# Biopic or other non fiction actor who looked most like the person they portrayed? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [April 10, 2011, 11:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/biopic-or-other-non-fiction-actor-who-looked-most-like-the-person-they-portrayed/577910 "2011-04-10T23:12:02Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Cubsfan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f4b2a3/32.png) [@Cubsfan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cubsfan)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2011, 11:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/biopic-or-other-non-fiction-actor-who-looked-most-like-the-person-they-portrayed/577910/1 "2011-04-10T23:12:02Z")
What actor or actress do you think looked the most like the real life person they were portraying on screen? For me Denzel as Malcom X. That dude looked so much like X that when I see pictures of him now I have to make sure Im not looking at a picture of Denzel playing him from the movie. Who else looked so close? I mostly mean physical appearance not mannerisms. ---
**Author:** ![Pashnish\_Ewing](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/8797f3/32.png) [@Pashnish\_Ewing](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pashnish_Ewing)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2011, 11:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/biopic-or-other-non-fiction-actor-who-looked-most-like-the-person-they-portrayed/577910/2 "2011-04-10T23:14:55Z")
Ed Harris in **Pollock**. ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2011, 11:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/biopic-or-other-non-fiction-actor-who-looked-most-like-the-person-they-portrayed/577910/3 "2011-04-10T23:15:59Z")
Ben Kingsley-_Gandhi_. ---
**Author:** ![Kamino\_Neko](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kamino_neko/32/34_2.png) [@Kamino\_Neko](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kamino_Neko)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2011, 11:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/biopic-or-other-non-fiction-actor-who-looked-most-like-the-person-they-portrayed/577910/4 "2011-04-10T23:30:17Z")
Val Kilmer as Jim Morrison always impressed me. ---
**Author:** ![MPB\_in\_Salt\_Lake](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c0e974/32.png) [@MPB\_in\_Salt\_Lake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MPB_in_Salt_Lake)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2011, 11:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/biopic-or-other-non-fiction-actor-who-looked-most-like-the-person-they-portrayed/577910/5 "2011-04-10T23:51:06Z")
Jim Carrey looked remarkably like Andy Kaufman in Man On The Moon, but even more striking was how he mirrored his gestures and mannerisms, virtually channeling Kaufman from beyond the grave. Many of Andy Kaufman’s real-life friends or colleagues (Judd Hirsch, Danny DeVito) remarked on how engrossing the total effect of the performance was, saying that Kaufman would have appreciated the almost eerie quality of the atmosphere on the film set. ---
**Author:** ![GIGObuster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gigobuster/32/421_2.png) [@GIGObuster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GIGObuster)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2011, 12:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/biopic-or-other-non-fiction-actor-who-looked-most-like-the-person-they-portrayed/577910/6 "2011-04-11T00:08:16Z")
If it was just looks, George C. Scott looked a lot like Mussolini in _Mussolini, the untold history_, but that was when Mussolini was in his later years, and once George C Scott talked… out did the similarity go. ---
**Author:** ![Horatio\_Hellpop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e5b9ba/32.png) [@Horatio\_Hellpop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Horatio_Hellpop)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2011, 12:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/biopic-or-other-non-fiction-actor-who-looked-most-like-the-person-they-portrayed/577910/7 "2011-04-11T00:15:22Z")
I thought Gary Oldman and Chloe Webb were spot on as **Sid and Nancy.** ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2011, 1:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/biopic-or-other-non-fiction-actor-who-looked-most-like-the-person-they-portrayed/577910/8 "2011-04-11T01:34:03Z")
The actor who played Officer Obie in **Alice’s Restaurant** was a perfect match to the original, William Obanhein. Arlo Guthrie was also a perfect fit as the lead. ---
**Author:** ![garygnu](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/garygnu/32/2924_2.png) [@garygnu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/garygnu)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2011, 1:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/biopic-or-other-non-fiction-actor-who-looked-most-like-the-person-they-portrayed/577910/9 "2011-04-11T01:36:56Z")
Howard Stern in _Private Parts_. ---
**Author:** ![ZipperJJ](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zipperjj/32/211_2.png) [@ZipperJJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZipperJJ)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2011, 1:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/biopic-or-other-non-fiction-actor-who-looked-most-like-the-person-they-portrayed/577910/10 "2011-04-11T01:38:39Z")
Geoffrey Rush as Peter Sellers was freaky. ---
**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, 1:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/biopic-or-other-non-fiction-actor-who-looked-most-like-the-person-they-portrayed/577910/11 "2011-04-11T01:51:02Z")
Toby Jones as Truman Capote. ---
**Author:** ![Don\_Draper](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b2d939/32.png) [@Don\_Draper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Don_Draper)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2011, 1:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/biopic-or-other-non-fiction-actor-who-looked-most-like-the-person-they-portrayed/577910/12 "2011-04-11T01:59:35Z")
Despite some of the film’s serious flaws, **Mommy Dearest** did a remarkable job turning [Faye Dunaway](http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.mimifroufrou.com/scentedsalamander/images/Mommie%2520Dearest.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.mimifroufrou.com/scentedsalamander/2009/10/robert_piguet_futur_19672009_n.html&usg=__s7Gi2dTeH5GUgmYq9EO7nQcfePI=&h=320&w=311&sz=17&hl=en&start=7&zoom=1&tbnid=km9YizFzRnC85M:&tbnh=107&tbnw=105&ei=QWCiTZPTJtPngQeg1qXaBQ&prev=/search%3Fq%3DJoan%2BCrawford%2BMommy%2BDearest%26hl%3Den%26biw%3D1003%26bih%3D340%26gbv%3D2%26tbm%3Disch&itbs=1&iact=rc&dur=234&oei=wF-iTdSzJtG30gGa3bCDCw&page=2&ndsp=14&ved=1t:429,r:3,s:7&tx=60&ty=64) into [Joan Crawford](http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.mimifroufrou.com/scentedsalamander/images/joan_crawford.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.mimifroufrou.com/scentedsalamander/2009/10/robert_piguet_futur_19672009_n.html&usg=__KeGitalnZq1jTmrLFVKkbWVL56w=&h=500&w=397&sz=34&hl=en&start=7&zoom=1&tbnid=SSONUHjxmlEn0M:&tbnh=107&tbnw=87&ei=xl-iTc-XKNDqgQey9rDaBQ&prev=/images%3Fq%3DJoan%2BCrawford%2BMommy%2BDearest%26hl%3Den%26biw%3D1003%26bih%3D340%26gbv%3D2%26tbm%3Disch0%2C228&itbs=1&biw=1003&bih=340&iact=rc&dur=312&oei=wF-iTdSzJtG30gGa3bCDCw&page=2&ndsp=14&ved=1t:429,r:2,s:7&tx=61&ty=94). ---
**Author:** ![Baker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bb73d2/32.png) [@Baker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baker)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2011, 2:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/biopic-or-other-non-fiction-actor-who-looked-most-like-the-person-they-portrayed/577910/13 "2011-04-11T02:19:19Z")
Michael Jayston, an actor I wasn’t familiar with, looked remarkably like Tsar Nicholas II in the movie _Nicholas and Alexandra._ ---
**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, 2:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/biopic-or-other-non-fiction-actor-who-looked-most-like-the-person-they-portrayed/577910/14 "2011-04-11T02:50:27Z")
Helen Mirren as Elizabeth II. ---
**Author:** ![BrotherCadfael](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/977dab/32.png) [@BrotherCadfael](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrotherCadfael)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2011, 3:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/biopic-or-other-non-fiction-actor-who-looked-most-like-the-person-they-portrayed/577910/15 "2011-04-11T03:11:29Z")
Noah Wiley as Steve Jobs. ---
**Author:** ![joebuck20](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/74df32/32.png) [@joebuck20](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/joebuck20)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2011, 3:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/biopic-or-other-non-fiction-actor-who-looked-most-like-the-person-they-portrayed/577910/16 "2011-04-11T03:16:21Z")
Sean Penn as Harvey Milk, which really surprised me, because if you look at a normal picture of Penn, you’d probably never make the connection. But in the movie, the resemblance was stunning. ---
**Author:** ![Mr.Miskatonic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mr.miskatonic/32/310_2.png) [@Mr.Miskatonic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Miskatonic)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2011, 3:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/biopic-or-other-non-fiction-actor-who-looked-most-like-the-person-they-portrayed/577910/17 "2011-04-11T03:20:38Z")
Ron Livingston as Capt. Nixon in Band of Brothers. A lot of people gave the production shit about it since their short-sighted brains could only think of Livingston as the protagonist from OfficeSpace. But he really did look the part. ---
**Author:** ![Roderick\_Femm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/roderick_femm/32/14875_2.png) [@Roderick\_Femm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Roderick_Femm)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2011, 3:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/biopic-or-other-non-fiction-actor-who-looked-most-like-the-person-they-portrayed/577910/18 "2011-04-11T03:23:31Z")
Raymond Massey played Abraham Lincoln five times: Abe Lincoln in Illinois (movie in 1940, two different TV dramas in 1950 and 1951) The Day Lincoln was Shot (TV drama, 1956) How the West was Won (movie, 1962) His lantern-jawed homeliness seemed like a very good fit for Lincoln. **Twickster** , I disagree about Helen Mirren and QEII. Their faces are not similar and the strength of her portrayal did not have anything to do with physical resemblance. IMHO. Roddy ---
**Author:** ![brossa](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/brossa/32/3040_2.png) [@brossa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/brossa)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2011, 5:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/biopic-or-other-non-fiction-actor-who-looked-most-like-the-person-they-portrayed/577910/19 "2011-04-11T05:00:52Z")
[Matthew Broderick](http://www.imdb.com/media/rm2030666752/nm0000111) and [Robert Gould Shaw](http://www.mrlincolnandfreedom.org/photo_credits_content.asp?photoID=86) ---
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2011, 6:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/biopic-or-other-non-fiction-actor-who-looked-most-like-the-person-they-portrayed/577910/20 "2011-04-11T06:41:17Z")
Hal Holbrook as Mark Twain. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/biopic-or-other-non-fiction-actor-who-looked-most-like-the-person-they-portrayed/577910.md?page=2)