Actors change and transform to convince their movie roles. Do you remember the emaciated machinist Trevor Reznik in The Machinist that Christian Bale played? The actor topped eating and exercising to drop 63 pounds for that role. Do you recognize Jared Leto in The House of Gucci He portrays Paolo Gucci, the middle-aged, overweight, and balding cousin of Adam Driver’s Maurizio Gucci? Jared Leto donned a fat suit, facial prosthetics, and a bald cap, spending six hours every day transforming into his character. These actors do everything for the sake of their characters.
Thus, there are times actors become unrecognizable with their movie makeovers. Hours of makeup, months of professional training, months of method acting practice - these actors are all involved. They've worked hard to bring their character to life persuasively as possible. And we, the audience, appreciate their tremendous effort and their attitude to acting.
Below are 16 actors with movie makeup that make us double-check if they were actually them. Please scroll down and check them out!
#1 Colin Farrell, The Batman
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Colin Farrell plays Penguin in The Batman, looking completely unrecognizable as the formidable crime figure thanks to hours spent each day in the makeup chair.
#2 Jared Leto, The House of Gucci
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Jared Leto continues to astonish the audience with his look in "The House of Gucci". The actor portrays Paolo Gucci, the middle-aged, overweight, and balding cousin of Adam Driver’s Maurizio Gucci. And of course, he donned a fat suit, facial prosthetics, and a bald cap, spending hours in the dressing room.
#3 Tilda Swinton, Suspiria
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Tilda Swinton deserves the title of one of Hollywood's most chameleonic actresses. She made a dramatic transformation with her role in "Suspiria" when playing the 82-year-old male psychiatrist Dr. Jozef Klemperer.
#4 Cate Blanchett, Manifesto
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"Manifesto" demands 13 different characters from Cate Blanchett. The actress is like involved in a hypnotically fascinating exploration of philosophy.
#5 Mariah Carey, Precious
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Mariah Carey had a small but significant role as a welfare caseworker who helps her through her struggles in "Precious".
#6 Glenn Close, Albert Nobbs
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In "Albert Nobbs" Glenn Close plays a woman playing a man, a waiter in a posh hotel in late 19th-century Dublin.
#7 Christian Bale, Vice
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"Vice" stars Christian Bale as former U.S. Vice President Dick Cheney through different parts of his life. The actor went out of his way, again, to transform his body into his character.
#8 Tom Cruise, Tropic Thunder
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Tom Cruise made a surprise cameo as Les Grossman, the hotheaded and foul-mouthed Hollywood producer in "Tropic Thunder". The actor transformed for his character.
#9 Gwyneth Paltrow, Shakespeare in Love
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In "Shakespeare in Love", Gwyneth Paltrow plays Viola de Lesseps, a woman who disguises herself as a man named Thomas Kent and wins the role of Romeo in a new play.
#10 Rooney Mara, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
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"The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo" stars Rooney Mara as Lisbeth Salander, a computer hacker enlisted in solving a gruesome string of crimes alongside Daniel Craig's character, a truth-seeking journalist.
#11 Bradley Cooper, Maestro
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Bradley Cooper completely transforms into American conductor Leonard Bernstein in "Maestro". The actor's makeup makes him unrecognizable in this movie.
#12 Jacob Tremblay, Wonder
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At 11, Jacob Tremblay gained worldwide recognition with his emotional role in a big-screen version of the beloved novel Wonder. The boy spent hours in the dressing room transforming into his character.
#13 Naomi Grossman, American Horror Story
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Naomi Grossman portrayed Pepper, a woman afflicted with microcephaly in "American Horror Story". Her character's makeup really made us double-check who is she.
#14 Eddie Redmayne, The Danish Girl
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In "The Danish Girl" Eddie Redmayne plays Elbe, one of the first known recipients of sex reassignment surgery.
#15 Eddie Murphy, Coming to America
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Eddie Murphy plays Prince Akeem – a member of the royal family in the African nation of Zamunda in "Coming To America".
#16 Emma Thompson, Harry Potter
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The actress, then, at 55, portrayed Professor Sybill Trelawney in three Harry Potter films, including Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, and Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2.