Celebrity Lookalikes That Always Confuse People

What celebrity lookalikes always confuse people? Have you ever watched a new TV show or movie and recognized a familiar face in the leading role? When you finally put a name to the face, did you dash to IMDb to confirm your suspicions — only to realize that it's a completely different actor? It turns out there are plenty of seriously creepy doppelgängers in Hollywood that have us seeing double. 

After some intensive research, we're pretty surprised to learn that most of these actors aren't related in the slightest — at least they have the perfect person ready on the sidelines to play their sibling one day!

In most of these cases, the celebrities simply had to acknowledge that they really had discovered their perfect lookalike. And in a few instances, they'd even been mistaken for the other actor by fans! Imagine meeting Katy Perry, for instance, and thinking it was Zooey Deschanel! How awkward! Ready to find out which celebrities look scarily alike? Here are Hollywood's most famous celebrity lookalikes.

Evan Rachel Wood and Rachel Brosnahan

Evan Rachel Wood is known for her striking porcelain looks — and so, it turns out, is Rachel Brosnahan, since the two actresses look almost identical! Wood is best known for her roles in Thirteen, Across the Universe, and Westworld, in which she played Dolores, the creepy robot cowgirl-turned-killing machine (via IMDb). 

If you watched The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, you'd be forgiven for thinking the titular character, Midge Maisel, was another one of Wood's starring roles. Of course, it was actually Brosnahan (via IMDb)! Some fans were shocked, as it's hard to tell the pair apart.

These celebrity lookalikes really do look eerily similar. So similar, they even posed for a photo together to prove they were different people! Wood posted a hilarious series of pictures of the duo together, showing off different angles of their faces on Instagram. Apparently, the actresses had seen the fans' conspiracy theories. "PROOF! @rachelbrosnahan and I were in the same room and are not actually the same person," Wood wrote in the caption. And even though Wood and Brosnahan are different people, we would totally love to see them playing sisters — or, for that matter, twins!

Katy Perry and Zooey Deschanel

Katy Perry — who's undergone a stunning transformation — and Zooey Deschanel are one of the most well-known celebrity lookalike pairs. With their flowing dark locks, their doll-like complexions, and their Bambi eyes, it's easy to see why these two are easily confused for each other.

Unsurprisingly, the pop singer and the actress are well aware of their similar looks. "It's a little bit annoying, to be totally blunt," Deschanel told MTV in 2009. "The only similarity we have is that we look a little bit alike." She went on to explain that almost everyone was confusing her with Perry. Apparently, people even approached her saying things like, "I heard you were out at such-and-such club drinking whisky!" For Deschanel, this got pretty weird. "It's sort of strange to be associated with someone that's doing such different stuff than me," she added.

While the similarity may be annoying for Deschanel, for Perry, it presents an interesting career opportunity. In an interview with Take 40 Australia, she once suggested that a horror film with Deschanel could be a great way to capitalize on their scarily similar looks. We should love to see that!

Sarah Hyland and Mila Kunis

Actress Sarah Hyland is famous for her role as Haley, the oldest Dunphy daughter on Modern Family. Mila Kunis is probably best known for her roles in Black Swan, That '70s Show, and Forgetting Sarah Marshall. For years, Hyland and Kunis have been mistaken for each other, thanks to their strikingly similar features: big eyes, dark hair, high cheekbones, and olive skin. 

It seems that Hyland is well aware of her celebrity lookalike. She discussed the similarities on The Meredith Viera Show in 2014, revealing that Kunis once told her, "Sometimes I pretend to be you so I feel like I'm young." Sounds like these lookalikes also have a hilarious friendship too!

Even though Kunis and Hyland's resemblance is common knowledge by now, some folks are still just discovering it. When one of her fans took to Twitter to post a picture comparing the two actresses, Hyland replied simply, "We know." Fans quickly chimed in asking for a Kunis-Hyland sister film — we have to admit, it would be some pretty excellent casting!

Isla Fisher and Amy Adams

These two red-headed actresses have definitely established their own unique careers over the years. Isla Fisher has impressed us with her comedic roles in Wedding Crashers, Confessions of a Shopaholic, and Definitely, Maybe, while Amy Adams is best-known for her more serious work in films like Arrival, American Hustle, and Doubt. Looking at these two side by side, it's easy to see why so many people get them confused. In fact, even Fisher and Adams have admitted that they look eerily similar.

It seems that even members of the Hollywood elite get confused about these celebrity lookalikes. As Fisher explained on Jimmy Kimmel Live, Lady Gaga once mistook her for Adams at a party. Apparently, she approached her and thanked her for her performance in American Hustle. "I'm thinking, 'Oh my gosh, it's Lady Gaga, I love her so much, I don't want to tell her the truth,'" Fisher recalled. "I just gracefully thanked her." When Adams later walked into the party, Fisher even pointed her out to Gaga as "Isla Fisher." What a hilarious story!

Zoe Saldana and Thandie Newton

You'd definitely be forgiven for thinking Zoe Saldana and Thandie Newton were twins, as these two actresses look scarily similar! You might remember Saldana from her sci-fi roles in Avatar, Star Trek, and Guardians of the Galaxy. The British actress Thandie Newton is known for her work in Westworld, Line of Duty, and The Pursuit of Happyness.

Newton appeared on The Graham Norton Show and explained that people confuse her for Saldana all the time — even people she's met before. One famous person to make the mistake was Victoria Beckham, "who I've met a few times," Newton revealed. Apparently, they were both at Soul Cycle in Los Angeles and they struck up a conversation. "She made a comment about, 'Oh it's so great that you're coming to Soul Cycle even though you're pregnant,'" to which Newton said, "Oh no, I had the baby a few months ago." It was only a few minutes later than Newton realized Beckham thought she was Saldana! Apparently, Beckaham was "mortified!" However, we can hardly blame her for making the mistake! These two celebrity lookalikes seriously could be twins!

Jessica Chastain and Bryce Dallas Howard

Another pair of red-headed celebrity lookalikes are the actresses Jessica Chastain and Bryce Dallas Howard. With their sharp features and nearly-identical hair, it's not hard to see why people sometimes get them confused — even people in Hollywood's inner circle. Dallas Howard shared on The Graham Norton Show that people would even confuse one for the other before they became famous. "I went to school in New York, I went to NYU," Howard explained. "And Jess went to school in New York too, she went to Juilliard."

Apparently, there were multiple occasions when people in the city got them confused. "First time, I went into a Starbucks where people would mistake me for someone named Jess," she said. One of the baristas even tried to give Howard Chastain's drink! As time went on, Howard remembers friends telling her, "There's this girl called Jessica Chastain and you guys could totally be sisters." We definitely see it — let's hope there's a movie with the pair of them one day!

Minka Kelly and Leighton Meester

Leighton Meester, best known as the one and only Blair Waldorf from Gossip Girl, actually worked with her celebrity lookalike on a film. Actress Minka Kelly starred alongside Meester in the 2011 horror film The Roommate, which told the story of two college roommates whose relationship gets seriously creepy and obsessive. The parallels between the two characters meant that having actresses who looked similar was important. And as Entertainment Weekly pointed out, the two actresses look practically identical in the film. Thanks to that, the film was extra creepy!

Apparently, these two actresses aren't just lookalike co-stars — they're actually also best friends in real life. According to CBS News, the actresses met back in 2003 while they were both filming their own commercials for Clearasil, and struck up a friendship from the moment they met. Who knows — maybe these two really were separated at birth!

Julie Bowen and Elizabeth Banks

Julie Bowen, best known for playing Claire on Modern Family, looks strikingly similar to Elizabeth Banks of The Hunger Games fame. Both have classic Barbie doll-esque looks with bleach blonde hair and big smiles. It turns out, they actually worked together on Modern Family, as Banks played the supporting role of Sal (via Deadline). Naturally, she was given a very different look than Claire, otherwise we'd have struggled to tell them apart!

It seems as though a lot of people noticed the similarities between the celebrity lookalikes, which could sometimes lead to jokes on set. "I don't want to deny that we're both petite blondes who are around the same age and moms. So it's slightly undeniable," Banks said of Bowen. However, she went on to say that sometimes, she gets tired of being compared to other actresses with her coloring.

Nevertheless, the resemblance between Banks and Bowen really is striking. It's a shame Banks wasn't chosen to play Bowen's sister on the Modern Family — we would definitely have believed it!

Keira Knightley and Daisy Ridley

People often compare Keira Knightley and Natalie Portman. After all, Knightley did play Portman's lookalike decoy in Star Wars: The Phantom Menace. However, we think another Star Wars alum bears an even more striking resemblance to Knightley: Daisy Ridley. Ridley got her big break when she was cast in the third Star Wars trilogy as Rey. And while most people would love to look like Knightley, for Ridley it can get pretty annoying. "It's like, why. Do I have to be like someone else," Ridley explained to the Daily Mail

Ridley then revealed that she's very frustrated by this comparison. "I just think every single person in the world has their own thing going on," she continued. "And I just want to be me." We get it — Ridley definitely has a point and is beautiful and talented in her own way. Nevertheless, you can't help but notice that these two celebrity lookalikes could definitely be related!

Margot Robbie and Emma Mackey

When Emma Mackey got her breakout role in Sex Education, fans of the show were quick to point out that she looked incredibly familiar. With her wide eyes and her high cheekbones, Mackey is a dead ringer for actress Margot Robbie. One Twitter user even called her "Margot Robbie Jr."

It turns out, the two celebrity lookalikes look so similar, people even mistake them in person. In a BBC interview, Robbie described one occasion when a fan thought she was actually Mackey. "They were like, 'I loved you in Sex Education, that show is so cool, we just started watching it,' and I was like, 'Oh sorry it's not me,'" she recalled.

In another BBC interview, Mackey watched the clip of Robbie describing the encounter, which she found super funny. She said, "All the people who know me well don't see it at all." But, she added, "I'll take it." We would totally take it, too! 

Susan Sarandon and Sigourney Weaver

Susan Sarandon and Sigourney Weaver – who's undergone a stunning transformation — have both been around for a while. In fact, they've both been working since the '70s! Nevertheless, it turns out that people still get them confused. With their defined, round cheeks, piercing eyes, and bright red hair, they could definitely be sisters.

Sarandon explained that people frequently think she's actually Weaver when they were both at the Glamour Women of the Year Awards in 2016. "I wanna just clarify a few things," she said. "Sigourney may have left the stage but we are two different people." She added, "I have taken credit for Alien many times and she's signed autographs for me" (via Page Six). How sweet that the two women have each other's backs for their fans!

Sarandon has actually alluded to her celebrity lookalike before. In 2014, she joked in a piece for The Every Three Weekly that Weaver wasn't a real person, but was in fact her "bad a** alter-ego." While we totally wish that were true, we have to say, we're super impressed by how good-spirited these two actresses are about all of the doppelgänger confusion!

Lucy Hale and Selena Gomez

Lucy Hale and Selena Gomez are both pretty huge names, in addition to being celebrity lookalikes. Hale is known for starring in the popular Pretty Little Liars, while Gomez is, of course, one America's biggest pop stars. Despite their fame, it turns out, people still get confused about which one's which!

Apparently, Hale has frequently been mistaken for Gomez in the past — especially when she was a bit younger, and Gomez was still in Disney's show Wizards of Waverley Place. "Usually I would correct them," Hale told Insider. "But I remember there was this one time, it was this older lady in an airport, and she was like, 'Can I get a picture with you?'" 

Hale took the picture because she thought the woman knew who she was. However, when the woman began listing her favorite projects, it quickly became clear she thought she was Gomez. "And I kind of just went with it because I didn't want to crush her dreams," Hale continued. That's such a sweet story! We love how kind Hale was about the woman's mistake and letting her believe she'd met the one and only Gomez!

Penelope Cruz and Salma Hayek

Both Penelope Cruz and Salma Hayek are pretty famous for their good looks. Hayek has even been called the "Most Beautiful Woman in the World." As it turns out, these two stunners actually get confused for each other frequently — imagine getting mistaken for the world's most beautiful woman!

In one of the most awkward and embarrassing cases of mistaken identity, the official Academy Awards Instagram page labelled a picture of Cruz as being Hayek in 2014 — oops! According to the Daily Mail, the image showed Cruz and Robert De Niro preparing to present an award. The caption read, "Hayek and De Niro prepping backstage #Oscars." We can see why they got confused, but that's definitely a mistake that should have been caught!

In 2017, Hayek and Cruz acknowledged their resemblance in an Instagram post which showed them looking like twins. Hayek wrote, "Good #friends are forever." We love seeing that these celebrity lookalikes are also such close friends!

Victoria Justice and Nina Dobrev

Victoria Justice and Nina Dobrev are both well-known to fans of teen TV — Justice for the Nickelodeon show Victorious, and Dobrev for her role in The Vampire Diaries. Once you look at an image of these two side by side, it's shocking just how similar they look!

In 2015, HuffPost pointed out that the pair were celebrity lookalikes when Justice presented Dobrev with a Teen Choice Award. Apparently, Justice even acknowledged their incredible similarities by introducing Dobrev as "my doppelgänger." How cute!

As if this brief interaction between the two teen stars weren't enough, it turns out, they're actually good friends. That same year, Justice posted a picture on Twitter alongside Dobrev at the 6th Annual Veuve Clicquot Pop Classic. It's an adorable picture — but it really is hard to tell who is who! These two actresses could definitely do a great job playing sisters one day.