A mild-mannered college professor discovers a look-alike actor and delves into the other man's private affairs.
Direction
Villeneuve's yellow-soaked Toronto feels like a fever dream you can't wake from.
Acting
Gyllenhaal's subtle physical shifts make twins feel like different species.
Cinematography
Those smog-choked skylines deserve their own credit line.
Director
Denis Villeneuve
Jake Gyllenhaal
Adam / Anthony
Mélanie Laurent
Mary
Sarah Gadon
Helen
Isabella Rossellini
Mother
Joshua Peace
Teacher at School
Tim Post
Anthony's Concierge
Kedar Brown
Security Guard
Darryl Dinn
Video Store Clerk
Misha Highstead
Lady in the Dark Room
Megan Mane
Lady in the Dark Room
Kiran Friesen
Sad, Broken Woman (uncredited)
Loretta Yu
Receptionist (uncredited)
Stephen R. Hart
Bouncer (uncredited)
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Villeneuve demanded the opening tarantula scene be shot like a nature documentary—then never explains it. The novel it's based on, 'The Double' by José Saramago, contains zero spiders.
The film's Toronto is deliberately shot without recognizable landmarks, creating a dream-logic city that could be anywhere or nowhere—fitting for a story about fractured identity.
CA
