They have a variety of creative ways to "get into" their characters in order to make them more believable. Many of these movie stars work with personal trainers to bulk up, while others die of hunger themselves in attempts to lose weight. Sometimes the magic of makeup transforms them into someone else, like using prosthetics to completely change their appearance.
These 19 celebrities below completely changed their appearances for a new role. They are truly transformational masters. If you're curious about them, keep scrolling down to see
#1 Anne Hathaway
Source: © Becoming Jane / HanWay Films and co-producers, © Les Misérables / Universal Pictures and co-producers, © The Witches / Warner Bros. and co-producers
- Anne Hathaway portrayed Jane Austen, the daughter of a struggling village priest, in the 2007 film Becoming Jane.
- She played Fantine in the 2012 film adaptation of Hugo's novel Les Misérables.
- She also portrayed the Grand High Witch in the 2020 film The Witches.
#2 Carrie-Anne Moss
Source: © The Matrix / Warner Bros. and co-producers, © Fido / Lionsgate and co-producers, © Silent Hill: Revelation / Dynamic Effects Canada and co-producers
- Carrie-Anne Moss as Trinity, a hacker, and officer of Nebuchadnezzar in The Matrix (1999).
- In Fido (2006), she played Robinson, a housewife who meets a zombie.
- She appeared as Claudia Wolf, a high priestess in Silent Hill: Revelation (2012).
#3 Cate Blanchett
Source: © Cinderella / Walt Disney Pictures and co-producers, © Thor: Ragnarok / Walt Disney Pictures and co-producers, © Don't Look Up / Bluegrass Films and co-producers
- Cinderella (2015) stared Cate Blanchett as the evil stepmother.
- In Thor: Ragnarok (2017) she became the goddess of Hel, villain Hela.
- In Don’t Look Up (2021) she was a glamorous tv-host.
#4 Catherine O’Hara
Source: © Home Alone 2: Lost in New York / 20th Century Studios and co-producers, © For Your Consideration / Shangri-La Entertainment and co-producers, © Schitt's Creek / CBC and co-producers
- The mother of the creative Kevin McCallister, who mysteriously always ends up alone, was portrayed by Catherine O'Hara in Home Alone 2: Lost in New York (1992).
- In the 2006 film For Your Consideration, Catherine O'Hara played actress Marilyn Hack, who was anticipating an Oscar nomination.
- Catherine O'Hara portrayed soap opera actress Moira Rose and the wife of a billionaire whose business failed in Schitt's Creek (2015–2020).
#5 Emily Blunt
Source: © Empire / Storyline Entertainment and co-producers, © The Devil Wears Prada / Peninsula Films and co-producers, © The Huntsman: Winter's War / Universal Pictures and co-producers
- Emily Blunt played Vestal in Empire (2005).
- In The Devil Wears Prada (2006), she worked as a senior assistant to the chief editor of a fashion magazine.
- In The Huntsman: Winter's War (2016), she is a powerful witch who has control over ice and snow.
#6 Eva Green
Source: © Kingdom of Heaven / 20th Century Fox and co-producers, © Cracks / Antena 3 Films and co-producers, © Dark Shadows / Warner Bros. and co-producers
- Eva Green starred as Sibylla, Queen of Jerusalem in the Kingdom of Heaven (2005).
- Miss "G," the mysterious teacher at a girls' boarding school, was featured in Cracks (2009).
- She played the envious Angelique Bouchard in Dark Shadows (2012).
#7 Frances McDormand
Source: © Fargo / PolyGram Filmed Entertainment and co-producers, © Burn After Reading / Relativity Media and co-producers, © Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri / Blueprint Pictures and co-producers
- Fargo (1996) starred Frances McDormand as Marge Gunderson, a fearless 7-month pregnant police officer.
- He played a gym administrator Linda Litzke, who dreams of plastic surgery and strives to achieve her goals in the film Burn After Reading (2008).
- Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri (2017) casts him as Mildred, a desperate mother who has lost her daughter.
#8 Geoffrey Rush
Source: © Elizabeth: The Golden Age / Universal Pictures and co-producers, © Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl / Walt Disney Pictures and co-producers, © The King's Speech / FilmNation Entertainment and co-producers
- Geoffrey Rush as Sir Francis Walsingham, Queen Elizabeth I's chief secretary, in Elizabeth: The Golden Age (2007).
- In Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl (2003) he portrayed Captain Barbossa, the main pirate.
- Geoffrey Rush plays the speech therapist Lionel Logue who treated King George VI in The King's Speech (2010).
#9 Jennifer Jason Leigh
Source: © Dolores Claiborne / Castle Rock Entertainment and co-producers, © The Machinist / Castelao Producciones S.A. and co-producers, © The Hateful Eight / FilmColony м
- In the 1995 film Dolores Claiborne, Jennifer Jason Leigh portrayed Selena St. George, a New York journalist and the offspring of a housekeeper who was charged with a crime.
- She played the sole companion of the main character in The Machinist (2004).
- She played Daisy Domergue, a convicted criminal, in The Hateful Eight (2015).
#10 Julianne Moore
Source: © Safe / Killer Films and co-producers, © Far from Heaven / Focus Features and co-producers, © The Glorias / Artemis Rising Foundation and co-producers
- Julianne Moore starred in Safe (1995) as Carol White, a young woman who is diagnosed with a strange illness.
- Julianne Moore played an exemplary housewife whose life is turned upside down when she discovers her husband's secret in Far From Heaven (2002).
- Julianne Moore portrayed Gloria, a journalist, and leader of a feminist movement, in The Glorias (2020).
#11 Kathy Bates
Source: © Dolores Claiborne / Castle Rock Entertainment and co-producers, © Titanic / 20th Century Studios and co-producers, © American Horror Story / FX Network and co-producers
- In Misery (1990), Kathy Bates played Annie Wilke, a writer's fan.
- Kathy Bates starred as Molly Brown, one of the passengers on the Titanic (1997).
- Miriam Mead, the unstoppable overseer, was played by Kathy Bates on American Horror Story (2011-2022).
#12 Matt Damon
Source: © The Talented Mr. Ripley / Miramax and co-producers, © The Martian / Scott Free Productions and co-producers, © The Last Duel / 20th Century Studios and co-producers
- Matt Damon played brilliant conman Ripley in The Talented Mr. Ripley (1999).
- He played astronaut Mark Watney in The Martian (2015).
- In The Last Duel (2021), he played the untitled gentleman Sir Jean de Carrouges.
#13 Matthew McConaughey
Source: © Dallas Buyers Club / Voltage Pictures and co-producers, © Interstellar / Paramount Pictures and co-producers, © The Beach Bum / Iconoclast and co-producers
- Matthew McConaughey featured as Texas cowboy Ron Woodroof in the 2013 film Dallas Buyers Club, who was terminally ill.
- The farmer, widowed engineer, and former pilot Josef Cooper were played by Matthew McConaughey in the 2014 film Interstellar.
- Matthew McConaughey played Moondog, a strange poet, in the 2019 film The Beach Bum.
#14 Renée Zellweger
Source: © Jerry Maguire / TriStar Pictures and co-producers, © Cold Mountain / Miramax and co-producers, © Judy / Pathé and co-producers
- Renée Zellweger portrayed 26-year-old widow and single mother Dorothy Boyd in Jerry Maguire (1996).
- Ruby Thewes, who is adept at achieving her objectives, was portrayed by Renée Zellweger in Cold Mountain (2003).
- Judy Garland was portrayed by Renée Zellweger in the 2019 film Judy.
#15 Robert Pattinson
Source: © The Bad Mother's Handbook / Ingenious Broadcasting and co-producers, © Good Time / Rhea Films and co-producers, © The King / Porchlight Films and co-producers
- In The Bad Mother's Handbook (2007), Robert Pattinson played an awkward teen who helps his friend deal with a pregnancy.
- In the 2017 film Good Time, Robert Pattinson performed a bank robber who attempted to flee while taking great risks.
- Louis, Grand Dauphin was played by Robert Pattinson in the 2019 film The King.
#16 Sarah Jessica Parker
Source: © Hocus Pocus / Walt Disney Pictures and co-producers, © Ed Wood / Touchstone Pictures and co-producers, © Mars Attacks! / Warner Bros. and co-producers
- In the movie Hocus Pocus, Sarah Jessica Parker played one of the witch sisters (1993)
- In Ed Wood (1994), she portrayed American actress Dolores Fuller.
- She played the aspirational TV journalist Nathalie Lake in Mars Attacks! (1996).
#17 Sharon Stone
Source: © Total Recall / Carolco Pictures and co-producers, © Last Dance / Touchstone Pictures and co-producers, © Ratched / 20th Television and co-producers
- Sharon Stone played Lori's fictitious wife in the 1990 film Total Recall.
- Sharon Stone portrayed Cindy Liggett, a young woman on death row, in the 1996 film Last Dance.
- The 2020 film Ratched Lenore Osgood featured Sharon Stone as the eccentric heir to a wealthy estate.
#18 Stanley Tucci
Source: © Captain America: The First Avenger / Paramount Pictures and co-producers, © The Hunger Games: Catching Fire / Lionsgate and co-producers, © Beauty and the Beast / Walt Disney Pictures and co-producers
- Doctor Abraham Erskine was portrayed by Stanley Tucci in Captain America: The First Avenger (2011).
- Stanley Tucci featured the Hunger Games host in the 2013 film The Hunger Games: Catching Fire.
- 2017's Beauty and the Beast starred Stanley Tucci as Cadenza, a court composer.
#19 Vivien Leigh
Source: © Gone with the Wind / MGM and co-producers, © Caesar and Cleopatra / MGM and co-producers, © Ship of Fools / Sony Pictures and co-producers
- In the 1939 film Gone With the Wind, Vivien Leigh played Scarlett O'Hara, a coquette, and the heir to a wealthy estate who witnesses the war's atrocities.
- Vivien Leigh performed Egyptian Queen Cleopatra in Ceasar and Cleopatra (1945).
- She also played a wealthy, unhappy middle-aged woman in Ship of Fools (1965).