Actors ARE Like Their Characters
Time and time again, I’ve observed that actors and actresses pick or are assigned characters that resemble their real persona. I will offer some evidence for this below.
Initially, this might seem like an interesting but otherwise pointless trivia. However, I believe this knowledge can be very helpful to know in regards to relationships.
It is normal to put on your best face when you first meet others. The problem with this when you are starting a relationship is that the other person is doing it too, and their true personality could be hidden and not revealed until a connection is already formed. This can bode poorly for those wishing to avoid toxic people. I believe that one of the greatest factors for many of the relationship problems today is getting into relationships without having a clear picture of the others character.
Therefore, I propose a method for testing another’s character that could give you an unfair advantage when you are getting to know somebody. It may be able to save you months and years of tedious social engagements and propel you to a deeper understanding of another person in mere minutes.
Just ask that person you are getting to know if he or she ever acted.
The range of what counts as an acting part is broad and can include YouTube skits, TV commercials, high school plays, and, of course, actual movies and TV series. Get as many details as you can. This will normally be very easy, as most people welcome an opportunity to talk about themselves.
Two exceptions can pollute your character test results and give you a wrong picture of the person:
- Actors sometimes take unwanted roles as a result of lack of options, basically settling for whatever they can get.
- Experienced actors sometimes take on completely opposite characters in order to explore their “range.” These normally only apply to career actors, and one should be able to winnow out these factors during the conversation.
Now, to the evidence I promised.
Given the transparency of most celebrities’ lives, it is easy to prove that actors and actresses tend to play characters similar to themselves. Here are some examples, starting with Marilyn Monroe.
Marilyn Monroe
Marilyn Monroe is an excellent candidate to test, not only because her life was well-documented, but especially because many say she was unfairly type-cast in many of her roles. We’ll see just how closely she matches her roles. I will make a list of common themes in her movies and contrast them against what we know of her real life persona. The list will be limited to 14 for the sake of brevity.
Based on recurring themes in her 27 films, one could conclude that Marilyn Monroe was prone to these characteristics, without ever reading about her life or having known her in person:
- Heavily relies on sex appeal to get ahead in life
- Naive and child-like
- Ambitious career-wise
- Enjoys pleasing an audience with performance (song and dance)
- Loves expensive jewelry, especially diamonds
- Does not take marital vows seriously; prone to adultery
- Plays dumb in order to disarm
- Gold-digging tendencies
- Attracted to older, less physically attractive men
- Poorly educated
- Exhibitionist tendencies
- Charming and sweet
- Vulnerable and sometimes helpless
- Witty sense of humor
Based on her extensively documented life, ten of the fourteen are unambiguously true of her. These are 1-4 , 6, 9, 11-14. Number 5 is not true, as she allegedly preferred costume jewelry off-screen. Number 7 is hard to confirm but likely true to some extent, at least at the beginning of her career. Number 8 is not true either, because she consistently married within her own class. When she was a poor unknown, she married accordingly, and when she achieved stardom, she married equally famous and well-off individuals, but for reasons other than their money. Finally, I do not believe it would be fair to say number 10 is true, because while she never finished high school, she read extensively, attended some college, and continually sought to improve her education. Therefore, we are left with a minimum 71.4% accuracy rate, possibly higher.
Now, let’s take a look at Clark Gable.
- Macho and tough demeanor
- Enjoys outdoorsy activities, like hunting, camping, etc.
- Charismatic and charming
- Given to salty and rough speech at times
- Sexually aggressive with women
- Likes gambling
- Affinity for the military
- Confident
- Courageous and bold, despite great danger
- Mercenary and opportunistic nature; willing to bend the rules
- Highly persistent and persuasive
- Promiscuous
- Does not take marital vows seriously; prone to adultery
- Loves kids
All of the above are easily confirmed by numerous biographies. Clark Gable was known to be a highly magnetic, masculine “man’s man” who could talk rough yet be charming and who loved the great outdoors, gambling, and kids (1-4, 6, 9, 14). He worked very hard to develop his career despite initial drawbacks (11), and he fought in World War 2 (7).
On the more unsavory side, he allegedly impregnated reluctant co-star Loretta Young (5), married two much older women mostly if not totally for the purpose of furthering his career as an actor (10), and cheated on all his wives, even the love of his life, Carole Lombard (12, 13). Only number 8 might be contestable, as some people reported him to be shy. However, consider that shyness can be misinterpreted for a reserved nature, as opposed to a lack of confidence. Clearly, he must have had a measure of confidence in order to succeed at his career. Even if number 8 was excluded, this list gives us an impressive 92.8% accurate picture of the real Gable.
A famous role can be like a mirror.
Take Allison Mack, who is most famous for her portrayal of Chloe Sullivan in Smallville. In 2018, she was arrested for her involvement in a cult, in which she played a critical role in supplying the cult leader, Keith Raniere, with new recruits/sex slaves. Interestingly, her character of Chloe spent the entire Smallville series putting a guy (young Superman) on a pedestal. Chloe was obsessed with Superman, trying to figure out who he was and tracking his comings and goings to the last detail. Chloe’s obsessive and fanatical inclinations turned out to be true of Mack in real life.
It is ironic that Vivien Leigh became renowned as a great actress for her performance as Scarlett O’Hara in Gone with the Wind — since that character was herself exactly! Volatile, strong-willed Scarlett stopped at nothing to achieve her goals, even if it meant stealing her sister’s fiancee in order to pay the taxes. Similarly, Vivien Leigh experienced episodes of manic rage and willfully pursued her desires, snatching her first husband from his fiancee and her second from his pregnant wife. Like Scarlett, she was an extremely hard worker, and after achieving success, she indulged in excesses. Interestingly, she even lost her second husband in a similar fashion to how Scarlett lost Rhett Butler — by pushing him away with adultery (physical as opposed to Scarlett’s mental infatuation) and mistreatment.
This test can still be used even if the person you are getting to know has never acted. Simply ask them, if they could be a famous actor and play a movie role of their choice, who would it be and why.
Did you use this test? If so, did you find it helpful? Let me know below!
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