Side-By-Side Photos Of Actors Vs. The Real People They Portrayed On Screen

Some of the best films and performances over the last couple of decades have come from actors playing real people in what have become known as biopics. Once the story has been chosen, finding the right actor to portray the lead role can be tricky. Not only do the actors need to be talented enough to bring these real people to the screen, but they also need to look the part.

Many of these actors are paid top-dollar to learn their characters’ habits and mannerisms that make their role more believable. It should be noted, however, that the makeup and prosthetics done by the crew to help these actors look just the real people they’re portraying is nothing short of amazing. Here are the best film portrayals of real-life people and how much these A-list actors earned to play these monumental roles. Were these the right choices and did they look the part? You decide.

Walk the Line (2005)

Based On the Life of: Johnny Cash

Starring: Joaquin Phoenix

Movie Budget: $28 million

Star Salary: $5 million

An Oscar-nominated drama, Walk the Line stars Reese Witherspoon and Joaquin Phoenix. Phoenix, of course, plays the Man in Black himself, Johnny Cash—legendary singer-songwriter and one of the most famous musicians of his time. The film chronicles many of the struggles Cash experienced and even wrote about them in his autobiographies, Man In Black and Cash: The Autobiography.

Fox purchased the rights to Johnny’s autobiographies as the basis for this movie, which made $187 million at the box office. In Walk the Line, we see the true story of Johnny Cash and his wife, June Carter (as played by Witherspoon), as well as his battle with addiction and alcoholism and how that affected their marriage.