A man who earns a bit of extra cash as a Cillian Murphy impersonator has seen his business boom in the run-up to the Oscars this weekend.
The Douglas-native has been the talk of the film industry in recent months and following a series of wins at prestigious award shows like the BAFTAs, it seems that Murphy is an absolute shoo-in for the Oscar. Nominated in the Best Actor category for his compelling portrayal of J. Robert Oppenheimer, - the Jewish scientist who developed the atomic bomb during World War II - he's up against fellow nominees Bradley Cooper for Maestro, Colman Domingo for Rustin, Paul Giamatti in The Holdovers or Jeffrey Wright for American Fiction.
A win this weekend would cement Murphy as a global star on top of securing his place in the history books as the first Irish-born performer to win the Oscar for Best Actor. The Cork star and his family have already touched down in Los Angeles after departing Dublin Airport on an Aer Lingus flight alongside other Irish hopefuls. Renowned cinematographer Robbie Ryan and other Element Pictures talent have been nominated for their exceptional work on 'Poor Things' which received wide critical acclaim.
Murphy's rise to stardom has benefitted many and among them is a Manchester native who does weekend work as a professional impersonator. Scott Blower, a 51-year-old father-of-two says his bookings as a Cillian Murphy lookalike have shot up in recent weeks in the lead-up to the Oscars and he expects things to get even crazier if Murphy secures his well-deserved win.
While he works primarily as a Tommy Shelby impersonator - the fictional character made famous by 47-year-old Murphy in smash-hit TV drama, Peaky Blinders - he attributes the actor's multi-award-winning success in Oppenheimer to triggering a surge in bookings for him as a doppelganger. Scott currently spends his weekdays working as an installation manager but if business keeps going the way it is, he says he'd consider taking up the impersonation gigs full-time.
Scott said: "I never intended to get into it, but Peaky Blinders quickly became very popular and one night when I was in a local pub the barmaid told me I looked like Cillian Murphy, and I looked in the mirror and thought, 'I know what she means.'
"Anyway, I've been doing work as a double on and off since then, and it's been a lot of fun, and while most of the work is local, I've had offers of work from all over the world, including the US and even South Korea. But the phone's been ringing a lot more recently, and that's because of all the awards that Cillian Murphy and Oppenheimer have won.
"And it's not just the extra work offers I'm getting because everywhere I go at the moment people strangers keep shouting out to me or coming up to me, mistaking me for Cillian Murphy. But I don't mind it all. I have a laugh with it."
He added: "If Cillian does go on to win the Oscar, I wouldn't be surprised if I start getting 20 calls a week. If that happens, I may have to start working as a double full-time."
