# Celebrities who played a fictionalized version of themselves **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [August 27, 2009, 2:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrities-who-played-a-fictionalized-version-of-themselves/507911 "2009-08-27T14:54:46Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![panamajack](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/47e85d/32.png) [@panamajack](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panamajack)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2009, 7:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrities-who-played-a-fictionalized-version-of-themselves/507911/81 "2009-09-03T07:54:59Z")
Jerry Lewis in _The King of Comedy_ plays someone a little bit like himself, but not really. Mostly only the ‘celebrity’ aspect is there. Apparently the part was originally intended for Johnny Carson, which would have been a lot closer to the mark. ---
**Author:** ![Kyla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/eada6e/32.png) [@Kyla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kyla)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2009, 9:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrities-who-played-a-fictionalized-version-of-themselves/507911/82 "2009-09-03T09:45:37Z")
Stephen Colbert plays “Stephen Colbert” on _The Colbert Report_. ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2009, 1:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrities-who-played-a-fictionalized-version-of-themselves/507911/83 "2009-09-03T13:03:08Z")
> [@Godinama](#): > > Seth Green on **Entourage** plays a hyper-douchebaggy version of himself. He also played himself in the series _Tucker_, where he is our eponymous hero’s competition for Alison Lohman’s character’s affections. ---
**Author:** ![Cato\_Major](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/58f4c7/32.png) [@Cato\_Major](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cato_Major)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2009, 7:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrities-who-played-a-fictionalized-version-of-themselves/507911/84 "2009-09-04T07:55:09Z")
Marshall McLuhan in _Annie Hall_, right after Woody Allen makes an aside to the audience. ---
**Author:** ![Cation](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f0a364/32.png) [@Cation](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cation)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2009, 8:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrities-who-played-a-fictionalized-version-of-themselves/507911/85 "2009-09-04T08:21:12Z")
Peter Falk plays himself in Wings of Desire. Small German children follow him about shouting, “Columbo!!” in a scene. ---
**Author:** ![foolsguinea](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/foolsguinea/32/14751_2.png) [@foolsguinea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/foolsguinea)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2009, 10:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrities-who-played-a-fictionalized-version-of-themselves/507911/86 "2009-09-04T10:37:12Z")
Bruce Willis plays himself in [What Just Happened.](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0486674/) And then there’s [Tristram Shandy: A Cock & Bull Story](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0423409/), with several actors doing this (Steve Coogan, Rob Brydon, & Gillian Anderson). ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2009, 3:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrities-who-played-a-fictionalized-version-of-themselves/507911/87 "2009-09-06T03:01:57Z")
> [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](#): > > Several guest stars (e.g. Kate Winslett, Ben Stiller, Patrick Stewart, Daniel Radcliff) did parodies of themselves on the Ricky Gervaise show, _Extras_. On that show, my favorite was probably Patrick Stewart, with Orlando Bloom a close second. But David Bowie did a turn on that show, too, which I thought of after the wife and I saw him briefly playing himself in the film _Bandslam_ this weekend. ---
**Author:** ![Lust4Life](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/ecc23a/32.png) [@Lust4Life](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lust4Life)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2009, 3:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrities-who-played-a-fictionalized-version-of-themselves/507911/88 "2009-09-13T15:30:16Z")
Whitney Housten played a thinly disguised version of herself in the totally appalling"The Bodyguard". ---
**Author:** ![helderotto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/ad7895/32.png) [@helderotto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/helderotto)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2013, 12:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrities-who-played-a-fictionalized-version-of-themselves/507911/89 "2013-01-09T00:38:00Z")
Michael was one of the first celebrities to play a fictionalized version of himself in the movie starred by him ---
**Author:** ![Ethilrist](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ethilrist/32/4604_2.png) [@Ethilrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ethilrist)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2013, 1:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrities-who-played-a-fictionalized-version-of-themselves/507911/90 "2013-01-09T01:02:04Z")
To hear him tell it, Steven Segal’s character in _Above the Law_ was based off of his own Vietnam experience. Jamie Farr played a corporal in the army in the Korean Conflict in _M.A.S.H._; Farr himself was in the army in the Korean war. Don’t know if he was a transvestite corpsman, though. And, Michael Jackson got to play himself as a zombie, too. ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2013, 2:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrities-who-played-a-fictionalized-version-of-themselves/507911/91 "2013-01-09T02:34:49Z")
Elisabeth Shue was hilarious playing herself in [Hamlet 2](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1104733/?ref_=fn_tt_tt_1). ---
**Author:** ![cochrane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cochrane/32/10441_2.png) [@cochrane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cochrane)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2013, 3:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrities-who-played-a-fictionalized-version-of-themselves/507911/92 "2013-01-09T03:18:05Z")
In the Andy Kaufman biopic “Man in the Moon,” starring Jim Carrey, several of Kaufman’s fellow _Taxi_ castmates, Judd Hirsch, Bobby Conaway, Marilu Henner, and Christopher Lloyd, all played themselves. David Letterman, Paul Shaffer, and Jerry Lawler also appeared in the film as themselves. ---
**Author:** ![H3Knuckles](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/ba8739/32.png) [@H3Knuckles](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/H3Knuckles)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2013, 3:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrities-who-played-a-fictionalized-version-of-themselves/507911/93 "2013-01-09T03:31:07Z")
No mention of Matt LeBlanc in Episodes? C’mon guys, that show’s awesome. ETA: Oh, nvm. Just saw the post-date gap between the beginning of the thread and\*\* helderotto\*\*'s post. ---
**Author:** ![Poysyn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/f4b2a3/32.png) [@Poysyn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Poysyn)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2013, 3:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrities-who-played-a-fictionalized-version-of-themselves/507911/94 "2013-01-09T03:51:01Z")
Bruce Willis in **Mad About You** as an injured and slightly crazy Bruce Willis that helps Paul get to the Maternity Ward in time for Paul and Jamie’s baby being born. ---
**Author:** ![Hazle\_Weatherfield](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e9bcb4/32.png) [@Hazle\_Weatherfield](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hazle_Weatherfield)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2013, 4:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrities-who-played-a-fictionalized-version-of-themselves/507911/95 "2013-01-09T04:45:09Z")
“Cybill,” with Cybill Shepherd? ---
**Author:** ![DWMarch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dwmarch/32/1010_2.png) [@DWMarch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DWMarch)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2013, 4:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrities-who-played-a-fictionalized-version-of-themselves/507911/96 "2013-01-09T04:58:22Z")
Canadian comedy **Corner Gas** did a bit where one of the characters misdialed and ended up talking to Kiefer Sutherland. I doubt the real Keef lives with his mother and shouts at her like Jack Bauer would though. Youtube link: [![]( " - YouTube") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VjwS3r9adRI) ---
**Author:** ![Ethilrist](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ethilrist/32/4604_2.png) [@Ethilrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ethilrist)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2013, 5:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrities-who-played-a-fictionalized-version-of-themselves/507911/97 "2013-01-09T05:10:26Z")
Arnold Schwarzenegger plays Joe Santo, Mr. Austria, as he prepares to compete in the Mr. Universum competition, in _Stay Hungry_. ---
**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:** [January 9, 2013, 5:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrities-who-played-a-fictionalized-version-of-themselves/507911/98 "2013-01-09T05:16:48Z")
There was an episode of the Honeymooners where Jackie Gleason and Art Carney played themselves. The were guests in a hotel, and Ralph and Norton were staying there, I think for a Racoon Lodge convention. They wanted to meet the famous men, Norton got to meet Gleason, and Ralph got to meet Art Carney, but for some reason all four of them were never seen together. ---
**Author:** ![x-ray\_vision](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/x-ray_vision/32/351_2.png) [@x-ray\_vision](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/x-ray_vision)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2013, 5:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrities-who-played-a-fictionalized-version-of-themselves/507911/99 "2013-01-09T05:24:56Z")
Louis C.K. in _Louie_. ---
**Author:** ![Face\_Intentionally\_Left\_Blank](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/face_intentionally_left_blank/32/288_2.png) [@Face\_Intentionally\_Left\_Blank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Face_Intentionally_Left_Blank)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2013, 7:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrities-who-played-a-fictionalized-version-of-themselves/507911/100 "2013-01-09T07:21:36Z")
> [@cochrane](#): > > In the Andy Kaufman biopic “Man in the Moon,” starring Jim Carrey, several of Kaufman’s fellow _Taxi_ castmates, Judd Hirsch, Bobby Conaway, Marilu Henner, and Christopher Lloyd, all played themselves. David Letterman, Paul Shaffer, and Jerry Lawler also appeared in the film as themselves. Nitpick: Jeff Conaway. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrities-who-played-a-fictionalized-version-of-themselves/507911.md?page=4) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrities-who-played-a-fictionalized-version-of-themselves/507911.md?page=6)