# Bioflick actor who persuades you to ignore the lack of physical resemblance **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [April 11, 2011, 12:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bioflick-actor-who-persuades-you-to-ignore-the-lack-of-physical-resemblance/577946 "2011-04-11T12:10:59Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![twickster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ec9cab/32.png) [@twickster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/twickster)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2011, 12:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bioflick-actor-who-persuades-you-to-ignore-the-lack-of-physical-resemblance/577946/1 "2011-04-11T12:10:59Z")
Inspired by [this thread:](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=604159) What actor’s lack of physical resemblance is _not_ an impediment to a great portrayal of a real person? I’m thinking of Anthony Hopkins as Nixon, where five minutes into the movie, you just stop worrying about the fact that the actor doesn’t look like the person, because the emotional truth of the portrayal is so complete. And to match my Toby Jones as Capote in the other thread, I’d give Philip Seymour Hoffman as Capote in this thread. ---
**Author:** ![AK84](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/85e7bf/32.png) [@AK84](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AK84)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2011, 12:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bioflick-actor-who-persuades-you-to-ignore-the-lack-of-physical-resemblance/577946/2 "2011-04-11T12:28:19Z")
Tom Hanks in Apollo 13. ---
**Author:** ![AK84](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/85e7bf/32.png) [@AK84](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AK84)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2011, 12:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bioflick-actor-who-persuades-you-to-ignore-the-lack-of-physical-resemblance/577946/3 "2011-04-11T12:29:28Z")
Also Josh Brolin in W, he is too well built to be the older W, spitting image of the younger man. ---
**Author:** ![Nawth\_Chucka](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/c57346/32.png) [@Nawth\_Chucka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nawth_Chucka)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2011, 12:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bioflick-actor-who-persuades-you-to-ignore-the-lack-of-physical-resemblance/577946/4 "2011-04-11T12:51:12Z")
Jamie Foxx as Ray Charles. Joaquin Phoenix as Johnny Cash, and for that matter, Reese Witherspoon as June Cash. ---
**Author:** ![willthekittensurvive](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/91b2a8/32.png) [@willthekittensurvive](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/willthekittensurvive)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2011, 1:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bioflick-actor-who-persuades-you-to-ignore-the-lack-of-physical-resemblance/577946/5 "2011-04-11T13:15:14Z")
Helen Mirren as HRM Queen Elizabeth II ---
**Author:** ![Todderbob](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e47774/32.png) [@Todderbob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Todderbob)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2011, 1:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bioflick-actor-who-persuades-you-to-ignore-the-lack-of-physical-resemblance/577946/6 "2011-04-11T13:36:18Z")
I don’t really care, ever. I mean, it’s a little disconcerting when it’s a Japanese fellow playing Colonel Mustard, but I wouldn’t complain if a Greek was playing a Englishmen, or a Japanese guy playing a Chinese General. Also, male and female aren’t interchangeable (without a lot of makeup – Mrs. Doubtfire-esque). ---
**Author:** ![Skammer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skammer/32/143_2.png) [@Skammer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skammer)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2011, 1:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bioflick-actor-who-persuades-you-to-ignore-the-lack-of-physical-resemblance/577946/7 "2011-04-11T13:44:02Z")
I think its funny that some of the same examples are being used in both threads (Helen Mirren, Jamie Foxx). ---
**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 11, 2011, 1:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bioflick-actor-who-persuades-you-to-ignore-the-lack-of-physical-resemblance/577946/8 "2011-04-11T13:55:07Z")
George C. Scott as George S. Patton. Scott’s performance is so defining that actual footage of the real Patton seems wrong. ---
**Author:** ![Steophan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/steophan/32/9595_2.png) [@Steophan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Steophan)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2011, 2:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bioflick-actor-who-persuades-you-to-ignore-the-lack-of-physical-resemblance/577946/9 "2011-04-11T14:02:08Z")
Frank Langella as Richard Nixon in Frost/Nixon. Michael Sheen in pretty much any of his biopics, including David Frost in Frost/Nixon, Brian Clough in The Damned United, and Tony Blair in several things. ---
**Author:** ![Larry\_Mudd](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/f14d63/32.png) [@Larry\_Mudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Larry_Mudd)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2011, 3:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bioflick-actor-who-persuades-you-to-ignore-the-lack-of-physical-resemblance/577946/10 "2011-04-11T15:19:30Z")
I think Kiefer Sutherland did an astonishing job as William Burroughs in _Beat_, despite being just about as unlike him physically as it is possible to be. ---
**Author:** ![Earl\_Snake-Hips\_Tucker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/earl_snake-hips_tucker/32/3269_2.png) [@Earl\_Snake-Hips\_Tucker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Earl_Snake-Hips_Tucker)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2011, 3:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bioflick-actor-who-persuades-you-to-ignore-the-lack-of-physical-resemblance/577946/11 "2011-04-11T15:34:10Z")
> [@Little\_Nemo](#): > > George C. Scott as George S. Patton. Scott’s performance is so defining that actual footage of the real Patton seems wrong. Yeah, no joke. Patton [actually sounded](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vg_aBN6wE80) more like Strother Martin from “Cool Hand Luke.” If you happen to click on the link, be forewarned: Some foul language from the movie speech, and hardly any words are spelled correctly. ---
**Author:** ![AlsoNamedBort](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alsonamedbort/32/3213_2.png) [@AlsoNamedBort](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AlsoNamedBort)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2011, 3:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bioflick-actor-who-persuades-you-to-ignore-the-lack-of-physical-resemblance/577946/12 "2011-04-11T15:54:55Z")
> [@AK84](#): > > Also Josh Brolin in W, he is too well built to be the older W, spitting image of the younger man. You know, one of my favorite things about W. is they didn’t spend to much time trying to get everyone looking and sounding just like the Bush gang. I’d rather see good actors play the characters than crappy actors impersonate the characters. The only one who seemed out of place was Thandie Newton, who acted like she was doing an SNL impression of Condolezza Rice. ---
**Author:** ![SCSimmons](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e495f1/32.png) [@SCSimmons](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SCSimmons)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2011, 4:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bioflick-actor-who-persuades-you-to-ignore-the-lack-of-physical-resemblance/577946/13 "2011-04-11T16:50:40Z")
> [@Skammer](#): > > I think its funny that some of the same examples are being used in both threads (Helen Mirren, Jamie Foxx). I don’t see any mention of Jamie Foxx in that thread, **Skammer** ; and it was a discussion of Mirren there (how her performance succeeded in distracting attention from her lack of physical resemblance to QEII) that inspired this thread. ---
**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 11, 2011, 5:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bioflick-actor-who-persuades-you-to-ignore-the-lack-of-physical-resemblance/577946/14 "2011-04-11T17:44:30Z")
> [@Earl\_Snake-Hips\_Tucker](#): > > Yeah, no joke. Patton [actually sounded](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vg_aBN6wE80) more like Strother Martin from “Cool Hand Luke.” > If you happen to click on the link, be forewarned: Some foul language from the movie speech, and hardly any words are spelled correctly. Here’s a [film](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uYjnWXFTQkM) of Patton making that speech. ---
**Author:** ![mlees](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ba8739/32.png) [@mlees](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mlees)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2011, 6:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bioflick-actor-who-persuades-you-to-ignore-the-lack-of-physical-resemblance/577946/15 "2011-04-11T18:31:31Z")
> [@Little\_Nemo](#): > > George C. Scott as George S. Patton. Scott’s performance is so defining that actual footage of the real Patton seems wrong. More Patton than Patton. I was going to mention the same thing. ---
**Author:** ![Dogzilla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e480ec/32.png) [@Dogzilla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dogzilla)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2011, 8:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bioflick-actor-who-persuades-you-to-ignore-the-lack-of-physical-resemblance/577946/16 "2011-04-11T20:37:59Z")
Sissy Spacek in Coal Miner’s Daughter. After the first few minutes, I forgot completely that she and Loretta Lynn don’t look much alike. ---
**Author:** ![armedmonkey](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/d6d6ee/32.png) [@armedmonkey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/armedmonkey)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2011, 9:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bioflick-actor-who-persuades-you-to-ignore-the-lack-of-physical-resemblance/577946/17 "2011-04-11T21:05:55Z")
Christian Bale as Batman. That guy looks nothing like me. ---
**Author:** ![Morbo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/morbo/32/389_2.png) [@Morbo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Morbo)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2011, 12:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bioflick-actor-who-persuades-you-to-ignore-the-lack-of-physical-resemblance/577946/18 "2011-04-12T00:04:09Z")
Cate Blanchett as Katherine Hepburn in **The Aviator**. Leo wasn’t as successful, but I bought Blanchett almost immediately. ---
**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 12, 2011, 3:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bioflick-actor-who-persuades-you-to-ignore-the-lack-of-physical-resemblance/577946/19 "2011-04-12T03:18:14Z")
[Gary Busey](http://www.nndb.com/people/848/000022782/gary.jpg) as [Buddy Holly](http://image.allmusic.com/00/amg/pic200/drp100/p135/p13553nk993.jpg) and [Lou Diamond Phillips](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/15/LouDiamondPhillipsByPhilKonstantinPublicDomain.jpg/220px-LouDiamondPhillipsByPhilKonstantinPublicDomain.jpg) as [Ritchie Valens](http://blog.mlive.com/extra_iddings/2009/01/medium_ritchie_valens.jpg). ---
**Author:** ![pinkfreud](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pinkfreud/32/17603_2.png) [@pinkfreud](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pinkfreud)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2011, 4:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bioflick-actor-who-persuades-you-to-ignore-the-lack-of-physical-resemblance/577946/20 "2011-04-12T04:33:05Z")
Jessica Lange convinced me that she was Patsy Cline in _Sweet Dreams_ and that she was Frances Farmer in _Frances_. Lange doesn’t look very much like either woman. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bioflick-actor-who-persuades-you-to-ignore-the-lack-of-physical-resemblance/577946.md?page=2)