Cameo appearance
A
cameo role or
cameo appearance (often just "cameo") is a brief appearance of a well-known person in a work of the
performing arts, such as
plays,
films and
television. Such a role need not be filled by an actor: short appearances by
film directors,
politicians,
athletes, and other
celebrities are common.Cameos are often uncredited due to their brevity or because of a perceived mismatch between the celebrity's stature and the film or TV show he or she is appearing in. Many are
publicity stunts. Others are acknowledgements of an actor's contribution to an earlier work, as in the case of many
film adaptations of TV series, or of
remakes of earlier films.
Mike Todd's film
Around the World in Eighty Days (1956) was studded with cameo roles and gave the term wide circulation outside the theatrical profession. The frequent cameo appearances of
Alfred Hitchcock in his films also helped popularize the term. Cameos are also common in
novels and other literary works such as
comic books, although the focus is obviously on the character rather than on the person portraying him or her. Such "literary cameos" usually involve an established character from another work who makes a brief appearance to establish a
shared universe setting, to make a point of some sort, or just as a
homage. A notable appearance of this sort is that of
d'Artagnan in
Rostand's
Cyrano de Bergerac.
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List of cameo appearances*
Bit part*
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