Lightning usually only strikes once in a family, as in if one sister is beautiful the other usually is not as attractive.
But this is not the case when it comes to Hollywood’s leading ladies. Often the sister is just as gorgeous as the A-lister is.
And they are brought onto the red carpet while in couture gowns to prove this point. Other times, they can be spied on the star’s Instagram page.
Think of Penelope Cruz and her doppelganger Monica Cruz – who has served as her stand in at times.
And then there is Cameron Diaz and her photogenic sister Chimene Cain.
And sometimes the star has a twin or look-alike who is in the business as well like the Olsen sisters or the Fanning ladies.
Here is a look at the ladies who looks the most alike.
Hint: some of these ladies have Hollywood ‘it’ woman Meryl Streep as a mom.
PENELOPE CRUZ AND MONICA CRUZ
Penelope Cruz has a younger her sister Monica who looks just like her.
Monica looks so much like Penelope, in fact, she stood in for the silver screen goddess during scenes for Pirates Of The Caribbean: On Stranger Tides in 2010.
In 2023, the 50-year-old Oscar-winning star talked about her 47-year-old sibling.
When asked whether she and Monica influenced each other’s styles, Penelope said: ‘Yes, a lot, to the point of, you know, taking a lot of clothes from each other’s closets.
‘Sometimes wearing exactly the same thing when we were little girls.’
Cruz then said that she and Monica would hide ‘in the bathroom together and sitting on the floor with magazines and drawing on top of the designs and changing the designs.’
Penelope Cruz (L) and Monica Cruz (R) attend La Reina de Espana premiere at Callao City Lights in 2016 in Madrid, Spain
Cruz has made rare comments in 2023 about her sister Monica who looks just like her. Seen in a Mango ad from 2008
Cruz – who used to date Tom Cruise – added, ‘So that was always our main game and a fantasy.’
Penelope and Monica have worked together often on collections.
They designed a collection of jewelry and handbags for Japanese fashion house Samantha Thavasa.
Cruz and her sister created two collections for Swiss retailer Charles Vögele in 2010 and 2011.
And the pair teamed up again 2013 to design a lingerie line titled L’Agent for British lingerie retailer Agent Provocateur.
CAMERON DIAZ AND CHIMENE CAIN
Cameron Diaz and her older sister Chimene Cain grew up near Long Beach in California.
The There’s Something About Mary star and her sibling look very much alike with the same wide, engaging smile.
Hollywood icon Diaz – who used to be a model before landing a role in The Mask – is taller, however.
But they have a similar build and hair color making them nearly twins.
Cameron Diaz and sister Chimene Cain attend the Third Annual GQ Men of the Year Awards in New York City in 1998
The Sex Tape actress, who’s married to Good Charlotte’s Benji Madden, told the New York Daily News, ‘Sisters have an incredibly strong bond… there’s nothing in the world like it.’ Seen on May 24 in Napa
The Sex Tape actress, who’s married to Good Charlotte’s Benji Madden, told the New York Daily News, ‘Sisters have an incredibly strong bond… there’s nothing in the world like it.’
Diaz said that her older sister used to play with her peers as Charlie’s Angels in the 1970s, according to People, but the older girls wouldn’t let her in on the fun.
‘I don’t think they even let me be Bosley,’ she joked.
MAMIE GUMMER AND GRACE RONSON
Meryl Streep’s daughter Mamie and Grace Gummer could pass for twins.
They have the same almond eyes and wide smile with almost matching light brown hair.
Mary Willa ‘Mamie’ Gummer is 40-year-old actress.
She starred in the title role of The CW series Emily Owens, M.D., and played the recurring role of Nancy Crozier on The Good Wife and its spin-off, The Good Fight.
Actresses Mamie and Grace Gummer attend the New York premiere of Far from the Madding Crowd at The Paris Theater, New York
Mom is Meryl Streep; seen at The Second Act screening on May 14 in Cannes, France
Mamie has also appeared in the films Evening, Side Effects and Cake. She was in Ricki And The Flash with her mom Meryl.
Grace Jane Ronson is a 38-year-old actress and married to musician Mark Ronson.
She received a Theatre World Award for her Broadway debut in the 2011 revival of Arcadia.
Her television work includes recurring roles in The Newsroom and American Horror Story: Freak Show, and regular roles in Extant and Mr. Robot.
ELLE FANNING AND DAKOTA FANNING
Dakota Fanning’s younger sister is Elle Fanning.
The two seem to be very close and were even seen with their arms around each other in March at Netflix’s Ripley NY Tastemaker event.
The 30-year-old Dakota wore a black dress with the 26-year-old Elle in a ruby red coat.
The two siblings showed off their striking resemblance as they posed side-by-side at the star-studded gathering.
Dakota Fanning’s younger sister Elle Fanning was by her side in March at Netflix’s Ripley NY Tastemaker event
The siblings in an Instagram photo from this year
Elle is best known for her role opposite Angelina Jolie in Maleficent. She has also made headlines for dating Gus Wenner.
Elle and the Rolling Stone CEO, 33, were first romantically linked last year following her split from Max Minghella after nearly four years of dating.
In 2017, Dakota told Marie Claire magazine that she when she was younger she did not have much of a ‘bond’ with Elle because of the age difference.
‘There are a few years where you’re both experiencing such different things; age nine and 13 – nothing in common; 12 and 16 – we didn’t know what to do with each other,’ she said. But they are much closer now, she said.
On Friday Dakota talked to E! News about Elle. ‘We have a very playful relationship, but we’re not competitive,’ Dakota said. ‘We were never competitive growing up.’
She and Elle ‘obviously have similarities,’ but they live different things: ‘We have really different personalities too, so I think that’s also helpful. We like different things.’
ZOOEY DESCHANEL AND EMILY DESCHANEL
Sisters Zooey Deschanel and Emily Deschanel are easy to mistake for each other.
They both have big careers.
Zooey is known for roles in Elf, 500 Days of Summer and New Girl. And Emily is most often associated with her role on the TV series Bones.
They have also worked together: they were in a joint episode of Bones in 2009.
Zooey Deschanel (L) and her sister actress Emily Deschanel (R) arrive for the world premiere of Disney’s The Lion King in Hollywood in 2019
‘It was really fun. Emily was extremely welcoming and accommodating and very sweet,’ Zooey told Channel Guide. ‘I was glad I did it.’
They have told Metro they are ‘different — but also the same,’ with ‘similarities from having grown up in the same household.’
‘You were a really good big sister,’ Zooey told Emily in a 2013 interview. ‘Very protective. Sometimes you were mean. But most of the time you were really nice.’
And she looked up to Emily: ‘You were very cool. I always thought you were very cool.’
Emily called her sibling ‘fearless.’ She told Women’s Health in 2007, ‘In seventh grade this kid didn’t invite Zooey to his bar mitzvah. And she went right up to him and shouted, “Why didn’t you invite me to your bar mitzvah?” I just love that… I would have called my mom crying.’
Their parents are Oscar-nominated cinematographer Caleb Deschanel and actress Mary Jo Deschanel.
KATE MARA AND ROONEY MARA
They look very much alike, but Kate and Rooney Mara have wildly different careers.
Kate, 41, is known for playing reporter Zoe Barnes in the political drama House of Cards and as the computer analyst Shari Rothenberg in the series 24.
She was also in American Horror Story: Murder House (2011), Pose (2018), and A Teacher (2020).
Her films include Random Hearts (1999), Brokeback Mountain (2005), We Are Marshall (2006), Shooter (2007), The Open Road (2009), The Martian (2015), Fantastic Four (2015), and Chappaquiddick (2018), among others.
They look very much alike, but Kate and Rooney Mara have wildly different careers. Seen in 2019 in Hollywood
Rooney, 39, began her career acting with Tanner Hall (2009) but she first gained recognition for The Social Network (2010).
Her big hit was 2011’s The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo.
Next came Side Effects (2013), Her (2013), and Carol (2015).
She won raves when she portrayed Mary Magdalene in the biblical drama Mary Magdalene (2018). Next came Nightmare Alley (2021) and the drama Women Talking (2022).
Both are with other celebrities. Rooney has a child with Gladiator star Joaquin Phoenix. And Kate has a baby with Jamie Bell; they wed in July 2017 and now split their time between Los Angeles and New York.
JESSICA SIMPSON AND ASHLEE SIMPSON
Both sisters came to fame in the 00s with the help of their father Joe Simpson.
Jessica Simpson, 43, made it first as a singer in the vein of Britney Spears as she came out with hit songs like A Public Affair.
When her reality TV series with husband Nick Lachey took off, she became a household name.
The siren became a Hollywood pinup too with such movies as Dukes of Hazzard.
Jessica and Ashlee came to fame in the 00s with the help of their father Joe Simpson. Seen in February
And then she surprised the world by starting up a clothing line that turned into a smash success worth $1B.
Ashlee, 39, was a singer and actress who had a child with Pete Wentz before becoming an influencer when settling down with Evan Ross with whom she has two kids.
They used to look more alike when they were both blondes, but now that Ashlee wears her hair dark, they more like cousins than sisters.
TIA MOWRY AND TAMARA MOWRY
Tia and Tamara Mowry are twin sisters so it’s no wonder they look alike.
The 45-year-old actresses also came to fame together as the Landry siblings on the show Sister, Sister which aired from 1994 until 1999.
The sisters then starred together in the fantasy comedy film Seventeen Again (2000) and voiced the LaBelle sisters in the animated series Detention (1999–2000).
The two also starred in the Disney Channel Original Movie Twitches (2005) and its sequel, Twitches Too (2007).
Tia and Tamara Mowry are twin sisters so it’s no wonder they look alike. The 45-year-old actresses also came to fame together as the Landry siblings on the show Sister, Sister which aired from 1994 until 1999.
Mowry and Tamera also tried a singing career. They created the band the Voices in the 1990s. Their first single was Yeah, Yeah, Yeah! in 1992.
They were featured in the reality series Tia & Tamera from 2011 to 2013.
Tia was also a voice on the animated series Bratz (2005–2006).
She starred on The Game (2006–2015), Instant Mom (2013–2015) and Family Reunion (2019–2022).
Tamara was recently in Haunted Harmony Mysteries: Murder in G Major.
MICHELLE PFEIFFER AND DEDEE PFEIFFER
Michelle Pfeiffer, 65, has a younger sister named Dedee Pfeiffer, 60, who also acts.
The Scarface actress often shared photos with Dedee on Instagram
Dedee is best known for her work in several horror films. She began her career appearing in films include Vamp, The Allnighter and The Horror Show.
Pfeiffer later starred as Cybill’s daughter, Rachel, in the CBS sitcom Cybill and as Sheri DeCarlo-Winston in the sitcom For Your Love.
Michelle Pfeiffer, 65, and sister Dedee, 60, in Santa Monica in 2012
Pfeiffer with her seldom seen sister Lori Ann Pfeiffer, 58
Their other sister Lori has done some Hollywood work, too. She was a production assistant on Into the Night.
The beauty also acted in three films: The Adventures of Ford Fairlane with Ed O’Neil, The Sky Is Falling starring Teri Garr, and the 2014 short Less.
Michelle is a prolific performer whose screen career spans over five decades. Michelle became one of Hollywood’s most bankable stars during the 1980s and 1990s, as well as one of the era’s most popular sex symbols.
Pfeiffer has received three Academy Award nominations to date: Best Supporting Actress for Dangerous Liaisons (1988), and Best Actress in The Fabulous Baker Boys (1989) and Love Field (1992). One of her first big films was Grease 2 but she made her boldest impression with Al Pacino in Scarface in 1983.
Pfeiffer also played the world’s favorite big screen Catwoman with 1992’s film Batman Returns. She worked with Angelina Jolie in Maleficent 2.