Bill Murray has attained something of a mythic status over the past few years for his habit of making unexpected cameos in real life. A number of stories about the late-blooming hipster party crasher have made the rounds, with varying degrees of believability. This week, Murray bolstered his reputation for showing up in random places by joining in on a Brooklyn kickball game. But the former Ghostbuster is not the only celebrity with a legendary ability to make unusual appearances. We’ve rounded up some of our favorite real-life cameos by celebrities that keep us wondering where they’ll turn up next.
Bill Murray cashes in his hipster cred
Another classic Bill Murray sighting occurred at a bar during SXSW in 2010 with his Coffee and Cigarettes counterparts from the Wu-Tang Clan, where the actor apparently tried his hand at tending bar. Whether it’s reliving a Lost in Translation scene in your karaoke room, crashing your party and then helping with the dishes, or garnering speculation over a hypothetical couch-surfing tour, Murray is the uncontested king of real-life cameos.
John Waters hits the road
A few months ago, we posted this story about Brooklyn indie rock band Here We Go Magic tweeting that they had just picked up a hitchhiking John Waters on the side of the road in Ohio. It turns out the legendary indie filmmaker was thumbing his way from coast to coast as part of a forthcoming book project.
That time Werner Herzog pulled Joaquin Phoenix from a car wreck
The iconic German director is a man for whom nature is red in tooth and claw. We can just imagine Herzog’s reaction as he rescued Joaquin Phoenix from a flipped vehicle, speaking in that same contemplative and stark demeanor with which he sometimes watches deranged penguins walk off towards certain death. Not much seems to faze Herzog, who was once shot during an interview in LA and insisted on continuing. His reaction: “It’s not a significant bullet.”
Ryan Gosling, meddling do-gooder of Manhattan
Gosling proved to be a real human being and a real hero on at least two separate occasions, including breaking up a fight in Soho and saving pink-wigged journalist Laurie Penny from getting hit by a cab.
Bob Dylan looks for real estate in the rain
A concerned resident of Long Branch, New Jersey phoned the police back in 2009 after a suspicious freewheelin’ stranger, dressed in sweatpants and two raincoats, was seen wandering around his neighborhood in the pouring rain. After being picked up by the police and driven back to the hotel where his tour buses were parked, the stranger was verified to be none other than Bob Dylan, who claimed to be simply checking out the local real estate.
Post-presidential party boy
Bill Clinton’s penchant for popping up in weird places seems to have earned him something of a reputation as the Bill Murray of former presidents. He’s been spotted hanging out on the 30 Rock set, partying in the Hamptons, posing for Instagram photos with professional basketball players, and apparently being escorted to galas by an entourage of porn stars.
Tom Hanks gets wasted with fan
A series of staged photos went viral back in August depicting a drunken fan passed out next to the notoriously friendly actor. The all-American middlebrow A-lister shows us that his comedic movie persona carries over into his real life, doing his best to feign inebriation while the fan face-plants into a pizza.