It is never not a blast to see celebrities make funny cameos in movies or TV shows, or even appear in starring roles, as themselves, especially as a version of themselves that bears little resemblance to their actual personality. Take a look at some of the funniest examples of actors and other artists poking fun at themselves in a hilarious onscreen performance.
Michael Cera (This Is The End)
Each member of the cast of 2013’s This Is the End is a celebrity playing an exaggerated version of themselves, but the absolutely wildest of the bunch is Michael Cera. The actor plays dramatically against type as a destructive force of chaos at James Franco’s house party… before destructive forces of chaos begin descending upon the entire Earth in Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg’s blistering apocalyptic satire.
Kate Winslet. Years before she took home an Academy Award for The Reader, the English actor appeared in an episode in which she openly obsesses over finding the role that will win her an Oscar.
Seinfeld cast member Jason Alexander eventually realized that his hopelessly neurotic character, George Costanza, was the fictional alter ego of co-creator Larry David. However, none of George’s self-destructive and alienating flaws on the beloved TV sitcom could compare to David’s self-parodic portrayal of himself on Curb Your Enthusiasm, on which the comedian would seemingly go out of his way to offend friends, family members, and just about anyone he came into contact with.
random Bill Murray cameos to choose from, the most iconic would have to be his appearance in 2009’s Zombieland when our four protagonists (Woody Harrelson, Jesse Eisenberg, Emma Stone, and Abigail Breslin) stumble upon him while taking refuge in his mansion. It is actually not too much of a stretch to believe that this is how the comedy legend might live during the zombie apocalypse, from dressing himself up as one of the undead to blend in, to citing Garfield as his one regret before succumbing to an accidental shotgun blast.
played himself on The Simpsons on multiple occasions. One of the funnier instances comes from the Season 10 episode, “They Saved Lisa’s Brain,” in which he clocks Seymour Skinner in the face with a spring-loaded boxing glove built into his wheelchair.
Slate), Prince loved the quirky sitcom, which is why he agreed to guest star in an episode that, essentially, portrays him as some sort of mysterious magical guide. Quite frankly, it is hard to think of this portrayal as much of an exaggeration from the late, great pop star’s true, legendary persona.
frighteningly realistic, double-sized replica, which he later brought home with him.
How I Met Your Mother cast. The Emmy winner goes further with the uproarious portrayal in the sequels, which reveal the actor is only pretending to be gay to better his career.
Nicolas Cage was initially reluctant to play himself in The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent, especially for the pretty far-out ways the Academy Award winner pokes fun at himself and his unique career in the film. Then again, it does paint him in a largely positive light and even allows him to be the hero of its irreverent, comedic action plot in the end.
classic action movies like Speed and John Wick, Keanu Reeves has become a cameo king with funny, random appearances, such as in Netflix’s 2019 comedy Always Be My Maybe. Marcus (Randall Park) is shocked to discover that his childhood friend, Sasha’s (Ali Wong), new boyfriend is the actor, who partially improvised his portrayal as a pretentious weirdo who wears glasses without lenses and asks for a meal inspired by “the concept of time” at a restaurant.
memorable guest appearances on Glee was the late Olivia Newton-John. The Grease star showed up on the coming-of-age musical-dramedy a couple of times, in which she is portrayed as extremely rude and “hopelessly devoted” to herself.
Evil Dead movies, Ash Williams. The Scream King leans into that reputation in the 2007 horror-comedy movie, My Name Is Bruce (which he also directs), as a hard-drinking, washed-up version of himself who becomes the last hope to save a small Oregon town from a malevolent demon.
musical horror-comedy movie, Studio 666, but frontman Dave Grohl especially goes wild here. He becomes a threat to his bandmates after becoming possessed by a spirit that haunts the California house where they choose to record their tenth album.
Friends cast was playing a very personal role on Showtime’s Episodes. The actor earned a Golden Globe for portraying himself as likable but overbearing, as the married creators of a new TV show that he is cast in discover.
Dawson’s Creek cast was a main role on Don’t Trust the B– in Apartment 23 as… James Van Der Beek. The actor’s absurd portrayal of the famous best friend to Krysten Ritter’s Chloe is miles away from his true self, but it did somehow predict that he would later appear on Dancing with the Stars.
timeline of Ryan Seacrest’s hosting gigs is so prolific and extensive, he is almost (if not more) famous than many of the people he has interviewed over the years. He acknowledges this in his cameo in Knocked Up, in which the then-E! News presenter portrays himself as comically vain, ill-tempered, and foul-mouthed, which are not good qualities on camera.
Tom Brady (Living With Yourself)
The Netflix sci-fi comedy series, Living with Yourself, stars Paul Rudd as Miles Elliott, who discovers that a life-changing wellness spa has cloned him into a better version of himself when he comes face-to-face with his “flawed” double. In the first episode, Miles sees the New England Patriots quarterback walking out of the spa before revealing he has visited it six previous times, which also happened to be his number of Super Bowl wins at the time.
Al Pacino (Jack And Jill)
If there is one good thing about 2011’s Jack and Jill, which stars Adam Sandler as both a family man and his obnoxious twin sister, it is Al Pacino’s performance as himself. In the comedy, the Oscar winner expresses affection for Jill, which leads him to star in a “Dunkaccino” ad that he believes should be destroyed moments after watching it.