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If you're an actor, you have to be willing to do whatever it takes to transform into the character you're playing. And sometimes that means wearing prosthetics that require hours of application for a totally different look. So, big kudos to the talented special FX artists who pour their blood, sweat, and tears into this painstaking process. Here are the famous men and women who completely changed their appearance for these TV and movie roles vs. what they actually look like: Ems-forster-productions / Getty Images To start, Charlize Theron as Aileen Wuornos in Monster: © Newmarket Releasing / Courtesy Everett Collection Powered By "I think I've tried most of my career to transform myself into characters," she said. "This was just more extreme." Here's what Charlize Theron looks like in real life: Stephane Cardinale - Corbis / Corbis via Getty Images And here's a side-by-side comparison: © Newmarket Releasing / Courtesy Everett Collection, Stephane Cardinale - Corbis / Corbis via Getty Images Jim Carrey as the Grinch in How the Grinch Stole Christmas: © Universal / Courtesy Everett Collection Powered By "The makeup was like being buried alive every day," he said. To survive the makeup process, a man who trains CIA operatives to endure torture was hired to train the actor. Here's what Jim Carrey looks like in real life: Steve Granitz / FilmMagic / Getty Images And here's a side-by-side comparison: © Universal / Courtesy Everett Collection, Steve Granitz / FilmMagic / Getty Images Jamie Campbell Bower as Vecna in Stranger Things: © Netflix / Courtesy Everett Collection Powered By Stranger Things Season 4 prosthetics designer Barrie Grower gave a behind-the-scenes look into the creation of Vecna. "Rather than having a rubber monster suit, we were designing it as a jigsaw puzzle," he said. "[This] gives us a lot more fluid sort of movements. We don't have much buckling; we really have a skintight look." Here's what Jamie Campbell Bower looks like in real life: Mike Coppola / Getty Images And here's a side-by-side comparison: © Netflix / Courtesy Everett Collection, Mike Coppola / Getty Images Colin Farrell as Penguin in The Penguin: Macall Polay / HBO Powered By Colin was in the makeup chair for three hours each day, according to prosthetic makeup designer Mike Marino. "I have to express what I feel through the design," the artist said. "I put a big scar across his face. I gave him this very specific long nose that resembled a beak from the side." Here's what Colin Farrell looks like in real life: Joshua Sammer / Getty Images for ZFF And here's a side-by-side comparison: Macall Polay / HBO, Joshua Sammer / Getty Images for ZFF Walton Goggins as Ghoul in Fallout: © Amazon / Courtesy Everett Collection Powered By It took about two hours and 15 minutes to transform into the Ghoul, according to the actor. "The first requirement was to put on a bald cap," he said. "I like my hair, so that was a bit shocking the first time I did it." Here's what Walton Goggins looks like in real life: Michael Buckner / Variety via Getty Images And here's a side-by-side comparison: © Amazon / Courtesy Everett Collection, Michael Buckner / Variety via Getty Images Lily James as Pamela Anderson in Pam & Tommy: Erin Simkin / © Hulu / Courtesy Everett Collection Powered By Special-effects makeup designer Jason Collins spoke about working on Pam & Tommy alongside makeup department head David Williams. "The challenge is always daunting when you're tasked to turn an actor into an iconic persona," he said. Here's what Lily James looks like in real life: Neil Mockford / WireImage / Getty Images And here's a side-by-side comparison: Erin Simkin / © Hulu / Courtesy Everett Collection, Neil Mockford / WireImage / Getty Images Angelina Jolie as Maleficent in Maleficent: Frank Connor / © Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures / Courtesy Everett Collection Powered By You can watch her transform into the Disney villain here. Here's what Angelina Jolie looks like in real life: JB Lacroix / WireImage / Getty Images And here's a side-by-side comparison: Frank Connor / © Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures / Courtesy Everett Collection, JB Lacroix / WireImage / Getty Images Anjelica Huston as the Grand High Witch in The Witches: © Warner Bros. / Courtesy Everett Collection Powered By "The makeup on The Witches was tough," she said. "It was about six to seven hours of makeup, and it took about five to take it off." Here's what Anjelica Huston looks like in real life: Maya Dehlin Spach / WireImage / Getty Images And here's a side-by-side comparison: © Warner Bros. / Courtesy Everett Collection, Maya Dehlin Spach / WireImage / Getty Images Bill Skarsgård as Pennywise in It: Brooke Palmer / © Warner Bros. / Courtesy Everett Collection Powered By While the actor wore makeup and prosthetics for the sinister role, he was able to make Pennywise's menacing grin come to life with his natural ability to droop his lip. Here's what Bill Skarsgård looks like in real life: Gerald Matzka / Getty Images And here's a side-by-side comparison: Brooke Palmer / © Warner Bros. / Courtesy Everett Collection, Gerald Matzka / Getty Images Jared Leto as Paolo Gucci in House of Gucci: Fabio Lovino / © MGM / Courtesy Everett Collection Powered By The movie's prosthetics designer Göran Lundström, only had three weeks to prepare, and worked off a 3D scan before he ever met the actor. Here's what Jared Leto looks like in real life: Tristar Media / WireImage / Getty Images And here's a side-by-side comparison: Fabio Lovino / © MGM / Courtesy Everett Collection, Tristar Media / WireImage / Getty Images Warwick Davis as Griphook in Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone: © Warner Bros. / Courtesy Everett Collection Powered By You can watch him transform into the Harry Potter character here. Here's what Warwick Davis looks like in real life: Pascal Le Segretain / Getty Images And here's a side-by-side comparison: © Warner Bros. / Courtesy Everett Collection, Pascal Le Segretain / Getty Images Glen Powell as Russ Holliday/Chad Powers in Chad Powers: Daniel Delgado Jr. / © Hulu / Disney / Courtesy Everett Collection Powered By The actor overheated and blacked out while filming a football scene on the show. "I'm wearing a helmet and a wig and the mask," he said. "And I'm running this football play over and over and over." Here's what Glen Powell looks like in real life: Gilbert Flores / Variety via Getty Images And here's a side-by-side comparison: Daniel Delgado Jr. / © Hulu / Disney / Courtesy Everett Collection, Gilbert Flores / Variety via Getty Images Helena Bonham Carter as The Red Queen in Alice in Wonderland: © Walt Disney Co. / Courtesy Everett Collection Powered By You can watch her transform into the Disney villain here. Here's what Helena Bonham Carter looks like in real life: Joe Maher / Getty Images And here's a side-by-side comparison: © Walt Disney Co. / Courtesy Everett Collection, Joe Maher / Getty Images Doug Jones as Pale Man in Pan's Labyrinth: © Picturehouse / Courtesy Everett Collection Powered By This was one of many transformations the actor underwent while working with director Guillermo del Toro, including Hellboy and Hellboy II: The Golden Army. Here's what Doug Jones looks like in real life: Paul Archuleta / Getty Images And here's a side-by-side comparison: © Picturehouse / Courtesy Everett Collection, Paul Archuleta / Getty Images David Harbour as Hellboy in Hellboy: © Summit Entertainment / Courtesy Everett Collection Powered By To bring the look to life, the actor was required to sit in the makeup chair for over three hours a day. Here's what David Harbour looks like in real life: Jamie McCarthy / Getty Images for Tribeca Festival And here's a side-by-side comparison: © Summit Entertainment / Courtesy Everett Collection, Jamie McCarthy / Getty Images for Tribeca Festival Brendan Fraser as Charlie in The Whale: © A24 / Courtesy Everett Collection Powered By It took up to six hours a day to apply nearly 300 pounds of prosthetics to the actor. Here's what Brendan Fraser looks like in real life: Leon Bennett / Getty Images for Searchlight Pictures And here's a side-by-side comparison: © A24 / Courtesy Everett Collection, Leon Bennett / Getty Images for Searchlight Pictures Stellan Skarsgård as Baron Vladimir Harkonnen in Dune: Part Two: Niko Tavernise / © Warner Bros. / Courtesy Everett Collection Powered By The actor spent eight hours in the makeup chair for his transformation. "It was painful, but it was worth it," he said. "We wanted him to be so well defined as an image that he made an imprint on people just by showing up on the screen. And that imprint should last throughout the film without having him show up all the time." Here's what Stellan Skarsgård looks like in real life: Juan Naharro Gimenez / WireImage / Getty Images And here's a side-by-side comparison: Niko Tavernise / © Warner Bros. / Courtesy Everett Collection, Juan Naharro Gimenez / WireImage / Getty Images Eddie Murphy as Sherman Klump in Nutty Professor II: The Klumps: © Universal / Courtesy Everett Collection Powered By He portrayed multiple characters in the film, and the makeup was SO good that the director didn't realize the same actor was behind them all. Here's what Eddie Murphy looks like in real life: Kevin Winter / Getty Images And here's a side-by-side comparison: © Universal / Courtesy Everett Collection, Kevin Winter / Getty Images Naomi Grossman as Pepper in American Horror Story: Powered By Each day the actor was on set, she'd be in the makeup chair for up to three hours. "I wouldn't be Pepper without all those prosthetics," she said. "She's been so good to me, and she's such a joy to play." Here's what Naomi Grossman looks like in real life: Steve Granitz / FilmMagic / Getty Images And here's a side-by-side comparison: FX, Steve Granitz / FilmMagic / Getty Images Jessica Chastain as Tammy Faye Bakker in The Eyes of Tammy Faye: © Searchlight Pictures / Courtesy Everett Collection Powered By Three stages of silicone prosthetics were used, and the whole process typically took four hours from start to finish. Here's what Jessica Chastain looks like in real life: Frazer Harrison / Getty Images And here's a side-by-side comparison: Frazer Harrison / Getty Images, © Searchlight Pictures / Courtesy Everett Collection Rebecca Romijn as Mystique in X2: © 20th Century Fox / Courtesy Everett Collection Powered By In the first X-Men, it took between eight and nine hours for her to get into costume. As the franchise continued, the timing shortened a bit, but it was still lengthy overall. Here's what Rebecca Romijn looks like in real life: Katie Jones / Variety via Getty Images And here's a side-by-side comparison: © 20th Century Fox / Courtesy Everett Collection, Katie Jones / Variety via Getty Images Margot Robbie as Queen Elizabeth I in Mary Queen of Scots: Liam Daniel / © Focus Features / Courtesy Everett Collection Powered By The film's hair and makeup designer, Jenny Shircore, spoke about how crucial it was to feature the queen's smallpox scars. "I had [Margot Robbie] wear fake scars I made using prosthetics all the time on set," she said. "Whether she would be wearing heavy makeup or not in a scene, it was important for her scars to always be there." Here's what Margot Robbie looks like in real life: Samir Hussein / WireImage / Getty Images And here's a side-by-side comparison: Liam Daniel / © Focus Features / Courtesy Everett Collection, Samir Hussein / WireImage / Getty Images Robert Englund as Freddy Krueger in A Nightmare on Elm Street: © New Line Cinema / Courtesy Everett Collection Powered By His makeup was so convincing that he frightened himself when he looked in the mirror. "It seared itself into my brain — that image," he said. "I've scared myself." Here's what Robert Englund looks like in real life: Tristar Media / Getty Images And here's a side-by-side comparison: © New Line Cinema / Courtesy Everett Collection, Tristar Media / Getty Images Finally, Robin Williams as Daniel Hillard/Mrs. Doubtfire in Mrs. Doubtfire: © 20th Century Fox / Courtesy Everett Collection Powered By A full-body suit, a mask that was painted daily, and multiple prosthetics were used during the actor's four-and-a-half hour makeup process. Here's what Robin Williams looked before he passed away in 2014: Vera Anderson / WireImage / Getty Images And here's a side-by-side comparison: © 20th Century Fox / Courtesy Everett Collection, Vera Anderson / WireImage / Getty Images Which actor had the best transformation? Share your thoughts in the comments!
