When an actor isn't available to perform as a character in a work, the Fake Shemp technique may be used in order to work around the actor's absence. Fake Shemping typically utilizes techniques such as reusing audio and/or video (or even just a still image) and using a stand-in actor. Editing techniques such as pasting an actor's face over a stand-in actor have been utilized for a while in filmmaking, but in recent times people have expanded to using CGI and AI to try replicating the likenesses of actors. Such recent techniques have been a source of controversy in recent years.

The effectiveness of the Fake Shemp technique can vary. Sometimes it can be pulled off rather well, whereas other times it's rather noticeable and kind of, well... bad. In a number of cases, the story will have to write in excuses for Fake Shemp moments which may otherwise come off as awkward. The technique of Fake Shemping is arguably easier to pull off in animation than in live action as, in animation, no actor is required for a physical appearance. In such a case, all one would need to worry about is the voice of the character, which they can fill in with repurposed audio from the absent actor and/or new audio recorded by a soundalike actor. In some cases, they can make the character silent or only make grunts, coughs, and other such vocal noises that can be filled in using generic sound effects or just anybody around (in some cases though it would have to be fitting to a certain extent; a 10-year-old girl's cough would probably sound somewhat awkward coming out of a 40-year-old man character unless it's played off as a joke of some sort.) This same logic can also apply to live action shows featuring puppet characters or characters wearing masks (including face-covering helmets) and/or costumes that cover the entire body. In such cases, it can typically be rather easy to have anyone performing the physical character while audio is dubbed over in post-production.

Video Example:


After being understandably angry about being fired from Doctor Who, Colin Baker (actor of the Sixth Doctor) refused to do a regeneration scene for the opening of Time and the Rani. Thus, Seventh Doctor actor Sylvester McCoy had to play both the Sixth and Seventh Doctors for that scene. McCoy wore a Colin Baker wig and his face was obscured using the regeneration effects during said regeneration sequence.


A number of other instances of Fake Shemping have occurred in Doctor Who, such as the Fourth Doctor's appearance in The Five Doctors (Tom Baker thought it was too soon for him to return to the show, so reused footage from the cancelled Shada serial was used for his appearance) as well as appearances of the First Doctor following William Hartnell's death (though some might argue that some of these appearances may be closer to instances of The Other Darrin.) Wilfred Mott's appearance in the 60th anniversary special "The Giggle" also employed this trope, utilizing reused Bernard Cribbins audio and a stand-in actor (Bernard Cribbins' last non-Shemp appearance was in the previous special, "Wild Blue Yonder".)

Other Examples:

• When Shemp Howard died, a contract still demanded more shorts from The Three Stooges. Thus, the shorts that came after utilized old Shemp footage from previous Three Stooges works and used Joe Palma as a body double whenever needed. Otherwise, Larry and Moe would appear by themselves. This is the inspiration for the name of this trope.
• Sam Raimi coined the term "Fake Shemp" (in reference to the previous example) during production of Evil Dead. Much of the cast was unavailable for portions of the movie, so stand-ins (including Raimi himself and his brother Ted) were used to fill in those spots. These stand-ins are referred to as "Fake Shemps" in the credits.
• In the Back to the Future sequels, Crispin Glover was considered unable to reprise his role due to allegedly being too demanding, so the character of George McFly was depicted using reused footage from the first film and actor Jeffrey Weissman as a stand-in. Glover was not happy about his footage being reused, so he sued the filmmakers over this. Said suit was settled out of court, but the Screen Actors Guild decided to make new rules regarding reusing footage of an actor due to this incident.

You can find out more about the Fake Shemp trope and more on trope wikis such as TV Tropes, All The Tropes, Tropedia, and The True Tropes (which is where I got a lot of this info.)

Question:

What are your thoughts on the usage of Fake Shemps? Are recent efforts to use techniques such as AI and CGI to reproduce actors ethical? In what cases do Fake Shemps work best? In what cases are Fake Shemps better off avoided?

Share your thoughts in the comments below. You can also list more examples of Fake Shemping if you know any.