# Actors/actresses you think are the same person **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** actor-characters\ **Created:** [August 25, 2005, 1:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-actresses-you-think-are-the-same-person/318519 "2005-08-25T01:03:43Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2005, 5:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-actresses-you-think-are-the-same-person/318519/21 "2005-08-25T05:51:24Z")
Dennis Quaid and David Keith. ---
**Author:** ![edwino](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/35a633/32.png) [@edwino](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/edwino)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2005, 5:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-actresses-you-think-are-the-same-person/318519/22 "2005-08-25T05:52:35Z")
For the life of me, I cannot keep Matt Damon and Jude Law straight. I know they look nothing alike, but it was [The Talented Mr. Ripley](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0134119/) and it was downhill from there. To add insult to injury, that movie had both Cate Blanchett and Gwyneth Paltrow in it, another two who I switch up. In fact, the whole blond actor thing throws me for a loop. All those white guys – Ethan Hawke (GATTACA with Jude Law), Ewan McGregor, Rick Schroeder, Johnathan Rhys-Meyers (Velvet Goldmine with Ewan McGregor) – look the same to me. If they are in a movie, I can clearly identify them. But ask me a week later who played what role, I always get confused. ---
**Author:** ![uglybeech](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/82dd89/32.png) [@uglybeech](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/uglybeech)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2005, 6:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-actresses-you-think-are-the-same-person/318519/23 "2005-08-25T06:02:54Z")
[Elias Koteas](http://newyorkmetro.com/nymetro/arts/tv/reviews/tvreview040112_175.jpg) and [Christopher Meloni](http://www.nndb.com/people/991/000030901/meloni.jpg) were separated at birth I’m pretty sure. And supposedly [Jake Weber](http://www.port.hu/picture/instance_2/14646_2.jpg) is not [Tim Roth](http://crazy4cinema.com/Actor/imgs/roth.jpg) (I’d still like to see a DNA test though). ---
**Author:** ![TellMeI\_mNotCrazy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tellmei_mnotcrazy/32/3419_2.png) [@TellMeI\_mNotCrazy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TellMeI_mNotCrazy)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2005, 8:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-actresses-you-think-are-the-same-person/318519/24 "2005-08-25T08:53:07Z")
Not necessarily because they look alike, but more because my brain seems to have assigned them to the same exact locations, so I can never remember which one I’m talking about: Gary Busey and Nick Nolte Bill Paxton and Bill Pullman Leslie Ann Warren and Susan Sarandon Dominic West and Matthew Glave - so much so that I was absolutely certain that Matthew Glave (Glenn Gulia from the Wedding Singer) had played two roles in “Rock Star” - that of Chris’ brother and that of Kurt Cuddy. Struck me as bizarre until I watched the credits and realized it was two different people. ---
**Author:** ![seosamh](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ce7236/32.png) [@seosamh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/seosamh)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2005, 9:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-actresses-you-think-are-the-same-person/318519/25 "2005-08-25T09:36:00Z")
Daryl Hannah and Lori Singer. ---
**Author:** ![Ranchoth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ranchoth/32/1066_2.png) [@Ranchoth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ranchoth)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2005, 9:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-actresses-you-think-are-the-same-person/318519/26 "2005-08-25T09:55:54Z")
> [@Little Nemo](#): > > I was just checking out at the supermarket and I was wondering why they used Brittany Murphy as the cover model on this month’s Cosmopolitan but didn’t mention her name on the cover. Then I saw they did mention Scarlett Johanson’s name and realized I had mistaken who it was. > > [Here’s the picture.](http://magazines.ivillage.com/cosmopolitan) Whoa—I thought that was Gwen Stefani. Anyway…Tom Waits and Ron Perlman. I know, everyone thinks that. But still…needed mentionin’. ---
**Author:** ![MidnightRadio](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ecd19e/32.png) [@MidnightRadio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MidnightRadio)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2005, 10:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-actresses-you-think-are-the-same-person/318519/27 "2005-08-25T10:13:16Z")
> [@TellMeI'mNotCrazy](#): > > Leslie Ann Warren and Susan Sarandon I used to get these two confused all the time, but not anymore, for some reason. ---
**Author:** ![Wendell\_Wagner](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/8491ac/32.png) [@Wendell\_Wagner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wendell_Wagner)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2005, 12:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-actresses-you-think-are-the-same-person/318519/28 "2005-08-25T12:42:29Z")
Karen Allen, Brooke Adams, and Margot Kidder. ---
**Author:** ![bouv](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bc8723/32.png) [@bouv](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bouv)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2005, 12:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-actresses-you-think-are-the-same-person/318519/29 "2005-08-25T12:57:32Z")
I’m probably the only person to never get Bill Paxton and Bill Pulman confused. Why? Cause I HATE Bill Paxton. He is a crappy actor and is only in crappy movies (did you _see_ Twister?) Bill Pulman in LONESTAR! So that makes it easy. I mean, they don’t look anything alike, just have similar names. ---
**Author:** ![Rube\_E.Tewesday](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/f0a364/32.png) [@Rube\_E.Tewesday](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rube_E.Tewesday)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2005, 12:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-actresses-you-think-are-the-same-person/318519/30 "2005-08-25T12:59:34Z")
> [@Mr. Blue Sky](#): > > Charles Durning & Brian Dennehy So glad I’m not the only one who can’t keep them straight. ---
**Author:** ![Wendell\_Wagner](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/8491ac/32.png) [@Wendell\_Wagner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wendell_Wagner)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2005, 1:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-actresses-you-think-are-the-same-person/318519/31 "2005-08-25T13:05:40Z")
bouv writes: \> Bill Pulman in LONESTAR! Bill Pullman wasn’t in _Lone Star_. ---
**Author:** ![divemaster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/divemaster/32/78_2.png) [@divemaster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/divemaster)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2005, 1:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-actresses-you-think-are-the-same-person/318519/32 "2005-08-25T13:07:22Z")
I know who Chris Rock is. I’ve seen him here and there. A few years ago I heard someone mention a guy named “Kid Rock.” For at least two years, I was just assuming these were the same person. Any reference I heard to Kid Rock (and granted, there weren’t that many), my mental image was of Chris Rock. :smack: ---
**Author:** ![Plynck](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/3e96dc/32.png) [@Plynck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Plynck)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2005, 1:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-actresses-you-think-are-the-same-person/318519/33 "2005-08-25T13:20:36Z")
[Jack Noseworthy](http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0005276/) and [Lee Evans](http://www.offthekerb.co.uk/artists/a_artists_home.jsp?artist=lee_evans) ---
**Author:** ![Draelin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ce73a5/32.png) [@Draelin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Draelin)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2005, 1:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-actresses-you-think-are-the-same-person/318519/34 "2005-08-25T13:25:27Z")
It took me a while to figure out that [Ashley Judd](http://imdb.com/name/nm0000171/) and [Charlize Theron](http://imdb.com/name/nm0000234/) were two different women. I recently bought the complete series of _Undeclared_ on DVD and discovered that [Charlie Hunnam](http://imdb.com/name/nm0402271/) is almost indistinguishable from [Heath Ledger’s](http://imdb.com/name/nm0005132/) early roles. And then there’s the triple-play of [Renee Zellweger](http://imdb.com/name/nm0000250/), [Joey Lauren Adams](http://imdb.com/name/nm0000725/), and [Jewel.](http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/B00000F1CY/qid=1124976734/sr=8-2/ref=pd_bbs_2/104-5063258-0050347?v=glance&s=music&n=507846) ---
**Author:** ![astorian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ad7895/32.png) [@astorian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astorian)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2005, 1:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-actresses-you-think-are-the-same-person/318519/35 "2005-08-25T13:32:15Z")
For ages and ages, I could never remember if I’d seen Lee Marvin in a movie role, or James Coburn. I’d talk about Lee Marvin’s role in “The Magnificent Seven” or “The Great Escape,” then catch myself thinking, “Wait… that was Coburn,m wasn’t it.” ---
**Author:** ![JerH](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/bb73d2/32.png) [@JerH](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JerH)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2005, 1:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-actresses-you-think-are-the-same-person/318519/36 "2005-08-25T13:51:30Z")
I can’t tell [Jessica Campbell](http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0004795/) from [Jena Malone](http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0540441/) - not that Jessica’s been in much, but the few times I’ve seen her I’ve thought she was Jena. ---
**Author:** ![Hey\_It\_s\_That\_Guy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/6f9a4e/32.png) [@Hey\_It\_s\_That\_Guy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hey_It_s_That_Guy)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2005, 1:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-actresses-you-think-are-the-same-person/318519/37 "2005-08-25T13:54:35Z")
> [@Wendell Wagner](#): > > bouv writes: > > \> Bill Pulman in LONESTAR! > > Bill Pullman wasn’t in _Lone Star_. But Bill Pullman played a character named Lone Star in _Spaceballs_. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Corporate\_Hippie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/65b543/32.png) [@Corporate\_Hippie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Corporate_Hippie)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2005, 2:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-actresses-you-think-are-the-same-person/318519/38 "2005-08-25T14:11:20Z")
Someone already mentioned them, but these two might as well be the same person in my mind: [Nick Nolte](http://i.cnn.net/cnn/2002/LAW/12/12/nick.nolte.plea/vert.nolte.jpg) & [Gary Busey](http://www.imaslampig.com/images/Jail%20Pool/gary.jpg) ---
**Author:** ![sciurophobic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/cab0a1/32.png) [@sciurophobic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sciurophobic)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2005, 2:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-actresses-you-think-are-the-same-person/318519/39 "2005-08-25T14:31:16Z")
I saw a preview of _Pride and Prejudice_ and thought it starred Natalie Portman. It was Keira Knightley. I consider this an acceptable mistake, as Keira played one of the fake Amidalas in _The Phantom Menace_ ---
**Author:** ![Only\_Mostly\_Dead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/f19dbf/32.png) [@Only\_Mostly\_Dead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Only_Mostly_Dead)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2005, 2:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-actresses-you-think-are-the-same-person/318519/40 "2005-08-25T14:56:38Z")
Darn. I came in with two (Helen Hunt/Leelee Sobieski and Julia Roberts/Monica Potter), and both were already covered. I’ll second (third?) that for the longest time, until I paid attention to the credits, I thought it was Susan Sarandon reunited with Tim Curry in _Clue_, not Leslie Ann Warren. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-actresses-you-think-are-the-same-person/318519.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-actresses-you-think-are-the-same-person/318519.md?page=3)