Entertainment

Natalie Portman Had The Sweetest Compliment For Her Look-Alike Millie Bobby Brown

by Emily Mae Czachor
Neilson Barnard/Getty Images Entertainment/Getty Images; Frazer Harrison/Getty Images Entertainment/Getty Images

Despite the ongoing speculation from fans who love to obsess over a particularly jaw-dropping celebrity doppelgänger (honestly, who doesn't?), Natalie Portman wants Millie Bobby Brown to know she's her own person. Her own "magical" person, in fact. Responding to the fan craze that's dubbed the 14-year-old Stranger Things star her "mini me," Portman sat down with MTV News Tuesday night, Feb. 20, for a brief, on-camera interview, part of which addressed the recent hype over her and Brown's striking resemblance. And, let the record show, Portman made her thoughts about the comparison quite clear: She's flattered, but that certainly doesn't mean she wants Brown living under her shadow.

During her MTV News interview, which the outlet tweeted later Tuesday night, the 36-year-old Annihilation star offered her two cents on the recent bout of fan-fueled mania that deemed Brown a bonafide Portman look-alike. (Albeit, a younger version. They do have 22 years between them, after all.) And, while Portman has certainly done her part to play into the doppelgänger hysteria — most recently, during a Saturday Night Live sketch in which she portrayed a parodied version of Brown's Stranger Things character, Eleven — she put jokes aside during her MTV interview, subbing out witticisms for a more sincere approach.

First, Portman offered a sweet play-by-play account of her and Brown's first meeting earlier this year. "I met Millie at the Golden Globes a few months ago. She came up to me and was like, 'People keep telling me I look like the kid version of you!'" she said. "I was so flattered because she's absolutely adorable and so talented."

But, with that being said, Portman made sure to remind Brown that, while the look-alike buzz is cool, the young actor is already distinguished enough in her own right. Portman continued on to share an important message with Brown. Responding to the Stranger Things star's "kid version of you" comment, Portman told MTV News, "I'm like, 'That is very nice, but I think you're your own magical person.'" Still, Portman said, it was fun to play Eleven on SNL.

Brown, whose radiant real-life charm has earned her almost as much acclaim as her acting chops, retweeted MTV News' video later Tuesday evening. And, in keeping with her penchant for unbridled sweetness, Brown also penned a message to Portman that only ups her status as the most poised pint-sized celeb in Hollywood. Captioning the retweet, Brown wrote, "Was a dream come true meeting Natalie! So beautiful and talented."

Talk that Brown and Portman look alike first began to crop up in January, when a social media user tweeted side-by-side photos of the two actors with the accompanying caption, "I NEED ANSWERS."

The tweet, which went viral almost immediately, catalyzed a fiery wave of excitement (and a fiery wave of conspiracy theories) from fans and news outlets alike who seemed convinced Brown and Portman's supposed resemblance was more than just coincidence. And, of course, they wanted answers, too.

During her MTV News interview, Portman did admit that, as far as celebrity look-alikes go, she can understand why fans are so attached to this one. "I see that there's something there, but I also find [Brown] much more magical than I see myself," the actor told MTV News, finishing, "She's really wonderful."

So, contrary to those conspiracy theories that claim Brown must be a clone, Portman's comments confirm that her and Brown's surface-level similarities are just that: similarities, not sameness. And that acknowledgement feels really critical in this particular situation, because, in addition to stamping out any lingering suspicions as to whether the actors are somehow related, Portman's message defends Brown's autonomy not only as an acclaimed actor, but as a young woman making her mark on the industry. And, given Hollywood's notorious ruthlessness (especially in its treatment of women, as the world has recently been made well-aware), that's probably exactly the kind of assurance Brown needs to hear right now.