November 20, 2024
Eric Hartline/Imagn Images
A lookalike contest for Jason Kelce dopplegangers is scheduled for Saturday, Dec. 14. It aims to capture the zeitgeist of similar celebrity lookalike contests in the country.
A wave of celebrity look-a-like contests has hit major cities, and Philadelphia has a handful coming up in the weeks ahead.
On Sunday, anyone who resembles actor Miles Teller can show up at Rittenhouse Square Park at 1 p.m. to compete for a free cheesesteak from Angelo's Pizzeria. An unrelated competition for lookalikes of Eagles legend Jason Kelce takes place on Saturday, Dec. 14 at 1 p.m., with the winner getting $50 and a green winter hat.
There's also a Jalen Hurts lookalike contest happening Sunday, Dec. 15 at 12:30 p.m. at Washington Square Park. The winner purportedly receives beard oil, a brush and two bags of Crawfish Lays chips.
These events are part of an influx of doppelganger contests spurred by a Timothee Chalamet lookalike contest in New York City in October. That gathering drew hundreds of spectators, police attention and even an appearance from Chalamet.
Other notable contests have sought lookalikes for actors Jeremy Allen White (Chicago), Paul Mescal (Dublin) and Dev Patel (San Francisco).
Jamir Griffin, the comedian behind the Lexaprotagnist Instagram meme account, and Claire Gill, a local standup comedian, noticed the lookalike zeitgeist and organized the Kelce contest to get in on the fun.
"I saw Jamir post about wanting to host (a Philly contest) and we went back and forth brainstorming ideas until we landed on the people's princess: Jason Kelce," Gill said.
Gill wants to add whimsy to the lives of Philly residents.
"It's fun to have a stupid little contest just because!" Gill said. "This feels so up our alley as Philadelphians, as we just showed up to watch a guy eat a rotisserie chicken in 2022."
Griffin and Gill will be among the judges, and photographer Jason Rodgers — who photographed Kelce for his recent Wawa ad campaign — will shoot the event. They hope for 20 to 50 participants, and Griffin predicts the sight will invite a lot of onlookers.
Of course, they're also betting that the real Jason Kelce will stop by.
"He's pretty involved with the Philly community and Eagles fans, so I could see it happening," said Griffin, adding that he hopes the social media attention attracts the ESPN analyst. Griffin said the Instagram post that announced the contest has circulated quickly, and he expects that flyers around the city will help draw a crowd.
Looking past the comedic novelty of the event, Griffin and Gill also want to encourage people to interact in "third spaces" outside of the home and the workplace.
"I would love to at least hear that people meet each other and have fun at this thing," Gill said. "I have friends joking that they're gonna attend this and this is how they're gonna meet their husband."
Griffin agreed: "This is what's been making me so happy, just knowing people are excited to make silly connections that could last a lifetime at something so silly as a Jason Kelce lookalike contest."
