Movies with kid versions of actors?
March 29, 2006 3:52 PM Subscribe
Movies which show main characters as children, usually through a flashback?
I'm trying to compile a list of films that show their main characters as kids...specifically, to find examples when a child has been cast as the young version of a well-known actor.
Maybe one of the best examples of this is the movie Now and Then, which cast Christina Ricci as a young Rosie O'Donnell, Thora Birch as a young Melanie Griffith, etc. 12 Monkeys (Bruce Willis) and The X-Files (David Duchovny, Gillian Anderson) also have lots of examples of this.
Examples of what I'm not looking for include Jim Carrey's flashbacks in Eternal Sunshine (because he is still an adult in those), or Ewan McGregor as a young Albert Finney in Big Fish. It is somewhat more similar, but mostly I'm looking for major adult actors.
So, what are some more films (or television shows, etc) which show this? What are some of the best examples, ie, the most accurate resemblances? What are some of the worst?
I'm trying to compile a list of films that show their main characters as kids...specifically, to find examples when a child has been cast as the young version of a well-known actor.
Maybe one of the best examples of this is the movie Now and Then, which cast Christina Ricci as a young Rosie O'Donnell, Thora Birch as a young Melanie Griffith, etc. 12 Monkeys (Bruce Willis) and The X-Files (David Duchovny, Gillian Anderson) also have lots of examples of this.
Examples of what I'm not looking for include Jim Carrey's flashbacks in Eternal Sunshine (because he is still an adult in those), or Ewan McGregor as a young Albert Finney in Big Fish. It is somewhat more similar, but mostly I'm looking for major adult actors.
So, what are some more films (or television shows, etc) which show this? What are some of the best examples, ie, the most accurate resemblances? What are some of the worst?
Forrest Gump
Big
Walk the Line
Shine
Ray
There are literally thousands of these... the above just came to mind. Any kind of "biopic" film will do this.
posted by Saucy Intruder at 4:00 PM on March 29, 2006
Big
Walk the Line
Shine
Ray
There are literally thousands of these... the above just came to mind. Any kind of "biopic" film will do this.
posted by Saucy Intruder at 4:00 PM on March 29, 2006
Once upon a time in America (Robert De Niro, James Woods, Elizabeth McGovern etc.)... or am I misunderstanding your question??
posted by selton at 4:00 PM on March 29, 2006
posted by selton at 4:00 PM on March 29, 2006
Annie Hall
posted by allen.spaulding at 4:01 PM on March 29, 2006
posted by allen.spaulding at 4:01 PM on March 29, 2006
Kill Bill 1 (O-ren Ishii's childhood is shown anime-style)
Speaking of which, this seems really common in anime. Akira, for example (Kaneda and Tetsuo shown as children). Neon Genesis Evangelion (Asuka shown as a little kid in later episodes). Rurouni Kenshin OVA (a.k.a. Samurai X). Seems like a common theme of displaying the wide-eyed innocence of children contrasted with the gravity of adult life.
posted by knave at 4:06 PM on March 29, 2006
Speaking of which, this seems really common in anime. Akira, for example (Kaneda and Tetsuo shown as children). Neon Genesis Evangelion (Asuka shown as a little kid in later episodes). Rurouni Kenshin OVA (a.k.a. Samurai X). Seems like a common theme of displaying the wide-eyed innocence of children contrasted with the gravity of adult life.
posted by knave at 4:06 PM on March 29, 2006
Sleepers, though I can't recall how close the kid actors looked. Mystic River, too.
posted by BiffSlamkovich at 4:07 PM on March 29, 2006
posted by BiffSlamkovich at 4:07 PM on March 29, 2006
Godfather III
posted by weapons-grade pandemonium at 4:09 PM on March 29, 2006
posted by weapons-grade pandemonium at 4:09 PM on March 29, 2006
Tristram Shandy, of sorts.
posted by hototogisu at 4:15 PM on March 29, 2006
posted by hototogisu at 4:15 PM on March 29, 2006
Priscilla, Queen of the Desert has a brief example of such a flashback scene, but I can't remember how close the resemblance was. And so does Being John Malkovich, but all chimps look alike to me.
posted by Johnny Assay at 4:19 PM on March 29, 2006
posted by Johnny Assay at 4:19 PM on March 29, 2006
House of D is a textbook example (though not a great movie). Map of the Human Heart is a two-fer.
If you want to have some fun with this, go to imdb and do a character-name search on "young." When there's an adult and child pair, the child is typically credited as "young Rufus" or whatever.
posted by adamrice at 4:30 PM on March 29, 2006
If you want to have some fun with this, go to imdb and do a character-name search on "young." When there's an adult and child pair, the child is typically credited as "young Rufus" or whatever.
posted by adamrice at 4:30 PM on March 29, 2006
Once Upon a Time in the West
During the final duel, there's a flashback which shows the Charles Bronson character as a kid.
posted by matthewr at 4:33 PM on March 29, 2006
During the final duel, there's a flashback which shows the Charles Bronson character as a kid.
posted by matthewr at 4:33 PM on March 29, 2006
The Royal Tenenbaums.
posted by ITheCosmos at 4:41 PM on March 29, 2006
posted by ITheCosmos at 4:41 PM on March 29, 2006
Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade
posted by Steven C. Den Beste at 4:45 PM on March 29, 2006
posted by Steven C. Den Beste at 4:45 PM on March 29, 2006
Natural Born Killers - great Mickey nightmare sequence, right before he kills the Indian.
Nixon
Chaplin - Robert Downey Jr. does the overdub voice of the teenage Chaplin.
Gangs of New York
posted by dbiedny at 4:56 PM on March 29, 2006
Nixon
Chaplin - Robert Downey Jr. does the overdub voice of the teenage Chaplin.
Gangs of New York
posted by dbiedny at 4:56 PM on March 29, 2006
Isis Carmen Jones appeared in Sister Act as the young version of Deloris, Whoopi Goldberg's character. Jones also appeared in the Star Trek: The Next Generation episode "Rascals" as the young version of... you guessed it. Guinan, Whoopi Goldberg's character.
posted by Faint of Butt at 4:58 PM on March 29, 2006
posted by Faint of Butt at 4:58 PM on March 29, 2006
Empire Falls (HBO film)
Radio Flyer (adult version of character only at the end)
posted by clh at 4:58 PM on March 29, 2006
Radio Flyer (adult version of character only at the end)
posted by clh at 4:58 PM on March 29, 2006
The best resemblance I think I've ever seen is in Kinsey, where the actor playing the young Alfred Kinsey resembled Liam Neeson very strongly ... except for the eye colour, which is a bit weird. They went to the trouble of finding the perfect actor but didn't add contacts?
28 Days, just randomly, has flashbacks to Sandra Bullock's childhood?
Flatliners has a lot of flashbacks to Keiffer, Julia and Kevin as kids?
Now I'm embarrassed I can't think of more.
posted by AmbroseChapel at 5:14 PM on March 29, 2006
28 Days, just randomly, has flashbacks to Sandra Bullock's childhood?
Flatliners has a lot of flashbacks to Keiffer, Julia and Kevin as kids?
Now I'm embarrassed I can't think of more.
posted by AmbroseChapel at 5:14 PM on March 29, 2006
"Yanky Doodle Dandy" -- child plays young James Cagney
"Portrait of Jenny" (adult actress plays child and grown woman)
"The Major and the Minor" (Ginger Rogers plays a grown woman pretending to be a little girl)
"You Can Count on Me" -- children by young Laura Linney and Mark Rufulo
"Big" -- Tom Hanks plays a kid.
"Dead Ringers" -- twins play Jeromy Irons/Jeromy Irons as young boys
"Barry Lyndon" -- child/grownup actors play Lord Bullington
"Radio Days" -- Woody Allen's adult voice/child actor
That horrible "Star Trek" movie (forget the title) in which you see Spock (Leonard Nimoy) at various ages, played by many actors.
"Superman: the Movie" -- Chrisotpher Reeves as a baby
"I Claudius" -- TV series. Dereck Jacobi (and many of the other actors) shown as children.
posted by grumblebee at 5:35 PM on March 29, 2006
"Portrait of Jenny" (adult actress plays child and grown woman)
"The Major and the Minor" (Ginger Rogers plays a grown woman pretending to be a little girl)
"You Can Count on Me" -- children by young Laura Linney and Mark Rufulo
"Big" -- Tom Hanks plays a kid.
"Dead Ringers" -- twins play Jeromy Irons/Jeromy Irons as young boys
"Barry Lyndon" -- child/grownup actors play Lord Bullington
"Radio Days" -- Woody Allen's adult voice/child actor
That horrible "Star Trek" movie (forget the title) in which you see Spock (Leonard Nimoy) at various ages, played by many actors.
"Superman: the Movie" -- Chrisotpher Reeves as a baby
"I Claudius" -- TV series. Dereck Jacobi (and many of the other actors) shown as children.
posted by grumblebee at 5:35 PM on March 29, 2006
Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle - Crispin Glover
Cocoon
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory - Johnny Depp
Northern Exposure - Joel
My Name is Earl - Earl and Randy
posted by sailormouth at 5:58 PM on March 29, 2006
Cocoon
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory - Johnny Depp
Northern Exposure - Joel
My Name is Earl - Earl and Randy
posted by sailormouth at 5:58 PM on March 29, 2006
"Amelie" - both Amelie and her love interest. Also the scene during the credits of "Bridget Jones Diary" with Bridget and Mark Darcy as kids (the boy really looks like a little Colin Firth.)
posted by sophie at 6:19 PM on March 29, 2006
posted by sophie at 6:19 PM on March 29, 2006
The Kid has a young Bruce Willis as the major plot point.
posted by rafter at 6:43 PM on March 29, 2006
posted by rafter at 6:43 PM on March 29, 2006
Pulp Fiction - Bruce Willis' character (the story of his father's watch)
posted by Thorzdad at 6:54 PM on March 29, 2006
posted by Thorzdad at 6:54 PM on March 29, 2006
Terminator II: Judgment Day has an interesting reverse of this question -- it shows a flash-forward to John Connor as an adult, while the main part of the movie is concerned with John Connor as a young teenager.
Avalon does something similar -- the movie is about a multi-generational family of immigrants in America. The last shots show the adult version of one of the characters bringing his own son to visit his grandfather in a nursing home.
The Godfather Part II (not three, as stated above) shows a young Don Corleone arriving in America.
posted by frogan at 6:54 PM on March 29, 2006
Avalon does something similar -- the movie is about a multi-generational family of immigrants in America. The last shots show the adult version of one of the characters bringing his own son to visit his grandfather in a nursing home.
The Godfather Part II (not three, as stated above) shows a young Don Corleone arriving in America.
posted by frogan at 6:54 PM on March 29, 2006
Sleepy Hollow
posted by clearlydemon at 7:22 PM on March 29, 2006
posted by clearlydemon at 7:22 PM on March 29, 2006
"Now and then"
chick flick from the mid 90's with Demi Moore and Rosie O'donell
posted by stavx at 7:44 PM on March 29, 2006
chick flick from the mid 90's with Demi Moore and Rosie O'donell
posted by stavx at 7:44 PM on March 29, 2006
Hedwig & The Angry Inch
Hansel: Jesus says the darndest things.
Hedwig: [slaps Hansel] Don't you ever mention that name to me again.
Hansel: But he died for our sins.
Hedwig: So did Hitler!
Hansel: Eh?
posted by nuclear_soup at 8:08 PM on March 29, 2006
Hansel: Jesus says the darndest things.
Hedwig: [slaps Hansel] Don't you ever mention that name to me again.
Hansel: But he died for our sins.
Hedwig: So did Hitler!
Hansel: Eh?
posted by nuclear_soup at 8:08 PM on March 29, 2006
High Fidelity (Rob)
posted by Jeff Howard at 8:19 PM on March 29, 2006
posted by Jeff Howard at 8:19 PM on March 29, 2006
Constantine with Keanu Reeves used a half-Asian boy for his flashback, which is interesting because, theoretically, it should increase the authenticity of the protrayal, since Reeves is mixed race. On the other hand, Reeves really just looks like a white guy, so it didn't work. That's why the Ted kid worked better.
posted by dgaicun at 8:41 PM on March 29, 2006
posted by dgaicun at 8:41 PM on March 29, 2006
I always felt sorry for Christina Ricci being cast as a young Rosie O'Donnell. That's enough to scar someone for a lifetime.
Pirates of the Caribbean
posted by my sock puppet account at 8:46 PM on March 29, 2006
Pirates of the Caribbean
posted by my sock puppet account at 8:46 PM on March 29, 2006
Ted kid. Pretty generic, but not implausible, which is flashback poison.
posted by dgaicun at 8:51 PM on March 29, 2006
posted by dgaicun at 8:51 PM on March 29, 2006
Seconding jdroth on Contact—Jena Malone pegs the young Jodie Foster. Geneva Locke played the young Jessica Alba (I know, funny, right?) on Dark Angel. On Firefly, in the episode "Safe", the kids who played River and Simon did good jobs; and in Serenity, the girl who played the young River (a different girl) did an even better job. A reversal on My So-Called Life: Angela's little sister dresses up as Angela for Halloween. Kirsten Dunst played the younger Samantha Mathis (Amy) in the 1994 Little Women. Rachael Leigh Cook played the young Parker Posey in The House of Yes. I was convinced by that kid who played the young Christian Bale in Batman Begins. Somebody way upthread notes the kid who played the young Tom Hanks in Forrest Gump. Anna Paquin played Charlotte Gainsbourg as the young Jane Eyre in 1996.
posted by cgc373 at 9:14 PM on March 29, 2006
posted by cgc373 at 9:14 PM on March 29, 2006
Hilary and Jackie has long scenes at the beginning with the sisters as approximately 8-12 year olds.
posted by easternblot at 9:30 PM on March 29, 2006
posted by easternblot at 9:30 PM on March 29, 2006
Van Halen's "Hot for Teacher" video.
posted by kirkaracha at 9:37 PM on March 29, 2006
posted by kirkaracha at 9:37 PM on March 29, 2006
Silence of the Lambs
I don't believe this is correct...
posted by gsteff at 9:54 PM on March 29, 2006
I don't believe this is correct...
posted by gsteff at 9:54 PM on March 29, 2006
In "The Spy Who Shagged Me," Rob Lowe did a very funny, spot-on Robert Wagner as Young Number 2.
posted by rob511 at 10:39 PM on March 29, 2006
posted by rob511 at 10:39 PM on March 29, 2006
The flashback sequences in Lone Star worked OK, I thought. (Chris Cooper and Elizabeth Pena.)
The (excruciatingly boring) Zemeckis DVD commentary to the above-mentioned Contact talks at some length about the cgi necessary to match Jena Malone's eye colour to Jodie Foster's -- important, considering the opening shot of the movie.
posted by Sonny Jim at 11:37 PM on March 29, 2006
The (excruciatingly boring) Zemeckis DVD commentary to the above-mentioned Contact talks at some length about the cgi necessary to match Jena Malone's eye colour to Jodie Foster's -- important, considering the opening shot of the movie.
posted by Sonny Jim at 11:37 PM on March 29, 2006
Austin Powers: Goldmember is the one that immediately jumps to mind for me.
posted by antifuse at 4:31 AM on March 30, 2006
posted by antifuse at 4:31 AM on March 30, 2006
kiss kiss bang bang. features a young robert downey jr.
posted by muthecow at 5:35 AM on March 30, 2006
posted by muthecow at 5:35 AM on March 30, 2006
Silence of the Lambs
I don't believe this is correct...
Well then you believe wrong.
posted by dgaicun at 7:55 AM on March 30, 2006
I don't believe this is correct...
Well then you believe wrong.
posted by dgaicun at 7:55 AM on March 30, 2006
Try "Splash". The opening sequence has the kid versions of Tom Hanks', Daryl Hannah's, and John Candy's characters, and the resemblances, especially for the first two, are pretty good.
posted by Asparagirl at 9:13 AM on March 30, 2006
posted by Asparagirl at 9:13 AM on March 30, 2006
gsteff >>> "Silence of the Lambs
"I don't believe this is correct..."
Yeh, like dgaicun said, you're wrong. Flashback sequences involving Clarice as a kid, interacting with her dad.
Also, Gia. Mila Kunis (of That 70's Show) played Angelina Jolie at age 11.
posted by dirtynumbangelboy at 9:47 AM on March 30, 2006
"I don't believe this is correct..."
Yeh, like dgaicun said, you're wrong. Flashback sequences involving Clarice as a kid, interacting with her dad.
Also, Gia. Mila Kunis (of That 70's Show) played Angelina Jolie at age 11.
posted by dirtynumbangelboy at 9:47 AM on March 30, 2006
Angels with Dirty Faces has teenaged versions of Jimmy Cagney, Pat O'Brien, and Ann Sheridan in a sort of prologue. The Jimmy Cagney kid, Frankie Burke, was particularly good.
posted by booksandlibretti at 1:31 PM on March 30, 2006
posted by booksandlibretti at 1:31 PM on March 30, 2006
This thread is closed to new comments.
posted by jdroth at 4:00 PM on March 29, 2006