Why did Elon Musk change his name to 'Kekius Maximus' on X? The network is buzzing.
It seems that Russell Crowe's character in "Gladiator," Maximus, is being mentioned again.
Elon Musk has recently made a change to his X profile, adopting the name "Kekius Maximus," which has sparked considerable curiosity among his 210 million followers. In addition to the new name, he updated his profile picture with an image of "Pepe the Frog" dressed in gladiator armor and holding what appears to be a video game controller. Although Musk, who has close ties to elected president Donald Trump, has not provided a clear reason for this modification, he has left some hints that have led his followers and detractors to speculate.
The online community suggests that Musk's new name, "Kekius Maximus," is a fusion between Pepe the Frog and the character Maximus from "Gladiator," played by Russell Crowe. In his profile image, Pepe appears with golden armor and a gaming controller in hand. Pepe, a character originally created in the comic series "Boy’s Club," has controversially been linked to white supremacist movements and the alt-right during the 2016 elections. The Anti-Defamation League even classified him as a hate symbol, though Musk and many internet users have consistently rejected these accusations.
Musk hinted at the name change in a post, stating that "Kekius Maximus will soon reach level 80 in PoE hardcore," referencing the video game "Path of Exile 2," which he is known to play. Additionally, the name "Kekius Maximus" is associated with a popular "memecoin," which has led to speculation about a possible connection to the cryptocurrency market, given that Musk has had influence in this area, particularly with dogecoin. Following Musk's name change, the value of the memecoin Kekius Maximus experienced an increase of over 900%. However, it is unclear whether Musk is directly involved with this particular cryptocurrency.
On another note, the name "Kekius" likely comes from "kek," a term familiar among gamers that equates to "laughing out loud," but is also linked to the alt-right. Additionally, "Kek" is the name of an ancient Egyptian deity of darkness, sometimes represented with a frog's head, which could connect to the image Musk chose for his profile. This combination of video game culture, ancient mythology, and internet culture has generated significant curiosity about the motivations behind Musk's change. However, he has returned his photo to a personal image.
