20 actors who took on multiple roles in one film

How could anyone forget Lindsay Lohan’s iconic performance on The Parent Trap? She played two characters so convincingly that people actually thought she was two different people. Lohan hasn’t had to audition for another role since. 

Hilary Duff was part of the era of the Disney Channel where series were sent off with movies. Duff ended her time on the channel with The Lizzie McGuire Movie, and she got to play both Lizzie and her lookalike, Isabella. 

Tom Hanks voiced basically every character in The Polar Express. There are some who are still holding out hope that there will be a live-action remake of the movie with Hanks again playing almost every role. 

If you weren’t familiar with Armie Hammer prior to seeing The Social Network, you might’ve thought that he had a twin. Hammer played Tyler and Cameron Winklevoss in the hit movie. 

Eddie Murphy played seven different characters in The Nutty Professor, working hard to earn his paycheck. The star comedian also played multiple characters in Coming To America. 

For some, Mike Myers is most memorable as Austin Powers in the eponymous film and sequels. For others, he’s more iconic as Dr. Evil. 

Tyler Perry first brought Madea to the big screen in Diary of a Mad Black Woman, where he also played the roles of Joe and Brian. The multihyphenate has since played all three roles in multiple movies, and he’s added some others, too. 

Actors have been playing multiple roles in movies for decades. Dicĸ Van Dyke played multiple roles in Mary Poppins, pulling the wool over millions of children’s eyes. 

Vanessa Hudgens added to her filmography by playing two roles in The Princess Switch. Hudgens took on both roles again for the sequel, even adding a third. She played all three characters again in the franchise’s final installment. 

Michael J. Fox became iconic as Marty McFly in Back to the Future. The actor took his work up a notch for the film’s sequel, Back to the Future Part II by playing his future kids, Marty Jr. and Marlene. 

There’s a reason Lily Tomlin has so many awards to her name. The iconic comedic actress played four characters in the 1957 film The Incredible Shrinking Woman, putting on a masterclass in performing. 

There were lots of actors needed to film the Harry Potter series, but most roles were too important to have someone pull double duty. Warwick Davis, however, played multiple roles throughout the series, including two different ones in the final film. 

Hugh Jackman is one good actor. The famed Aussie played two different roles in the film The Prestige , starring alongside Christian Bale and under the direction of none other than Christopher Nolan. 

Hugh Jackman wasn’t the only person playing two roles in The Prestige. Christian Bale did, too. It translates well on film, but it’s quite possible that it was difficult for the actors to keep straight while reading the script. 

Given the wide range of films this man has been in, it would honestly be more surprising if Nicolas Cage hadn’t been in a movie where he played multiple roles. The Oscar winner played both Charlie Kaufman and Donald Kaufman in Adaptation. 

Scarlett Johansson has been acting like a pro for years. In 2005’s The Island, the Oscar nominee played two different roles as one of the stars of the film. 

Like The Prestige, multiple actors in The Island played two different roles. While Scarlett Johansson portrayed two different characters, so did her co-star Ewan McGregor. 

It wasn’t just Scarlett Johansson and Ewan McGregor getting in on the multiple roles action on The Island. Michael Clarke Duncan also played two characters, though he had a more minor role than Johansson and McGregor. 

Leonardo DiCaprio is another actor whose work is so far-reaching that it’s not at all a surprise he’s portrayed multiple characters in the same movie. DiCaprio performed the acting feat in the 1998 film The Man in the Iron Mask. 

Is there anything on screen that Amy Adams can’t do? The Oscar nominee pulled off two different parts in Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian, playing both Amelia Earhart and Tess in the sequel film.