45 Celebrities Who Played Themselves in Movies to Perfection

Comedian, actor, singer. Neil Patrick Harris is all of this and more. But, before he achieved his widespread fame, Harris was busy giving audiences a show as a fictionalized version of himself in the Harold and Kumar movie franchise.

The Broadway star appears across the movie series as a heightened version of himself, who is off living life, not always in the right manner. His adventures with the titular Harold and Kumar are a treat for the fans.

The legendary musician became an actor for this movie, where he played a version of himself that made fans really happy. In the 2001 movie, Zoolander, Bowie makes a cameo as a last-second judge.

His role is to judge a competition between the dim-witted models of the movie, Zoolander (Ben Stiller) and Hansel (Owen Wilson). His entry, the way he rips off his glasses, and the expected flash made for an amazing addition to the movie.

Actor John Malkovich plays himself in the movie which is named after him, Being John Malkovich. This fantasy comedy movie is a trip unlike any other you’ve been on.

The movie is the story of several people who find a way to get into the mind of Malkovich and control it. The actor brilliantly plays the several versions of himself that reside in his mind, switching and transitioning without hesitation.

Nightmare on Elm Street is a horror movie that gave people and kids nightmares for years. But, nobody starred in these nightmares more than Robert Enguland, aka Freddy Krueger.

The actor reprised his role as the famous villain in the movie, Wes Craven’s New Nightmare. He plays the role of not only Krueger but also himself. The dual role in the movie is brilliant, and the concept and direction of the movie will have you on the edge the entire time.

The name “Chuck Norris” borders on iconic. The martial artist and actor’s praises are sung far and wide, and most often exaggerated in their greatness.

In the movie Dodgeball, Norris appeared as himself and gives an incredibly amazing and game-changing thumbs-up to the Average Joes. He allows them to play, and considering the fact that the entire movie is about underdogs, the thumbs-up is truly the thing that clinches their victory.

One of Adam Sandler’s darker movies, Uncut Gems sees former NBA superstar Kevin Garnett make a powerful cameo. Sandler plays Howard, a man who deals with many high-profile clients, but nobody makes more of a mark than the big and tall Garnett.

Not only is his presence worth noticing, but the basketball player also delivers a solid performance driving the diamond dealer more and more to the edge. It really is an excellent cameo!

We all know Keanu Reeves is no normal actor. The John Wick actor has a presence that can’t be ignored, and he proves it with his brief cameo in the rom-com, Always Be My Maybe.

Reeves appeared as Sasha’s (Ali Wong) boyfriend in the movie. This extremely unique and charismatic version of Reeves was a treat for fans. We really can’t blame Marcus (Randall Park) and his date for acting as they did.

The Space Jam movie from 1996 saw the legendary basketball player, Michael Jordan, take up the mantle as a fictionalized version of himself and lead the merry group of players to victory.

Jordan motivates and trains the Tune Squad, which includes Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, and the rest of the Looney gang. The movie makes for a spectacular watch for children and adults alike. To anybody who has ever dreamt of being pulled into the land of the Toons, this movie is it.

Here’s another NBA star who took the Looney Tunes into a victory! LeBron James steps into Jordan’s shoes and becomes the guiding force for the Tune Squad in Space Jam: The New Legacy.

The movie was released in 2021, 25 years after the initial release of the first movie in the franchise. Even though it barely scratched the surface of the level of success found by the 1996 version, it’s still fun to watch Bugs Bunny and the gang get together for another showdown.

Another actor who made a cameo in the comedy Zoolander! Billy Zane’s cameo in the movie is probably one of the best, second only to the legendary Bowie.

In the movie, Billy Zane tries to persuade model Zoolander (Ben Stiller) to not indulge his rival, Hansel (Owen Wilson). After this, Hansel delivers the iconic line ‘Listen to your friend Billy Zane, he’s a cool dude. He’s trying to help you out.’ Do we really need to add anything else?

Keanu has comedic-duo Jordan Peele and Keegan-Michael Key at the helm, so you know everything in this movie is going to range between utter nonsense and comic gold.

That is also the version of Anna Faris that the actress embodies in the movie. The crazed Faris’s antics escalate within the movie, going from a normal party girl to one who is pulling off samurai moves.

The world’s best boss appears in the movie Knocked Up as himself and it’s a performance worth remembering. In the movie, Katherine Heigl plays the expecting Alison who is working on the red carpet for a magazine.

The always funny Steve Carell makes a remark about her heavily visible baby bump, something that doesn’t sit well with Alison, who shouts at him to stop it. Well, whether he’s playing Michael Scott or Steve Carrell, it seems like women are not a specialty for him.

The Big Short is a one-of-a-kind movie, where celebrity cameos aren’t just meant to entertain but also to educate. The movie uses celebrities to explain financial terms by breaking the fourth wall.

Margot Robbie’s cameo is used for the same purpose. The actress’ scene features her sipping bubbly in a bubble bath and explaining to the audience what shorting and subprime mortgages are.

The entire movie is made up of actors who play fictionalized versions of themselves, and to say it’s a wild ride is an understatement. The slew of celebrities includes Michael Cera, James Franco, Seth Rogan, Jay Baruchel, and Jonah Hill.

The group gets up to endless shenanigans as they find themselves in the wake of an apocalypse. The list doesn’t end there, even Channing Tatum pops in the movie for a surprise cameo, all decked up in an NSFW costume.

The actor appears in the festive romance The Holiday as himself, and it’s one of the cutest and most subtle cameos by a celebrity ever. In the movie, Jack Black’s character is singing the song ‘Mrs. Robinson’ from the movie The Graduate.

Just then Hoffman walks in and comments that he can’t go anywhere without that song haunting him. He was in that movie, of course. The funny part is Hoffman was never supposed to be a part of this movie, he just happened to be near the filming location. What a happy coincidence!

This movie is for Bruce, about Bruce, and by Bruce. Directed and produced by Campbell in 2007, the movie My Name is Bruce follows the actor as he stars as himself in this horror-comedy.

The movie’s storyline focuses on a bunch of teenage fans who hold the star, believing he has the same skills as Ash, his Evil Dead Character, and can save their small town from a monster.

Stan Lee was no stranger to cameos. The late comic book writer was a staple in all the Marvel movies, and fans always waited eagerly for a glimpse of the legend.

However, in the Marvel movies, his role usually ranges from him being a DJ to a security guard, but in the movie Mallrats, Stan Lee appeared as himself and gave advice to Jason Lee’s character on his love life. According to Stan Lee, it was also his favorite cameo of all.

In the movie Cold Souls, Paul Giamatti plays a fictionalized version of himself who loses his soul in a mix-up.

Giamatti’s fictionalized version is an anxious actor who makes the decision to exchange his soul for that of a poet, but loses it in a mix-up. The movie focuses on the actor’s journey to find his soul, literally. The clever movie is an amazing delivery by director Sophie Barthes.

The Joker actor stars in the movie I’m Still Here directed by Casey Affleck. The mockumentary spoof follows Phoenix as he has a very public breakdown after he decides to retire from acting.

The plot of the movie has always been a bit of a question, of whether Phoenix’s descent into madness is the truth or the fake. Either way, the actor has found much success and turned his life around after the 2010 movie.

The latest movie to join this list is the 2022 release The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent. Nic Cage stars in this meta-movie as a washed-up actor version of himself who attends a massive party in hopes of reviving his career.

While at the party, Cage and his host come up with a script for a movie that is also what is simultaneously happening in the movie. It’s a great exaggerated performance by the often controversial actor.

The Yippie-Ki-Yay actor appears in Ocean’s Twelve as himself, and is probably one of the best parts of the otherwise okay movie. Willis makes a cameo and manages to foil a perfectly good ruse in an incredibly meta scene.

In the movie, Julia Roberts plays Danny Ocean’s wife, Tess, and the gang decides to use her to impersonate Julia Roberts the actress because they look so similar! Willis appears and gets on the phone with the real Julia Roberts and foils their plans. Yes, it’s as wild as it sounds!

The beautiful actress is often bombarded in the media for her good looks, and in the movie The Dictator, Fox took that compliment and poked some fun at it.

With this role, Fox was also able to shake off the mean girl persona that has been following her around since her debut. Megan Fox’s cameo in The Dictator is a great addition to an already funny and amazing movie.

The actress appears as herself in the anthology film Coffees and Ci*****tes. The 2003 movie is made up of 11 short movies that focus on human interaction.

Blanchett appears in the short movie titled Cousins where she plays herself (a famous actress), and her non-famous cousin, Shelly! The two catch up over a cup of coffee in the hotel room and share a conversation! The talented actress seamlessly pulls off both roles.

It looks like Ben Affleck and Matt Damon are inseparable. The childhood friends have appeared in multiple projects together over the years, even gracing the silver screen once as themselves, also together.

In the movie Jay & Silent Bob Strike Back, the eponymous heroes are on a mission to stop a movie on them from being made. While on their quest, they stumble across Affleck and Damon on their set of the fictional Good Will Hunting 2: Hunting Season.

The martial arts actor finally found fame with this 2008 movie where he starred as a fictionalized version of himself. JCVD tells the story of a struggling actor, Van Damme, who is failing on both professional and personal fronts.

He’s caught in the middle of a bank robbery and is mistaken for the mastermind behind the robbery by the police. The movie shows the expert karate actor only dreaming about the martial-art instead of actually using it.

The Mystic River star appears in the movie What Just Happened as a slightly exaggerated and fictionalized version of himself. In the movie, Sean Penn plays an actor named Sean Penn who stars in a fictional movie named Fiercefly.

The meta-movie sees the actor playing a role in the movie as both himself and as a movie character. These roles really don’t get any better than this!

Considering that the 1992 movie is set in the world of Hollywood and follows a producer who receives anonymous threats, it’s no wonder that it has 65 celebrities making a cameo!

The big names included in The Player include Julia Roberts, Bruce Willis, and Burt Reynolds! The even better part is that most of these celebrities weren’t even supposed to be a part of the movie! The Players is basically The Entourage of the big screen!

This actor’s cameo in the movie Happy Gilmore is one of the best cameos in the history of cinema. Adam Sandler is known for having famous people pop in his movies, but The Price Is Right host steals the crown.

In the movie, Sandler’s character and Bob Barker both get partnered at a celebrity golf match. The two get into a pretty heavy fight and Barker turns out to be a pretty good fighter, and easily defeats Happy. It’s a fan-favorite scene and for good reason!

Topher Grace was one of the biggest teen heartthrobs in the ‘90s, known for his role in That ‘70s Show. The actor brought his good looks and charm to heist movies Ocean’s Eleven and Ocean’s Twelve.

Grace makes a cameo as a fictionalized version of himself, a down-on-his-luck actor. In the first movie, he has a seat at a celebrity cards table while in the second movie he ends up trashing the table.

This is another Adam Sandler movie where a big-name celebrity makes an appearance, and this time it is none other than the iconic actor, the Godfather heir, Al Pacino.

The actor appears in the 2011 movie Jack and Jill as himself. Pacino hits all the right notes being funny and eccentric at the same time. He’s also the only redeeming quality of the otherwise notoriously unfunny movie.

Kareem-Abdul Jabbar might not be an actor by profession, but with over 50 acting credits to his name, it’s safe to say he has made a name in the industry. But, the NBA player’s funniest role to date has to be his cameo in the 1980, Airplane!

In the movie, Jabbar pretends to be a co-pilot named Roger Murdock, but finally confesses when a boy starts talking smack about his skills. The best part is that the only reason he agreed to do the part was that he wanted a $35,000 rug!

This is another celebrity that loves to pop up in TV shows and movies. The singer has been in a couple of projects, with some of the notable ones including Yesterday and Bridget Jones Baby.

In Yesterday, the singer makes a cameo as himself, and goes toe to toe in songwriting with the protagonist. He also makes a funny joke in the movie, commenting that the name of the song should be ‘Hey Dude’ instead of ‘Hey Jude!’

We love it when a movie has more than one celebrity cameo, and Ocean’s 8 is a star-studded affair that is chock-full of famous celebrities playing themselves. That shouldn’t be a surprise considering the women’s jewelry heist is set at none other than the Met Gala.

The powerful women cameos include Kim Kardashian, Kendall and Kylie Jenner, Anna Wintour, Katie Holmes, Olivia Munn, Adrina Lima, and many more. The fact that they’re all on a red carpet is just an added bonus!

William Shatner is a god amongst Star Trek Fans. The original James T. Kirk has achieved unparalleled fame with his portrayal in the Sci-fi series, and it’s a role that he loves to poke fun at! In the movie Fanboys, the actor did a cameo as himself.

The movie follows a bunch of Trekkies, aka Star Trek fans, as they try to steal a rough cut of Episode I: The Phantom Menace. The guys come across William Shatner who says that because of who he is, he can get almost anything he wants.

In the sequel to the amazing Sandra Bullock movie, the country singer makes a small cameo but makes a big splash! Dolly Parton appears in Miss Congeniality 2: Armed and Fabulous.

In the movie, Sandra Bullock’s character, an FBI agent, tackles Parton after mistaking her for an impersonator instead of a real deal. According to Bullock, she got the ‘Jolene’ singer to agree to the cameo by sending a letter with a lot of pleas.

The former boxer appeared in the movie The Hangover, and somehow managed to make the already crazy movie even crazier. Tyson makes an appearance as himself, and gets caught up in the boy’s misadventure of the night as the foursome steal a tiger from his house.

Doug, played by Justin Bartha, leaves his jacket there and Tyson manages to trace it back to them. In the iconic scene when he meets the boys again, the heavyweight champion knocks out Zach Galifianki’s character, Alan.

In the 2000 movie High Fidelity, John Cusack plays Rob, a man who is unlucky in love. To get to the bottom of why his relationship never works out, he thinks about it deeply. And Springsteen himself appears to give the music-obsessed Rob some advice!

In his minute-long cameo, Bruce Springsteen is seen playing some random chords on his guitar, all the while being a sun-conscious advisor to Cusack’s character.

The Baywatch actor spent a lot of his time after his 11-year stint as a lifeguard poking fun at his most iconic role. “The Hoff” often picked up self-parodic cameos in various movies like Click and Eurotrip.

One of the roles he took up in this quest was playing himself in The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie. David Hasselhoff offers a ride to SpongeBob and Patrick on his back as he swims across the water.

The singer makes a cameo in the Adam Sandler movie The Wedding Singer, and even though his appearance may have been small, his role definitely was not.

Idol appears during the climax, where Sandler’s Robbie is confessing his love to Drew Barrymore’s Julia. Impressed by his empathetic speech, Idol helps Robbie get the girl. Not only that, but he also helps him get rid of obstructions! We love a matchmaker cameo.

Before the release of the 2011 The Muppet movie, comedian and actor Jack Black was very excited about his role in the children’s film, stating that the role would be like no other.

And he was right! In the movie, the Muppets, when they need a host, decide to kidnap Jack Black and tie him up to host their show! It’s crazy, and it’s whacky. And because it’s the Muppets, it actually works out!

Jimmy Fallon is a current favorite when it comes to late-night hosts. So, it’s no surprise that JLo chose this bubbly and ever-smiling host to be a part of her latest movie, Marry Me.

In the movie, Jimmy Fallon makes a cameo and appears as himself, hosting The Tonight Show. He also helps along the relationship of the protagonists. We always knew that Fallon was a softie, and this just proves it even more!

It’s safe to say that The Rock has his fingers in various baskets. The wrestler turned actor has found fame and success in the industry. He’s currently one of the biggest stars in Hollywood.

Dwayne Johnson also appeared as himself in the movie Fighting With My Family. In the biographical sports-comedy, Johnson interacts with the lead and gives her advice. Johnson also acts as a producer for the film that is based on a true story.

This cameo is also probably the best cameo. Chris Evans, aka Captain America, appeared in the action-comedy movie Free Guy for all but a second, but that second made an impact on the audience’s mind.

In the movie, Ryan Reynolds’ character pulls out the Captain America shield in the middle of his fight. The camera cuts to Chris Evans, who exclaims in disbelief while watching the live stream of the match! For all the Marvel fans, this was the best kind of cameo!

Who better to play a zombie than a man who is known for his deadpan delivery and acting? Yes, we’re talking about the legend, Bill Murray, who took his skills to the movie Zombieland, where he masqueraded as a celebrity version of himself.

In the movie, the survivors of the apocalypse head into the actor’s mansion where they find out he has been pretending to be a zombie to live safely. It’s definitely one of the funniest and most memorable parts of the movie!

We’re pretty used to the Marvel Cinematic Universe being jam-packed with A-listers by now, but they almost exclusively play characters. It usually makes the movies feel like they’re all happening in a different dimension.

But, sometimes, we get a cameo like this one, where it suddenly feels weirdly real. In Iron Man 2 one billionaire met another, and Tony Stark got to meet Elon Musk! It’s one of the stranger appearances in the MCU for sure.