# Twinskie actors **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [January 12, 2024, 1:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/twinskie-actors/995986 "2024-01-12T01:57:08Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Beckdawrek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beckdawrek/32/3647_2.png) [@Beckdawrek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beckdawrek)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2024, 1:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/twinskie-actors/995986/1 "2024-01-12T01:57:08Z")
Are Robt. Mitchum, Kirk Douglas, and Charlton Heston essentially interchangeable in many of their movies? ---
**Author:** ![Seanette](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/seanette/32/9139_2.png) [@Seanette](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Seanette)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2024, 2:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/twinskie-actors/995986/2 "2024-01-12T02:05:43Z")
Not sure about those three, but I can never keep straight whether it’s Bill Pullman or Bill Paxton in a given movie without looking it up. ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2024, 2:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/twinskie-actors/995986/3 "2024-01-12T02:08:10Z")
> [@Beckdawrek](#): > > Are Robt. Mitchum, Kirk Douglas, and Charlton Heston essentially interchangeable in many of their movies? To me all of them are very distinctive from most actors of their time and from each other. They worked in an era of cookie cutter leading men. The ones that are remembered are the ones that rose to the top ---
**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:** [January 12, 2024, 2:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/twinskie-actors/995986/4 "2024-01-12T02:14:36Z")
I feel they played different roles. Mitchum was the flawed anti-hero (or occasionally outright villain). Heston was the upright hero who supported the system. Douglas was the rebel hero who fought against the system. I can’t see Douglas or Heston in _Detour_ or _The Friends of Eddie Coyle_ (much less _The Night of the Hunter_ or _Cape Fear_). I can’t see Mitchum or Douglas in _Ben Hur_ or _The Ten Commendments_. I can’t see Mitchum or Heston in _Paths of Glory_ or _Lonely Are the Brave_. ---
**Author:** ![Beckdawrek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beckdawrek/32/3647_2.png) [@Beckdawrek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beckdawrek)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2024, 2:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/twinskie-actors/995986/5 "2024-01-12T02:20:49Z")
Damon, Pitt, and DiCaprio confuse me now. Put em in the same movie and I get lost. ---
**Author:** ![Slithy\_Tove](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slithy_tove/32/18248_2.png) [@Slithy\_Tove](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Slithy_Tove)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2024, 2:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/twinskie-actors/995986/6 "2024-01-12T02:30:16Z")
Kirk Douglas put a lot of intensity into his characters, be they poopyheads (The Bad and the Beautiful, The Strange Love of Martha Ivers) or heroes (Spartacus, Lonely are the Brave, etc.). Mitchum was the opposite: often amoral, always relaxed. Heston was more of the non-thinking man’s Gregory Peck. When Edmond O’Brien had to drop out of Lawrence of Arabia, Arthur Kennedy was his standard interchange. Hollywood also kept lesser versions on hand: Lizbeth Scott if Lauren Bacall was unavailable, Van Heflin for the Spencer Tracey slot. Need a principled bureaucrat? Call Whit Bissel or Olan Soule. For “cute old Jewish guy” there was Sam Jaffe, Ned Glass, Herbie Faye, Milton Selzer, etc. In the IMDB trivia section for Face/Off, it lists other casting interchangeable possibilities besides Nicholas Cage/John Travolta: Schwarzenegger/Stalone; Harrison Ford/Michael Douglass; DeNiro/Pacino and Bruce Willis/Alec Baldwin. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2024, 3:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/twinskie-actors/995986/7 "2024-01-12T15:56:23Z")
> [@Beckdawrek](#): > > Damon, Pitt, and DiCaprio confuse me now. Put em in the same movie and I get lost. Yes!! The first time I watched **The Departed** I thought DiCaprio and Damon were the same character and nothing made sense. I had to watch it again after realizing they were two different people. ---
**Author:** ![Shoeless](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/shoeless/32/7099_2.png) [@Shoeless](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shoeless)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2024, 5:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/twinskie-actors/995986/8 "2024-01-12T17:06:20Z")
I can’t keep Sam Neill and Hugo Weaving straight for some reason. I have to tell myself “If it’s not Jurassic Park, then it’s probably Hugo Weaving.” ---
**Author:** ![Slithy\_Tove](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slithy_tove/32/18248_2.png) [@Slithy\_Tove](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Slithy_Tove)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2024, 5:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/twinskie-actors/995986/9 "2024-01-12T17:10:30Z")
And, for reasons perhaps best left unexamined, we find ourselves living in the age of [the Chrises](https://ohtorch.com/7674/entertainment/hollywoods-four-chrises-cause-confusion-and-swooning/#:~:text=One%20of%20the%20most%20famous,Chris%20Pine%2C%20and%20Chris%20Pratt.) ---
**Author:** ![Beckdawrek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beckdawrek/32/3647_2.png) [@Beckdawrek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beckdawrek)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2024, 6:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/twinskie-actors/995986/10 "2024-01-12T18:17:27Z")
E—xactly. ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2024, 11:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/twinskie-actors/995986/11 "2024-01-12T23:45:18Z")
> [@kayaker](#): > > > [@Beckdawrek](#): > > > > Damon, Pitt, and DiCaprio confuse me now. Put em in the same movie and I get lost. > > Yes!! The first time I watched **The Departed** I thought DiCaprio and Damon were the same character and nothing made sense. I had to watch it again after realizing they were two different people. As they have gotten older they look more and more like each other. ---
**Author:** ![Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmer_j.fudd/32/1211_2.png) [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elmer_J.Fudd)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2024, 12:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/twinskie-actors/995986/12 "2024-01-13T00:07:06Z")
> [@Seanette](#): > > but I can never keep straight whether it’s Bill Pullman or Bill Paxton in a given movie without looking it up. Jeff Daniels is the actor usually confused with Bill Pullman. ---
**Author:** ![Seanette](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/seanette/32/9139_2.png) [@Seanette](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Seanette)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2024, 12:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/twinskie-actors/995986/13 "2024-01-13T00:13:56Z")
I don’t think I’ve seen as much of his work, so he doesn’t even come to mind. I’m sticking with my own confusion, thanks. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Atamasama](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/atamasama/32/12961_2.png) [@Atamasama](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Atamasama)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2024, 12:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/twinskie-actors/995986/14 "2024-01-13T00:19:21Z")
I’ve confused David Boreanaz and Eddie McClintock before. (David might best be known as the main character in the show _Angel_, and Eddie McClintock was a main character in _Warehouse 13_.) [![](https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcSh4n2P2qkM7vhqSxQBLO3u0ezsW4pLHApQe7z5D5jvL7dqlmxTf8TI_YFxuRDk7wwppCs&usqp=CAU) ](https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcSh4n2P2qkM7vhqSxQBLO3u0ezsW4pLHApQe7z5D5jvL7dqlmxTf8TI_YFxuRDk7wwppCs&usqp=CAU) It was especially confusing when they were both on the show _Bones_ and were rivals for the affection of the show’s main protagonist and namesake. The first time I saw an episode with them both on it, I swear I am not joking but I thought it was one of those things where one actor tried to play two characters at the same time (think of _The Patty Duke Show)_. Here is a scene from the actual show where they are standing next to each other in the background at the top of the photo. [![](https://l450v.alamy.com/450v/2pc36f2/cast-members-of-fox-televisions-bones-from-lower-left-emily-deschanel-tj-thyne-and-michaela-conlin-and-upper-left-david-boreanaz-and-eddie-mcclintock-rehearse-at-the-fox-studios-in-los-angeles-tuesday-dec-12-2006-ap-photodamian-dovarganes-2pc36f2.jpg) ](https://l450v.alamy.com/450v/2pc36f2/cast-members-of-fox-televisions-bones-from-lower-left-emily-deschanel-tj-thyne-and-michaela-conlin-and-upper-left-david-boreanaz-and-eddie-mcclintock-rehearse-at-the-fox-studios-in-los-angeles-tuesday-dec-12-2006-ap-photodamian-dovarganes-2pc36f2.jpg) I thought Eddie’s character was David in a wig. A side story… I went to the local big sci-fi/fantasy/nerd convention (Emerald City Comicon) with my best friend once when he ran into Eddie as he was looking at merchandise. Eddie was there as a guest of the show but was just out looking at merchandise. My buddy asked to take a photo with him and got one. I was so jealous afterward. Eddie was really nice and cool, especially since you typically have to pay a decent chunk of money and wait in a long line to get a photo with one of the celebrity guests at that con. Also, I assume this thread isn’t referring to actual twin actors. I can never get Aaron and Shawn Ashmore figured out, and I always have to look up who is in what. But they are **actual** identical twins. [![](https://preview.redd.it/it-would-be-hilarious-if-the-anthology-went-full-circle-and-v0-vsdi5pi4ju5a1.jpg?auto=webp&s=aeda47fa966d7b59e8c0ec9e73d6dbd673e012db) ](https://preview.redd.it/it-would-be-hilarious-if-the-anthology-went-full-circle-and-v0-vsdi5pi4ju5a1.jpg?auto=webp&s=aeda47fa966d7b59e8c0ec9e73d6dbd673e012db) ---
**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:** [January 13, 2024, 12:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/twinskie-actors/995986/15 "2024-01-13T00:41:06Z")
> [@Atamasama](#): > > Also, I assume this thread isn’t referring to actual twin actors. I can never get Aaron and Shawn Ashmore figured out, and I always have to look up who is in what. But they are **actual** identical twins. Whenever one of those two pops up onscreen, my wife turns to me and asks, “Is it him, or the other one?”. For reasons neither of us can remember, Aaron is “him” and Shawn is “the other one”. ---
**Author:** ![Atamasama](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/atamasama/32/12961_2.png) [@Atamasama](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Atamasama)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2024, 1:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/twinskie-actors/995986/16 "2024-01-13T01:37:20Z")
> [@Alessan](#): > > For reasons neither of us can remember, Aaron is “him” and Shawn is “the other one”. Funny thing is that I’m pretty sure Shawn has been in more prominent roles than his brother. (Though I might have that wrong, again I mix them up all the time and struggle to remember who was in what.) ---
**Author:** ![E-DUB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/e-dub/32/403_2.png) [@E-DUB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/E-DUB)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2024, 8:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/twinskie-actors/995986/17 "2024-01-13T20:44:26Z")
I didn’t know there were two of them. When I saw the other one, I just assumed it was him. ---
**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:** [January 13, 2024, 8:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/twinskie-actors/995986/18 "2024-01-13T20:51:46Z")
> [@Atamasama](#): > > Funny thing is that I’m pretty sure Shawn has been in more prominent roles than his brother. (Though I might have that wrong, again I mix them up all the time and struggle to remember who was in what.) I think we first noticed that there were two of them when we were watching _Killjoys_, starring Aaron, so he’ll always be Ashmore no.1 for us. ---
**Author:** ![Atamasama](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/atamasama/32/12961_2.png) [@Atamasama](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Atamasama)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2024, 9:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/twinskie-actors/995986/19 "2024-01-13T21:45:50Z")
Fair, Aaron was in that one. (That much I can remember.) ---
**Author:** ![Leaper](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/4bbf92/32.png) [@Leaper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaper)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2024, 3:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/twinskie-actors/995986/20 "2024-01-14T03:41:28Z")
What about the four white Chrises (Evans, Hemsworth, Pratt, Pine)? [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/twinskie-actors/995986.md?page=2)