# Famous actors with identical twins who are not famous **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [July 28, 2009, 1:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/famous-actors-with-identical-twins-who-are-not-famous/504509 "2009-07-28T01:42:07Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![thirdname](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/d07c76/32.png) [@thirdname](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thirdname)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2009, 1:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/famous-actors-with-identical-twins-who-are-not-famous/504509/1 "2009-07-28T01:42:07Z")
I think a lot of people have heard the Linda Hamilton has a twin sister who played her (and the liquid-metal Terminator) in T2. I just found out that Nicholas Brendon, who played Xander on Buffy the Vampire Slayer, has a twin brother named [Kelly Donovan.](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kelly_Donovan) (Both were born with the last name Schultz, but they use their middles names.) Kelly played his twin (of sorts) in one episode, and filled in for some fight scenes once when he was sick. That’s freaky, especially seeing that Kelly has gone gray; I don’t know if Nicholas has as I haven’t seen much of him since Buffy ended. It must be strange to go through life as the identical twin of a celebrity, or to run into one. [![](https://images46.fotki.com/v556/photos/2/20909/49437/NicholasBrendon01-vi.jpg) ](https://images46.fotki.com/v556/photos/2/20909/49437/NicholasBrendon01-vi.jpg) [![](https://images12.fotki.com/v1667/photos/2/20909/49437/NicholasBrendon03-vi.jpg) ](https://images12.fotki.com/v1667/photos/2/20909/49437/NicholasBrendon03-vi.jpg) [http://en.twinshome.gov.cn/site\_mag/Nowy15e7t80d/UploadFile/20096261648414.jpg](http://en.twinshome.gov.cn/site_mag/Nowy15e7t80d/UploadFile/20096261648414.jpg) Are there any other examples like this? ---
**Author:** ![Sampiro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/2acd7d/32.png) [@Sampiro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sampiro)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2009, 1:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/famous-actors-with-identical-twins-who-are-not-famous/504509/2 "2009-07-28T01:46:03Z")
Conrad Bain- bka the dad on _Diffrent Strokes_, has (or had- not sure if he’s still living) an identical twin, Bonar. He appeared in an episode of _Maude_ with his brother as, of course, Bain’s character’s identical twin. Dierdre Hall- star of _Days of Our Lives_- (or used to be, no idea if she’s still on it) has an identical twin who’s done some body double work for her on the show when Marlena was in one of her 32 comas. ---
**Author:** ![MovieMogul](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f08c70/32.png) [@MovieMogul](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MovieMogul)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2009, 1:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/famous-actors-with-identical-twins-who-are-not-famous/504509/3 "2009-07-28T01:46:09Z")
Jill Hennessy (_Law & Order_) has a twin. They appeared together as twin hookers in the movie _Dead Ringers_ (though her sister has largely ignored the acting profession). ---
**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:** [July 28, 2009, 1:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/famous-actors-with-identical-twins-who-are-not-famous/504509/4 "2009-07-28T01:52:28Z")
> [@Sampiro](#): > > Conrad Bain- bka the dad on _Diffrent Strokes_, has (or had- not sure if he’s still living) an identical twin, Bonar. He appeared in an episode of _Maude_ with his brother as, of course, Bain’s character’s identical twin. He also appeared on SCTV as…Conrad Bain’s identical twin brother. (Named Hank on the show, however.) He really, really did look like his brother at that point. You’d think by the time they hit their 60s, they’d have differentiated a bit more, but… ---
**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:** [July 28, 2009, 2:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/famous-actors-with-identical-twins-who-are-not-famous/504509/5 "2009-07-28T02:01:15Z")
[Alexandra Paul](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alexandra_Paul) has a twin sister [Caroline](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caroline_Paul). ---
**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:** [July 28, 2009, 2:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/famous-actors-with-identical-twins-who-are-not-famous/504509/6 "2009-07-28T02:04:35Z")
Jon Heder (Napoleon Dynamite) has an identical twin Dan. ---
**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:** [July 28, 2009, 2:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/famous-actors-with-identical-twins-who-are-not-famous/504509/7 "2009-07-28T02:39:45Z")
[Jerry O’Connell](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jerry_O%27Connell) has an identical twin brother named [Charlie](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charlie_O%27Connell) (although the brother is also an actor). ---
**Author:** ![Frylock](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/ce7236/32.png) [@Frylock](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frylock)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2009, 2:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/famous-actors-with-identical-twins-who-are-not-famous/504509/8 "2009-07-28T02:43:07Z")
> [@Dewey\_Finn](#): > > [Jerry O’Connell](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jerry_O%27Connell) has an identical twin brother named [Charlie](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charlie_O%27Connell) (although the brother is also an actor). They are a year apart. ---
**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:** [July 28, 2009, 2:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/famous-actors-with-identical-twins-who-are-not-famous/504509/9 "2009-07-28T02:44:35Z")
Damn. Sorry about that. I thought I read that they were twins. ---
**Author:** ![dropzone](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dropzone/32/7515_2.png) [@dropzone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dropzone)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2009, 2:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/famous-actors-with-identical-twins-who-are-not-famous/504509/10 "2009-07-28T02:47:58Z")
If they were less than a year apart they’d be “Irish twins” when I was a kid. You can tell their mom is Polish because there was fourteen months between 'em. 😉 ---
**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:** [July 28, 2009, 3:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/famous-actors-with-identical-twins-who-are-not-famous/504509/11 "2009-07-28T03:39:26Z")
Elvis Presley actually had a twin brother Jessie who was stillborn - changing pop music history in unfathomable ways. ---
**Author:** ![KneadToKnow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kneadtoknow/32/3999_2.png) [@KneadToKnow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KneadToKnow)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2009, 3:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/famous-actors-with-identical-twins-who-are-not-famous/504509/12 "2009-07-28T03:43:55Z")
> [@Frylock](#): > > They are a year apart. She must’ve been exhausted after that delivery. ---
**Author:** ![Leaper](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/4bbf92/32.png) [@Leaper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaper)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2009, 4:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/famous-actors-with-identical-twins-who-are-not-famous/504509/13 "2009-07-28T04:16:15Z")
And, of course, Linda Hamilton, whose twin sister made SFX for that scene in _Terminator II_ completely unnecessary. ---
**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:** [July 28, 2009, 6:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/famous-actors-with-identical-twins-who-are-not-famous/504509/14 "2009-07-28T06:36:32Z")
And made your post unnecessary since she was mentioned in the OP. ---
**Author:** ![Snooooopy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ee7513/32.png) [@Snooooopy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snooooopy)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2009, 6:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/famous-actors-with-identical-twins-who-are-not-famous/504509/15 "2009-07-28T06:54:14Z")
> [@Dewey\_Finn](#): > > [Jerry O’Connell](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jerry_O%27Connell) has an identical twin brother named [Charlie](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charlie_O%27Connell) (although the brother is also an actor). Referring to Charlie as an actor is charitable. Not that Jerry’s going to be piling up Oscars or anything, but at least he seems to have a modicum of talent. Charlie is only slightly more vibrant than a stone wall. ---
**Author:** ![Leaper](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/4bbf92/32.png) [@Leaper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaper)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2009, 8:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/famous-actors-with-identical-twins-who-are-not-famous/504509/16 "2009-07-28T08:54:22Z")
> [@Wendell\_Wagner](#): > > And made your post unnecessary since she was mentioned in the OP. _looks again_ Goddammit. For some reason, my eyes skipped completely over that and right to the Nicholas Brendon sentence. It’s like that part just appeared right now out of nowhere. Yeah, that’s the ticket… ---
**Author:** ![Sampiro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/2acd7d/32.png) [@Sampiro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sampiro)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2009, 3:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/famous-actors-with-identical-twins-who-are-not-famous/504509/17 "2009-07-28T15:23:38Z")
> [@The New and Improved Superman](#): > > Elvis Presley actually had a twin brother Jessie who was stillborn - changing pop music history in unfathomable ways. Liberace was also born with a stillborn twin, changing pop music history… well, not at all. ---
**Author:** ![TBG](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c89c15/32.png) [@TBG](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TBG)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2009, 10:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/famous-actors-with-identical-twins-who-are-not-famous/504509/18 "2009-07-28T22:57:52Z")
> [@thirdname](#): > > Kelly played his twin (of sorts) in one episode IIRC, he didn’t even do quite that much. It was still mostly Nicky playing both Xanders. The only scenes that had Kelly rather than Nicky playing a Xander were the ones where both Xanders were on screen interacting together. I suppose it’s comparable to Linda Hamilton’s twin playing Sarah Connor’s reflection and T1000 double. ---
**Author:** ![Girl\_From\_Mars](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/3da27b/32.png) [@Girl\_From\_Mars](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Girl_From_Mars)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2009, 9:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/famous-actors-with-identical-twins-who-are-not-famous/504509/19 "2009-07-29T09:00:45Z")
[Scarlett Johansson](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scarlett_Johansson)has a twin brother called Hunter. [Ashton Kutcher](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ashton_kutcher) also has a twin brother, Michael. [Keifer Sutherland](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Keifer_Sutherland) has a twin sister, Rachel. ---
**Author:** ![Indistinguishable](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/90ced4/32.png) [@Indistinguishable](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Indistinguishable)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2009, 9:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/famous-actors-with-identical-twins-who-are-not-famous/504509/20 "2009-07-29T09:18:46Z")
Those three are all fraternal twins, but the OP asks for identical twins.