Unlike the series of plagues Yahweh unleashed on the Egyptians in the Book of Exodus, our world has become infested with something far more annoying: celebrity look-alike contests. Okay, sure, October’s Timothée Chalamet long-lost twin competition was the sort of grassroots and gleefully stupid affair that briefly makes having an internet-addled brain worth it. But like most viral moments, these things tend to linger well past their expiration date. A scourge of look-alike contests has since popped up across the globe with no signs of stopping.
Since these stunts aren’t going anywhere, we might as well make some outrageous predictions. Will Isla Fisher win the inevitable Amy Adams look-alike contest in Los Angeles? Will Rita Ora tweet that she’ll give her look-alike contest winner a sneak peek at her new music, then claim she was hacked when no one shows up? We’ll find out soon enough. In the meantime, a rundown of this year’s latest celeb doppelgänger contests and the long-lost-twins who won.
Twelve Silver Sovereigns and a Hatful of Timmies
When: October 27
Where: Washington Square Park, NYC
Vibe: Announced with fliers taped around the city by YouTuber Anthony Po that immediately went viral, anticipation was higher than Chalamet’s cheekbones. The day of, NYU’s unofficial campus was flooded with more brooding brown-haired twinks than finals week as the Timothées descended on the park to hundreds of onlookers and dozens of journalists. The event got out of hand quickly: Police ordered the crowd of thousands of Chalamet zealots and content creators to disperse, even arresting one unlucky contestant. The contest was moved to a nearby park, where Chalamet himself stopped by to crash the party and prove X user @ClubChalamet’s theory about his whereabouts wrong. The lesson here: if you build it, Timmy will come (no peach-related pun intended).
Who won: 21-year-old Miles Mitchell-as-Wonka-Timmy took home the $50 prize.
Dublin Sees Double With Paul Mescal Look-alike Contest
When: November 7
Where: Smithfield Square
Vibe: Even though the New York–Dublin portal shut down in September, Ireland glimpsed America’s fun (and online fervor) on behalf of our national heartthrob and decided to mimic it in honor of their own big brave strong boy. After @paulmescallookalike posted a TikTok on November 1 promoting the contest, young Irish men far and wide donned their short shorts, laced up their running shoes, and took over the plaza – or, at least, a small portion of it. Mescal himself was a no-show, busy promoting Gladiator II across town at Trinity College at the time. Guess the Normal People star left this one for the normal people.
Who won: 25-year-old Jack Wall O’Reilly bested the other six competitors (one of whom had not planned on competing but stopped by en route to work) and nabbed the reward of €20, the equivalent of three pints, Metro UK reported. Mescal did congratulate O’Reilly on a much-deserved victory after the fact – it was the wired headphones that clinched it.
Harry Styles Is No Good Alone
When: November 9
Where: Soho Square, London
Vibe: The UK hopped on the look-alike bandwagon with a contest for former boyband breakout Harry Styles. Journalist Katrina Mirpuri organized the event, which saw a dozen shaggy-haired hopefuls vie for the title of Mr. Styles 2.0, according to Variety. The Grammy winner was nowhere to be found, but maybe it was for the best. The online sentiment started to turn sour here, when fans agreed that “NOBODY’s touching [Styles’s] face card.”
Who won: 22-year-old musician Oscar Journeaux was bestowed the 50-quid grand prize by Love Island’s Eyal Booker.
Dev Patel Clones, Your Chance to Win Big
When: November 10
Where: Dolores Park, SF
Vibe: Hundreds showed up to watch the best Monkey Man-director look-alikes in the Bay Area duke it out. After friends Sitara Bellam, Tasnim Khandakar, and Sahana Rangarajan realized the contests so far had centered only around white celebrities, they promoted the Patel competition on social media, hoping to better represent a leading pop culture figure for the South Asian community, the San Francisco Chronicle reported. But, again, the man of the hour himself didn’t show. Those in attendance seemed to have fun, even if the internet buzz was pretty sparse. But hey, at least the look-alikes got to queen out to Patel’s Slumdog Millionaire dance.
Who won: 25-year-old Jaipreet Hundal’s on-point facial hair and smoldering brown eyes wound up scoring him the top prize.
The Second City Has the First Jeremy Allen White Contest
When: November 16
Where: Humboldt Park, Chicago
Vibe: All right, Chi-town cooked on this one. Roommates Kelsey Cassaro and Taylor Vaske organized the competition around the Shameless and The Bear star, attended by 60 White hopefuls (including one drag king and a 2-year-old) in addition to over a thousand onlookers, Block Club Chicago reported. While White was nowhere to be seen, contestants chain-smoked and sniffed poppers in their stained white T-shirts and blue aprons. And honestly? It looked like a great time. Seems like no one was brave enough to go as Calvin Klein Jeremy, though.
Who won: 37-year-old Ben Shabad, who really does look a good deal like White, was crowned King of the Carmys, nabbing $50 and a pack of Marlboro Reds.
Zayn Malik Contest Is Short on Plain Zayns
When: November 17
Where: Maria Hernandez Park, Brooklyn
Vibe: We’re losing the plot here. After Bushwick residents Jazmine Arnold and Savannah Neely put up the first fliers for the event, the search for Zayn Malik’s clone morphed into a search for hot guys who barely resembled the former One Direction member. Fans expressed confusion at the results. What happened to sanctity? Does the term “celebrity look-alike contest” mean nothing anymore?
Who won: Shiv Patel, 29, bested the other 12 competitors for the trophy.
Jack Schlossberg and Jeremy Allen White Contests Fizzle Out in NYC
When: November 17
Where: Washington Square Park and Central Park
Vibe: Are we done yet? Two more contests occurred over the weekend for DNC sweetheart Jack Schlossberg and another for Jeremy Allen White. Clearly, the fervor has died down, as both events saw a steep drop-off in attendence and not much internet attention.
Who won: The White competition had no winner and was more of a “meetup,” according to Elite Daily writer Mia Sherin. The Schlossberg contest winner (according to one video, his name is Danny) won a $50 Chipotle gift card.
Zendaya Contest Is Just Dune 2 Much
When: November 20
Where: Wilma Chan Park, Oakland
Vibe: Cold and wet! Attendees braved the weather to see which challenger best embodied the Challengers star. The seven contestants hit the runway, answered trivia questions, and shook it off in a dance battle, per The Oaklandside. Both onlookers and contenders seemed to have a good time, though it’s pretty clear online that the euphoria around these events has dwindled.
Who won: Zainab Bansfield, 24, won the $40 prize. She shared the sash and flower crown with 11-year-old Zanayah Porter, who stunned the crowd with a backflip mid-dance-off.
Shohei Ohtani Contest Scored a Home Run
When: November 23
Where: Dodgertown (Los Angeles, California)
Vibe: Wholesome. It was held at the Japanese American National Museum in L.A., in celebration of its new baseball exhibit. Fans came out in Dodger gear, and according to NBC 4, someone brought a plushie of Ohtani’s dog, Decoy.
Who won: Joseph Ma from Orange County. He won “$17 (since Ohtani’s jersey number is 17) and a prize from the museum’s gift shop” per ABC 7 — the cash was presented as a giant handwritten check. When asked why he thinks he won, he shared, “I would say like my eyes, maybe my cheeks, I think, are pretty similar to Ohtani’s.”
Glen Powell Contest Is a Hit, Man
When: November 24
Where: Powell’s native Austin, Texas
Vibe: Familial. Glen Powell’s mom was in attendance, according to Fox News 7 Austin. Reportedly, the Powellalikes came out in the hundreds, and the mood was very “keep Austin weird.” “It’s just such an Austin thing to happen, and we love Glen Powell so we were, like, you know what, let’s go see like who truly thinks they look like Glen Powell,” said one spectator.
Who won: Maxwell Braunstein, a physician’s assistant in Austin. He won “$5, a cowboy hat, free queso from Torchy’s for a year, and a thumbs up from the real Glen Powell’s mom,” per Fox 7. Glen Powell also blessed the contest with another prize: “Now, you may know that my parents make a cameo in every movie I make,” the actor said in a video ahead of the contest, “but today, the winner of the Glen Powell look-alike contest wins their parents or any family member of their choice a cameo in my next movie.”
Peso Pluma Contest Became a Dance Party
When: November 24
Where: Echo Park in Los Angeles, California
Vibe: Party. The contest included a dance-off and the crowd loved it — videos began circulating of the audience moving and grooving to Pluma’s music. The judging seemed a little more rigorous than the other competitions. There were also “sweet talking and personalities” rounds of the competition.
Who won: Oscar Reyes from Downey, California. He won a $50 King Taco gift card (it was actually $50 taped to a poster), a fake gold chain, and a jacket from Hija De Tu Madre. “I didn’t think I would actually, like, win, but this is huge,” Reyes told LAist. “He’s like one of the greatest artists right now.”
Shrek Contest Let Out a Huge Roar
When: November 24
Where: Echo Park in Los Angeles, California
Vibe: Hardcore, as the prize was $500 in cash and a bag of onions (which is also worth like $500 in the eyes of an ogre). “I really wanted to ensure that people competed to the highest level that they possibly can,” one of the organizers, Ka5sh, explained to the L.A. Times. Similar to the Peso Pluma competition that took place at the same park hours before, there were several rounds of judging: an impression, a roar, and a dance battle. There were people even dressed as Fiona, Puss in Boots, and Donkey as emotional support for the Shreks onstage.
Who won: Christopher Zeneian, who brought quite the roar to Echo Park. “I’m pretty excited for that bag of onions,” the winner told L.A. Times.
Challengers Contest Was Kissless
When: November 24
Where: Westwood in Los Angeles, California
Vibe: Heterosexual. The contestants didn’t even kiss! From the looks of it, it seems like there were definitely more Arts than Patricks.
Who won: Spencer Blanchard (as Art) and a yet-to-be-identified man won as the duo and shared a churro to celebrate. It’s unclear if the promised $50 cash prize was split among the winners.
Tom Holland Contest Wasn’t a Slam Dunkin’
When: November 24
Where: Boston, Massachusetts
Vibe: A letdown — not because of the contestants but because everyone (more than 200 people) was hoping the real Tom Holland would show up.
Who won: 27-year-old Nick Anderson claims to CBS Boston he gets mistaken for the Spider-man actor at least once a month. He won $50 and a “bag of British” candy.
Rachel Sennott Contest Bottoms Out
When: November 24
Where: Tompkins Square Park, NYC
Vibe: You know that feeling when you’re at the after-party to the after-party, and you look around the room, see all the strangers smoking and discussing their moon signs, and all at once hyperconsciousness floods your brain and you realize, Oh God, why am I still here? This was basically that.
Who won: An as-of-yet-unidentified woman took home the $50 cash prize, but we all know the real winner should have been Fatima. Where was she?