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Some actors just can't stop showing up — and we love them for it! Join us as we count down our picks for the actors who have pulled double (or triple!) duty by playing more than one character within the same franchise. From beloved heroes to dastardly villains, these performers proved that once simply wasn't enough!
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00:07Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we're counting down our picks for actors who have been more
00:12than one character in a franchise. We'll be getting into spoilers for different film
00:15franchises, so consider this your warning.
00:25Number 10. Jim Carrey, Sonic the Hedgehog Franchise
00:34For every heroic hedgehog, there's an evil Eggman waiting to strike back. In the case of the Sonic
00:40movies, that's exactly who Jim Carrey's Dr. Robotnik is. He's a quirky mad scientist trying
00:45to chase down the super-fast Sonic. That being said, Carrey isn't just Robotnik, he's practically
00:50Robotnik's whole dang family too.
00:52So now we can just dance right through. That sounds like a challenge.
01:06In Sonic 3, Carrey also played the role of Gerald Robotnik, the main Robotnik's grandfather.
01:12Since the two Robotniks were heavily connected in the movie, Carrey essentially shared many
01:16scenes with himself. Trying to play multiple characters is difficult enough, but to perform
01:21multiple sequences essentially as your own scene partner is an extra level of skill.
01:36When you boil it all down, Sonic 3 is pretty much Egg-ception, the movie.
01:43Number 9. Gemma Chan, MCU Franchise
01:49The MCU tries to take continuity super seriously, but sometimes, there are interesting little
01:55details that can pose potential wrinkles for their squeaky clean sacred timeline. Case in point,
02:00Gemma Chan. Her most notable MCU role is Cersei, a huge player in Eternals.
02:05I can't even figure out how to speak to Arishim. I've tried so many times.
02:11Before that, though, she played Minerva, a secondary villain in Captain Marvel. She might have been
02:16blue for that role, but we can all still clearly see that it's Gemma underneath all that paint.
02:20We wonder what a scene between Minerva and Cersei would look like. Would they get along?
02:24Her butt heads. Who's to say?
02:26Do you read me? Does anybody copy?
02:30Repeat.
02:32Either way, though, going from a small-scale menace to basically the leader of a group that are
02:37almost gods is one heck of a glow-up.
02:39But your time will be fleeting. You will die one day. Are you ready for that?
02:45I am.
03:01Number 8. Michael J. Fox, Back to the Future Franchise
03:09Mom? Mom, is that you?
03:11Marty McFly is Michael J. Fox's most memorable role, and one of the film's most iconic characters.
03:16But Marty isn't the only role Michael played. For the second movie, he also portrayed Marty
03:21Jr. and Marlene, a.k.a. Marty's future children.
03:25I'm not sure where Jennifer is, Mom.
03:28She's good at my home hours ago when I'm having a hard time keeping track of these days.
03:37They're basically train wrecks who have trouble with the law, and bring shame to the McFly name.
03:42Thomas F. Wilson also has experience playing multiple wacky family members in this franchise,
03:46since he played multiple Tannins.
03:48All right, Pops, what's the gag? How did you know what the score was going to be?
03:51I told you, it's in this book.
03:54All you gotta do is bet on the winner, and you'll never lose.
03:57Anyways, the glimpse into Marty's strange family treat is a welcome treat, particularly because
04:02what we see is both disastrous and funny. Come on, Michael J. Fox in full makeup and a wig
04:07to portray Marlene is a hoot and a half. That's some serious dedication to the bit.
04:12Dad, it's for you.
04:14All right, well, I'll take down the den.
04:17Number 7. Warwick Davis. Harry Potter Franchise.
04:26When it comes to magical characters, Warwick Davis has some solid experience playing them.
04:31Within this multi-movie magic franchise, he portrayed both Professor Flitwick and Griphook.
04:36Griphook used to work as a banker until Voldemort's rise to power caused him to flee out of fear.
04:40Despite this, he still came back to help out Harry Potter and the gang.
04:44Professor Flitwick, on the other hand, would pretty much spend his entire life teaching at Hogwarts.
04:48Oh, well done! See here, everyone! Miss Grange has done it! Splendid!
04:55Flitwick, in particular, also had several distinctive looks.
04:58At one point, he looked old, while the next point he was young,
05:02which was largely due to creative directions changing over time.
05:05But you know, Monsieur Grange, they drink only single malt whiskey.
05:15Regardless of which role he's portraying,
05:17Warwick Davis brings an undeniable amount of charm to the wizarding world.
05:21Number 6. Lance Henriksen. Alien Franchise.
05:25Hey, what are you doing? Come on, quit messing around, Dre. Come on.
05:28Bishop? Hey, man!
05:30Do it, Bishop.
05:31Hey, not me, man!
05:32Yeah, you.
05:32Hey, come on, quit messing around.
05:34Don't move.
05:34Trust me.
05:35These sci-fi horror movies don't just have creepy crawlies.
05:38They also have plenty of riled-up robots.
05:41Well, technically, they're called synthetics, or synths for short.
05:44Lance Henriksen's Bishop is one of the most well-known synths of them all.
05:48I'll be in Med Lab.
05:49Check on Gorman, continue my analysis.
05:52He's a calculated, yet surprisingly well-intentioned synth.
05:55He's also not the only Bishop that Lance has played.
05:58In Alien vs. Predator, Lance also played Charles Bishop Weyland,
06:01the founder of Weyland Industries.
06:03Seven days ago, one of my satellites over Antarctica hunting for mineral deposits
06:08discovered a sudden heat balloon beneath the Earth, which outlined this.
06:13It's also worth mentioning that some fans have theorized that Charles is Peter Weyland's father.
06:18Admittedly, though, whether the AVP movies connect to the main Alien continuity is debatable at best.
06:24That being said, Lance is still firmly rooted in the franchise's legacy
06:27and forever associated with all things Xenomorph.
06:30I'm not the only one with a satellite over Antarctica.
06:33Others will be here soon.
06:36Number 5.
06:37Eddie Murphy, The Nutty Professor Franchise
06:40I don't want no potato.
06:41You know a mat potato gave me gas.
06:43Sherman Clump is a severely overweight college professor
06:46who develops a unique chemical that transforms him into a physically fit, yet wacky new man.
06:51When it comes to the two Nutty Professor movies, Eddie Murphy really worked overtime.
06:56Seriously, check out the casting credits.
06:58Across both movies, he played not one, not two, not even three or four, but eight different characters.
07:04I would like to volunteer to take this old bird out of her misery.
07:07Cletus!
07:08Don't you dare say something like that about Mom.
07:10Well, no, you ain't got to protect me from clasus.
07:12Come on, clasus.
07:14Come on.
07:15Though they were all varying degrees of Nutty,
07:17many of the characters were connected since most were members of the club family.
07:20Not sure if that's like a record or something,
07:22but it definitely feels like Eddie Murphy deserves a medal for pulling this acting challenge off.
07:26If you want to talk about someone who has excellent comedic range,
07:29look no further than Eddie Murphy.
07:40Number 4.
07:42Bela Lugosi
07:43Universal Monsters Franchise
07:45I am Dracula.
07:49Oh, it does.
07:52It's really good to see you.
07:54It might not seem like a bunch of black and white films could be franchise material,
07:58but the Universal Monster movies are actually one of the earliest examples of a cinematic universe.
08:03They're rich stories that had larger-than-life characters
08:05and plenty of notable actors of the time attached.
08:08Bela Lugosi, for example, was a star who played some of these iconic monsters.
08:15He was first Dracula, but an undead vampire wasn't enough.
08:19Later, Bela also portrayed Frankenstein's monster.
08:22Though Bela actually rejected the role for the 1931 Frankenstein movie,
08:25he was later cast as the character in Frankenstein Meets the Wolfman.
08:29At the end of the day,
08:30being able to play two of the most iconic figures in gothic horror is pretty cool.
08:41Listen to them.
08:44Children of the night.
08:47What music they make.
08:51Number 3.
08:52Andy Serkis
08:53Star Wars Franchise
09:02Can you name a more iconic duo than Andy Serkis and a CGI character?
09:07Not sure you can.
09:09Anyways, Serkis brought his typical mocap madness to a galaxy far, far away as Supreme Leader Snoke.
09:15While he was an intriguing big bad of the sequel trilogy,
09:18many fans felt like Snoke's story was a mixed bag.
09:20However, there were no complaints with Andy Serkis' second Star Wars character, Kino Loy.
09:25My name is Kino Loy.
09:28I'm the day shift manager on level 5.
09:34I'm speaking to you from the command center on level 8.
09:40Kino was a prisoner on the show Andor,
09:43and he commanded everyone's attention as soon as he stepped on the screen.
09:46He was a broken man held together by a flimsy faith,
09:49who sacrificed everything so Cassie and Andor could escape the Empire.
09:53If you didn't love him as Snoke, you absolutely loved him as Kino.
09:58We will never have a better chance than this.
10:04And I would rather die trying to take them down than giving them what they want.
10:11Number 2.
10:12Mike Myers
10:13Austin Powers Franchise
10:24This cult classic parody franchise which makes fun of the James Bond films has got it all.
10:30Raunchy comedy, dynamic characters, and actors willing to blur the lines between right and wrong.
10:35In these movies, Mike Myers does double duty portraying both a silly spy named Austin Powers
10:40and a hilariously heinous bad guy aptly named Dr. Evil.
10:44Both of these characters are incredibly different, yet both have Myers' quirky charm.
10:48Face it.
10:49Freedom failed.
10:51No man, freedom didn't fail.
10:54Right now we've got freedom and responsibility.
10:57It's a very groovy time.
10:59Playing either a good guy or a bad guy can be difficult as is,
11:03so portraying both in every movie out of a trilogy and never losing a step is impressive.
11:08Whether you're rooting for Austin or cheering for Dr. Evil,
11:11you're going to be entertained by Mike Myers' magic all the same.
11:14I'm gonna get you, Austin Powers.
11:17I'm gonna get you.
11:20Mwahahahaha!
11:23Number 1.
11:24Robert Downey Jr.
11:25MCU Franchise
11:38What's that Harvey Dent quote again?
11:40Oh yeah.
11:41You either die a hero, or you live long enough to see yourself become the villain.
11:45That feels like Robert Downey Jr.'s current trajectory within the MCU.
11:48Everyone knew him as Iron Man, but after he died in Avengers Endgame,
11:52we assumed that RDJ retired from Marvel.
11:55Shockingly, we were wrong.
12:08Now, he's returning in a major new role as the villainous Doctor Doom.
12:12RDJ built the MCU from the ground up as Tony Stark,
12:15and now he could potentially tear it all down as Victor Von Doom.
12:18Granted, we don't actually know much about how Downey will handle this heavy hitter yet,
12:22but that's why we can't wait to find out what he does when he appears in Avengers Doomsday.
12:44Are there any big franchise actors pulling overtime that we forgot about?
12:48Let us know in the comments.
12:49Let us know in the comments.
12:50Let us know in the comments.
12:52Let us know in the comments.
12:54Let us know in the comments.
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