Cross-dressing and drag in film and television has followed a long history of cross-dressing and drag on the English stage, and made its appearance in the early days of the silent films. Charlie Chaplin and Stan Laurel brought the tradition from the English music halls when they came to the United States with Fred Karno's comedy troupe in 1910. Both Chaplin and Laurel occasionally dressed as women in their films. Even the beefy American actor Wallace Beery appeared in a series of silent films as a Swedish woman. The Three Stooges, especially Curly (Jerry Howard), sometimes appeared in drag in their short films. The tradition has continued for many years, usually played for laughs. Only in recent decades have there been dramatic films which included cross-dressing, possibly because of strict censorship of American films until the mid-1960s. One early exception was Alfred Hitchcock's thriller Murder!, where the murderer is a transvestite who wears particularly frilly dresses and petticoats. Cross-gender acting, on the other hand, refers to actors or actresses portraying a character of the opposite gender.
Film and video
In Some Like It Hot (1959), two struggling musicians have to dress as women to escape the ire of gangsters. The film is a remake of a 1935 French movie, Fanfare of Love, from the story by Robert Thoeren and Michael Logan, which was remade in 1951 by German director Kurt Hoffmann as Fanfares of Love.
In Blake Edwards's 1982 musical comedy film Victor/Victoria, Victoria Grant, a struggling soprano, is unable to find work but she finds success when she becomes "Count Victor Grazinski", a female impersonator. The film is a remake of , a German film of 1933.
David Henry Hwang's 1988 play M. Butterfly focuses on a love affair between a French diplomat and a male Beijing opera singer who plays dan, or female, roles.
Dr. Frank 'n' Furter in The Rocky Horror Picture Show wore nothing but women's clothing the entire film/play.
In The Drew Carey Show, Drew's brother, Steve Carey, is a cross-dresser.
Robin Williams played a divorced father who dressed as a nanny to be with his children in the 1993 comedy Mrs. Doubtfire.
Dame Edna was an Australian female impersonator with "wisteria-colored hair" who did international chat shows in the 1990s.
Various installments of the British Carry On comedy film series, such as Carry On Constable (1960), Carry On Screaming! (1966), Carry On Again Doctor (1969), Carry On Matron (1972) and Carry On Girls (1973) featured male cast members who for various plot reasons masqueraded as women in female attire. Similarly, the films Carry On Jack (1966) and Carry On Dick (1974) featured female actors portraying male characters.
As a central plot element
Movies that feature cross-dressing as a central plot element: Films based on the 1599 or 1600 play As You Like It by William Shakespeare As You Like It (1912) – an American film As You Like It (1936) As You Like It (2006) Films based on the 1601 or 1602 play Twelfth Night by William Shakespeare Twelfth Night (1910) – an American film Twelfth Night (1933) – an American film, the first film made by Orson Welles Twelfth Night (1955) – a Soviet film Twelfth Night (1986) – an Australian film Twelfth Night: Or What You Will (1996) – a British film Several films based on the 1892 United Kingdom play Charley's Aunt by Brandon Thomas La Zia di Carlo (1911) - an Italian film Charley's Aunt (1915) – an American film Charley's Aunt (1925) - an American film Charley's Aunt (1926) - a Swedish film Charley's Aunt (1930) La tía de las muchachas (1938) – a Mexican film Charley's (Big-Hearted) Aunt (1940) Charley's Aunt (1941) Fíjate qué suave (1948) – Mexican remake of La tía de las muchachas (1938) Charleys Tante (1956) – a German film Charles' Aunt (1959) – a Danish film starring Dirch Passer Charleys Tante (1963) – a German film Hello, I'm Your Aunt! (1975) – a Soviet film La tía de Carlos (Charles' aunt) (1981) – a Spanish film starring Paco Martínez Soria Les Résultats du féminisme (1906) -- remade as In the Year 2000 (1912); the latter believed to be lost College Chums (1907) – a young man dresses a woman in order to get his friend out of trouble with his girlfriend Getting Even (1909) – Billy Quirk's character dresses as a woman to prank the other men in a mining camp Katchem Kate (1912) – Mabel Normand disguises herself as a man after becoming a detective Mabel's Adventures (1912) – Mabel Normand disguises herself as her "Cousin Jack" to test her suitors The Little House in Kolomna (1913) – a Russian comedy based on the joke poem by Alexander Pushkin starring Ivan Mosjoukine Mabel's Blunder (1914) – Mabel Normand's character and her brother swap clothes so she can spy on her fiancé The Masquerader (1914) – after being fired from a film studio, Charlie Chaplin's character dresses up as a woman in order to return to the studio Miss Bellboy (Fräulein Piccolo) (1914) – After the bellboy and maid of her parents' hotel run off together, Dorrit Weixler's character has to act (and dress) as both A Woman (1915) – Charlie Chaplin's character dresses up as "Nora" in order to spend more time with his new girlfriend Edna Her Father's Son (1916) – Vivian Martin's newly orphaned protagonist, taken in by her wealthy uncle (under the pretense, created by his estranged and relatively impoverished late brother, that his only child was actually a boy), impersonates his non-existent nephew in order to secure her promised share of his inheritanceChadwick, Bruce (1916). The Reel Civil War. New York: Alfred A. Knopf. p. 68. ."Fairbanks' Casting Director Here—Cleveland Photo Play Reviews: Knickerbocker – 'Her Father's Son'". The Cleveland Plain Dealer. October 17, 1916. p. 8. Retrieved January 16, 2025. I Don't Want to Be a Man (Ich möchte kein Mann sein) (1918) – Ossi Oswalda is a woman who poses as a man to attend a lavish ball Know Thy Wife (1918) – After being secretly married, Dorothy Devore's character is brought home to meet the parents as her husband's friend "Steve" Yankee Doodle in Berlin (1919) – Bothwell Browne's character Captain Bob White dresses as a woman to steal a map from the Kaiser Chasing the Chaser (1925) – Frederick Kovert's detective disguises himself as a young woman to entrap an unfaithful husband Madame Behave (1925) – Julian Eltinge's character Jack poses as a woman to evade the police The Unholy Three (1925) – Lon Chaney's character Echo poses as an elderly woman to steal a necklace Beverly of Graustark (1926) – Marion Davies poses as her cousin, the Prince of Graustark, in order to secure the throne The Clinging Vine (1926) – Leatrice Joy starts the film as a severe businesswoman, with a suit and masculine hairstyle The Girl in Tails (1926) – Swedish comedy in which Magda Holm attends a graduation ceremony in her brother's tuxedo She Goes to War (1929) – Eleanor Boardman is the heroine who dresses as a man to fight in World War I That's My Wife (1929) – Stan Laurel poses as Oliver Hardy's wife to help him receive an inheritance The Unholy Three (1930) – sound remake Viktor und Viktoria (1933) – a woman impersonates a female impersonator, later remade as First a Girl (1935) and Victor Victoria in 1982; see below Queen Christina (1933) – Greta Garbo's character Christina often dresses as a boy to have greater freedom, eventually meeting Antonio, the Spanish envoy, dressed as a boy She Loves Me Not (1934), remade as True to the Army (1942) and How to Be Very, Very Popular (1955) Girls Will Be Boys (1934) – Dolly Haas disguises herself as a man Peter (1934) – a musical comedy by Henry Koster starring Franciska Gaal Czy Lucyna to dziewczyna? (Is Lucy a Girl?) (1934) – comedy directed by Juliusz Gardan; hoping to find work as a technician against the wishes of her father, the titular Lucyna disguises herself as a man Fanfare d'amour (1935) – a French comedy in which two poor musicians, played by Fernand Gravey and Julien Carette, dress as women to join an all-female jazz band. This movie inspired the later and more famous Some Like it Hot First a Girl (1935) – a comedy in which Jessie Matthews dresses as a man. English remake of Viktor und Viktoria (1933) Sylvia Scarlett (1935) – Katharine Hepburn dresses as a man for most of the film; this is her first film with Cary Grant The Devil Doll (1936) – Lionel Barrymore plays an evil, elderly woman Yiddle with His Fiddle (1936) – Molly Picon plays a traveling musician who dresses as a boy for safety Bringing Up Baby (1938) – Cary Grant cross-dresses Sysmäläinen (1938) – Finnish film set in the 17th century where the main female character disguises herself as a man who pretends to be a woman. The Black Sheep of Whitehall (1942) – comedian Will Hay wryly impersonates a nurse and spends the night with the hospital nurses in this wartime British comedy (1943) – Argentine comedy in which Paulina Singerman poses as her own fictitious brother in order to work as her boyfriend's secretary and investigate him Me ha besado un hombre (1944) – Mexican comedy in which María Elena Marqués adopts her deceased brother's identity to migrate from Spain to Mexico City; remade in 1953 La hija del regimiento (1944) – Mexican musical comedy in which Mapy Cortés, secretly raised within an all-male regiment, cross-dresses as a cadet Fram för lilla Märta (1945) – a Swedish film; a musician, played by Stig Järrel, cross-dresses to get a job in an all-female orchestra Op med lille Martha (1946) – a Danish remake of Fram för lilla Märta Little Giant (1946) – Bud Abbott plays the Grandmother The Time of Their Lives (1946) – a comedy in which Marjorie Reynolds's character Melody Allen dresses as a man Boy! What a Girl! (1947) – playing the part of an out of work burlesque comic named Bumpsie, Tim Moore gives a frightfully hilarious female impersonation Enrédate y verás (1948) - Mexican comedy in which Emilia Guiú cross-dresses as her cousin, a soldier Vidalita (1949) – Argentine historical comedy in which Mirtha Legrand passes as a gaucho to win the approval of her grandfather, who wants a grandson, and is courted by an army captain who does not know whether she is a man or a woman; later reappraised as a veiled depiction of male homosexuality and a precursor of Argentine queer cinema I Was a Male War Bride (1949) – Cary Grant is a French officer who marries a U.S. Army officer played by Ann Sheridan and cross-dresses to pass as a bride Yo quiero ser hombre (1950) – Mexican comedy in which Alma Rosa Aguirre cross-dresses as a boy to carry out an inheritance scheme plotted by her aunt (Sara García) I Am Very Macho (1953) – Mexican comedy in which Silvia Pinal cross-dresses as her pilot brother and falls in love with the fleet's captain; remake of 1944's Me ha besado un hombre (A Man Kissed Me) Pablo and Carolina (1957) – filmed in 1955; Mexican musical comedy in which a socialite played by Irasema Dilián pretends to be her (non-existent) brother Das Wirtshaus im Spessart (1958) – young countess dresses as a poor boy and joins the robbers to save her friends Some Like It Hot (1959) – Tony Curtis and Jack Lemmon dress as women and join an all-female band in order to hide from the mob La joven mancornadora (1961) - Mexican rural musical comedy in which Lola Beltrán cross-dresses to avenge her father. Homicidal (1961) – male role played by Jean Arless was actually actress Joan Marshall Hussar Ballad (1962) – a Soviet musical comedy by Eldar Ryazanov based on the real-life story of Nadezhda Durova, a soldier during the Napoleonic Wars Blonde Cobra (1963) – Jack Smith spends the whole film in drag Me ha gustado un hombre (1965) – Mexican-Venezuelan co-production in which Tere Velázquez cross-dresses to get work as a hotel bellboy Gunn (1967) – the killer is revealed to be a cross-dresser