Naturally, Ryan Reynolds and Blake Lively helped fuel one of the most popular baby name trends of 2015 when they gave their daughter this traditionally male moniker: James. (Would you expect anything less from the super-stylish couple?) But while the use of unisex names is "bigger now than ever," according to Nameberry's Pamela Redmond Satran—just look at Ashton Kutcher and Mila Kunis' daughter Wyatt, Kristen Bell and Dax Shephard's daughter Lincoln, and Jessica Simpson and Eric Johnson's daughter Maxwell—Reynolds recently had to defend their selection in an appearance on ITV's Good Morning Britain.
In the interview, cohost Kate Garraway asked Reynolds why they gave their daughter a name typically used for boys—even calling the decision "unusual." "In the spectrum of weird celebrity baby names, I feel like we're not really breaking any new ground here," Reynolds responded. "I mean, I didn't call her Summer Squash Meadow Lark or something." (No offense to all the Summers, Squashes, Meadows, and Larks out there.) He also joked with the hosts, adding: "I also thought of all the letters being silent in her name, so it would be just be 'Haa.'"
Reynolds also confirmed in the interview that their decision to use the name "James" was not about trends or fads—it's actually a family name. Reynolds shared that the name was chosen as a tribute to his father, James Reynolds, who died in October after a 20-year battle with Parkinson's disease. "My father just passed away, but my daughter's named after him," he said.