History Main / FakeTwinGambit

* ''ComicBook/{{Daredevil}}'': Matt Murdock has pretended to be his own non-existent twin brother Mike Murdock to trick Karen and Foggy into believing that "Mike" was Daredevil when they began to suspect Matt's double life. This was back in UsefulNotes/{{the Silver Age of comic|books}}s when even Daredevil wasn't a very realistic series. [[spoiler:That said, the events of Creator/CharlesSoule [[ComicBook/DaredevilCharlesSoule and]] Creator/ChipZdarsky's [[ComicBook/Daredevil2019 ru]] [[ComicBook/Daredevil2022 ns]] saw a CosmicRetcon that caused Mike to become a separate (and living, given Matt chose to end the gambit by faking "Mike's" death) person with his own life and history.]]

* In ''Comicbook/{{Daredevil}}'', Matt Murdock pretended to be his own non-existent twin brother Mike Murdock to trick Karen and Foggy into believing that "Mike" was Daredevil when they began to suspect Matt's double life. This was back in UsefulNotes/{{the Silver Age of comic|books}}s when even Daredevil wasn't a very realistic series. [[spoiler:That said, the events of Creator/CharlesSoule [[ComicBook/DaredevilCharlesSoule and]] Creator/ChipZdarsky's [[ComicBook/DaredevilChipZdarsky runs]] saw a CosmicRetcon that caused Mike to become a separate (and living, given Matt chose to end the gambit by faking "Mike's" death) person with his own life and history.]]
* In ''Big Bang Comics'', Ultiman is a CaptainErsatz version of Superman. However, Ultiman has worked for the government since gaining powers, and his identity as astronaut Chris Kelly is widely known... which is why he took on another identity as Chris' twin brother Carl, who works with Ultiman's superior Gen. Black and Black's secretary Lori Lake.

* In the ''Creator/ECComics'' story "Split Personality" (Vault of Horror #30) a man scams a pair of rich twins into each marrying him, telling them that he has a twin himself and that they need to manage holdings in another country such that one is always away. [[spoiler: When they eventually realize the truth, the twins split him in half with an axe so each can have him.]]

Contrast TwinSwitch, where a character ''does'' have a twin and impersonates them. Subtrope of InventedIndividual.

* ''Series/DarkDesire'': [[spoiler:Dario]] pretends he's got an identical twin to excuse certain things he does, using some makeup so they look slightly different.

* In ''VisualNovel/HigurashiWhenTheyCry'', Mion does this in the Watanagashi-hen, when she claims to be her twin sister, Shion, a twin who never made an appearance in the previous arc, and who Rena and Satoko, some of Mion's best friends, don't know anything about. [[spoiler:The aforementioned is what Keiichi and the audience are led to believe, until shortly before the Watanagashi, Shion tricks him into buying a doll that Mion had wanted him to give her from the toy store ''where Mion was working.'' Seeing the two twins side-by-side shows Keiichi - and by extension the audience - [[SubvertedTrope that Mion really does have an identical twin sister named Shion]], but it’s later shown [[DoubleSubversion that Mion really did pretend to be Shion]], [[TwinSwitch she just happens to be a real person]].]] Just to make things even more complicated? [[spoiler:Mion and Shion made an unintended permanent switch as children, where the younger twin received the tattoo marking her as “Mion”. In other words, when “Mion” called herself “Shion”, she was actually telling the truth.]]

This is where a character, for some reason or another, pretends to be their own (nonexistent) identical twin. It could be for disguise, or to see how their friends really think of them. Success rates vary.

-->'''Jane:''' I once went on holiday and pretended to be twins. It was amazing fun. I invented this mad, glamorous sister and went around really annoying everybody. And d'you know, I could get away with anything when I was my crazy twin Jane.
-->'''Sally:''' But you're Jane.
-->'''Jane:''' Kinda stuck. It's a long story.

* Happens in the ''Series/TalesFromTheCrypt'' story "Split Personality". A conman fools a pair of reclusive and wealthy identical twin sisters into falling for him and his invented twin brother so [[GoldDigger he can collect on their fortune]]. When he accidentally reveals the ruse via his own carelessness, the sisters are ''very'' upset and decide to ensure that each gets her fair share for once -- [[HalfTheManHeUsedToBe with the help of a]] [[ChainsawGood chainsaw]].
* On ''Series/ThreesCompany'', Jack told Mr. Furly that he had a twin brother who lived in Texas named Austin. This leads to a hysterical scene later in the episode where he has to pretend to be both of them at the same time around Furly.
* Played with on ''Series/{{iCarly}}'': Sam spends an episode trying to convince Freddie that she has a twin sister (who Freddie ends up going on a date with), before finally admitting that it was a trick. [[spoiler: And then after Freddie leaves, Sam's sister comes up in the elevator.]]

* On ''Series/GoodEats'', when Alton's EvilTwin B.A. appears, it's pretty obvious to the audience that B.A. is just Alton in a DarkerAndEdgier costume, so it's PlayedForLaughs.
* ''Series/{{Charmed|1998}}'':
** A variation - Paige uses magic to impersonate Glen's fiancee Jessica and goes to marry him in her place. When Leo shows up with the real Jessica, he tells the confused priest that they're twins.

* In the ''Series/OurMissBrooks'' episode "Connie and Bonnie", Miss Brooks impersonates her non-existent twin sister so as to earn extra money moonlighting as a waitress.