10 Hollywood Stars Who Embellished Their Resumes to Land a Role

Many of us have been known to exaggerate our skills or even know people who’ve done it in order to get a job, be the center of attention or surprise someone. This applies to everyone. Even Hollywood actors have to embellish their resumes a little bit to be part of a movie or series they’re interested in.

1. Tenoch Huerta

Tenoch Huerta made history in Hollywood by becoming one of the first Mexican actors to become a villain in a Marvel movie. However, in a 2022 interview, he revealed having lied in order to get the part.

During the first conversations with Marvel creatives, Tenoch was asked if he knew how to swim, to which he responded: “I’ve never drowned.” This ambiguous response allowed him to carry on with the negotiations. Later on, the actor had to confess: “We had to explain to them, through my lawyer in the United States, that this is how Mexicans are. We never say no, and then we see how we solve it.”

2. George Clooney

Early on in his career, George Clooney was reluctant to join the Actors Guild. “You couldn’t get a job without getting into the Screen Actors Guild, so everybody would make up these credits to get in,” the actor confessed.

But on one occasion, George almost didn’t get away with it. He lied about acting in some movie to get a role, but the director of said casting had actually worked in that production, and she obviously didn’t remember working with Clooney. He begged her to help him, and she did. That’s how he landed his role in Grizzly II: Revenge in 1983.

3. Morgan Freeman

Famous for his peculiar voice, Morgan Freeman was hired to narrate the movie Oblivion by director Joseph Kosinski. But the actor wanted more than that, so he invented having some throat issues that prevented him from speaking. Since he had already been hired, he managed to get screen time and not just be the voiceover of the tape.

4. Hugh Laurie

Although technically the actor never lied in order to get the role of Doctor House in the homonymous series, he did let his audition tape do that for him.

Despite producers having solicited American actors, Laurie, an Englishman, recorded his tape faking the American accent. The director, not knowing Hugh was British, loved his performance. He even said: “See? This is what I want, an American guy.”

5. Whoopi Goldberg

Actress Whoopi Goldberg started very young in the acting and music industry. At the age of 14, she dropped out of school to be able to work at a summer camp.

Since she was too young to be hired, she lied, claiming she was much older. That allowed her to work in musicals and church choirs like Jesus Christ Superstar. She not only found her true calling in acting and music but also became one of the few EGOT artists — people who have won an Emmy, Grammy, Oscar, and Tony Award.

6. Lisanne Falk

Lisanne Falk told the casting directors of the movie Heathers that she was 19 years old when, in fact, she was 23, as she later confessed in an interview.

“When I read the script, I just knew I had to do it, I didn’t want to miss my chance.” She was hired and everything seemed to be going well, right until she casually told people she was living with her boyfriend. The others were surprised and asked her if her mother allowed that. So she had to confess the truth, but no one was bothered by it.

7. Ceyair Wright

Ceyair, one of the young actors in the new version of Space Jam, told the casting director that he had lots of experience as a basketball player.

However, that is one of the few sports the actor does not play. “’Oh yeah, I played basketball. I played varsity in my high school,’ which was not true, but that’s what I said.” After being cast as Darius James, the eldest child of LeBron James, Wright started practicing every day with a basketball coach.

8. Jameela Jamil

Jameela Jamil is one of the rising stars in recent years. Part of the beginnings of her acting career took place in the comedy series The Good Place, as well as in films, and later she was part of She-Hulk: Attorney at Law, the production that is rebounding her fame.

In an interview, Jamila confessed to having lied about her acting experience. “I also told the casting director that I had acting experience, which was a lie. I told her I’d been onstage, but I was talking about my school days.”

9. Jason Momoa

Jason Momoa had no experience whatsoever when he auditioned for a part in the Baywatch reboot. He said in an interview that he was 19 years old at the time of that casting and was working at his family’s surf store. His friends helped him to write a resume adding that he had worked as a model, even though it was not true.

“They asked: ‘Have you ever acted?’ I said: ‘No,’ and they asked: ‘Have you modeled?’ I was like: ‘Yeah, yeah, I’m a great model. I do Gucci and Louis Vuitton.’ So I made it all up at that moment.”

10. Jamie Foxx

The actor’s real name is Eric Marlon Bishop. When he started his career in the late ’80s, he began as a comedian, but producers were prioritizing women; men, being too many, were put on a waiting list.

The actor came up with the idea of changing his name to Jamie, since it was ambiguous and sounded like a woman’s name. Thus, producers could give him priority in calls not knowing his real gender. This helped him get a part in a comedy show, which was brought to television and granted him more opportunities in series and films.

What abilities did you have to make up to impress somebody or to secure a job?