From our Friends at D23
The Acolyte on Disney+ introduced us to another set of twins in the Star Wars universe. These twins are identical—so identical, in fact, that the same actor plays them! With Amandla Stenberg bringing to life two characters on-screen, we couldn’t help but think about some of our other favorite times one actor has brought twice the fun in Disney films and series:
Star Wars: The Acolyte
With the two-episode premiere of Star Wars: The Acolyte, we not only met Amandla Stenberg’s Mae—a mysterious woman determined to fight and kill Jedi—but also her twin sister Osha! Poor Osha has been mistakenly accused of Mae’s crimes (after all, they do look identical) and now must discover just what sinister secrets her twin sister is hiding.
The Parent Trap
Perhaps one of the most popular instances of seeing double, The Parent Trap spins a tale of separated twins determined to reunite their family once more. In both the 1961 and 1998 versions of the film, the roles of the twins are performed by one actor. In 1961, Disney Legend Hayley Mills was both Susan Evers and Sharon McKendrick, while in 1998 Lindsay Lohan brought both Hallie Parker and Annie James to life.
Moon Knight
Steven Grant (Oscar Isaac) is a mild-mannered museum employee just trying to live in peace, but unfortunately, he’s unknowingly stuck in a deal with the Egyptian god Khonshu, thanks to Marc Spector—also played by Oscar Isaac! Marc has a deal with Khonshu to act as his avatar, Moon Knight. That means Steven can also be Khonshu’s avatar, Mr. Knight, including fighting Khonsu’s enemies and doing his bidding. While Steven and Marc start at odds, as they couldn’t be any more different in personality if they tried, they soon learn to find unity beyond their shared face.
Mary Poppins
Part of what makes Mary Poppins a film that’s “practically perfect in every way” is that it has twice the Dick Van Dyke for your buck! While his role as the loveable chimney sweep Bert is one of his most beloved, Van Dyke dons old age makeup to also play the greedy bank director Mr. Dawes, Sr. During the film’s end credits, Mr. Dawes is said to be portrayed by “Navckid Keyd”—but the letters quickly unscramble to reveal the name of the Disney Legend himself, Dick Van Dyke.
Alien: Covenant
Is there anything more fun than Michael Fassbender playing the mysterious and scheming robot David? What if Michael Fassbender was playing two robots? Reprising his role from Prometheus as David, Fassbender also portrays a new character in Alien Covenant in the much kinder and helpful Walter. Two very different robots with very different missions… and very, very different opinions on humanity. The end result is fun for the viewers, and… less fun for the human crew who unwittingly walked into David’s plans.
TRON and TRON Legacy
In 1982’s TRON, the titular character declares that he “fights for the users!” He’s on a heroic mission, yes, but he also shares a face with one of the users in question. Bruce Boxleitner portrays both the program Tron and the man behind the program, Alan Bradley. But he’s not the only one playing double! Jeff Bridges doubles as Kevin Flynn and his program Clu; Cindy Morgan is both Dr. Lorna Baines and the input/output program Yori; and David Warner is both devious Senior Executive Vice President of ENCOM, Ed Dillinger, and his program Sark. (He’s also the voice of the Master Control Program: “END OF LINE.”)
This real world/virtual world doubling continues in the film’s sequel, TRON: Legacy, where Bridges once again portrays both Kevin Flynn and a—much more sinister now—Clu. Boxleitner also returns—you can’t have a TRON movie without Tron himself!—as Alan Bradley and the voice of Tron.
The Lizzie McGuire Movie
Hey now, hey now… We can’t forget one of the most iconic dual roles for fans of Disney movies and music. Hilary Duff brought Lizzie McGuire to the big screen in The Lizzie McGuire Movie, but that wasn’t her only role in this globetrotting adventure. While in Rome, Lizzie is mistaken for the pop star Isabella Parigi—an understandable mistake since Isabella is also played by Hilary Duff. Lizzie’s luck at being a pop star lookalike leads to love, fame, and betrayal. It also leads, of course, to an iconic finale where Duff takes to the stage in double, to duet with herself as both Lizzie and Isabella to perform the fan-favorite musical number “What Dreams Are Made Of.”
