Paula Marshall vs. Carla Gugino
Battle of the Milk-Fed Brunettes

Sometimes stars find themselves on the 2 Stars, 1 Slot page because they play a lot of the same kinds of roles, like Geoffrey Rush and Pete Postlethwaite. Other times they're paired because they've managed to make equally weak impressions on the entertainment world, as is the case with Tony Goldwyn and Tate Donovan. And then there are the stars who cancel one another out because they look so much alike, they might as well be the same person. It is in this category that Paula Marshall and Carla Gugino find themselves.

Paula Marshall has been working professionally as an actor throughout the nineties, and despite her many film credits is still most widely known as Lois, the reporter from the NYU paper who thought Jerry and George were a couple on Seinfeld. Gugino is not fortunate enough to have such a memorable role on her CV, which sadly is dotted with detritus like Red Hot, Motorcycle Gang, Jaded, and Wedding Bell Blues. Marshall also has the dubious honour of having had a leading role in no fewer than four failed TV series: The Flash, Wild Oats, Chicago Sons, and Cupid (five if you count the inevitable demise of this fall's Snoops). And Gugino, for her part, has the dubious honour of having played Mrs. Pauly Shore in Son In Law. Marshall played the daughter of diva Bette Midler in That Old Feeling. Gugino played the daughter of diva Mia Farrow in Miami Rhapsody, in which she also starred opposite Jeremy Piven, Marshall's co-star in Cupid. It would appear that the roles for pretty, dark-haired, undistinguished young ladies are numerous, if not especially interesting, and that each actor is waiting for her breakout role.

Unfortunately, there is one impediment to the arrival of said breakout role: the fact that producers are plainly unable to tell them apart. As if more proof were required that Marshall and Gugino were redundant figures on the showbiz landscape, there are not one but two instances in which they've trod in the same professional footsteps. In 1988, Carla Gugino appeared on The Wonder Years as "Wayne's Girlfriend." In 1992, Paula Marshall appeared on The Wonder Years as Bonnie Douglas, a young single mother who was...Wayne's Girlfriend. Then, in 1996, Carla Gugino won a role on the new series Spin City playing Ashley Schaeffer, Mike Flaherty's love interest. And in 1997, Paula Marshall appeared on Spin City as Laurie Parres...Mike Flaherty's love interest. Is this some kind of joke? Are they sitcom clones? As far as we're concerned, if casting directors can't be bothered to differentiate between them, why should we?

Advantage: You mean, who's in the best position to play a tertiary role in Snake Eyes 2? Who cares? Pick 'em.