A child was denied a passport because he shared the name with an iconic movie character.
Loki Skywalker Mowbray was born on May 4, 2017, dubbed Star Wars day as it sounds similar to “may the force (be with you),” so his parents, British soldier Christian Mowbray, who serves in the Corps of Royal Engineers at the Rock Barracks in Sutton Heath, and his wife, Becky, a former solider herself, gave him a unique name inspired by the protagonist in the series’ original film, Luke Skywalker. The child never experienced any problems with his name including ‘Skywalker’ until the family of five attempted to plan a vacation to the Dominican Republic, at which point his parents needed to purchase a passport for his first international trip.
But the Home Office, which is in charge of the United Kingdom’s immigration, security and law and order, claimed it couldn’t print ‘Skywalker’ as its a copyright of Disney, an issue the parents were unaware of when they named their son. The couple was initially told they’d either have to change their son’s name or get permission from Disney to use ‘Skywalker’ in order to get him a passport.
“We were not aware that this could be a potential issue,” Mowbray said via Suffolk News. “We understand that Loki’s middle name is copyrighted, but we have no intention of using it for personal gain.”
“I understand their (the Home Office’s) position and reasoning, but I believe they need to recognize that modern names are evolving,” he added. “I can understand if an adult changes their name for a ‘stunt,’ but this is not the case for a child from birth.”
Mowbray confirmed, however, that his son was eventually issued the passport and the family vacation is set for October. A similar incident previously occurred in the United Kingdom when a mother was told her 6-year-old daughter Khaleesi, inspired by the television series Game of Thrones, couldn’t get a passport because the name was trademarked by Warner Bros.
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