05 June 2023 , 19:26
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Arnold Schwarzenegger has opened up on the reason behind his name change at the start of his acting career.
The Hollywood star, 75, was determined to make the breakthrough into the movie industry after years of cleaning up medals on the bodybuilding scene.
But his first main acting gig saw him required to change his name, with the director wanting to make him more accessible to the viewing public.
After moving to the US from Austria and fulfilling his strongman goals, Arnie took on a role in Hercules in New York.
The production saw him struggle to portray his lines due to his lack of fluency in English and eventually he had his voice dubbed.
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He explained in new Netflix series titled Arnold how he was told "Americans want to hear their idols talk like John Wayne, not like you".
Arnold Schwarzenegger spoke candidly on the new documentary series (Netflix)He then confessed how he wasn't ready for the production and directors of the 1969 production decided to change his name for the movie, switching from his birth name to Arnold Strong, using his Mr Universe tag as a nickname.
Arnold explained how the movie was a flop by critics and led to him having a barren spell in the industry.
"For five years there was no offer, for anything," he said. "There was a lot of things I had to learn, obstacles I had to overcome, including the biggest obstacle when everyone says no it can't be done."
But he revealed he wasn't prepared to give up and went on to play the main role in Conan The Barbarian.
His success was labelled "extraordinary" by critics and he later went on to be one of the biggest stars in the industry - under his real name.
But there was still time for another career change later in life as he took on the battle - successfully - to become the governor of his adopted city, Los Angeles.
Arnie is best known for his role as the Terminator (CBS via Getty Images)During his campaign trail, news of previous behaviour came out to the public. In the latest documentary, the former Mr Universe apologised for his actions, which were said to include groping women.
He admitted his behaviour was "wrong" in the new documentary which will be released on Netflix on Wednesday, 20 years after the accusations first came to light.
When he decided to run as a Republican for governor of California, the Los Angeles Times ran an investigative story on six women who came forward to accuse the actor turned politician of groping them.
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