With new Indiana Jones and Hellboy movies on the horizon, we’re reminded of heroes who fought supernatural Nazis from time to time. Heck, both Hellboy and Indiana Jones came face-to-moustache with Hitler, and Indy even got his autograph. But not all superheroes are so lucky. Some don’t get to battle the Big Bad himself — they only get to square off with Hitler’s clones. You’d be surprised how many Hitler clones have popped up in movies, TV and comics.
If you’re a mad scientist with cloning technology at your disposal and you’re hell-bent on cloning someone to represent your organization, Hitler would probably be at the top of your list. Just rest assured that you wouldn’t be the first to try it. Check out the list of some of the better-known Hitler clones.
They Saved Hitler’s Brain: This 1966 film features Nazi scientists removing Hitler’s brain and sending it to South America so he can later be cloned. Too bad the movie didn’t deliver on the promise of the title. it features numerous scenes of men talking. And talking. And talking. In fact, you don’t even see Hitler’s still-living head until the film is almost over. Talk about your wasted opportunities.
The Boys From Brazil: This 1978 film features a real gem of a plot. Dr. Joseph Mengele, the Angel of Death of Nazi concentration camps, has survived and has been feverishly working to clone Hitler himself. In fact, he’s created 94 of them. These clones have been placed around the world and raised by families. However, in order to mirror Hitler’s childhood, each of the clones fathers have to be killed when they reach age 14, since Hitler lost his own father at that age. The film features terrific performances from Gregory Peck and Sir Laurence Olivier, but the Hitler clone is only a background device, and we never get to see an adult Hitler tromping around.
Wonder Woman: In the Wonder Woman episode Anschluss ’77, Wonder Woman stumbled onto a ring of Nazis in the 1970s trying to clone Hitler. They manage to pull it off, although the scene where Hitler’s body rises up to fill his old uniform is laughable at best. While we love sci fi gadgets that can pump out clones at the flick of a switch, the ghostly resurrection of Hitler looks more like magic than quasi-science. Check out the episode below: the cloning happens about 28 minutes in.
The Hate-Monger: Marvel comics offered up this Hitler clone who used a "Hate-ray" to make love and other emotions turn into hate. Hoo-boy. He even wore a huge "H" belt-buckle, just to make sure you knew he wasn’t a loving kind of guy. He also wore a Ku Klux Klan style hood and often exchanged fisticuffs with Captain America.-
Sadly, we haven’t seen a good book or movie that nails the Hitler clone storyline. In fact, the most evil clone movie that Hollywood has given us was 1996’s Multiplicity, featuring Michael Keaton as multiple clones of himself. It’s been eleven years, and we’re still not able to wash the taste of it from our mouths.
