12+ Stars Who Left Us Speechless by Playing the Opposite Gender

The magic of movies is in their ability to create a believable world out of the imaginary. To deliver a captivating performance, actors must master every detail of their character, from their physical appearance through makeup and prosthetics to their vocal inflections and body language. A handful of talented actors have even gone above and beyond by taking on the difficult task of portraying characters of a different gender, and some of them were able to accomplish a jaw-dropping performance.

1. Angelina Jolie in Salt

2. Michael J. Fox in Back to the Future Part II

3. Tilda Swinton in Suspiria

4. Meryl Streep in Angels in America

5. Mariah Carey in Obsessed

6. Martin Lawrence in Big Momma’s House

7. John Travolta in Hairspray

8. Patrick Swayze in To Wong Foo, Thanks for Everything!

9. Jeffrey Tambor in Transparent

10. Gwyneth Paltrow in Shakespeare In Love

11. Hugo Weaving in Cloud Atlas

12. Cillian Murphy in Breakfast On Pluto

13. Amanda Bynes in She’s the Man

Some actors excel in roles that are very far from who they are. And these talented stars were given characters who were too young or too old for them, and they portrayed them in a perfect way.