to be fair.