Actors who look nothing like the people they played

The first on-set photos of Marisa Abela as Amy Winehouse in the upcoming biopic 'Back to Black' came out, to very mixed results. Directed by Sam Taylor-Johnson, the film will chronicle the late singer's intense journey to fame while living in London in the early '00s. Though many are not pleased, as is evident on Diet Prada's Instagram post which shared the photos that commenters likened to a Halloween costume, Abela was reportedly a front-runner for the role and "blew aways execs and Taylor-Johnson" with her audition, reports Deadline. Even Winehouse's estate gave their approval for the biopic, saying in a statement: "We are thrilled that Studiocanal, Focus Features and Monumental are making this movie celebrating our daughter Amy's extraordinary music legacy and showcasing her talent in the way that it deserves." Only time will tell if Abela can pull it off.

1 / 31 Fotos

Julia Roberts as Erin Brockovich -

Roberts looks nothing like the whistleblower in 'Erin Brockovich' (2000). Though she did win an Oscar for Best Actress, so her performance was on point!

2 / 31 Fotos

Michael Fassbender as Steve Jobs -

Fassbender plays the Apple co-founder brilliantly in 'Steve Jobs' (2015), but they don't really look alike.

3 / 31 Fotos

Hugh Jackman as P.T. Barnum -

Jackman couldn't look less like the Barnum & Bailey Circus co-founder in 'The Greatest Showman' (2017).

4 / 31 Fotos

Emilio Estevez as Billy the Kid -

The actor played the iconic outlaw in the Western 'Young Guns' (1988). Estevez is way more good-looking than the criminal he portrays, right?

5 / 31 Fotos

Johnny Depp as J.M. Barrie -

Depp plays the Scottish novelist in 'Finding Neverland' (2004). As you can see, they look nothing alike.

6 / 31 Fotos

Ray Liotta as Joe Jackson -

The actor portrayed baseball player "Shoeless Joe" in 'Field of Dreams' (1989). The production did a great job with the wardrobe, but their facial features leave much to be desired.

7 / 31 Fotos

Milla Jovovich as Joan of Arc -

How the French heroine really looked like is up for debate, but it is speculated that she was a brunette with dark complexion. Jovovich doesn't quite cut it in 'The Messenger: The Story of Joan of Arc' (1999).

8 / 31 Fotos

Robin Williams as Patch Adams -

The actor and comedian played the famous physician in 'Patch Adams' (1998). He might have captured the spirit of the character, but couldn't have looked more different.

9 / 31 Fotos

Denzel Washington as Frank Lucas -

Washington played the famous mobster in 'American Gangster' (2007). The actor scores considerably higher in the looks department though...

10 / 31 Fotos

Margot Robbie as Queen Elizabeth I -

Can an actress be too beautiful to play a part? You decide. Well, at least Robbie could have worn dark contact lenses for 'Mary Queen of Scots' (2018), right?

11 / 31 Fotos

Mel Gibson as William Wallace -

The actor played the Scottish hero in the Academy Award-winning film 'Braveheart' (1995). As for the resemblance between the two, or the lack of thereof, it's pretty obvious.

12 / 31 Fotos

Cate Blanchett as Bob Dylan -

It is a bit difficult to buy the actress as the iconic musician in 'I'm Not There' (2007).

13 / 31 Fotos

Taraji P. Henson as Katherine G. Johnson -

Henson looks nothing like the NASA mathematician in 'Hidden Figures' (2016).

14 / 31 Fotos

Nick Nolte as Thomas Jefferson -

Nolte doesn't quite look like the third US President in 'Jefferson in Paris' (1995).

15 / 31 Fotos

Angelina Jolie as Christine Collins -

Angelina Jolie looked more like, well, Angelina Jolie than the woman who went looking for her missing son in 'Changeling' (2008).

16 / 31 Fotos

Michael Shannon as Elvis Presley -

"The King" is probably the most impersonated person in history. Well, Michael Shannon looked more like an impersonator than the real singer in 'Elvis & Nixon' (2016).

17 / 31 Fotos

Nicolas Cage as Charlie Kaufman -

Cage plays the famous screenwriter in 'Adaptation.' (2002). But the problem is that Nicolas Cage has such a distinct face that we cannot see him as another (real) person.

18 / 31 Fotos

Benedict Cumberbatch as Alan Turing -

Can the actor actually look like anyone other than himself? He certainly doesn't look like the iconic cryptanalyst in 'The Imitation Game' (2014).

19 / 31 Fotos

Cuba Gooding Jr. as O.J. Simpson -

It's safe to say that the actor doesn't look much like the former football player in 'The People v. O. J. Simpson: American Crime Story' (2016).

20 / 31 Fotos

Tom Cruise as Claus von Stauffenberg -

Cruise plays the man who tried to assassinate Hitler quite well, but he doesn't look much like him in 'Valkyrie' (2008).

21 / 31 Fotos

Leonardo DiCaprio as J. Edgar Hoover -

No amount of makeup can distract us from the fact that indeed it is DiCaprio playing the FBI director in 'J. Edgar' (2011).

22 / 31 Fotos

Michelle Williams as Marilyn Monroe -

Playing Monroe is not easy. The actress has one of the most familiar faces in pop culture, so we will always struggle to believe Williams as the real deal in 'My Week with Marilyn' (2011).

23 / 31 Fotos

Robert Redford as Harry Longabaugh -

The actor played Old West outlaw Harry Longabaugh, aka Sundance Kid, in 'Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid' (1969). The resemblance is not quite there.

24 / 31 Fotos

Jon Voight as Howard Cosell -

The actor went through a heavy makeup transformation to play the iconic sportscaster in 'Ali' (2001). He just doesn't look quite right.

25 / 31 Fotos

Gary Cooper as Lou Gehrig -

'The Pride of the Yankees' (1942) is still regarded as one of the best baseball movies ever made. The resemblance between the actor and the player, however, is not quite there.

26 / 31 Fotos

Aaron Taylor-Johnson as John Lennon -

The actor plays a young Lennon in 'Nowhere Boy' (2009). The facial features are not quite there.

27 / 31 Fotos

Tom Hulce as Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart -

There were no photos back then, but having paintings as references shows that the actor looked nothing like the Austrian composer in 'Amadeus' (1984).

28 / 31 Fotos

Benjamin Walker as Abraham Lincoln -

Take a good look at these pictures. It's safe to say that the actor doesn't look like Lincoln in 'Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter' (2012).

29 / 31 Fotos

Joseph Gordon-Levitt as Bruce Willis -

Okay, so this one is a bit different, but we just had to include it. Gordon-Levitt is not actually playing Bruce Willis, but a younger version of his character in 'Looper' (2012). Can you see the resemblance? Nor can we.

Sources: (Collider)

30 / 31 Fotos

0 / 31 Fotos

Marisa Abela as Amy Winehouse -

1 / 31 Fotos

Julia Roberts as Erin Brockovich -

Roberts looks nothing like the whistleblower in 'Erin Brockovich' (2000). Though she did win an Oscar for Best Actress, so her performance was on point!

Getty Images

2 / 31 Fotos

Michael Fassbender as Steve Jobs -

Fassbender plays the Apple co-founder brilliantly in 'Steve Jobs' (2015), but they don't really look alike.

BrunoPress/Getty Images

3 / 31 Fotos

Hugh Jackman as P.T. Barnum -

Jackman couldn't look less like the Barnum & Bailey Circus co-founder in 'The Greatest Showman' (2017).

BrunoPress/Getty Images

4 / 31 Fotos

Emilio Estevez as Billy the Kid -

The actor played the iconic outlaw in the Western 'Young Guns' (1988). Estevez is way more good-looking than the criminal he portrays, right?

BrunoPress/Getty Images

5 / 31 Fotos

Johnny Depp as J.M. Barrie -

Depp plays the Scottish novelist in 'Finding Neverland' (2004). As you can see, they look nothing alike.

BrunoPress/Public Domain

6 / 31 Fotos

Ray Liotta as Joe Jackson -

The actor portrayed baseball player "Shoeless Joe" in 'Field of Dreams' (1989). The production did a great job with the wardrobe, but their facial features leave much to be desired.

BrunoPress/Getty Images

7 / 31 Fotos

Milla Jovovich as Joan of Arc -

BrunoPress/Getty Images

8 / 31 Fotos

Robin Williams as Patch Adams -

The actor and comedian played the famous physician in 'Patch Adams' (1998). He might have captured the spirit of the character, but couldn't have looked more different.

BrunoPress/Getty Images

9 / 31 Fotos

Denzel Washington as Frank Lucas -

Washington played the famous mobster in 'American Gangster' (2007). The actor scores considerably higher in the looks department though...

BrunoPress/Getty Images

10 / 31 Fotos

Margot Robbie as Queen Elizabeth I -

Can an actress be too beautiful to play a part? You decide. Well, at least Robbie could have worn dark contact lenses for 'Mary Queen of Scots' (2018), right?

BrunoPress/Getty Images

11 / 31 Fotos

Mel Gibson as William Wallace -

The actor played the Scottish hero in the Academy Award-winning film 'Braveheart' (1995). As for the resemblance between the two, or the lack of thereof, it's pretty obvious.

BrunoPress/Getty Images

12 / 31 Fotos

Cate Blanchett as Bob Dylan -

It is a bit difficult to buy the actress as the iconic musician in 'I'm Not There' (2007).

BrunoPress/Getty Images

13 / 31 Fotos

Taraji P. Henson as Katherine G. Johnson -

Henson looks nothing like the NASA mathematician in 'Hidden Figures' (2016).

BrunoPress/Getty Images

14 / 31 Fotos

Nick Nolte as Thomas Jefferson -

Nolte doesn't quite look like the third US President in 'Jefferson in Paris' (1995).

BrunoPress/Getty Images

15 / 31 Fotos

Angelina Jolie as Christine Collins -

Angelina Jolie looked more like, well, Angelina Jolie than the woman who went looking for her missing son in 'Changeling' (2008).

BrunoPress/Public Domain

16 / 31 Fotos

Michael Shannon as Elvis Presley -

"The King" is probably the most impersonated person in history. Well, Michael Shannon looked more like an impersonator than the real singer in 'Elvis & Nixon' (2016).

BrunoPress/Getty Images

17 / 31 Fotos

Nicolas Cage as Charlie Kaufman -

Cage plays the famous screenwriter in 'Adaptation.' (2002). But the problem is that Nicolas Cage has such a distinct face that we cannot see him as another (real) person.

BrunoPress/Getty Images

18 / 31 Fotos

Benedict Cumberbatch as Alan Turing -

Can the actor actually look like anyone other than himself? He certainly doesn't look like the iconic cryptanalyst in 'The Imitation Game' (2014).

BrunoPress/Public Domain

19 / 31 Fotos

Cuba Gooding Jr. as O.J. Simpson -

It's safe to say that the actor doesn't look much like the former football player in 'The People v. O. J. Simpson: American Crime Story' (2016).

BrunoPress/Getty Images

20 / 31 Fotos

Tom Cruise as Claus von Stauffenberg -

Cruise plays the man who tried to assassinate Hitler quite well, but he doesn't look much like him in 'Valkyrie' (2008).

BrunoPress/Getty Images

21 / 31 Fotos

Leonardo DiCaprio as J. Edgar Hoover -

No amount of makeup can distract us from the fact that indeed it is DiCaprio playing the FBI director in 'J. Edgar' (2011).

BrunoPress/Getty Images

22 / 31 Fotos

Michelle Williams as Marilyn Monroe -

Playing Monroe is not easy. The actress has one of the most familiar faces in pop culture, so we will always struggle to believe Williams as the real deal in 'My Week with Marilyn' (2011).

Getty Images

23 / 31 Fotos

Robert Redford as Harry Longabaugh -

The actor played Old West outlaw Harry Longabaugh, aka Sundance Kid, in 'Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid' (1969). The resemblance is not quite there.

BrunoPress/Getty Images

24 / 31 Fotos

Jon Voight as Howard Cosell -

The actor went through a heavy makeup transformation to play the iconic sportscaster in 'Ali' (2001). He just doesn't look quite right.

BrunoPress/Getty Images

25 / 31 Fotos

Gary Cooper as Lou Gehrig -

'The Pride of the Yankees' (1942) is still regarded as one of the best baseball movies ever made. The resemblance between the actor and the player, however, is not quite there.

BrunoPress/Getty Images

26 / 31 Fotos

Aaron Taylor-Johnson as John Lennon -

The actor plays a young Lennon in 'Nowhere Boy' (2009). The facial features are not quite there.

BrunoPress/Getty Images

27 / 31 Fotos

Tom Hulce as Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart -

There were no photos back then, but having paintings as references shows that the actor looked nothing like the Austrian composer in 'Amadeus' (1984).

BrunoPress/Getty Images

28 / 31 Fotos

Benjamin Walker as Abraham Lincoln -

Take a good look at these pictures. It's safe to say that the actor doesn't look like Lincoln in 'Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter' (2012).

BrunoPress/Getty Images

29 / 31 Fotos

Joseph Gordon-Levitt as Bruce Willis -

Sources: (Collider)

BrunoPress/Getty Images

30 / 31 Fotos

Actors who look nothing like the people they played

When Hollywood misses the mark

27/09/23 | StarsInsider

CELEBRITY Curiosities

We have written before about the actors who look like their real-life character, but now it's time to take a look at those who don't!

Indeed, there's a lot going on when it comes to casting the right actor for a role, but sometimes physical resemblance leaves a lot to be desired. In fact, some actors have such distinguishable faces that it's hard to imagine them as other real-life people.

Curious to see who doesn't look like whom? Click on!