Buzz
When you catch a glimpse of an actor’s back or side profile in a film, it might not actually be the star you expect. Beyond stunt performers, many movies rely on body doubles (or photo doubles), who bear a striking resemblance to the lead actors. These doubles can be called in for various tasks—from portraying athletes to simply filling in for moments when the main actor can’t make it to set. Their role could involve everything from performing nudity to having perfect hands or even replacing the actor entirely for a brief moment. Here are nine things you might not know about their world:
1. SOMETIMES, THEY'RE ONLY CAST FOR ONE BODY PART.
Body double Danielle Sepulveres has played hands for a wide range of actresses, from TV shows to commercials featuring her hands in close-ups with beauty products. She's replaced Brooke Shields' hands drizzling dressing on salad and regularly steps in to slide files, write lists, or pour wine for stars on The Good Wife. (She’s even stood in for Jill Flint’s backside in certain scenes.) In a 2016 article in Good Housekeeping, Danielle explained that she once knew her hands or even a glimpse of her shoulder might be the only part of her body seen. She recalled overhearing the director of the film Mania Days (2015) complaining about the size of her wrists, saying they looked “vastly different” from the lead actress'. “I didn’t get fired despite the wrist issue, but honestly, I wouldn’t have been surprised if it had happened,” she said.
2. THEY'RE NOT JUST THERE TO BE EXPOSED.
While it's true that body doubles are often called in when an actor isn't comfortable with nudity, their role extends beyond just that. For example, union regulations dictate that actors get 12 hours of rest between workdays, so if filming runs late, a body double might fill in. Sometimes, the role requires special skills. While many actors can sing, dance, or emote on camera, few can replicate the skills of a professional athlete. In Battle of the Sexes (2017), Emma Stone plays Billie Jean King, one of the greatest tennis players ever. To convincingly depict King’s tennis prowess, doubles were hired to stand in for Stone and Steve Carell. Stone’s double was selected for her playing style, which closely mirrored King’s, and even trained with King herself. The result, according to The Wall Street Journal, was a spectacular success. “The tennis is not only convincing but also a precise representation of the game style of that era: serve and volley, chipping, and charging to the net, touch volleys, and delicate hands.”
3. ACTORS CAN BE PARTICULAR ABOUT WHO PLAYS THEM.
Selecting the right body double isn't just about finding someone who looks similar—it’s also about keeping egos in check. “The choice reflects on the principal actor,” said DeeDee Ricketts, casting director for Titanic, in an interview with Vanity Fair in 2016. “We have to make sure the double isn't too thin, too beautiful, too heavy, or too old, or the actor might think, 'Is that how they really see me?'” Often, actors get a say in choosing their doubles, and some even have final approval rights in their contracts. For example, when model and Playboy cover girl Marli Renfro was being considered as Janet Leigh’s body double for the famous shower scene in Psycho, she had to disrobe in front of both Alfred Hitchcock and Leigh herself to ensure her body matched the actress’s. Renfro discussed this at a 2017 Brooklyn screening of the documentary 78/52: Hitchcock's Shower Scene. When it comes to nude scenes, actors may also have the final say on what their doubles can do physically on screen.
4. THEY MAY NEVER CROSS PATHS WITH THEIR CELEBRITY COUNTERPART.
When you’re working as an actor’s body double, you won’t typically share scenes with the actor, and for some doubles, they never meet the stars they’re standing in for. Elvira Friis, a Danish actress who worked as a body double for Charlotte Gainsbourg (and her younger character, played by Stacy Martin) in Lars von Trier's Nymphomaniac (2013), never crossed paths with Gainsbourg. “The closest I got to Charlotte Gainsbourg was wearing her dress,” Friis shared with The Wall Street Journal.
5. OR THEY COULD SPEND A LOT OF TIME WITH THE CHARACTERS THEY’RE EMULATING.
The amount of time a body double spends with the actor they’re portraying depends heavily on the role. Some actors work closely with their doubles, helping them prepare for the role. In What Happened to Monday (2017), Noomi Rapace plays seven identical sisters, meaning doubles were essential. Rapace worked alongside her doubles during filming to ensure they understood how she would portray each character, ensuring the scenes would seamlessly sync. According to The Hollywood Reporter, Rapace’s involvement helped perfect the portrayal. Similarly, Game of Thrones actress Lena Headey, who plays Cersei, worked closely with her body double Rebecca Van Cleave for a nude scene in the fifth season finale. Headey guided Van Cleave through her character’s thoughts and movements, before performing the scene herself in a beige dress to be digitally removed later. The result: Headey’s facial expressions merged seamlessly with Van Cleave’s body.
6. THEY DON’T ALWAYS RESEMBLE THEIR CELEBRITY COUNTERPARTS EXACTLY.
Body doubles are often shot from behind or at angles where their resemblance to the actor isn't always as striking as you might expect. Brett Baker, who served as Leonardo DiCaprio’s body double for Titanic, was shorter than DiCaprio by several inches and seven years older. From the front, Baker didn’t resemble DiCaprio’s Jack Dawson. However, when Baker wore the same clothes and hairstyle, and was filmed from above and behind, he convincingly stood in for DiCaprio. According to Vanity Fair, once DiCaprio's close-ups were finished, Baker was often needed to stand opposite Kate Winslet as she performed her part. Even when his shots weren’t used, Baker spent long 14-hour days on set, doing his job without a guaranteed appearance in the final footage.
7. THESE DAYS, CGI IS THERE TO HELP.
Thanks to advances in technology, filmmakers can now digitally insert an actor's face onto a body double’s body, allowing them to expand beyond just partial or back-of-the-head shots. This technique makes it easier to blend the performances of both the lead actor and the body double during post-production. It’s particularly useful in shows like Orphan Black, where Tatiana Maslany plays multiple characters, or when actors prefer to avoid nudity on camera. In rare instances, it can even bring actors back for scenes after their passing. After Paul Walker tragically died in a car crash during the filming of Furious 7 (2015), the filmmakers used his brothers and a stand-in actor as doubles, then digitally placed Walker’s face on their bodies. Around 260 shots of Walker’s doubles were included in the final film.
8. IF AN ACTOR CAN’T LOSE WEIGHT FOR A ROLE, A BODY DOUBLE STEPS IN.
When Matt Damon was filming The Martian (2015), he planned to shed 30 to 40 pounds to convincingly portray astronaut Mark Watney, who had been stranded on Mars and living on minimal food rations. However, the filming schedule made it impossible for him to lose that much weight in time, so a body double was used for certain shots. “I was supposed to lose a lot of weight in the third act of the movie and then gain it back,” Damon explained to Maclean’s. But because the film shot interiors in Hungary before moving to Jordan for the exterior Mars scenes, Damon didn’t have enough time to slim down significantly. The body double’s appearance was brief—“just two shots,” Damon recalls—but fans still noticed.
9. SOMETIMES, THEY NEVER END UP ON SCREEN AT ALL.
In some cases, body doubles are hired for nude scenes but never actually appear on screen. Veteran body double Laura Grady was cast as Robin Wright's stand-in for State of Play (2009), but never filmed a single scene. “I just stayed in my trailer, waiting to go, but in the end, [Wright] chose to do the scenes herself,” Grady explained to Vulture in 2014. “It happens sometimes. Sometimes they hire a body double because they think they’ll need one, and then suddenly the actress feels comfortable and says, 'No, I’ll handle it.' Or the scene changes and isn’t as provocative.” But don’t worry—the body double still gets paid.
