If you've ever watched a television show, and thought, hey, wait a minute, I've seen that face before... chances are, you're right. Sometimes an actor portrays more than one character over the length of a series ('cause that's not CONFUSING).
This kind of de ja vu kamikaze casting can threaten suspension of disbelief (past breaking point, some might say). Still, production companies seem reluctant to let go of a good thing.
I've listed twelves examples below that stood out for me over the years:*
*It should be noted that Star Trek (by which I mean all of the shows in the franchise) are guilty of this practice so often, it would take pages to list their repeat offences. I've also avoided mentioning procedural shows, since the crime solving format easily lends itself to regular dips in murky casting waters. Once a victim, not always a victim, right? By which I mean, last year's corpse could easily be next year's murderer. Or a family member. Or coworker. Or man who owns the local liquor store... You get my drift.
Jeff Kober in Buffy The Vampire Slayer as Rack and Zachary
First time around he kidnapped Buffy's mum and tried to kill Buffy, on her eighteenth birthday, no less! Kober came back as a black magic dealer who hooked Willow on the habit. Famously remembered for the line, "You taste like strawberries", delivered in a skin-crawling tone.
PRO: Frankly, Jeff Kober is hell creepy. (Onscreen I mean. Maybe he's uber-cuddly off-camera). Not a lot of actors exude this level of menace, so I can see why a show might want him back. And at least they waited a few years between appearances, unlike some I could name...
CON: I find Jeff Kober's voice really distinctive, so the reasoning, "he's a vamp so you can't see his face" didn't work for me.
Rebecca Balding in Charmed as Elise and Aunt Jackie
I had to mention this casting example, because so many fans recognised Balding from her first, very small, appearance on the show. (And she wasn't even the main guest star in that particular episode).
PRO: I always liked that Charmed had a couple of older female characters in the mix (ie Elise and Grams) who were respected by the young leads.
CON: The fact that she's such a memorable actress, people remembered her four years on from her first, single episode, teeny-tiny Charmed appearance.
John Hillerman in Magnum P.I. as Higgins and Elmo
While Tom Selleck owned the series in the title role, Hillerman provided a perfect Odd Couple foil with his pompous portrayal of Higgins. Hillerman also gets to play three of Higgin's half-brothers during the series. I chose to mention the Texan character Elmo Ziller, because the actor is Texan (yes, he's faking that impeccable British accent the rest of the time).
PRO: Sometimes it's fun to see a series regular enjoying themselves.
CON: Saying that, three times over is a tad indulgent...
Jane Horricks in Absolutely Fabulous as Bubbles and Katy Grin
Bubbles is the dense, fashion-saturated assistant to Edina, who won hearts with her crazy outfits and bizarre way of talking. While Bubbles remained a steadfast fan favourite, rumour has it Horricks grew tired of playing an adorable moron. Frankly, I can see where she's coming from, because there's no denying Bubbles was a heel short of a stilletto...
PRO: Jane Horricks is pretty hilarious. She plays a couple of other roles in the series, too.
CON: Bubbles was funnier than all the other parts put together.
Karl Urban in Xena: Warrior Princess as Cupid and Julius Caesar
When it comes to importing acting talent, I get the impression NZ can't be reached by sea or air, because the Xena/Hercules cliche are almost as bad as the Star Trek mob. Yes, New Zealand is an island, but it's not like it's a deserted island. Production companies aren't stranded there! In Xena, Urban plays Cupid first, then Caesar. He also has another part 'cause, hey, why not, right?
PRO: Urban portrays a chilling Julius Caesar who's also bad-guy hot. You kind of like the flirtation he's got going with Xena, UNTIL he crucifies her. (Literally). Man, that cut deep. (Sorry, accidental pun). I won't make any reference to him nailing the part. (See? Total self-restraint).
CON: Cupid? Really? I get that it meant KU with less clothes on, but bleaching his hair and having him shoot lovers and stuff... man. Was this really a strong casting effort? Saying that, I am glad they doubled (tripled) up on his appearances. No KU as Caesar would have been a loss for the show.
Catherine Bell in Jag as Mac and Diane
Bell first appeared in an early episode as Harm's girlfriend Diane. Since she'd already appeared on the show, this posed some continuity problems when they decided to make her a series regular... especially since Diane had been murdered. (Cue conundrum).
PRO: Rather than trying to slide this one past viewers, the writers had other characters on the show openly comment on the startling similarity between Harm's dead gf and his new workplace colleague, which did admittedly add another complex layer to the sexual tension.
CON: There's a difference between looking similar, and being the SAME PERSON.
Sherrilyn Fenn in Gilmore Girls as Anna and Sasha
Fenn played Luke's ex-girlfriend Anna, who (it turns out) had his child. The actress later rocks up as Jess's stepmother (relatively speaking), when he visits his father in Venice Beach.
PRO: Sherrilyn Fenn is a good actress. She's also very popular/iconic, thanks to Twin Peaks, so a Fenn appearance=media attention (x2 here).
CON: Gilmore Girls was one of those shows that ran into a number of continuity problems, partly due to its longevity. In-your-face repeat casting didn't help matters much. Even with a new 'do, Sherrilyn Fenn is too distinctive to pull this off. The sense of de ja vu was not helped by both characters being sassy, independent mums of quirky preteen bookworm daughters.
James Jordan in Veronica Mars as Tim and Lucky
First time around, he was a student who went to fight in Iraq when his family lost their fortune, and came back with PTSD. The character then works as the school janitor until he waves a (supposed) loaded gun around, and is shot dead. Next season, the actor plays a teaching assistant at university who turns out to be a murdering sociopath.
PRO: They put him in a wig and glasses for the second role, and it was years before I realised it was the same actor.
CON: The wig and glasses were terrible, and I kept waiting for an appropriate storyline reveal, ie he was in witness protection or something. I didn't actually find this actor standout in either role, and was kind of dumbfounded the show brought him back. Strangely enough, there is one scene in Veronica Mars, a flashback to when Lucky was a rude rich kid, that sticks in my mind. With just a few sentences, the actor made a startling impact, so maybe he was just miscast in the other roles?
Dolly Wells in The IT Crowd as Paula and Miranda
This is an honorary mention, suggested to me by a friend. I haven't seen every episode, so I can't really comment on the double-up. Wells appears in one episode as dinner party guest Paula, and later, as Miranda. Hilariously cringeworthy, the Brits of The IT Crowd make their American counterparts on The Big Bang Theory look incredibly suave in comparison (and that's saying something).
PRO: Great use of comedic full-face bandaging. Anyone who claims they used facial recognition to identify Dolly Wells in both episodes (judging from the stills above) is quite probably full of it.
CON: Feel free to help me out here x
Christopher Heyerdahl in Sanctuary as Bigfoot and John Druitt
Sure, it's easier to double-up when one of the characters you play wears full special effects makeup, but still, a mannerism or movement often gives the game away. Heyerdahl is flawless. If I watched an episode right now, I would still be dumbfounded to think Heyerdahl's portraying both Bigfoot AND Druitt. My mind just can't quite wrap around the idea.
PRO: Today's technology allows for the characters to appear in scenes together regularly, which helps maintain audience cluelessness.
CON: Not quite as flawless in both roles as Combs (see below), but pretty close.
Sheryl Lee in Twin Peaks as Laura Palmer and Maddy
"She's dead. Wrapped in plastic." The image of Laura Palmer's dead body is synonymous with David Lynch's Twin Peaks, one of the kookiest television efforts of the nineties. Lee's character showing up less-than-alive in the first episode kicks off the series. Of course, things only get weirder (and more Lynchian) from there.
*RANDOM CONFESSION: As a teen, I owned The Secret Diary of Laura Palmer. Feel free to judge.
PRO: I love the idea of a doppelganger relative. This really added to the spooky factor (already sky-high, btw). Not that you can tell from these stills, but Laura's hair was more blonde, while in contrast, Maddy's all brunette. I respect the hairdye effort.
CON: Lee's most memorable appearance in pop culture television history is as a pretty, plastic-wrapped corpse.
Jeffrey Combs in Star Trek: Deep Space Nine as Weyoun and Brunt
This is the only example I'm going to include from the Star Trek universe. Partly because despite being a Trekkie, I had no idea this was the same actor! Just incredible. (He also played some other parts, too).
PRO: Weyoun is one of my favourite characters. I'm not a fan of the Ferengi, but Brunt was always one of the least annoying incarnations. Obviously, that was because the actor playing both is a serious talent, truly embodying each part, hands down. He even manages to play the various cloned versions of Weyoun with recognisable similarities, yet subtle differences, every incarnation.
CON: Struggling here... Hats off to you, Mr. Combs.
