The Best & Worst Of Actors Playing Their Own Twins

Advice for all you identical twins out there: Be sure your twin hasn’t racked up thousands of dollars in gambling debts from the mob, and then disappeared. Because when the mafiosos come a-sniffin’, they’ll turn to whoever looks like him the most — you. At least that’s what happens to James Franco’s character, Vincent Martino, in the new HBO drama The Deuce. The mafia isn’t sympathetic to Vincent’s sob story about being an honest man with a no-good brother, and so Vincent must inherit his twin, Frankie’s, debts. Ouch.

It’s easy to understand why the mob mistook Vincent for Frankie. Unlike most identical twins, who have some distinguishing characteristics (even Haley and Emily from The Bachelor can be told apart if you try), Vincent and Frankie have truly the same appearance. They’re both played by James Franco.

This is a typical Hollywood tactic. Instead of casting two actors who barely resemble one another to play twins (or actual twins), they just cast the same person...twice. For all you growing up under the impression that Lindsay Lohan had a twin after seeing The Parent Trap, this one’s for you. Here’s all the memorable times actors have played their own twin.