20 Unexpected Celebrity Cameos You Might Have Missed

A cameo is an appearance in a short film or series by a celebrity, following an invitation from a director, screenwriter, or producer. Although celebs are often invited to appear in movies, these sporadic and brief performances are usually highly paid and may also be requested by the actors themselves. The goal of these appearances is to bring excitement, grace, and spontaneity to the plot of a movie; and we can say, without a doubt, that most of the time, they succeed in doing so.

So Bright Side compiled a list of the best cameos in movies and series that were both unexpected and surprising.

1. Matt Damon, Luke Hemsworth, and Sam Neill in Thor: Ragnarok

The film Thor: Ragnarok’s opening is a very special one. It starts with a play that tells the story that was told in the previous installment of the Thor saga. Well hidden among the public and pretending to be Odin, we find Loki enjoying a good dose of theater. But something you might have missed is that the protagonists of the play we mentioned earlier are none other than Matt Damon playing Loki, Sam Neill playing Odin, and Luke Hemsworth as Thor.

2. Keith Richards in Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End

In interviews, Johnny Depp, the protagonist of Pirates of the Caribbean, revealed that he had been inspired by Keith Richards when trying to develop the character of Jack Sparrow that made him so famous. That’s why Richard’s performance as Sparrow’s father in Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End was, in a way, totally expected, but also very meaningful. In the third installment of the saga, Richards plays Teague Sparrow, Jack’s father, and he wears an outfit that is very similar to that of his son.

3. Stan Lee in Ralph Breaks the Internet

In the famous animation film based on the classic video game, we can see a character that is easy to find in cameos: Stan Lee. In the film, a version of Lee with a square head and large sunglasses appears inside the internet, surrounded by some of the most famous characters from Marvel. This is a tribute to the comic book writer and editor.

4. Bill Murray in Zombieland

In this film, famous actor Bill Murray appears as a zombie version of himself. At first, this cameo had been intended for actor Patrick Swayze, even if it was just for a few seconds, but in the end, he couldn’t make it. Producers had to come up with new options to replace him and Murray accepted their offer.

5. Michael Jackson in Men in Black II

The king of pop made a short cameo appearance in the movie Men in Black II. There, he plays an agent that Will Smith and Tommy Lee Jones call to ask a question. Apparently, after seeing the first part of Men in Black, Michael Jackson was eager to take part in the second installment, so this small role was made especially for him.

6. Mike Tyson in The Hangover

Ex-boxer Mike Tyson made a small appearance in the first installment of the film The Hangover. The protagonists of the film steal the boxer’s pet. Later on, when he finds out, Tyson fights them to get the tiger back, and later sings a song and becomes their friend. Clearly, it’s not your common Sunday afternoon kind of thing. It’s a hilarious and strange situation, very typical of this series of films.

7. Keanu Reeves in The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge on the Run

In the latest movie featuring the adventures of SpongeBob and his friend Patrick, the 2 of them set off on a journey to rescue Gary, SpongeBob’s pet. During this difficult and important mission, Keanu Reeves makes a brief appearance to help this pair of decent and (very) naive marine friends find their pet snail.

8. Brad Pitt in Deadpool 2

This famous actor appears only for a couple of seconds on-screen in the movie, Deadpool 2, to give life to Vanisher (an unlucky character), in one of his shortest cameos and appearances of his whole career. Apparently, the actor’s sons are also big fans of Deadpool, so he couldn’t say no if he wanted to.

9. David Bowie in Zoolander

In the comedy film starring Ben Stiller and Owen Wilson, singer David Bowie makes an appearance as a runway judge. Bowie was the one who rated the fashion duel between Derek Zoolander and Hansen — a very comical scene that made us laugh more than once and that will hardly ever get old!

10. Britney Spears in Sabrina, the Teenage Witch

Back in the late ’90s and early ’00s, Sabrina, the Teenage Witch was a huge hit. In the first episode of the fourth season of the series, the Princess of Pop, singer Britney Spears, made a cameo appearance to help promote the movie, Drive Me Crazy, which not only features her song but starred Hart in the lead role. In that episode, thanks to Sabrina’s magic, the singer literally appears in her living room and teaches the protagonist a few dance moves. In another bit of trivia, Hart also appeared in Spears’ video for the song.

11. Courtney Love in Empire

The widow of Kurt Cobain, vocalist of the grunge band Nirvana, made an appearance in the series Empire. This series has been called by many “the queen of the cameos,” given the number of celebs that have appeared in different episodes. But in this particular one, Love plays a rock diva and takes the stage to sing a song. Undoubtedly, this role suited her perfectly.

12. Martin Scorsese in Hugo

We can find several cameos throughout this charming film, and one of them is the appearance of the director of the film himself: Martin Scorsese. In this scene, we can see Scorsese dressed as a photographer of that time, a very significant role given that photography was the beginning of cinema too.

13. David Hasselhoff in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2

Apparently, Star Lord told his classmates that his father was actor David Hasselhoff, but that he was too involved with his acting to be a real father. That is why, in the second installment of the Guardians of the Galaxy saga, Ego becomes this very actor from the famous ’90s series Baywatch.

14. Matt Damon in Deadpool 2

The truth is that, when watching this particular scene, no one could tell that the man onscreen was well-known and beloved actor Matt Damon. But yes, that’s right, that’s Damon. Underneath a massive amount of makeup, a quirky accent, and a matching hairstyle, Damon plays a hillbilly who gets his truck stolen while talking to a friend in the movie Deadpool 2.

15. Morgan Freeman in Oblivion

Acclaimed actor Morgan Freeman makes a 10-minute appearance in the film, Oblivion. In the film, the actor brought Malcolm Beech, the leader of the human resistance against Tet, to the big screen.

16. Totoro in Toy Story 3

Totoro, from Hayao Miyazaki’s My Neighbor Totoro, makes an appearance in the Pixar movie, Toy Story 3, while cowboy Woody looks at a map on the computer to find a way to get back home. Even though this was not an expected cameo, it doesn’t really come as a huge surprise, given that John Lasseter thinks of Miyazaki as a friend in real life.

17. Pamela Anderson in Borat

Borat is a man from Kazakhstan who is completely obsessed with actress and model Pamela Anderson. That’s why, at the end of the movie, he goes to an event where Anderson is signing her book and tries to kidnap her and take her to Kazakhstan. Because the cameo was so realistic, many people thought that this actually happened and that Borat was actually taking the actress by force; however, Sasha Baron Cohen, the actor who played Borat, has stated that it was planned in advance and that she was doing a short cameo in the film.

18. David Hasselhoff in The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie

Actor David Hasselhoff played a small part in the live-action scenes of the movie as himself. At some point in the story, Hasselhoff offers SpongeBob and Patrick a ride on his back from the beach to Bikini Bottom, and finally, he throws them from the surface to the Krusty Krab 2, the restaurant where SpongeBob is a cook.

19. Ed Sheeran in Yesterday

Singer and composer Ed Sheeran played a small part in the film, Yesterday, as himself. During his appearance, he becomes impressed by the lyrics composed by the main character and actively talks to him about it. Thus far, it’s been his longest appearance and performance in a movie.

20. Justin Bieber in Zoolander 2

The cameo of the famous Canadian singer is not very long, but it had been highly-anticipated ever since it was advertised by different media. In Zoolander 2, we can see Justin Bieber as himself, fighting against a group of dangerous bikers, but unfortunately without much success.

Had you noticed these brief cameos before? Which cameo did you like the most? Let us know in the comments!