14 Celebrities Who Looked Unrecognizable For A Movie Or TV Role
These characters’ looks may directly affect the success of a movie. And to make sure everything goes as planned, an extra measure is sometimes needed to complete the transformation. The prosthetic makeup in films is like magic, and make-up artists are for sure magic casters. With their magical hands, they can turn a woman into a man, a slender body into chubby, and even a human into a monster.
Today, we’ve compiled a list of actors who looks unrecognizable in a movie or TV role. Let us know the transformation that impresses you most! These unrecognizable celebrities for a film or television role are must-see.
#1 Oscar Isaac in X-Men: Apocalypse
Source: X-Men: Apocalypse / Marvel Entertainment and co-producers, Invision / Invision / East News
People seem annoyed when waking up every morning. So it’s no doubt that he looked angry after thousands of years of awakening. For actor Oscar Isaac, he might have an additional reason to make his character more convincing due to the heavy makeup and an uncomfortable costume to play a centuries-old villain in 1980s Egypt in X-Men: Apocalypse.And this comic-accurate getup has high-heeled boots, extensive prosthetic makeup, and other prosthetics. Although the actor once revealed the experience was “excruciating,” yet, he pulled off an incredible performance.
#2 Karen Gillan in Guardians of the Galaxy
Source: Image supplied by Capital Pictures / EAST NEWS, SharpShooter / Depositphotos.com
To transform Karen Gillan into the bionic Nebula, the film crew used not only bright blue metallic makeup but also a lot of prosthetics. Karen Gillan had to shave her head and say goodbye to her real-life beauty to obtain the ideal appearance in Guardians of the Galaxy. The makeup crew took 15 minutes to put the makeup on and 30 minutes to remove it from Karen, with 5 different layers.#3 Chris Evans in Avengers: Endgame
Source: ChrisEvans / Twitter, chrisevans / Instagram
Things will go wrong without their leader calling the shots in every mission and The Avengers are not an exception. When Captain America went back in time and rewrite his life in Endgame, the older captain gave his shield to his successor, the Falcon.Originally, the crew decided to give the role a try with elderly actors, but they didn’t quite fit, so Chris Evans portrayed Old Man Cap. The captain just nailed it with convincing makeup and amazing acting skills.
#4 Marion Cotillard in La Vie en Rose
Source: East News, Featureflash / Depositphotos.com
Marion Cotillard didn’t spare any time from transforming into famous singer Edith Piaf in La Vie en Rose. Besides the unique facial makeup mixed with acrylic and latex prosthetics she had to wear to mimic Edith’s look, she also donned a bodysuit to show bulkier.#5 Renée Zellweger in Judy
Source: CAP / RFS / Capital Pictures / East News, Featureflash / Depositphotos.com
It goes without saying that a Hollywood legend like Judy Garland deserved an exceptional biopic, and award-winning actress Renée Zellweger pulled it off skillfully. Renée must don a dark wig to match Judy’s hair, a set of fake teeth, brown contact lenses, and thick false lashes to look like the adult Judy. These totally paid off since Renée acclaimed praise for her portrayal and even won an Oscar in 2020.#6 Tilda Swinton in The Grand Budapest Hotel
Source: Image supplied by Capital Pictures / EAST NEWS, PopularImages / Depositphotos.com
Tilda Swinton rapidly changed her looks when appearing in her famous roles. And one of them was playing Madame D. in The Grand Budapest Hotel. In order to help Tilda familiar with a wealthy old lady, the makeup team utilized rubber silicone to mimic aging skin and more details like bright lipstick and a few liver spots.#7 Danny DeVito in Batman Returns
Source: Collection Christophel / Collection Christophel / East News, s_bukley / Depositphotos.com
Being one of Batman’s villains required a cartoonish look for the actors. In the comics, Oscar Cobblepot (The Penguin) has a small stature and a thin nose looking like a penguin’s beak. To obtain this over-the-top look, Danny DeVito had to undergo many facial prosthetic makeups, including fake teeth, and excessive applications to get the ideal bad guy ensemble.#8 Eddie Murphy in Coming 2 America
Aside from portraying Prince Akeem, Eddie Murphy has played several characters up his sleeve in Coming to America and its sequel, Coming 2 America. Every character had distinctive facial characteristics that made the crew a little bit confused when it was time for Eddie to switch to another role. In fact, each look had 15 to 20 pieces of prosthetics, and a dozen of wigs prepared.#9 James McAvoy in The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe
Source: Walt Disney Co. / Courtesy Everett Collection / East News, PopularImages / Depositphotos.com
James McAvoy was almost unrecognizable when he first appeared onscreen as the fawn Mr. Tumnus in the first installment of The Chronicles of Narnia. James had to spend hours on prosthetic makeup, including a live cast and ear extensions to look alike Tumnus’ goat-like ears, fake hair, and hooves.#10 Jessica Chastain in The Eyes of Tammy Faye
Portraying a renowned television personality challenged Jessica Chastain, but it couldn’t stop her from achieving Best Actress at the 2022 Oscars. The silicon cheeks, nose, and chin truly allowed Jessica to transform into Tammy Faye Bakker. Amazingly, the makeup and prosthetics crew also won an Oscar for their excellent work.#11 Anjelica Huston in The Addams Family
Source: Paramount/Courtesy Everett Collection / East News, everett225 / Depositphotos.com
When it comes to the Addams Family films, they are full of memorable moments and appearances. One of the most iconic characters is the family matriarch Morticia, portrayed by actress Anjelica Huston.Still, to perfect that campy, ice-cold look by Morticia, Anjelica had to take intense makeup processes with tape to keep her cheekbones more elevated. Even fake lashes and nails were also used to complete the exaggerated get-up.
#12 Charlize Theron in Bombshell
Source: Hilary B Gayle / Capital Pictures / East News, Jean_Nelson / Depositphotos.com
Becoming an A-lister makes it more difficult to vanish on the screen and appear as a truly new person. Charlize Theron did precisely as she portrayed news anchor Megyn Kelly in the movie Bombshell. The makeup crew actually went with copying Megyn’s facial features including the nose, eyes, and cheekbones. Charlize even had to wear individual lashes just to make the ideal eye shape.#13 Jamie Campbell Bower in Stranger Things
Source: Stranger Things / Netflix and co-producers, Invision / Invision / East News
The latest season of Stranger Things came with one of the biggest nightmares in Hawkins, Vecna. The character is portrayed by the actor Jamie Campbell Bower, who looks and sounds nothing like her in real life.The special effect crew resorted to applying 25 pieces of latex and silicone rubber material blued to his body with adhesive instead of using CGI. And it caused nearly 7 and a half hours to finish the application.