Five Upcoming Movies Have Real-Life Actors Playing Themselves, Sort Of

It’s funny how every so often there are multiple movies about the same subject or idea.  I can understand when there were three movies about farm families at the time (“Country,” “The River,” “Places in the Heart”) when small farms were being battered by agribusiness.  But why all those body-switching movies in the late 80’s (“Big,” “Vice Versa,” “Like Father Like Son,” “18 Again”), or “Antz” and “A Bug’s Life” ten years later, or the two blow-up-the-White-House movies last year, or two movies this year about one-night stands that turn into awkwardly extended encounters?

Perhaps the most improbable collection of similar films ever are the upcoming FIVE movies with real-life successful actors playing somewhat less successful versions of themselves.  A fascinating discussion on Studio 360 explains it all, with descriptions of the films starring Michael Keaton, Al Pacino, Robin Wright, Julianne Moore, and Juliette Binoche.