# Movies were the top billed stars don't have a scene together **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [September 23, 2007, 11:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-were-the-top-billed-stars-dont-have-a-scene-together/420236 "2007-09-23T23:16:16Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**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:** [September 23, 2007, 11:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-were-the-top-billed-stars-dont-have-a-scene-together/420236/1 "2007-09-23T23:16:16Z")
Just finished watching \*\*[The Holiday](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0457939/) \*\*, starring Cameron Diaz and Kate Winslet and was struck by the fact the two stars were never acting in the same scene together (there was a brief glimpse of them in the same room in the final scene, but no dialog) and was wondering about other films where this happened. Talking on the phone is OK (there was one scene of that, too); I mean no face-to-face scenes where they are in the same room and talking to each other. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Dumbest\_Guy\_in\_the\_Room](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/5fc32e/32.png) [@The\_Dumbest\_Guy\_in\_the\_Room](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Dumbest_Guy_in_the_Room)\ **Post date:** [September 23, 2007, 11:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-were-the-top-billed-stars-dont-have-a-scene-together/420236/2 "2007-09-23T23:17:33Z")
The Godfather part II ---
**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:** [September 23, 2007, 11:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-were-the-top-billed-stars-dont-have-a-scene-together/420236/3 "2007-09-23T23:24:59Z")
_Wrath of Khan_, although I will grant that technically Montalban wasn’t “top-billed.” ---
**Author:** ![John\_DiFool](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_difool/32/19543_2.png) [@John\_DiFool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_DiFool)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2007, 1:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-were-the-top-billed-stars-dont-have-a-scene-together/420236/4 "2007-09-24T01:21:36Z")
_The Fifth Element_-Bruce Willis and Gary Oldman; they just barely missed each other when the Willis character gets on an elevator right when Oldman gets off one. ---
**Author:** ![amarinth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3be4f8/32.png) [@amarinth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/amarinth)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2007, 1:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-were-the-top-billed-stars-dont-have-a-scene-together/420236/5 "2007-09-24T01:24:33Z")
Sleepless in Seattle, Meg Ryan and Tom Hanks don’t speak until the very final scene. ---
**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:** [September 24, 2007, 1:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-were-the-top-billed-stars-dont-have-a-scene-together/420236/6 "2007-09-24T01:51:48Z")
[Best Defense](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Best_Defense) with Eddie Murphy and Dudley Moore. The movie initially focused on Moore’s character and was considered so bad, a part was created for Murphy. Murphy’s and Moore’s plot lines never coincided, being separated in time by eight years. I seem to recall the final scene had a dialogue between Moore and Murphy, but the two never shared screen time for the bulk of the movie. ---
**Author:** ![betenoir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/258eb7/32.png) [@betenoir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/betenoir)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2007, 6:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-were-the-top-billed-stars-dont-have-a-scene-together/420236/7 "2007-09-24T06:38:28Z")
Well they’re alway Citizen Kane who didn’t talk directly to anyone at least in present tense, and didn’t talk to the reporters at all, what with being all dead and stuff. ---
**Author:** ![buns3000](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/c89c15/32.png) [@buns3000](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/buns3000)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2007, 8:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-were-the-top-billed-stars-dont-have-a-scene-together/420236/8 "2007-09-24T08:07:50Z")
In the movie **Heat** , there is only one scene featuring both Robert De Niro and Al Pacino but the actors were filmed separately. ---
**Author:** ![Alessan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alessan/32/465_2.png) [@Alessan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alessan)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2007, 8:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-were-the-top-billed-stars-dont-have-a-scene-together/420236/9 "2007-09-24T08:27:26Z")
\*\*Truman Show \*\* - Jim Carrey and Ed Harris never shared a scene, although they did speak. ---
**Author:** ![Pushkin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ee59a6/32.png) [@Pushkin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pushkin)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2007, 8:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-were-the-top-billed-stars-dont-have-a-scene-together/420236/10 "2007-09-24T08:34:12Z")
[QUOTE=KneadToKnow] _Wrath of Khan_, although I will grant that technically Montalban wasn’t “top-billed.” [/QUOTE] Well, technically they were on screen together, talking on another screen, so that’s a scene together in my books. Another not quite fitting the OP but almost might be Star Wars. Hamil only sees Prowse from a distance and the characters meet again in SFX only. ---
**Author:** ![Chez\_Guevara](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/aeb1de/32.png) [@Chez\_Guevara](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chez_Guevara)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2007, 9:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-were-the-top-billed-stars-dont-have-a-scene-together/420236/11 "2007-09-24T09:28:18Z")
Anne Bancroft & Anthony Hopkins in [_84 Charing Cross Road_](http://www.amazon.co.uk/Charing-Cross-Road-Anne-Bancroft/dp/B00005UWUL). They correspond from different continents and I don’t think they even talk on the phone. ---
**Author:** ![Dunderman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ecb155/32.png) [@Dunderman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dunderman)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2007, 9:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-were-the-top-billed-stars-dont-have-a-scene-together/420236/12 "2007-09-24T09:30:33Z")
[QUOTE=Pushkin] Another not quite fitting the OP but almost might be Star Wars. Hamil only sees Prowse from a distance and the characters meet again in SFX only. [/QUOTE] Was David Prowse top-billed? ---
**Author:** ![Fiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e274bd/32.png) [@Fiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fiver)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2007, 11:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-were-the-top-billed-stars-dont-have-a-scene-together/420236/13 "2007-09-24T11:58:14Z")
There’ve been many movies where big stars of different generations played the same character at different ages. And of course, none of them comes to mind now. ---
**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:** [September 24, 2007, 12:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-were-the-top-billed-stars-dont-have-a-scene-together/420236/14 "2007-09-24T12:46:26Z")
There’s **The Hours** where the three top stars – Meryl Streep, Julianne Moore, and Nicole Kidman are in different time periods and thus never meet. ---
**Author:** ![OtakuLoki](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/ac8455/32.png) [@OtakuLoki](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OtakuLoki)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2007, 12:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-were-the-top-billed-stars-dont-have-a-scene-together/420236/15 "2007-09-24T12:53:28Z")
The 1996 film [Courage Under Fire](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0115956/), starring Meg Ryan and Denzel Washington. Ryan’s character is dead before Washington’s ever aware of her existance. ---
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2007, 12:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-were-the-top-billed-stars-dont-have-a-scene-together/420236/16 "2007-09-24T12:55:44Z")
In _Evita_ Anotnio Banderas and Madonna only interact in one scene (Waltz for Evita and Che). I read the book “The Fan” and it’s all a series of letters and telegrams. I don’t know they did the movie, but I don’t think Lauren Bacall and James Gardner could have had many scenes together (she was the actress on the East Coast, he was her ex-husband on the West Coast). ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2007, 1:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-were-the-top-billed-stars-dont-have-a-scene-together/420236/17 "2007-09-24T13:09:12Z")
**Best Defense** with Dudly Moore and Eddie Murphy: > **[Best Defense (1984) ⭐ 3.8 | Comedy, War](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0086955/)** > > 1h 34m | R ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2007, 1:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-were-the-top-billed-stars-dont-have-a-scene-together/420236/18 "2007-09-24T13:16:11Z")
Ahh! I missed that **cochrane** already posted it. Sorry. ---
**Author:** ![FlyingDragonFan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/c89c15/32.png) [@FlyingDragonFan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FlyingDragonFan)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2007, 1:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-were-the-top-billed-stars-dont-have-a-scene-together/420236/19 "2007-09-24T13:55:52Z")
[QUOTE=Fiver] There’ve been many movies where big stars of different generations played the same character at different ages. And of course, none of them comes to mind now. [/QUOTE] Ewan McGregor and Albert Finney as young and old Ed Bloom in [Big Fish](http://imdb.com/title/tt0319061/). ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2007, 2:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-were-the-top-billed-stars-dont-have-a-scene-together/420236/20 "2007-09-24T14:17:09Z")
_The Sixth Sense_, for the psychologist and the troubled kid. In a way. 😉 [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-were-the-top-billed-stars-dont-have-a-scene-together/420236.md?page=2)