Actors Who Look Exactly Like The Real-Life People They Played

Some actors are seemingly born for a role, looking exactly like the real-life characters they've been cast to play. However, other celebs look drastically different, forcing them to spend hours in hair and makeup before filming can commence. Charlize Theron is a classic example of the latter. She underwent one of the most dramatic celebrity transformations in Hollywood history to play Aileen Wuornos in 2003's "Monster."

Still, the 30-pound weight gain, uncomfortable dentures, contact lenses, and daily chore of slathering on liquid latex to achieve the serial killer's weather-beaten, leathery skin were all worthwhile in the end, helping Theron to take home gold at the 2004 Academy Awards. Detractors claim that "getting ugly" to play a character is a surefire way to score an Oscar. However, that pushes aside Theron's obvious acting chops. Not to mention, plenty of actors have done the same and never had the slightest whiff of an award to show for their efforts — Colin Farrell's three-hour Oswald Cobblepot "Penguin" transformation, anyone?

Then there is the array of actors who barely needed a flick of the makeup brush to turn them into Oscar contenders. With his tall, spindly frame and noble features, Daniel Day-Lewis is an Abraham Lincoln look-alike even before pasting on a wiry beard and eyebrows. We're checking out five other actors who look exactly like the real-life people they played.

At first glance, you could be mistaken for thinking you're looking at Ashton Kutcher when checking out old black-and-white photos of a young Steve Jobs. Kutcher is the spitting image of the Apple co-founder. So, it wasn't surprising when he landed the lead role in the 2013 biopic "Jobs." Kutcher admitted he was "terrified" to portray the tech mogul, an idol of his. "I almost felt compelled to defensively play the role," Kutcher told The Verge in July 2013. "...Even if I screw it up and totally bomb it, I love that guy. I love that guy. I'd rather have someone that cared about him screw it up than someone who didn't."

According to co-star Josh Gad, who played Steve Wozniak in the flick, Kutcher was in full-on method actor mode while preparing for the part. "He went on a fruitarian diet. I went on a cheeseburger diet. The toll was a lot harder on him than it was on me," Gad told Variety in August 2013.

Meanwhile, Kutcher said he was also willing to humble himself — a trait Jobs wasn't exactly known for. "The most valuable thing I did was I [was] willing to admit I probably didn't know how to do this. I found an acting coach that helped me do it," Kutcher shared. "Sometimes, when you have the humility to admit you don't know what you are doing, you can find somebody to teach you that maybe you actually did."

Playing Selena Quintanilla-Pérez in the 1997 biopic "Selena" launched Jennifer Lopez's movie career and earned her a best actress nomination at the 55th Golden Globe Awards. With her stellar singing and dancing skills, Latina heritage, and va-va-voom curves, the then-26-year-old Lopez was the perfect fit, beating over 20,000 other hopefuls to the role. Her starring role in the movie about the singing legend was one that made bank — and history — when Lopez became the first Latina to be paid over $1 million, in addition to being the first woman to have a number-one album and movie in the same week.

At the time of the film's release, it was still a rarity for a Latina actor to star in a Hollywood blockbuster. Not surprisingly, Lopez was proud of the achievement. "How many times do you see a Latina walking down the red carpet, and she's actually starring in the movie in the title role? Not often," she told Access Hollywood at the "Selena" premiere. "It's a celebration of her life, and uplifting and inspiring, just like she was."

Despite effortlessly nailing Selena's physical appearance, Lopez had to put serious work into perfecting her mannerisms. "When I was preparing for the role, I studied her tirelessly, her every step, her finger movements, her lips ... her infectious laugh...her expressions," she shared in a March 2021 Instagram tribute honoring 24 years since the film's release.

Gary Oldman is Sid Vicious' dopplegänger in 1986's "Sid and Nancy." It's almost like the actor was born for the part. However, it nearly didn't happen, as Oldman had zero interest in portraying the troubled punk icon. Oldman hasn't changed his tune since, and he's definitely not a fan of the flick — or Vicious, for that matter.

"If ['Sid And Nancy'] comes on TV and I'm channel surfing and I see a second of it, I want to just throw the television out the window. I had no interest in the Sex Pistols. I looked at it and thought, 'Why? Why would you make a movie about these people?' But it's got its charms, [there's] great things in it. It's Roger Deakins' cinematography, one of his early films," he told Yahoo! in April 2016.

Meanwhile, Vicious' former Sex Pistols bandmate, John Lydon, aka Johnny Rotten, slammed the movie in his 1994 autobiography "Rotten: No Irish, No Blacks, No Dogs." Lydon took great umbrage at the director's decision to consult with his long-time adversary rather than him. "I cannot understand why anyone would want to put out a movie like 'Sid and Nancy' and not bother to speak to me; Alex Cox, the director, didn't," Lydon wrote. "He used as his point of reference — of all the people on this earth — Joe Strummer! That guttural singer from The Clash? What the f*** did he know about Sid and Nancy?"

Denzel Washington threw on a fedora and some black top-rim glasses, grew a short goatee, and bingo! he was Malcolm X. Well, it wasn't quite as easy as that; in reality, it also took months of tireless work to perfect his characteristics, but still, the physical likeness is uncanny. 

The actor underwent several transformations while portraying the life of the Black nationalist in Spike Lee's 1992 biopic "Malcolm X," growing out his facial hair and aging over the course of the flick. Still, Washington remained faithful to the character throughout, nailing his distinctive, rousing speech style and mannerisms.

Given Malcolm's legacy and impact on the world, some might be intimidated by depicting him on screen, but not Washington. He wasn't fazed by the enormity of the task; in fact, he welcomed the challenge. "I knew I could play the part; I had the glasses," Washington joked during a Santa Barbara International Film Festival appearance in February 2017. "...You know, ignorance is bliss. I was like, when do we start?" Washington admitted filming was easier because Lee gave him the creative license and freedom to let loose. "I would put speeches together; they just kept loading the camera," he explained. "I kept talking, I talk anything. White shoes, 'Oh, that's the Black man is trying to get on top of the white man.'"

Kristen Stewart is the dead ringer for Joan Jett in 2010's "The Runaways." She totally immersed herself in the rocker's life, shadowing her 24/7 while preparing for the role, and the two struck up a super tight friendship. "She was with me the entire shoot," Stewart said on "The Howard Stern Show" in June 2023. "There really never was a day she wasn't there."

It has to be intimidating having the subject you're depicting hanging around on set all day watching you act — especially when the subject is Jett. Stewart admitted that the iconic rocker is pretty terrifying when you first meet her. But, once you get to know her, she's a veritable pussycat. "She has this armor on that is just kind of penetrating; she's really tough. But then you realize the reason she is that way is because she is a delicate little angel baby," Stewart said. "It's a self-protective thing because she's super soulful and sensitive."

Jett was equally as appreciative of Stewart. She believes the "Twilight" star nailed the part and played her to perfection. "I was very impressed with your work ethic and how into me you were trying to get, to the point where you had all my hand stuff down," Jett told her co-star during a Sirius XM talk in November 2021. "It's the little things that other people might not notice, but Kristen picked up on."