James Roday is reclaiming his Rodriguez birth name

TVLine

When Psych 2: Lassie Come Home premieres on Peacock on Wednesday, it will mark Roday's first credit as "James Roday Rodriguez." The Psych alum and A Million Little Lies star changed his name at the start of his career to James Roday in the late 1990s because his last name then proved a hindrance to booking roles, especially since he looked white despite his half a Mexican-American heritage. Roday says he's always signed his legal documents with James Roday Rodriguez, but now it will appear on screen. In fact, Roday already plays a Mexican-American character on A Million Little Things, thanks to creator D.J. Nash's inquiry. "I couldn’t believe that someone was acknowledging that I was 50 percent Latino and actually asking me professionally if I wanted to associate that with my work," he tells TVLine. "And I was stoked. I got excited. I thought this would probably be the only time I get to have a Latino name ever. And so I give credit for him for igniting a pilot light in me that opened the blinds a little bit so I felt more present in my own skin." As for why he's changing his name for Psych 2: Lassie Come Home, Roday Rodriguez says: "That job kind of changed the trajectory of my career, so in many ways it feels like the absolute right place for it to happen."