20 Brilliant Sci-Fi & Fantasy Films Where Actors Play Opposite Themselves

Tech sci-fi flick Tron: Legacy was divisive upon release, with some fans of the original feeling it did the property justice and bumped it into a new era, and others feeling the human characters and story were dwarfed by the spectacular visuals. Nevertheless, its next-level soundtrack from Daft Punk has kept the film culturally salient, and the backlash against the Jared Leto-starring Tron: Ares last year has prompted a reappraisal and greater appreciation of Legacy.

Tron: Legacy sends Sam Flynn (Garrett Hedlund) onto the Grid in search of his missing father, former ENCOM CEO and creator of the popular arcade game Tron, Kevin Flynn (Jeff Bridges). But it’s not a simple snatch and grab, as CLU (Codified Likeness Utility), an advanced version of Flynn's original computer-hacking program, and his physical duplicate, is waiting to foil their plans and escape into the real world.

Among the film’s many innovations is its use of de-ageing technology to pit Flynn against his younger likeness, CLU. So that Bridges could act opposite himself, he shot his take as Clu with motion capture and facial tracking, and then body double John Reardon stepped in to take his place so that Bridges could play Flynn in the same scene.