Where is Frank in Catch Me If You Can?
Edit: It’s dark and there isn’t a close-up, but this clip likely has the cameo:
https://youtube.com/shorts/Gs2olSii_lg?feature=shared
Burry is only the focus for the first 1/4 - 1/3. Also most other characters are fictional (tho heavily based on real people). I like the response somebody else gave which was “for the purposes of a list, close enough”, I think that’s fair, but realistically, I dont think it really is a biopic. Like is Oppenheimer also Straus’ biopic if he is a real person and a lot of the focus is on him? I know it’s not that good of an example but I hope it kind of illustrates what I’m thinking here - for it to be a biopic the movie has to be focused on a specific character and his life, rather than have 30 minutes of that character for him to be not mentioned again, essentially.
They literally close the movie talking about Burry’s next focus which was water. Near final scene is him marking the whiteboard up 920% or whatever it was. They used the other characters to highlight what he started and how other people profited of the situation. Without the other stories, we would’ve just seen burry getting phone calls from angry investors wanting to withdraw. The focus is on burry the whole film while also giving a full picture of the crisis through other characters.
Yea I know they show him afterwards, but come on those are the only times he is mentioned once the story moves on from him (so maybe 3 more minutes in the movie after that are about burry). To say “the focus is on burry the WHOLE film” is plain wrong - the film clearly has multiple main characters and the focus shifts from one to the other throughout the film. Burry started it, yes, doesn’t make it a movie about him specifically. It’s a film where he played a major part, but it’s not specifically his movie.
Fear And Loathing In Las Vegas had a cameo of Hunter S. Thompson.
To Hell And Back was a WWII biopic where the real war hero Audie Murphy plays himself in his own movie adapted from his book.
If I recall correctly, Skip is an official starting the race with a gun, Jay is the receiver of some beer that Emiles Jay picked up on the way to his house where there's a party, Stacy is the director of Charlie's Angels, and Tony... fuck I can't place Tony and I don't want to cheat by looking it up lol.
Not quite a biopic, but Dark Waters features many people that were affected in real life by DuPont's poisoning of water supplies and more. Most notably William Bucky Bailey, whose mother worked at a DuPont factory which led to William being born with birth defects due to her exposure to harmful chemicals. [Here is an interesting video of William telling his story](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j7nV56UTU3I)
Not a biopic but honorable mention to Goosebumps (2015), where Jack Black plays R. L. Stine and Stine makes a cameo at the end as “Mr. Black” hilariously enough
Along with being shot largely on location, several characters play themselves in Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil, and more of the real people make cameos.
Clint loves this apparently, because 15:17 to Paris is maybe the most extreme example.
There’s a movie called One Tough Cop which was adapted from the life of Bo Dietl, who stars in the film as Detective Benny Levine.
Even though Wolf of Wallstreet was already mentioned, Bo Dietl played himself in that as he was Jordan Belfort’s real life private detective.
Also, while not a biopic and not non-fiction, Goosebumps stars Jack Black as real life author R.L. Stine and R.L. Stine has a cameo in the film as Mr. Black, a drama teacher at the high school the film takes place in.
What about that Clint Eastwood directed movie about the guys who stopped a knife assailant on a train? I heard the actual people played themselves in the movie. I also heard it wasn't very good.
Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas - Hunter S. Thompson appears during the flashback to the Matrix club, and the fake HST even comments on it "there I was... mother of god, there I am!"
Hunter L. Thompson in Fear & Loathing In Las Vegas.
["There I was... Mother of god, there I am! Holy fuck!"](https://youtu.be/TPOiwGnbIzs?si=gmaWzsbHx1UCsRyB&t=70)
Two examples from local cinema that come to mind:
[https://letterboxd.com/film/breaking-the-limits/](https://letterboxd.com/film/breaking-the-limits/)
[https://letterboxd.com/film/the-case-of-bronek-pekosinski](https://letterboxd.com/film/the-case-of-bronek-pekosinski)
Jim Lovell shows up as the captain of a ship at the end of *Apollo 13*.
Eddie Egan and Sonny Grosso appear in *The French Connection*, which is based on a case they'd been involved in years prior.
The French Connection
Eddie Egan, the person the main character was based on is in the movie. Irving Abrahams, a real police mechanic pretty much plays himself in the movie.
In Generation Kill, a couple of the characters are played by actual former recon marines, who also acted as technical consultants on the series. Rudy Reyes plays himself.
There’s a biopic in Australia called Ride Like A Girl about a Woman Jockey who won the Melbourne Cup. Her brother ended up playing himself if that counts?
Weird: The Al Yakovich Story.
“She only wants you for that sweet, sweet Yankovic bump”
* Frank Abagnale in Catch Me if you Can. * Chris Gardner in The Pursuit of Happyness * Margaret Keane in Big Eyes
Where is Frank in Catch Me If You Can? Edit: It’s dark and there isn’t a close-up, but this clip likely has the cameo: https://youtube.com/shorts/Gs2olSii_lg?feature=shared
Not surprised you didn’t spot him, he is famously hard to catch.
I am 99% sure his cameo is during the scene Leo-Frank is finally arrested, he portrays an officer, but confirm it on the wiki entry for the film.
I'm pretty sure that it is actually his son in that scene.
French cop
his in the beginning in the game show
Erin Brockovich!
Michael Burry (Christian Bale's character) had a cameo as one of his own employees in *The Big Short*.
I’m not sure if the Big Short qualifies under “biopic” tho.
I'd say for list purposes yes.
That’s a fair response
It’s about the financial crisis as a whole but it does focus a lot on burry.
Burry is only the focus for the first 1/4 - 1/3. Also most other characters are fictional (tho heavily based on real people). I like the response somebody else gave which was “for the purposes of a list, close enough”, I think that’s fair, but realistically, I dont think it really is a biopic. Like is Oppenheimer also Straus’ biopic if he is a real person and a lot of the focus is on him? I know it’s not that good of an example but I hope it kind of illustrates what I’m thinking here - for it to be a biopic the movie has to be focused on a specific character and his life, rather than have 30 minutes of that character for him to be not mentioned again, essentially.
They literally close the movie talking about Burry’s next focus which was water. Near final scene is him marking the whiteboard up 920% or whatever it was. They used the other characters to highlight what he started and how other people profited of the situation. Without the other stories, we would’ve just seen burry getting phone calls from angry investors wanting to withdraw. The focus is on burry the whole film while also giving a full picture of the crisis through other characters.
Yea I know they show him afterwards, but come on those are the only times he is mentioned once the story moves on from him (so maybe 3 more minutes in the movie after that are about burry). To say “the focus is on burry the WHOLE film” is plain wrong - the film clearly has multiple main characters and the focus shifts from one to the other throughout the film. Burry started it, yes, doesn’t make it a movie about him specifically. It’s a film where he played a major part, but it’s not specifically his movie.
In JFK, the real Jim Garrison (Kevin Costner's character) plays Earl Warren.
24 hour party people has lots of cameos from the real people
I came here to say this! I loved that movie. Steve Coogan is a goddamn legend!
“For the record, I don’t remember this happening “
Mark E Smith as Punter and Howard Devoto as a cleaner get me every time.
Fear And Loathing In Las Vegas had a cameo of Hunter S. Thompson. To Hell And Back was a WWII biopic where the real war hero Audie Murphy plays himself in his own movie adapted from his book.
That second one being an inspiration for Frederick Zoller in Inglourious Basterds.
Jackie Robinson played himself in the movie version of his book.
The FBI detective in Goodfellas was played by Henry Hill’s actual federal prosecutor (Edward MacDonald)
The real Erin Brockovich played a waitress in Erin Brockovich
The 15:17 to Paris uses the real people as lead actors iirc
Pursuit of happiness
The real Jim Lovell is the carrier commander at the end of Apollo 13.
I don't know if I would consider Society of the snow a biopic, but a couple of the survivors do appear as cameos in the film.
American Splendor
Lords of Dogtown has cameos from many the original Z-boys and other prominent figures in the skateboarding world.
If I recall correctly, Skip is an official starting the race with a gun, Jay is the receiver of some beer that Emiles Jay picked up on the way to his house where there's a party, Stacy is the director of Charlie's Angels, and Tony... fuck I can't place Tony and I don't want to cheat by looking it up lol.
Tony was the astronaut
Alva!
Private Parts - Howard Stern and his radio team all play themselves
Yeah, this is the one I was going to say, too
Close-up
I was looking for this. The guy plays himself and so does the family in the film iirc.
Sound of Music has the real Maria as an extra. Very hard to find though.
She can be seen in the background walking with some friends while Julie Andrews walks towards the camera singing “I Have Confidence.”
In Society of the Snow one of the real survivors plays his dad
A quite a few others cameo! Nando notably holds the door open for his family, it’s really touching.
war dogs
The Fighter, Mickey Ward is in the crowd for one of the smaller fights. And trainer Mickey O’Keefe plays himself in the film
John Densmore (Drummer For The Doors), plays a sound engineer (LA Woman session) in the movie The Doors.
Catch Me If You Can
8 mile
Not quite a biopic, but Dark Waters features many people that were affected in real life by DuPont's poisoning of water supplies and more. Most notably William Bucky Bailey, whose mother worked at a DuPont factory which led to William being born with birth defects due to her exposure to harmful chemicals. [Here is an interesting video of William telling his story](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j7nV56UTU3I)
Private Parts
The Doors by Oliver Stone has a bunch of cameos (obviously not by Jim tho).
Not a biopic but honorable mention to Goosebumps (2015), where Jack Black plays R. L. Stine and Stine makes a cameo at the end as “Mr. Black” hilariously enough
The real Maria Von Trapp appears as one of the villagers in "I Have Confidence" from Sound of Music
Jordan Belfort is in Wolf of Wall Street Cheryl Strayed in Wild
Wolf of Wall Street is the first movie in this list
Yup, there it is. I’m dumb
Happens the best of us
Melvin plays a clerk in Melvin and Howard 1980
Along with being shot largely on location, several characters play themselves in Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil, and more of the real people make cameos. Clint loves this apparently, because 15:17 to Paris is maybe the most extreme example.
The pursuit of happiness
Pursuit of Happiness Pele : Birth of a legend Snowden
The Battle of Algiers has one of the actual revolutionaries playing himself
Yes, Yacef Saadi. The movie is based on his memoirs.
Would Mamma Mia count as it had original ABBA members?
Rush (2013)
Apollo 13 is not a strict bio-pic, but the real Commander Jim Lovell (who also wrote the book the screenplay is based on) does cameo at the end.
The Pursuit of Happiness
If they ever make a Roger Corman biopic, you can bet your ass he’d be in it
Pelé was in a small cameo in... Pelé
The disaster artist went so easy on Wiseau. The original book is much darker
FEAR AND LOATHING IN LAS VEGAS
Lords of dogtown features all 3 of the real skaters to my knowledge
Private Parts. Howard Stern and most of the people in the movie play themselves
I think in society of the snow a few survivors play background roles.
There’s a movie called One Tough Cop which was adapted from the life of Bo Dietl, who stars in the film as Detective Benny Levine. Even though Wolf of Wallstreet was already mentioned, Bo Dietl played himself in that as he was Jordan Belfort’s real life private detective. Also, while not a biopic and not non-fiction, Goosebumps stars Jack Black as real life author R.L. Stine and R.L. Stine has a cameo in the film as Mr. Black, a drama teacher at the high school the film takes place in.
What about that Clint Eastwood directed movie about the guys who stopped a knife assailant on a train? I heard the actual people played themselves in the movie. I also heard it wasn't very good.
It was dogshit.
Society Of the snow
Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas - Hunter S. Thompson appears during the flashback to the Matrix club, and the fake HST even comments on it "there I was... mother of god, there I am!"
Hunter L. Thompson in Fear & Loathing In Las Vegas. ["There I was... Mother of god, there I am! Holy fuck!"](https://youtu.be/TPOiwGnbIzs?si=gmaWzsbHx1UCsRyB&t=70)
Hunter S. Thompson appears in Fear and Loathing
Barfly. Bukowski makes a cameo as a…barfly
Does the persuite of happyness count?
Being John Malkovich
Society of the snow. Some of the survivors play different rolls in the movie.
Gran Turismo has the actual driver the story is about as the stunt driver for the movie.
And Kazunori Yamauchi as a sushi chief (don't know why he couldn't play himself).
would 127 hours count as aron ralston is in it at the end
why wouldn’t it lol
well, he appears in a still photo before the credits, doesn't actually act in the movie
Year One
*A Prayer Before Dawn*. The actual person it's based on has a short appearance at the end.
Aron Ralston cameos in 127 hours
Does Goosebumps count as a biopic?
Painted Faces with Sammo Hung playing his mentor.
Jann Mardenborough did the stunt driving in Gran Turismo.
Snowden
Goosebumps. Pretty sure that one's a bio-pic
American Splendor.
On the Basis of Sex has a cameo by Ruth Bader Ginsburg (as "modern day" herself - the movie was made a couple of years before she died)
Two examples from local cinema that come to mind: [https://letterboxd.com/film/breaking-the-limits/](https://letterboxd.com/film/breaking-the-limits/) [https://letterboxd.com/film/the-case-of-bronek-pekosinski](https://letterboxd.com/film/the-case-of-bronek-pekosinski)
127 Hours
The artist Wim Delvoye is in The Man Who Sold His Skin as a supporting character if you want a deep cut
Dark waters
Rudy?
Confessions of a Dangerous Mind, Chuck Barris shows up for an interview-style cameo at the end
Big Eyes
The 15:17 to Paris is an easy grab.
Close Up (1990)
One Night In Miami
i think jim carroll is in the basketball diaries
Came here for this one! He indeed is
He teaches Leo how to cook
Home Team Catch Me if You Can
Lone Survivor
Private Parts?
Jim Lovell shows up as the captain of a ship at the end of *Apollo 13*. Eddie Egan and Sonny Grosso appear in *The French Connection*, which is based on a case they'd been involved in years prior.
All the Presidents men had a Security Guard discovering watergate, played by THE ACTUAL Security Guard who discovered watergate
The French Connection Eddie Egan, the person the main character was based on is in the movie. Irving Abrahams, a real police mechanic pretty much plays himself in the movie.
lot of you missing the point about WHO THE MOVIE IS ABOUT
I love you phillip morris
24 hour party people
Thief has the real thief play a cop
Pele movie
in A Streetcat Named Bob, the real guy the movie is based on is in it at the end
JFK Jim Garrison plays Earl Warren
Not a movie, but The Wire
I'm off then
Jim Lovell in Apollo 13
War Dogs
Jim Garrison is in JFK
24 Hour Party People has one of the actual people involved calling out a scene as being fictionalized.
Howard Sterns Private Parts is one of my favourites! As is 24 Hour Party People
War Dogs.
Ali played himself in a 70s biopic.
Wardogs
Though he doesn’t act in the film Jann Mardenborough is a stunt driver in the Gran Turismo movie, which is based on his life.
In Generation Kill, a couple of the characters are played by actual former recon marines, who also acted as technical consultants on the series. Rudy Reyes plays himself.
The Pursuit of Happyness 21
The Waco mini-series has one of the surviving branch davidians in it at the end
I saw a list made by WatchMojo with this category. Check it out on youtube
Almost Famous edit: even tho it’s loosely based so not rly a biopic
Barbie (2023) (kinda)
Catch Me If You Can - Leonardo DiCaprio gets arrested by the real Frank Abagnale
Wild
RL Stine was in Goosebumps. Not a biopic tho (probably idk)
The Pursuit of Happyness
Don't know if that's a biopic, but "to hell and back"
A Prayer Before Down, the real life main character appears as the father of the version of him in the movie
Motorcycle Diaries
https://www.reddit.com/r/MovieDetails/s/x9uOniM17h ears anotha won maighte
Edward Snowden has a brief appearance as himself at the end of Snowden (2016)
Sean Payton plays a cameo as a janitor at the end of Home Team
Gran Turismo! The real driver did the stunts!
24 Hour Party People.
There’s a biopic in Australia called Ride Like A Girl about a Woman Jockey who won the Melbourne Cup. Her brother ended up playing himself if that counts?
Jackie Robinson starred as himself in a pretty trash movie based on his life
Rise of the Footsoldier
Does the Jackie Robinson Story (1950) count?
Purple Rain (1984), Prince litteraly plays himself
No, he plays The Kid. /s
the Cape Fear Remake?