12 Modern Actors Who Could Portray Classic Hollywood Stars

Moviemakers find inspiration not only in famous books or iconic movies of the past, but also in real life and biographies of legendary actors and actresses. This is why so many biopics are being released every year. Soon, we’ll be able to see a new movie, Blonde, about the life of Marilyn Monroe, starring Ana de Armas.

At Bright Side, we’ve always wondered what it would be like to work as a casting director. So we decided to take on this role and choose modern actors who, in our opinion, could wonderfully portray the stars of classic Hollywood.

Veronica Lake — Blake Lively

When Blake appeared at the premiere of the movie, Savages, dressed like a classic Hollywood star, everyone noticed her resemblance to Veronica Lake. After that, journalists often compared Lively’s charisma with Lake’s magnetism.

We think that moviemakers should keep these 2 actresses’ similarities in mind if they ever decide to make a movie about Veronica Lake.

Marlon Brando — Robert Pattinson

Robert Pattinson says that Marlon Brando is an icon to him. And this means that he definitely knows a lot about this classic Hollywood star. That being said, we believe that he has enough charisma and artistic skill to portray Brando if moviemakers ever decide to film a biopic about him.

And audiences seem to agree with this. During the poll, “Who would play the film stars of the past?” they named Pattison as one of the most suitable candidates for this role.

Anthony Perkins — Andrew Garfield

When it became known that the movie, Hitchcock, was planned for production, some fans decided to help the filmmakers cast the right pool of actors. They asked to choose Andrew Garfield for the role of Anthony Perkins, who starred in Hitchcock’s famous film, Psycho. They even made a petition with this request.

However, the filmmakers didn’t follow this recommendation and gave the role of Perkins to British actor James D’Arcy. To be fair, D’Arcy was very convincing in this role.

Barbra Streisand — Jennifer Aniston

In the spring of 2022, Jennifer Aniston recreated Barbra Streisand’s photos and posted them on her Instagram. After that, her followers got excited about the idea of her playing Streisand in a biopic, if moviemakers ever decided to make one. They wrote, “There aren’t many that could pull off recreating a Barbra photo, but you definitely did.”

Even Barbra herself was delighted by Jennifer’s project and wrote jokingly, “If only she had a bump on her nose.”

Marilyn Monroe — Kate Bosworth

According to people who knew Marilyn Monroe in real life, one of the most suitable candidates to play her is Kate Bosworth. In particular, Marilyn’s friend, Jeanne Carmen, mentioned this not long before her death in 2007.

The movie, Blonde, starring Ana de Armas as Marilyn, will be released soon. Even though no one has seen the movie yet, some Internet users don’t seem too happy with the casting choice. They wrote that de Armas didn’t really look like Marilyn.

Leslie Howard — Tom Hiddleston

A Twitter user once wrote, “I need a biopic of Leslie Howard starring Tom Hiddleston.” And we couldn’t agree more. The actors do have similar features, from their face shapes to their kind smiles.

If moviemakers decide to film a movie about Howard or create a Gone with the Wind remake, they should invite Hiddleston to audition.

Ava Gardner — Liv Tyler

Fans decided to conduct their own casting for Ava Gardner in the project, Sinatra. Liv Tyler got the majority of votes and surpassed Gal Gadot and Evangeline Lilly. We think that it’s a good choice because Tyler really does look like Gardner.

Christopher Lee — Nicolas Cage

In 2023, the movie, Renfield, is going to be released, in which Nicolas Cage will play Dracula. The online press has already expressed that it’s hard not to draw similarities between Cage and Christopher Lee, who played the iconic Dracula in 1958.

These similarities also gave us the idea that Cage could play Lee himself, as they have similar appearances.

Elizabeth Montgomery — Nicole Kidman

Nicole Kidman would be a perfect choice to play Elizabeth Montgomery if moviemakers ever decide to make a biopic about her. The fact is that Kidman has already played Montgomery’s iconic character. This happened in the movie, Bewitched, which was a big screen adaptation of the cult sitcom of the same name starring Montgomery.

Greta Garbo — Carice van Houten

Internet users conducted a poll about what modern actress could play Greta Garbo, and Carice van Houten was among those who got the majority of votes. However, it seems that not only fans but also film directors have noticed the similarities between these 2 actresses. In 2013, the media leaked information that van Houten had already been approved for the role of Garbo in a new biopic. However, the project is still in the pre-production stage, and it’s not known whether it will ever actually get made.

Cary Grant — George Clooney

Fans believe that George Clooney could easily play Cary Grant. There are years-long online discussions where people mention that these 2 actors look a lot like each other. Some commenters even suggest that they are related. This is why Clooney seems to be the best choice for this role.

Betty Grable — Jennifer Lawrence

Internet users chose Jennifer Lawrence as a potential candidate to play Betty Grable. And it’s quite easy to understand why because both actresses share rounded cheeks, a gorgeous smile, and a vigorous spirit. So if moviemakers decide to make a biopic about the most popular pin-up girl, Lawrence should be their first choice.

What other modern actors could play classic Hollywood stars, in your opinion? Tell us in the comments below.