Films based on true stories always seem like the hardest to make. Amongst a roster of things to consider, you have to make sure the story is spot on, and actors are ready to face some kind of backlash with family members claiming it put them in a "bad light." But the one major challenge of making a biopic? Finding the right actor to play the real-life subject. Some movies are scarily accurate, casting true doppelgängers. And others are just like, "Are these supposed to be the same person?"
Half the time, the movie portrayal of the story is the first time people can get a really good image of what that character would've looked like IRL. I mean, who could forget when Zac Efron played the infamous serial killer Ted Bundy? (I feel like the casting was a little too nice on that pick.) Either way, imagine being cool enough to have a movie made about you and an A-lister live out your life on screen. Ahead, 41 photos of real people next to the actors who played them in films. Spot-on casting? You be the judge.
Renée Zellweger and Judy Garland
Renée Zellweger earned her second Oscar for portraying the old Hollywood icon Judy Garland. The actress went through hours of voice lessons to channel Garland's iconic voice and even wore fake teeth. Sometimes, she would “flash them on set before romantic scenes, like Shrek.”
Cynthia Erivo and Harriet Tubman
The Tony-winning actress got very into character to channel the historical figure. "There were definitely days that I know it wasn't just me," said Erivo in an interview with ABC News. "It felt like she was there."
Taron Egerton and Elton John
Taron Egerton won a Golden Globe for his portrayal of the "Your Song" singer, and even provided his own voice to sing all the songs in the movie. The two got so close on the set of the film that Egerton revealed to Parade they talk at least once a month now.
Kristen Stewart and Joan Jett
In The Runaways, Kristen Stewart nailed Joan Jett's rock star cool from her shaggy haircut to her singing voice. Talking to Rolling Stone, Stewart said she flew out to Seattle to meet with the famous singer where she borrowed tape-recorded letters to really nail down her sound. "Getting her voice down at that age was really important to me,” said Stewart.
Morgan Freeman and Nelson Mandela / Matt Damon and Francois Pienaar
Invictus told the story of how Nelson Mandela and rugby captain, Francois Pienaar (played by Damon), came together for a life-changing sporting event. According to The Telegraph, Mandela had once said that if anyone was to portray him in a movie, it should be Freeman.
Beyoncé and Etta James
When Bey took on the role of the legendary singer Etta James in Cadillac Records, it changed how she saw music. “The music I made before and after the movie were very different,” she said to The New York Times in 2008. “I was a lot more bold and fearless after I played Etta James, because of course some of the character stays with you. Some of the music I would have been afraid to make, I wasn’t.”
Margot Robbie and Tonya Harding
When you're playing one of the most famous ice skating figures in the world, Tonya Harding, you do more than just research. To prepare for I, Tonya, Margot Robbie spent four hours a day, five days a week learning to ice skate per The Hollywood Reporter.
Jennifer Lopez and Selena Quintanilla-Pérez
"I just soaked up everything, I watched every interview that I could," Lopez said in an interview with Beats 1 on Apple Music about how she prepared for the role of the famous Tejano singer. "I slept in her bed at home. I slept at her sister's house. I talked to the whole family. I spent time with them. It can be melancholy and beautiful at the same time."
Emma Stone and Billie Jean King
Stone portrays legendary tennis star Billie Jean King in the 2017 movie Battle of the Sexes. "Playing Billie Jean was a bit of a game changer," she tells Marie Claire. She also gained 15 pounds of muscle for the role. Fifteen. Pounds.
Selma Blair and Kris Jenner
Blair played Jenner as her pre-Keeping Up with the Kardashians self in The People v. O. J. Simpson: American Crime Story, which also starred David Schwimmer as her husband, Rob, and Cuba Gooding, Jr., as the acquitted murderer.
Sandra Bullock and Leigh Anne Tuohy
Michael Oher, the once-homeless teen and subject of the 2009 film The Blind Side, admits the movie has negatively affected his football career. On the other hand, Bullock totally nails the role of his real-life adoptive mother, Leigh Anne Tuohy.
Taraji P. Henson and Katherine Johnson
Taraji P. Henson also starred in the movie, playing the iconic yet often forgotten NASA mathematician Katherine Johnson. The entire cast was nominated for a SAG award.
Janelle Monáe and Mary Jackson
Jackson, known for her impeccable engineering skills at NASA, is the third women featured in Hidden Figures. Monáe says she was "honored" to play the role of Jackson.
Dev Patel and Saroo Brierley
Based on a true story, Lion details the life of 5-year-old Saroo Brierley, who falls asleep on a train and loses his family. Patel plays Brierley and even met him IRL.
Jesse Eisenberg and Mark Zuckerberg
Eisenberg portrayed the on-screen version of Facebook cofounder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg in The Social Network, and Zuckerberg was not happy about how it turned out.
Felicity Jones and Ruth Bader Ginsburg
On the Basis of Sex tells the story of how future Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg (a.k.a. Notorious RBG) set a precedent that could be cited in future cases challenging laws that discriminate against women. The biopic starred British actress Felicity Jones.
