Most movies and TV shows alike prefer to create new, original characters. However, some work with previously established characters that have their origin in another form of media, be it a comic book, a novel, or a different movie or a TV show. As a result, the most popular characters seem to be everlasting as they appear in new movies and TV shows over and over again.
That means that multiple actors get to play them. It's always interesting for the viewers to compare their favorite version of a certain character with its onscreen predecessor. And while determining who did it better isn't always easy, it makes for a fun side activity.
5 Kristy Swanson And Sarah Michelle Gellar: Buffy Summers
Some ideas and stories work better in the form of a TV series than they do in the movies. Buffy the Vampire Slayer is one of the most obvious examples. When the original movie premiered in 1992, it didn't do so well with the audience and got mostly negative critical reviews (it has only 36 percent on Rotten Tomatoes). However, the idea stuck, and five years later, the first season of the series Buffy the Vampire Slayer started airing.
The character was initially portrayed by Kristy Swanson but Sarah Michelle Gellar took on the role in the show. To this day, Gellar's Buffy remains one of the most prominent action heroines. The show became an icon and ran for seven seasons in total while the movie is mostly forgotten nowadays. And whenever somebody mentions Buffy Summers, most viewers recall Gellar's face in the role.
4 Keanu Reeves And Matt Ryan: John Constantine
The world's favorite comic book exorcist always didn't have it easy on the big screen. The 2005 movie starring Keanu Reeves did well, and the thoughts of a sequel keep circling around. However, some comic book fans weren't happy about the fact that the movie took creative liberties with Constantine's portrayal. Matt Ryan who got his solo show as Constantine in 2014 was closer to the comic book version.
Despite the intriguing main character, the show was canceled after just one season. Fortunately for this version of Constantine and his fans, Ryan reprised the role in multiple Arrowverse shows, initially in Arrow and later in Legends of Tomorrow where he went on to become one of the main cast members in seasons four to six. Both portrayals of Constantine have a lot to offer to the audience so, in the end, it's up to their preferences whether they like Reeves' or Ryan's version better.
3 Grant Gustin And Ezra Miller: The Flash
Prominent superhero characters can have up to dozens of portrayals over the years, so it doesn't come across as a surprise when different actors play them in movies and in TV shows. Even though Barry Allen aka the Flash has yet to achieve the same level of movie and TV popularity as the likes of Batman, two prominent actors played the character in recent years. First, Grant Gustin took on the role in The Flash and will be portraying the role for nine seasons in total. As such, Gustin had much more time to dive deep into the characterization of his hero and the fans had a lot of time to get to like him.
The same can't be said for Ezra Miller's the Flash who was a member of an ensemble in both versions of Justice League and initially served primarily as a comic relief in the 2017 Justice League. The fans who campaigned for Gustin to be cast in the DCEU were disappointed. The good news is that unlike other characters portrayed by different actors, Gustin's Barry and Miller's Barry actually got to meet! It happened in the Arrowverse crossover Crisis on Infinite Earths and was one of the most memorable moments of the TV event.
2 Rober Downey Jr. And Benedict Cumberbatch: Sherlock Holmes
Only a year after appearing as Iron Man for the first time, Robert Downey Jr. played another iconic character, the brilliant detective Sherlock Holmes alongside Jude Law's Doctor John Watson. A year later, Benedict Cumberbatch took on the role in the modernized BBC show Sherlock with Martin Freeman as Watson. As luck would have it, all four actors would play parts in the MCU sooner or later. Most notably, Cumberbatch became Doctor Strange and even met Downey Jr.'s Tony Stark.
While the setting of the two Sherlock Holmes movies and the show are different, what remains similar is the character of the main hero. Sherlock Holmes is still brilliant, arrogant at times, and goes on memorable adventures when he's solving crimes. It's unclear whether the movies will get a sequel, and the BBC show is unlikely to return anytime soon, if at all, but that doesn't change the fact that both Downey Jr. and Cumberbatch were excellent in their roles.
1 Christina Ricci And Jenna Ortega: Wednesday Addams
Wednesday Addams is an iconic character that has been around for decades. Christina Ricci popularized Wednesday, even more, when she portrayed the part in two movies in the 1990s. This year, Netflix scored another hit thanks to the release of the TV show Wednesday in which Jenna Ortega took on the titular role. The two actresses got to meet in the show as Ricci played another part in it, Wednesday's teacher Marylin Thornhill.
As such, Wednesday Addams fans got to see an interaction between the former and the current Wednesday, getting twice as much of their favorite character. With the continued popularity of the Addams family movies and the TV show becoming a hit, it's clear that Wednesday isn't going anywhere.