A good actor can make you believe in pretty much anything — that they’re actually the chosen one destined to save the world from an evil magic overlord, or that they’ve managed to solve a decades-old mystery that the police can’t seem to get any leads on.
Or, that they’re mortal enemies with someone they’re actually friends with in real life . Like the actors in this list. Acting is an art, after all.
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Lena Headey and Peter Dinklage in Game of Thrones.
Despite portraying siblings in the series, Cersei Lannister has nothing but hatred toward Tyrion, whom she resents for the death of their mother, who died in childbirth with Tyrion. Their relationship is, in fact, the polar opposite of the one Cersei shares with her twin brother, Jaime.
Their bitter sibling rivalry runs deep within the series.
But in real life, they actually knew each other before starring as siblings. In fact, Dinklage is the one who recommended Headey for the role of Cersei. Talk about helping a sister out!
Hugh Jackman and Russell Crowe in Les Misérables.
The animosity between Jean Valjean, a convicted criminal, and Inspector Javert, the officer who’s spent the entirety of the story hunting him down, is pretty integral to the plot of Les Mis .
But unlike these characters, the actors who portrayed them in the 2012 adaptation had no bad blood.
Hugh Jackman once revealed that he and Russell Crowe are good friend s, and that he actually credits Crowe for helping him land some of his most notable roles.
Lupita Nyong’o and Michael B. Jordan in Black Panther.
Lupita Nyong’o plays one of Black Panther ‘s heroes, while Michael B. Jordan plays the movie’s main villain. Naturally, that means they’re on opposite sides, fighting against one another on screen.
In real life, that’s not the case at all.
In fact, they’ve actually been friends for a long time, and though there’s been speculation of the pair dating in the past, their relationship is much more platonic than that.
Ginnifer Goodwin and Lana Parrilla on Once Upon a Time.
One portrayed Snow White, while the other the Evil Queen. If that’s not enough to show these two characters were on opposite sides throughout the series, I don’t know what is.
But for them, the animosity was only on the show.
In real life, they’re much nicer to one another. Parilla even took to Instagram once upon a time (pun intended) to congratulate Goodwin on her role in Zootopia .
Benedict Cumberbatch and Andrew Scott on BBC’s Sherlock.
Portraying classic rivals Sherlock and Moriarty, Cumberbatch and Scott had to act like they really hated one another. But that couldn’t be farther from the truth in real life, where the two are actually quite close.
In fact, the two of them have both portrayed a certain Danish prince at different times.
Each actor took the stage to act in Hamlet in different years. But don’t worry, there’s no rivalry between them there , like there is in Sherlock .
Camila Mendes, Lili Reinhart, and Madelaine Petsch on Riverdale.
The characters in Riverdale are sometimes friends, sometimes enemies, sometimes lovers, and sometimes family (?). Yeah, it can get pretty confusing. But just know that, for the most part, Betty and Veronica (played by Reinhart and Mendes) don’t see eye to eye with Cheryl (played by Petsch).
In real life, the three of them are very good friends.
The three of them bonded while going through breakups around the same time . I’m sure all the time they spend together on set helps them stay close, too.
Tom Cavanagh and Grant Gustin on The Flash.
Like pretty much every pairing in this list, Cavanagh and Gustin play opposing sides of the moral compass. And they do it pretty convincingly, too. That’s why it’s (almost) really hard to believe that they’re friends in real life.
But in actuality, they’re very close IRL.
Gustin even took to Instagram to talk about the time he burst into tears when he saw Cavanaugh on his wedding day. I’m sorry, but that’s one of the most adorable things I’ve heard all day.
Tom Holland and Jake Gyllenhaal in Spider-Man: Far From Home.
Tom Holland plays the titular Spider-Man who goes up against Gyllenhaal’s Mysterio in this 2019 movie. While the two play characters who don’t see eye to eye on screen, they’re quite close in real life.
In fact, their friendship really blossomed while filming.
The pair appeared in several interviews together while promoting the movie, and it just shows how close the two of them have become in real life. Acting, man.
