Michael Cera turned down role as Jesse Eisenberg’s doppelgänger in ‘Zombieland: Double Tap’

The sequel to the 2009 zombie comedy is out this week

Michael Cera turned down a role as Jesse Eisenberg’s doppelgänger in Zombieland: Double Tap, it has been revealed.

A scene in the sequel to 2009’s Zombieland – out this Friday (October 18) – sees Eisenberg and Woody Harrelson’s characters meeting their mirror images.

Eisenberg’s lookalike is played in the film by Thomas Middleditch (while Luke Wilson plays Harrelson’s), but the film’s director Ruben Fleischer initially earmarked Michael Cera for the cameo.

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In a new interview with Den Of Geek Fleischer revealed his preference, stating: “I don’t know if I should say this or not, but Michael Cera was kind of like the original person [for the role], just because Jesse and Michael are always mistaken.”

Columbus (Jesse Eisenberg), Tallahassee (Woody Harrelson), Wichita (Emma Stone) and Little Rock (Abigail Breslin) in Columbia PIctures' ZOMBIELAND: DOUBLE TAP.
Zombieland: Double Tap

Referring to Cera’s turning down of the role, Fletcher said: “I was surprised that he didn’t want to do it.”

The director went on to say that Middleditch ended up doing a great job in the role, calling his performance “perfect”.

“I mean, he’s such a funny, funny guy, and an amazing improviser. And he brought something that just made it so special.”

He continued: ”It’s one of my favourite moments in the whole movie, and yeah, I felt really, really lucky that it ended up being Thomas because he’s just an incredible performer and brought so much comedy. And the parallels are striking. When you look at them side by side, I mean, it’s really funny. Just the visual – like a weird funhouse mirror, is what Emma [Stone] says.

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“But yeah, it’s really true: they’re like weird doppelgänger.”

Eisenberg recently jokingly blamed Deadpool for the ten-year delay between Zombieland films.

“We were trying to do the movie right after the first one because the first one was so popular and then we just waited for the best script,” Eisenberg told Jimmy Fallon.

“In the meantime, the two writers, Rhett Reese and Paul Wernick, did Deadpool and then we were waiting for them to finish that so they can write this. And we were all waiting, me, Woody Harrelson, Emma Stone, Abigail Breslin, we’re all waiting for the best script and it finally came in.”

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