By 
Some actors become so closely associated with a franchise that it’s difficult to imagine them playing anyone else in it. Then there are the performers who somehow get invited back with an entirely different name, costume, face, or species. Occasionally, the transformation is obvious and becomes part of the fun. Other times, viewers can watch the movies repeatedly without realizing they’ve been looking at the same actor all along. Star Wars has practically made a tradition out of recycling familiar performers, while franchises like Mad Max have brought actors back decades later as completely unrelated characters. Whether it took elaborate prosthetics or just the confidence that nobody would notice, these actors managed to collect multiple roles inside the same fictional universe.
©IMDb
Warwick Davis Was Basically the Star Wars Utility Player
Warwick Davis started as Wicket the Ewok in Return of the Jedi, but that barely scratches the surface. He later played Wald, Weazel, Wollivan, Weeteef Cyu-Bee, Wodibin, and several other aliens and droids across the franchise.
©IMDb
Hugh Keays-Byrne Became Two Different Mad Max Villains
Hugh Keays-Byrne played Toecutter in the original Mad Max before returning more than three decades later as Immortan Joe in Mad Max: Fury Road. Two movies, two villains, and almost no chance you’d recognize the same actor underneath Joe’s mask.
©IMDb
Bruce Spence Apparently Just Belonged in the Wasteland
Bruce Spence first appeared as the Gyro Captain in Mad Max 2. He returned for Beyond Thunderdome as Jedediah the Pilot, a completely different character who just happened to make another flying machine part of Max’s problems.
©IMDb
Gemma Chan Got Two Trips Through the MCU
Before playing Sersi in Eternals, Gemma Chan appeared in Captain Marvel as the blue-skinned Kree warrior Minn-Erva. The makeup certainly helped Marvel get away with bringing her back as an entirely different character.
©IMDb
Michelle Yeoh Came Back to the MCU Too
Michelle Yeoh briefly appeared as Aleta Ogord in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2. Years later, Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings brought her back in a much larger role as Ying Nan.
©IMDb
Kenneth Choi Played Two Generations in the MCU
Kenneth Choi first appeared in Captain America: The First Avenger as Howling Commando Jim Morita. Spider-Man: Homecoming later cast him as Principal Morita, who was revealed to be a descendant of his original character.
©IMDb
Laura Haddock Somehow Had Two MCU Lives
Before playing Peter Quill’s mother, Meredith Quill, Laura Haddock had a tiny appearance in Captain America: The First Avenger as an autograph-seeking fan. Marvel apparently decided a few seconds of screen time didn’t count.
©IMDb
Pat Roach Kept Coming Back to Fight Indiana Jones
Pat Roach became something of a recurring obstacle for Indy. He played both the giant Sherpa and a German mechanic in Raiders of the Lost Ark, then returned as a completely different guard in Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom.
©IMDb
Jeremy Bulloch Was More Than Just Boba Fett
Jeremy Bulloch is best remembered as the original man inside Boba Fett’s armor, but he also appeared without the helmet. In The Empire Strikes Back, he played Imperial officer Lieutenant Sheckil as well.
©IMDb
Anthony Daniels Wasn’t Always C-3PO
Anthony Daniels has spent decades as C-3PO, but Attack of the Clones briefly got him out of the golden suit. He appeared on screen as Dannl Faytonni, a human patron hanging around the Outlander Club.
©IMDb
Andy Serkis Got Two Very Different Star Wars Roles
The Star Wars sequels hid Andy Serkis behind motion capture as Supreme Leader Snoke. Andor later brought him back with his actual face visible as prison supervisor Kino Loy, making the connection much easier to miss.
©IMDb
Peter Capaldi Was Two Different Doctor Who Characters
Before becoming the Twelfth Doctor, Peter Capaldi appeared in Doctor Who as Roman merchant Caecilius in “The Fires of Pompeii.” The show eventually even acknowledged why the Doctor ended up wearing a familiar face.
©IMDb
Karen Gillan Pulled Off a Similar Doctor Who Trick
Before Amy Pond became one of the Eleventh Doctor’s defining companions, Karen Gillan had already appeared in “The Fires of Pompeii.” Heavy makeup hid her as one of the mysterious Soothsayers.
©IMDb
Warwick Davis Did It Again in Harry Potter
Apparently one franchise wasn’t enough. Davis played Professor Flitwick throughout the Harry Potter movies, while also appearing as a Gringotts bank teller and eventually taking over the role of Griphook.
©IMDb
Colin Baker Was in Doctor Who Before He Was the Doctor
Colin Baker played Commander Maxil in a Fifth Doctor adventure before returning as the Sixth Doctor himself. That made him one of the most conspicuous examples of Doctor Who deciding it was perfectly fine to reuse an actor.
The post 15 Actors Who Double Dipped Hard in the Same Franchise appeared first on Den of Geek.
