# Actors cast in the same historical roles in completely unrelated properties **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [April 6, 2019, 1:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-cast-in-the-same-historical-roles-in-completely-unrelated-properties/832127 "2019-04-06T13:46:45Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Dale\_Sams](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/779978/32.png) [@Dale\_Sams](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dale_Sams)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2019, 1:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-cast-in-the-same-historical-roles-in-completely-unrelated-properties/832127/1 "2019-04-06T13:46:45Z")
Dunno how many of these we’ll find. Maybe inspired by another property should be allowed. Anyhooo…Richard Mulligan appeared as Custer in “Little Big Man” and as a teacher playing Custer in “Teachers” Olivia Spencer in 30 Rock to play Harriet Tubman and also portrayed her in Drunk History. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2019, 1:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-cast-in-the-same-historical-roles-in-completely-unrelated-properties/832127/2 "2019-04-06T13:56:58Z")
Peter O’Toole played Henry II in _Becket_ and _A Lion in Winter_. ---
**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:** [April 6, 2019, 2:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-cast-in-the-same-historical-roles-in-completely-unrelated-properties/832127/3 "2019-04-06T14:24:03Z")
Michael Sheard played Adolf Hitler in these films: _Hitler of the Andes_ _The Dirty Dozen: Next Mission_ _The Tomorrow People_ _Rogue Male_ _Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade_ Edward Herrmann has Franklin Delano Roosevelt in these films: _Annie_ _Eleanor and Franklin_ _Eleanor and Franklin: The White House Years_ And Ralph Bellamy played him in these films: _Sunrise at Campobello_ _The Winds of War_ _War and Remembrance_ James Cagney played George M. Cohan in these films: _Yankee Doodle Dandy_ _The Seven Little Foys_ Jeannette Charles has played Queen Elizabeth II many times. Jerry Haleva plays Saddam Hussein many times. ---
**Author:** ![Peter\_Morris](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/peter_morris/32/359_2.png) [@Peter\_Morris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peter_Morris)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2019, 2:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-cast-in-the-same-historical-roles-in-completely-unrelated-properties/832127/4 "2019-04-06T14:43:04Z")
Christopher Lee played Dracula numerous times in various productions. Peter Cushing played Van Helsing, or one of his descendants several times. Several times, Lee’s Dracula met Cushing’s Van Helsing. But they weren’t always paired. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2019, 2:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-cast-in-the-same-historical-roles-in-completely-unrelated-properties/832127/5 "2019-04-06T14:47:13Z")
Judi Dench played Queen Victoria in Mrs Brown and Victoria & Abdul. ---
**Author:** ![mbh](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a6a055/32.png) [@mbh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mbh)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2019, 2:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-cast-in-the-same-historical-roles-in-completely-unrelated-properties/832127/6 "2019-04-06T14:52:29Z")
Henry Fonda played Admiral Chester Nimitz in _In Harm’s Way_ and in _Midway_. ---
**Author:** ![mbh](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a6a055/32.png) [@mbh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mbh)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2019, 3:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-cast-in-the-same-historical-roles-in-completely-unrelated-properties/832127/7 "2019-04-06T15:01:28Z")
Charleton Heston played Mark Antony in the 1959 film of Shakespeare’s _Julius Caesar_ Mark Antony in the 1971 film of Shakespeare’s _Antony and Cleopatra_ Judah Ben-Hur in the classic 1959 version of _Ben-Hur_ Judah Ben-Hur in a 2003 animated version of the same. (Historical setting, if not a historical character.) ---
**Author:** ![jayjay](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jayjay/32/6765_2.png) [@jayjay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jayjay)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2019, 3:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-cast-in-the-same-historical-roles-in-completely-unrelated-properties/832127/8 "2019-04-06T15:41:41Z")
Bette Davis as Elizabeth I The Private Lives of Elizabeth and Essex (1939) The Virgin Queen (1955) ---
**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:** [April 6, 2019, 4:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-cast-in-the-same-historical-roles-in-completely-unrelated-properties/832127/9 "2019-04-06T16:02:33Z")
Dracula and Van Helsing are historical characters? ---
**Author:** ![Bijou\_Drains](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bijou_drains/32/2814_2.png) [@Bijou\_Drains](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bijou_Drains)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2019, 4:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-cast-in-the-same-historical-roles-in-completely-unrelated-properties/832127/10 "2019-04-06T16:05:34Z")
Dracula was based on the real person Vlad the Impaler [Vlad the Impaler - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vlad_the_Impaler) ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2019, 4:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-cast-in-the-same-historical-roles-in-completely-unrelated-properties/832127/11 "2019-04-06T16:05:36Z")
Glenda Jackson played Elizabeth I in _ **Elizabeth R** _ and _ **Mary, Queen of Scots** _. ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2019, 4:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-cast-in-the-same-historical-roles-in-completely-unrelated-properties/832127/12 "2019-04-06T16:07:34Z")
James Mason played Erwin Rommel in _ **The Desert Rats** _ and _ **The Desert Fox** _. ---
**Author:** ![Miss\_Mapp](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miss_mapp/32/369_2.png) [@Miss\_Mapp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miss_Mapp)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2019, 4:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-cast-in-the-same-historical-roles-in-completely-unrelated-properties/832127/13 "2019-04-06T16:12:03Z")
[Helen Ryan](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0752571/) has played Queen Alexandra on 3 separate occasions: In _The Elephant Man_, in the miniseries _Edward the King /Edward VII_ and in an episode of the Jeremy Brett Sherlock Holmes (“The Mazarin Stone”). ---
**Author:** ![ftg](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ftg/32/2801_2.png) [@ftg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ftg)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2019, 4:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-cast-in-the-same-historical-roles-in-completely-unrelated-properties/832127/14 "2019-04-06T16:24:35Z")
I know this has been done before but I’m pretty sure I’ve never posted this one before: [Louis Giambalvo](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0316080/) has played Al Capone in a movie and a miniseries … in the same year! Often cast as a gangster in general. Fans might recognize him from such High Art as _Weekend at Bernies_, _Death to Smoochy_, _Real Genius_ and _Airplane II: The Sequel_. He even played Tataglia, but not in, you know. Best character name: Lance Boil. ---
**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:** [April 6, 2019, 4:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-cast-in-the-same-historical-roles-in-completely-unrelated-properties/832127/15 "2019-04-06T16:26:58Z")
Vlad the Impaler was a historical character, but Dracula was not. ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2019, 4:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-cast-in-the-same-historical-roles-in-completely-unrelated-properties/832127/16 "2019-04-06T16:32:05Z")
Richard Burton played Winston Churchill in _ **The Valiant Years** _ and _ **The Gathering Storm** _. He was played by Timothy West three times, in _ **Churchill and the Generals** _, _ **The Last Bastion** _, and _ **Hiroshima** _. Robert Hardy played him in five productions: _ **Winston Churchill: The Wilderness Years** _;\*\*\* Bomber Harris\*\*\*; _ **War and Remembrance** _; _ **The Woman He Loved** _; and _ **Miss Marple: The Sittaford Mystery** _. ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2019, 4:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-cast-in-the-same-historical-roles-in-completely-unrelated-properties/832127/17 "2019-04-06T16:38:10Z")
Flora Robson played Elizabeth I in _ **Fire over England** _ and _ **The Sea Hawk** _. ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2019, 4:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-cast-in-the-same-historical-roles-in-completely-unrelated-properties/832127/18 "2019-04-06T16:41:09Z")
George C Scott played George S Patton in \*\*\*Patton \*\*\*and _ **The Last Days of Patton** _. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2019, 5:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-cast-in-the-same-historical-roles-in-completely-unrelated-properties/832127/19 "2019-04-06T17:19:29Z")
> [@Wendell\_Wagner](#): > > Edward Herrmann has Franklin Delano Roosevelt in these films: > > _Annie_ > _Eleanor and Franklin_ > _Eleanor and Franklin: The White House Years_ > > And Ralph Bellamy played him in these films: > > _Sunrise at Campobello_ > _The Winds of War_ > _War and Remembrance_ In both cases, the third is the sequel to the second, so they’re not completely unrelated. ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2019, 5:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-cast-in-the-same-historical-roles-in-completely-unrelated-properties/832127/20 "2019-04-06T17:31:03Z")
> [@Peter\_Morris](#): > > Christopher Lee played Dracula numerous times in various productions. > > Peter Cushing played Van Helsing, or one of his descendants several times. > > Several times, Lee’s Dracula met Cushing’s Van Helsing. But they weren’t always paired. Peter Boyle played Frankenstein’s Monster in Young Frankenstein, and dressed up for Halloween in a Frankenstein’s Monster costume in an episode of Everybody Loves Raymond. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-cast-in-the-same-historical-roles-in-completely-unrelated-properties/832127.md?page=2)