History Creator / MaryKateAndAshleyOlsen

A little known fact about Mary-Kate and Ashley is that, biologically-speaking, they'rere technically fraternal twins and not identical twins--although they definitely look enough alike where they could pass for being identical twins. Mary-Kate and Ashley also have four other siblings outside of each other (two of whom are half-siblings from their dad's second marriage, as the twins' parents got divorced in 1995):

Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen (born June 13, 1986 in Sherman Oaks, California) are twin actresses who became famous for playing Michelle Tanner in ''Series/FullHouse''. They parlayed that fame into a highly lucrative series of straight-to-[[UsefulNotes/{{VCR}} VHS]] movies, leading them to become the top earning stars under the age of 21 from the early 90's to the mid 2000s. They stopped acting as a duo in 2004, after the financial disappointment of ''Film/NewYorkMinute'', but continued to profit handsomely from royalties, earning $40 million in 2006 even though they hadn't acted in anything. In 2007 Forbes ranked the twins as the eleventh-richest women in entertainment, with an estimated net worth of $100 million. Their success has led to [[Series/TheVeronicas a]] [[Series/SisterSister number]] [[Series/TheSuiteLifeOfZackAndCody of]] attempts to heavily promote other young twin actor pairs.

* Two younger sisters named [[Creator/ElizabethOlsen Elizabeth (who's an actress like the twins are)]] and Taylor, the latter of whom is the other of their two half-siblings.

* StrictlyFormula: Much of the criticism for their teen movies (like ''Passport to Paris'', ''Winning London'', ''Our Lips Are Sealed'', ''Holiday in the Sun'', and ''When in Rome'') is the plot: teenaged twin sisters go to some foreign country (i.e., France, England, Italy, Australia) and spend most of the movie shopping and exploring the country while hooking up with a pair of hot guys (complete with kissing), while also helping to solve a mystery and/or stop a robbery as the sub-plot.
** While "hooking up with hot guys" was always there, some of their movies (like ''Film/NewYorkMinute'', ''The Challenge'', and ''Switching Goals'') did have more original plots.
** The "hooking up with hot guys" is lampshaded at the end of ''The Challenge'', which was the last DTV-movie that the Olsen Twins did--in a short scene at the end of the movie, boyfriends from the twins' past films show up and begin arguing over who they loved more. This leads the girls to exit with a really sweet line, "Boys may come and go, but we'll always have each other--and that's ''not'' just in the movies."

* TomboyAndGirlyGirl: While they sometimes switch it up, Mary-Kate usually played the more tomboyish sister while Ashley usually played the more feminine sister. To name a few examples --

A little known fact about Mary-Kate and Ashley is that, biologically-speaking, they'rere technically fraternal twins and not identical twins--although they definitely look enough alike where they could pass for being identical twins. Mary-Kate and Ashley also have four other siblings outside of each other: an older named Trent, [[Creator/ElizabethOlsen a younger sister named Elizabeth]] (who's an actress just like the twins are), and two younger half-siblings from their dad's second marriage (the twins parents got divorced in 1995). Their half-siblings consist of a brother named Jake and a sister named Courtney Taylor.

A little known fact is that they're not actually identical twins biologically speaking--they're just fraternal twins who happen to look identical. The twins have four other siblings outside of each other--an older brother named Jake, [[Creator/ElizabethOlsen a younger sister named Elizabeth]] (who's an actress like her older sisters are), and two younger half-siblings named Trent (brother) and Courtney Taylor (sister) from their dad's second marriage. The Olsen twins also inspired the parody Web series ''WebVideo/VeryMaryKate''.

* DinnerOrderFlub: An interesting variation happens in ''Passport to Paris''. One of the twins is taking French at their school back in America, and while out at a restaurant in Paris, she accidentally orders ''fish'' ("poissons") when she was actually trying to order ''drinks'' ("'''b'''oissons").

* FoolishSiblingResponsibleSibling: Quite a few of their roles, with Ashley being usually the responsible twin and Mary-Kate the wild twin (''Series/TwoOfAKind'', ''Film/ItTakesTwo'', ''The Challenge'', ''Film/NewYorkMinute''). Inverted in ''Winning London'' where Mary-Kate plays Chloe, the serious and competitive overachiever, while Ashley plays her laidback and fun-loving sister Riley.
* FormerChildStar: Ashley has stopped acting in adulthood, while Mary Kate mainly does indie films.
* GranolaGirl: Mary-Kate's character in ''The Challenge''.

* LyingCreator: ABC didn't want viewers to know that Michelle was played by twins, so they were credited as [[FromACertainPointOfView Mary Kate Ashley Olsen]]. As they got older, and the differences between them became more obvious, they were credited separately.

* PlayingAgainstType: In the FoolishSiblingResponsibleSibling dynamic, Ashley is usually the responsible twin to Mary Kate's wild twin. The film ''Winning London'' inverts their usual personas, as Mary-Kate plays Chloe, the serious and competitive overachiever, while Ashley plays her laidback and fun-loving sister Riley.

* StrictlyFormula: Much of the criticism from some of their teen movies like ''Passport to Paris'', ''Winning London'', ''Our Lips Are Sealed'', ''Holiday in the Sun'', and ''When in Rome'' is the plot. Twin teenagers go to a foreign country (e.g. France, England, Italy, Australia). They spend the entire movie shopping and exploring the country while hooking up with two cute boys, complete with kissing, and solving a mystery or stopping a robbery as a subplot. Luckily, other movies like ''Film/NewYorkMinute'', ''The Challenge'', and ''Switching Goals'' have more original plots (although the "hooking up with two cute boys" part is always there and it's lampshaded at the end of ''The Challenge'').

* WitnessProtection: ''Our Lips Are Sealed'' (the one where they go to Australia).

* PolarOppositeTwins: Combined with FoolishSiblingResponsibleSibling and/or TomboyAndGirly, the twins played this up in most of their shows and TV-movies.

* FoolishSiblingResponsibleSibling: Typically combined with TomboyAndGirlyGirl--in many of their roles (both for TV and movies), Ashley typically played the feminine and/or mature/responsible sister while Mary-Kate typically played the more tomboyish and/or "foolish" sister.
uite a few of their roles, with Ashley being usually the responsible twin and Mary-Kate the wild twin (''Series/TwoOfAKind'', ''Film/ItTakesTwo'', ''The Challenge'', ''Film/NewYorkMinute''). Inverted in ''Winning London'' where Mary-Kate plays Chloe, the serious and competitive overachiever, while Ashley plays her lazy and fun-loving sister Riley.

* PolarOppositeTwins: Combined with FoolishSiblingResponsibleSibling and TomboyAndGirlyGirl, the twins played this up in many of the roles they had in movies and TV-shows. To name some examples:
** In ''Series/TwoOfAKind'', Ashley was presented as a very fashion-forward girl while Mary-Kate was a typical sporty tomboy.
** ''Film/ItTakesTwo'': Mary-Kate is Amanda Lemmon, an orphan who plays street ball and resents having to act lady-like to get adopted while Alyssa Callaway (played by Ashley) is like a little princess, coming home from her boarding school's piano recital competition, expecting to meet her wealthy father at the airport but it's the butler instead.
** ''Switching Goals'': Mary-Kate plays Sam Stanton, an athletic star soccer player, who is jealous of her sister's popularity with boys. Ashley plays Emma Stanton, a popular fashionable girl but terrible at sports, who is jealous of her sister's athletic achievements.
** ''Film/NewYorkMinute'': Mary-Kate plays punk-rock rebel Roxy while Ashley plays classy and uptight Jane.
** PlayingAgainstType: In ''Winning London'' (the one where they go to England), Mary-Kate portrays Chloe (a serious and competitive overachiever) while Ashley portrayed Riley (the laid-back, fun-loving sister).

* FoolishSiblingResponsibleSibling: Quite a few of their roles, with Ashley being usually the responsible twin and Mary-Kate the wild twin (''Series/TwoOfAKind'', ''Film/ItTakesTwo'', ''The Challenge'', ''Film/NewYorkMinute''). Inverted in ''Winning London'' where Mary-Kate plays Chloe, the serious and competitive overachiever, while Ashley plays her lazy and fun-loving sister Riley.

* PlayingAgainstType: In the FoolishSiblingResponsibleSibling dynamic, Ashley is usually the responsible twin to Mary Kate's wild twin. The film ''Winning London'' inverts their usual personas, as Mary-Kate plays Chloe, the serious and competitive overachiever, while Ashley plays her laidback and fun-loving sister Riley.
* PolarOppositeTwins: The twins played this up in most of their shows and TV-movies.

* TomboyAndGirlyGirl: While they did sometimes switch it up, Mary-Kate usually played the more tomboyish sister while Ashley usually played the more feminine sister. To name a few examples --
** In ''Series/TwoOfAKind'', Ashley was presented as a very fashion-forward girl while Mary-Kate was a typical sporty tomboy.
** ''Film/ItTakesTwo'': Mary-Kate is Amanda Lemmon, an orphan who plays street ball and resents having to act lady-like to get adopted while Alyssa Callaway (played by Ashley) is like a little princess, coming home from her boarding school's piano recital competition, expecting to meet her wealthy father at the airport but it's the butler instead.
** ''Switching Goals'': Mary-Kate plays Sam Stanton, an athletic star soccer player, who is jealous of her sister's popularity with boys. Ashley plays Emma Stanton, a popular fashionable girl but terrible at sports, who is jealous of her sister's athletic achievements.
** ''Film/NewYorkMinute'': Mary-Kate plays punk-rock rebel Roxy while Ashley plays classy and uptight Jane.

* DinnerOrderFlub: ''Passport to Paris'' does this in a strange way. One of the twins, who is learning French at a high-school level, accidentally orders fish (''poissons'') when she wanted drinks('''''b'''oissons'').

* MakingUseOfTheTwin: When they just played Michelle, they're both used in several dream scenes. Another episode has an identical cousin visiting from Greece.
* MissingMom: The shows ''Series/FullHouse'' and ''Series/TwoOfAKind'' as well as the movies ''Film/ItTakesTwo'' and ''Film/BillboardDad'' have the Olsens playing the daughter(s) of a widowed father.
* MoneyDearBoy: Their mother nearly took them off ''Series/FullHouse'' after the first season, not wanting them to miss out on a normal childhood. When they were offered a higher salary, she allowed them to stay on.

* RealitySubtext: Their typecasting in their tween years reflected that on ''Series/FullHouse'' Mary Kate would do the more comedic scenes, whereas Ashley handled the more serious ones.

* StarDerailingRole: ''Film/NewYorkMinute'' was the twins' only theatrical release. It flopped at the Box Office and was savaged by critics, marking the end of their prominence. Their business Dualstar is doing well however, and Mary Kate has continued with acting.
* StrictlyFormula: Much of the criticism from some of their teen movies like ''Passport to Paris'', ''Winning London'', ''Our Lips Are Sealed'', ''Holiday in the Sun'', and ''When in Rome'' is the plot. Twin teenagers go to a foreign country (e.g. Paris, London, Rome, Australia). They spend the entire movie shopping and exploring the country while hooking up with two cute boys, complete with kissing, and solving a mystery or stopping a robbery as a subplot. Luckily, other movies like ''Film/NewYorkMinute'', ''The Challenge'', and ''Switching Goals'' have more original plots (although the "hooking up with two cute boys" part is always there and it's lampshaded at the end of ''The Challenge'').

* TomboyAndGirlyGirl: While they did sometimes switch, Mary-Kate usually played the more tomboyish sister while Ashley usually played the more feminine sister. To name a few examples --

** Ashley considered returning to acting in 2009 and even was announced as playing Christie in ''The Informers''. She dropped out and was replaced with Amber Heard.
* WitnessProtection: ''Our Lips Are Sealed'' (the Australian one).

Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen (born June 13, 1986) are twin actresses who became famous for playing Michelle Tanner in ''Series/FullHouse''. They parlayed that fame into a highly lucrative series of straight-to-[[UsefulNotes/{{VCR}} VHS]] movies, leading them to become the top earning stars under the age of 21 from the early 90's to the mid 2000s. They stopped acting as a duo in 2004, after the financial disappointment of ''Film/NewYorkMinute'', but continued to profit handsomely from royalties, earning $40 million in 2006 even though they hadn't acted in anything. In 2007 Forbes ranked the twins as the eleventh-richest women in entertainment, with an estimated net worth of $100 million. Their success has led to [[Series/TheVeronicas a]] [[Series/SisterSister number]] [[Series/TheSuiteLifeOfZackAndCody of]] attempts to heavily promote other young twin actor pairs.

A little known fact is that they're not actually identical twins biologically speaking--they're just fraternal twins who happen to look identical. The twins have four other siblings outside of each other--an older brother named Jake, [[Creator/ElizabethOlsen a younger sister named Elizabeth]] (who's an actress like her older sisters are), and two younger half-siblings named Jake (brother) and Courtney Taylor (sister) from their dad's second marriage. The Olsen twins also inspired the parody Web series ''WebVideo/VeryMaryKate''.

* WhatCouldHaveBeen:
** They nearly starred as CreepyTwins on an episode of ''Series/TheXFiles''. Due to strict child labour laws, they were replaced with the Krievins twins instead.
** Ashley considered returning to acting in 2009 and even was announced as playing Christie in ''The Informers''. She dropped out and was replaced with Amber Heard.

* IAmNotLeonardNimoy: The twins always play up the TomboyAndGirlyGirl dynamic. Mary Kate is the rebellious, edgy {{Tomboy}} and Ashley the uptight GirlyGirl. Even Mary Kate's adult roles cater to this.

* PlayingAgainstType: In the FoolishSiblingResponsibleSibling dynamic, Ashley is usually the responsible twin to Mary Kate's wild twin. The film ''Winning London'' inverts their usual personas, as Mary-Kate plays Chloe, the serious and competitive overachiever, while Ashley plays her lazy and fun-loving sister Riley.

* KidsPlayMatchmaker: A rip-off of ''Film/TheParentTrap'' called ''Film/ItTakesTwo''.

''Before Creator/MillieBrown, before Creator/EmmaWatson, there was the Olsen twins...''

[[caption-width-right:350:Mary-Kate (r) and Ashley (l)]]

* FoolishSiblingResponsibleSibling: Quite a few of their roles, with Ashley being usually the responsible twin and Mary-Kate the wild twin (''Seris/TwoOfAKind'', ''Film/ItTakesTwo'', ''The Challenge'', ''Film/NewYorkMinute''). Inverted in ''Winning London'' where Mary-Kate plays Chloe, the serious and competitive overachiever, while Ashley plays her lazy and fun-loving sister Riley.

** In ''Seris/TwoOfAKind'', Ashley was presented as a very fashion-forward girl while Mary-Kate was a typical sporty tomboy.

* ParentTrapPlot: A rip-off of ''Film/TheParentTrap'' called ''Film/ItTakesTwo''.

A little known fact is that they're not actually identical twins--they're just fraternal twins who happen to look identical. The twins have four other siblings outside of each other--an older brother named Jake, [[Creator/ElizabethOlsen a younger sister named Elizabeth]] (who's an actress like her older sisters are), and two younger half-siblings named Jake (brother) and Courtney Taylor (sister) from their dad's second marriage. The Olsen twins also inspired the parody Web series ''WebVideo/VeryMaryKate''.

* FoolishSiblingResponsibleSibling: Quite a few of their roles, with Ashley being usually the responsible twin and Mary-Kate the wild twin (''Seris/TwoOfAKind'',''Film/ItTakesTwo'', ''The Challenge'', ''Film/NewYorkMinute''). Inverted in ''Winning London'' where Mary-Kate plays Chloe, the serious and competitive overachiever, while Ashley plays her lazy and fun-loving sister Riley.

* FoolishSiblingResponsibleSibling: Quite a few of their roles, with Ashley being usually the responsible twin and Mary-Kate the wild twin (''Seris/TwoOfAKind'', ''Film/ItTakesTwo'', ''The Challenge'', ''Film/NewYorkMinute''). Inverted in ''Winning London'' where Mary-Kate plays Chloe, the more serious and responsible of the twins.

** They were credited as "Mary Kate Ashley Olsen", leading many to believe that the little girl was played by one actress.

Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen (June 13, 1986--) are twin actresses that became famous for playing Michelle Tanner in ''Series/FullHouse''. They parlayed that fame into a highly lucrative series of straight-to-[[UsefulNotes/{{VCR}} VHS]] movies, leading them to become the top earning stars under the age of 21 from the early 90's to the mid 2000s. They stopped acting as a duo in 2004, after the financial disappointment of ''Film/NewYorkMinute'', but continued to profit handsomely from royalties, earning $40 million in 2006 even though they hadn't acted in anything. In 2007 Forbes ranked the twins as the eleventh-richest women in entertainment, with an estimated net worth of $100 million. Their success has led to [[Series/TheVeronicas a]] [[Series/SisterSister number]] [[Series/TheSuiteLifeOfZackAndCody of]] attempts to heavily promote other young twin actor pairs.

* AlphaBitch: Jennifer in ''Series/TwoOfAKind''.

* StrictlyFormula: Much of the criticism from some of their teen movies like ''Passport to Paris'', ''Our Lips Are Sealed'', and ''Holiday in the Sun'' is the plot. Twin teenagers go to a foreign country (e.g. Paris, Rome, Australia). They spend the entire movie shopping and exploring the country while hooking up with two cute boys, complete with kissing, and solving a mystery or stopping a robbery as a subplot. Luckily, other movies like ''Film/NewYorkMinute'', ''The Challenge'', and ''Switching Goals'' have more original plots (although the "hooking up with two cute boys" part is always there and it's lampshaded at the end of ''The Challenge'').

* StrictlyFormula: Much of the criticism from some of their teen movies like ''Passport to Paris'', ''Our Lips Are Sealed'', and ''Holiday in the Sun'' is the plot. Twin teenagers go to a foreign country (e.g. Paris, Rome, Australia). They spend the entire movie shopping and exploring the country while hooking up with two cute boys, complete with kissing, and solving a mystery or stopping a robbery as a subplot. Luckily, other movies like ''Film/NewYorkMinute'', ''The Challenge'', and ''Switching Goals'' have more original plots (although the "hooking up with two cute boys" part is always there).