History Main / LegendaryImpostor

* Team Rocket occasionally tries this in ''Anime/{{Pokemon}}.'' They've impersonated Professor Oak and a radio personality; Norman, May, and Max; and Wallace at different times to sell autographs, advice, and things like that.

* ''VideoGame/SkiesOfArcadia'' featured a BonusBoss consisting of a bunch of actors impersonating the heroes and using their reputation to rob people. When you eventually fight them, each one has approximately three times the stats of the person they're supposed to impersonate in order to provide a challenging boss fight... Which raises the question of why [[CutLexLuthorACheck they simply didn't enter the hero business and made a name for themselves on their own merits]].

* ''Manga/VinlandSaga'': the prosperous farmer Ketil from the second arc [[RetiredBadass was once known as "Iron Fist" Ketil]], a legendary warrior capable of shattering shields and the handles of his own weapons with his bare hands. [[spoiler:In truth, Ketil is not and never was "Iron Fist" Ketil; [[SignificantNameOverlap that title belongs to a different man named Ketil]], and the two are similar enough in age and build for it to be believable they're the same person. Ketil doesn't boldly go around announcing this fake reputation to anyone, but he also hasn't done anything to quell the rumors because he believes being mistaken for "Iron Fist" Ketil keeps his farm safe. In a departure from this trope, no-one ever publicly calls him out on it, nor does the real "Iron Fist" ever make an appearance. Snake once fought alongside the real "Iron Fist" and considered him a mentor, so while [[SecretSecretKeeper he knows perfectly well that Ketil isn't the man he trained under]], he also never reveals it because he owes Ketil for sheltering him and giving him a household position even though he's an {{Outlaw}}.]]

* ''Manga/VinlandSaga'': Ketil from the second arc [[RetiredBadass was once known as "Iron Fist"]], a legendary warrior capable of shattering shields with his bare hands. [[spoiler:In truth, Ketil is not and never was the "Iron Fist"; [[SignificantNameOverlap that title belongs to a different Ketil]] with similar enough age and build for it to be believable they're the same person. Ketil doesn't boldly go around announcing this fake reputation to anyone, but he also hasn't done anything to quell the rumors because he believes being mistaken for the "Iron Fist" keeps his farm safe. In a departure from this trope, no-one ever publicly calls him out on it, nor does the real "Iron Fist" ever make an appearance. While Snake used to be the real "Iron Fist"'s student and knows perfectly well Ketil isn't the man he trained under, he also never reveals it because he owes Ketil for giving him a household position even though he's an {{Outlaw}}.]]

* ''Manga/VinlandSaga'': Ketil from the second arc is rumored to once have been Ketil "Iron Fist", a legendary warrior capable of shattering shields with his bare hands. [[spoiler:In truth, Ketil is not and never was the "Iron Fist"; that being a completely different man also called Ketil and around the same age. Ketil doesn't boldly go around announcing his fake reputation to anyone, he also hasn't done anything to quell the rumors because he believes being mistaken for the "Iron Fist" keeps his farm safe. In a departure from this trope, no-one ever publicly calls him out on it, nor does the real "Iron Fist" ever make an appearance. While Snake used to be the real "Iron Fist"'s student and knows perfectly well Ketil isn't the man he trained under, he also never reveals it because he owes Ketil for giving him a household position even though he's an {{Outlaw}}.]]