17 Side-By-Sides Of These Actors Playing The Same Character In Different Movies And Shows

Logan Lerman adorably told Walker Scobell, "Hope you like eating blue food the next few years, because I think you have a hit show on your hands," after Logan watched Percy Jackson and the Olympians.

1. First, Julie Andrews as Mary Poppins in Mary Poppins in 1964 vs. Emily Blunt as Mary Poppins in Mary Poppins Returns in 2018:

Disney

Julie said she "loved" the new Mary Poppins and appreciates that they pulled from other P.L. Travers stories and didn't try to redo everything that made the first one so iconic. Mary Poppins Returns director Rob Marshall said he received a lovely email from Julie as well, in which she gushed over how "wonderful" Emily is. Of course, like everyone, Emily has nothing but beautiful words to say about Julie's Oscar-winning work as Mary Poppins. She said, "No one is going to outdo Julie Andrews."

2. Colin Firth as Mr. Darcy in Pride and Prejudice in 1995 vs. Matthew Macfadyen as Mr. Darcy in Pride and Prejudice in 2005:

BBC / Focus Features

Talking about Matthew's Mr. Darcy, Colin said he was always impressed with how "Matthew managed to span the arc of that character." Meanwhile, Matthew has said that Colin was an inspiration to him when he began acting, and he still looks up to the actor. They agreed in a joint interview that they both played Mr. Darcy "quite grumpy" and "scared," which worked for the character.

3. Rachel McAdams as Regina George in Mean Girls in 2004 vs. Reneé Rapp as Regina George in Mean Girls in 2024:

Paramount Pictures / Via youtu.be

In a recent interview, Rachel talked about Reneé's portrayal of Regina, saying, "I don't think she can do any wrong. She is amazing. She's already got me beat with that voice. I'm just excited to see her incarnation. It's such a great character." Meanwhile, Reneé often praises Rachel's work in Mean Girls, as well as her other movies, even saying how she would love to star in a movie alongside Rachel. Recently, Rachel also supported Reneé when she was the musical guest on Saturday Night Live.

4. Lizzy Caplan as Janis Ian in Mean Girls in 2004 vs. Auli'i Cravalho as Janis 'Imi'ike in Mean Girls in 2024:

Paramount Pictures / Everett Collection

At the start of doing press for Mean Girls, Auli'i shared that Lizzy and Barrett Wilbert Weed, who played Janis in Mean Girls on Broadway, had sent her a lovely bouquet of flowers and a "heartfelt note" sharing their excitement for her. Auli'i added, "They are like, 'Congratulations on being the third generation of Janis, and we'll meet up with each other, and have a drink, and we'll plot the next best revenge. It was just the most incredible thing."

5. Daniel Franzese as Damian in Mean Girls in 2004 vs. Jaquel Spivey as Damian Hubbard in Mean Girls in 2024:

Paramount Pictures / Via youtu.be

At the Mean Girls premiere, Jaquel shared an emotional hug on the red carpet with Daniel, who was excited to finally meet Jaquel after DM'ing a few times. Speaking about how important Daniel's portrayal of Damian was in the OG movie, Jaquel said, "He was the only plus-size queer character that I had — plus-size queer boy — that I saw onscreen."

6. Winona Ryder as Jo March in Little Women in 1994 vs. Saoirse Ronan as Jo March in Little Women in 2019:

Columbia Pictures / Sony Pictures Releasing

Winona, who says her work in Little Women is one of her "personal favorites," said she loved that a new generation gets its own version of Jo and Little Women. She added, "I'm happy that girls get to have those roles." Meanwhile, Saoirse revealed that she grew up with the '90s version and loved it. When she was younger, Saoirse said, she really loved Kirsten Dunst's portrayal of Amy, but as she got older, she connected with Winona's Jo, saying, "Jo was somebody that I could feel myself gravitating to more."

7. Logan Lerman as Percy Jackson in Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief in 2010 vs. Walker Scobell as Percy Jackson in Percy Jackson and the Olympians in 2024:

20th Century Fox / Disney+

Prior to the show's release, Logan sent some heartfelt words to the cast and specifically talked about Walker taking over the role of Percy, saying, "You’re making a lot of people happy bringing these characters to life. I can't imagine a better fit for Percy Jackson than Walker. You were so brilliant in The Adam Project. Hope you like eating blue food the next few years, because I think you have a hit show on your hands."

8. Alexandra Daddario as Annabeth Chase in Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief in 2010 vs. Leah Jeffries as Annabeth Chase in Percy Jackson and the Olympians in 2024:

20th Century Fox / Disney+

Amid initial online backlash to Leah's casting as Annabeth, Alexandra tweeted, "Leah Jeffries is going to be an incredible Annabeth!!!" In a recent interview, Leah also talked about Alexandra's portrayal of Annabeth and online criticism, saying, "'You can’t play her like Alexandra Daddario.' But you know what? They’re right. I'm not her, and I cannot play like her. But I’m going to show you who I am, and how I’m going to play it. I’m not trying to be like anyone else. I want to be myself, and I want to make sure that other girls understand that too."

9. Brandon T. Jackson as Grover Underwood in Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief in 2010 vs. Aryan Simhadri as Grover Underwood in Percy Jackson and the Olympians in 2024:

20th Century Fox / Disney+

While Aryan has yet to speak to Brandon, he says he would love to chat someday: "I'd love to talk to Brandon T. Jackson. I keep wanting to message him after I see his movies, and I always get really scared."

10. Donald Sutherland as President Coriolanus Snow in The Hunger Games in 2012 vs. Tom Blyth as Coriolanus "Coryo" Snow in The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes in 2023:

Lionsgate / Via youtu.be

During the press tour for The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes, Tom consistently brought up how much he loved Donald's performance in the OG movies. He said in one interview, "I don't like to say this because I play him, but Donald Sutherland was truly one of my favorite characters in the original films. He plays the villain with such dexterity and specificity. It was just so easy to hate him."

11. Whoopi Goldberg as Celie in The Color Purple in 1985 vs. Fantasia Barrino as Celie in The Color Purple in 2023:

Warner Bros. / Via youtube.com

Fantasia has consistently praised Whoopi's performance in The Color Purple. When asked what she would say to Whoopi, Fantasia said, "I would say thank you, Ms. Whoopi Goldberg, for not being afraid to play Celie. For being honest. Thank you for paving the way for girls like myself." When the new The Color Purple cast visited The View for an interview, they gave Whoopi a standing ovation in honor of her work in the 1985 film. Also, Whoopi makes a brief cameo in the new movie as a midwife who delivers Celie's child.

12. Oprah Winfrey as Sofia in The Color Purple in 1985 vs. Danielle Brooks as Sofia in The Color Purple in 2023:

Warner Bros / Via youtube.com

Oprah, who is a producer on the new film, said that it's "the best thing ever" seeing Danielle play Sofia and that "she made it her own." After watching Danielle perform an iconic Sofia scene on set, Oprah said she went up to Danielle, they hugged, and she said, "The baton is officially passed." Meanwhile, Danielle revealed that one of the first calls she made after being cast was to Oprah. They talked shared stories, and Oprah encouraged her, with Danielle adding, "She held my hand through this entire process."

13. Margaret Avery as Shug Avery in The Color Purple in 1985 vs. Taraji P. Henson as Shug Avery in The Color Purple in 2023:

Warner Bros. / Everett Collection

After booking the role of Shug, Taraji said she called Margaret, recalling, "She was like, 'I have all the faith in you.' And I was like, 'I just want to make you proud.' Because when someone believes in you, it’s the wind beneath your wings, you can fly." At The Color Purple premiere in December 2023, Margaret and Taraji reunited on the red carpet, with Margaret writing on Instagram that she is "humbled" by Taraji's compliments.

14. Angelina Jolie as Lara Croft in Lara Croft: Tomb Raider in 2001 vs. Alicia Vikander as Lara Croft in Tomb Raider in 2018:

Paramount Pictures / Warner Bros. / Via youtu.be

When the new Tomb Raider opened in 2018, Angelina reportedly took her children to go see the film. Meanwhile, Alicia spoke highly of Angelina's work as Lara Croft, saying, "I think she is an incredible actress, and I also look up to her, being a filmmaker and a producer." Alicia did say she took the role because she felt there was "really a drive with the people that were already on board on this project, but to make something new."

15. Michelle Pfeiffer as Selina Kyle/Catwoman in Batman Returns in 1992 vs. Zoë Kravitz as Selina Kyle/Catwoman in The Batman in 2022:

Warner Bros / Via youtube.com

Shortly after news broke that Zoë would be playing Selina in The Batman, Michelle expressed her excitement and offered some hilarious words of wisdom from one Catwoman to another. "I'm so excited. Make sure, whilst designing the costume, they consider how you’re gonna go to the bathroom. Minor detail, but it’s an important one," Michelle joked. Meanwhile, Zoë said she was "a little nervous" to meet Michelle after her role in The Batman was announced. They ended up meeting at the Golden Globes, and Zoë said she was just "bowing to the queen."

16. Tobey Maguire as Peter Parker/Spider-Man in Spider-Man in 2002 vs. Andrew Garfield as Peter Parker/Spider-Man in The Amazing Spider-Man in 2012:

Sony Pictures Releasing

In 2012, Tobey expressed his excitement about Andrew's Peter Parker, telling the actor in a joint interview, "When I heard it was you, I was literally like, Fucking perfect! ... I just want it to be great, and I thought, What a great actor Andrew is; I'm glad that's what's happening here." Meanwhile, when it came time for Tobey and Andrew to return in Spider-Man: No Way Home, Andrew said having Tobey agree to come back was a big reason he said yes too. He explained, "I follow Tobey to the ends of the Earth. I'm a lemming for Tobey. But that was sincerely a big part of it when I was approached about it."

17. And finally, Andrew Garfield as Peter Parker/Spider-Man in The Amazing Spider-Man in 2012 vs. Tom Holland as Peter Parker/Spider-Man in Spider-Man: Homecoming in 2017:

Sony Pictures / Marvel / Disney

In 2015, when Tom's casting as Spider-Man was announced, Andrew said, "It feels lovely, especially because Tom Holland is a really, really great actor." He also added, "I’m just really excited to just be a fan again, as opposed to bearing the weight of it." Of course, Tom has always expressed his love for both Andrew's and Tobey's work as Peter Parker. Looking back on assuming the role after Andrew was reportedly let go, Tom said, "I was 19 when I got cast. I was so caught up in getting the role that I never took any time to think about what it must have been like for him."