History Main / MasterActor

* [[spoiler:Christine]] from ''WitnessForTheProsecution''

* In FullMetalAlchemist Envy can not only shapeshift but also change his voice. Unfortunately, he doesn't always get the mannerisms correct though.

* Captain Aizen in ''{{Bleach}}'' to the point it's no longer a spoiler. Also, to a lesser degree his subordinate Gin [[spoiler: ...wait, did I say lesser? What mean is he was doing this to Aizen the whole time for the entire series' run (and over a century in-universe). Just so he could kill him to recover the bits of his MoralityPet's soul he stole.]]

* Sir Percy Blakeney, of ''Literatre/TheScarletPimpernel''. It comes in handy during his daring rescues, and even more the rest of the time in preventing anyone from thinking of him as the kind of person who might be responsible for the daring rescues.

* Sir Percy Blakeney, of "TheScarletPimpernel" is this trope, in spades.

* ''TheGhostInTheTokaidoInn'', one of Thomas and Dorothy Hoobler's Judge Ooka mysteries, has Tominio, a Kabuki actor whose ability to impersonate women is ''eerie'', and also a Chekhov'sGun.

* The character Varys is a master of disguise in George R. R. Martin's ''ASongofIceAndFire'', and uses this skill in the course of his duties as the king's spymaster.

* ''Film/{{Superman}}''. Christopher Reeve was such an accomplished actor that he could make it plausible that people who knew both Superman and Clark Kent wouldn't realize they were the same person.

* Keima in ''TheWorldOnlyGodKnows'' is very good at putting on an act to get girls to fall for him provided they fit certain archetypes seen in dating sims. Even if the girls ''don't'' fit those types, he's still able to improvise very quickly. Haqua is briefly disturbed when she sees him immediately shrug off one such persona as easily as most people take off masks.

* Going on WMG, [[spoiler:Battler Ushiromiya]] of ''UminekoNoNakuKoroNi'' might be this. Throughout the sixth arc, he acts like an incompetent mess, [[spoiler:getting himself trapped in a [[AFateWorseThanDeath Logic Error]] for years until Kanon saves him.]] But a WMG theorizes that [[spoiler:he planned the whole thing in order to revive Beatrice]], which if true means that he managed to not only fool [[spoiler:Erika and Bernkastel]], he managed to fool [[spoiler:''the readers'']], most of whom thought he was just being an idiot.

* [[spoiler:Zola "Heterodyne"]] of GirlGenius takes this to truly impressive levels, along with ObfuscatingStupidity, fooling everyone (''especially'' the audience) into severely underestimating her. Repeatedly. Even after being warned not to. Even after warning ''each other'' not to. Even against the BigBad.

* {{Batman}} to a ridiculous degree. He can switch between the roles of billionaire playboy, brilliant businessman, and badass loner vigilante crimefighter in the blink of an eye. His real personality, which his extended surrogate family of sidekicks and his butler have to occasionally remind him still exists, is simply a good and generous man who is driven to help others.

* Keima in ''TheWorldOnlyGodKnows'' is very good at putting on an act to get girls to fall for him provided they fit certain archtypes seen in dating sims. Even if the girls ''don't'' fit those types, he's still able to improvise very quickly. Haqua is briefly disturbed when she sees him immediately shrug off one such persona as easily as most people take off masks.

[[folder: Anime ]]

* Captain Aizen in ''{{Bleach}}'' to the point it's no longer a spoiler. Also, to a lesser degree his subordinate Gin [[spoiler: ...wait, did I say lesser? What mean is he was doing this to Aizen the whole time for the entire series' run (and over a century in-universe). Just so he could kill him to recover the bits of his MoralityPet's soul he stole.]]

[[folder: Film ]]

* ''{{Film/Superman}}''. Christopher Reeve was such an accomplished actor that he could make it plausible that people who knew both Superman and Clark Kent wouldn't realize they were the same person.

[[folder: Literature ]]

* The character Varys is a master of disguise in George R. R. Martin's ''[[ASongofIceAndFire A Song of Ice and Fire]]'', and uses this skill in the course of his duties as the king's spymaster.

* ''{{The Ghost in the Tokaido Inn}}'', one of Thomas and Dorothy Hoobler's Judge Ooka mysteries, has Tominio, a Kabuki actor whose ability to impersonate women is ''eerie'', and also a Chekhov'sGun.

* ''Players of {{Gor}}''. Tarl falls in with a CommediaDellArte troupe, one of which is a classicly trained actor who never appears on stage. Then in the book's climax he saves Tarl's life by acting the part of an Imperious General, much to Tarl's surprise, who says "[[HeReallyCanAct You can act!]]."

* ''SaturdayNightLive'': Jon Lovitz's "Master Thespian," if only in his own mind.

* Several characters in ''Series/MissionImpossible'', particularly Rollin (Martin Landau), Cinnamon (Barbara Bain), and Paris (Leonard Nimoy).

* Going on WMG, [[spoiler:Battler Ushiromiya]] of ''UminekoNoNakuKoroNi'' might be this. Throughout the sixth arc, he acts like an incompetent mess, [[spoiler:getting himself trapped in a [[AFateWorseThanDeath Logic Error]] for years until Kanon saves him.]] But a WMG theorizes that [[spoiler:he planned the whole thing in order to revive Beatrice]], which if true means that he managed to not only fool [[spoiler:Erika and Bernkastel]], he managed to fool [[spoiler:''the readers'']], most of whom thought he was just being an idiot.

[[folder: Webcomics ]]

* ''SamuraiJack'': Aku, being a [[{{VoluntaryShapeshifting}} shapeshifter]], is good at this as a [[{{RequiredSecondaryPowers}} Required Secondary Power]]. He once traveled with Jack for a good period of time without getting found out, while in the form of a humanoid woman.

* RobertHeinlein's ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Double_Star Double Star]]''. Lorenzo Smythe is shown in the novel to have this ability, to the point that someone who actually knows him doesn't recognize him because of his acting ability.

* ''Ghost in the Tokaido Inn'', one of Thomas and Dorothy Hoobler's Judge Ooka mysteries, has Tominio, a Kabuki actor whose ability to impersonate women is ''eerie'', and also a Chekhov'sGun.

* Tomjon from the Discworld book ''WyrdSisters'', as the somewhat accidental result of the gifts given to him by the Witches.

* [[spoiler:Kaede]] in ''{{Kampfer}}'' is secretly the BigBad and behind nearly everything in the series--including, quite possibly, [[ObliviousToLove the main character's stupidity]]. Very few people saw this coming, and those that did assumed it would be a case of SplitPersonality.

* [[TheWorldEndsWithYou Joshua]] is a supreme example, considering [[spoiler: he was acting as a normal human during his week with Neku, when he was actually a [[AGodAmI God]].]]

* Several characters in ''MissionImpossible'', particularly Rollin (Martin Landau), Cinnamon (Barbara Bain), and Paris (Leonard Nimoy).

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[[AC:{{Film}}]]

[[AC:{{Literature}}]]

[[AC:{{Live Action TV}}]]

* ''ThePretender'' was based on this. Jarod was taken from his family at an early age because he showed potential for being able to slip into the identities of others unnoticed. After escaping from ''The Centre'', he used his talents to help people in need.

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[[AC:{{Western Animation}}]]

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* ''SamuraiJack'': Aku, being a [[{{VoluntaryShapeshifting}} shapeshifter]], is good at this as a [[{{RequiredSecondaryPowers}} Required Secondary Power]]. He once traveled with Jack for a good period of time without getting found out, while in the form of a humanoid woman.