Jim Carrey claims he’s descended from a French pirate – and he certainly plundered la langue francaise when he accepted a prestigious film award in Paris on Thursday.

The reclusive Canadian-American was making a very rare public appearance to collect an honorary Cesar award – the French equivalent of an Oscar – for his ‘exuberant, unrestrained and unforgettable characters that have become a core part of popular culture’.

He proceeded to astonish the glittering audience by giving his entire acceptance speech in French – a bold move which, despite his terrible American accent, they applauded.

But his use of a foreign language wasn’t the only surprise that night. The 64-year-old star of The Mask, The Truman Show and Bruce Almighty looked unmistakably different – to the point that some observers said he was ‘unrecognisable’.

The shoulder-length dyed hair, the smoothed-out, fuller features and rejuvenated eyelids caused widespread shock online, especially among those who recalled a star who went to some lengths to condemn the ‘hollowness’ of Hollywood celebrity culture – including, presumably, cosmetic surgery.

Thousands claimed to see differences that couldn’t even be achieved with a stylist or plastic surgeon. ‘Hadn’t his eyes changed colour?’ some fans wondered, as images and footage from his speech flooded social media and afforded a rare glimpse of a star who once seemed ubiquitous (in 1994 he became the first actor to have three number-one films in the same year).

Carrey may be king of goofy faces but many have found this latest transformation simply too odd to believe.

The physical incongruities, coupled with his surprising decision to give his speech in French, set many speculating as to whether this actually was Carrey. Indeed, some were even convinced they’d been looking at a woman.

The 64-year-old star of The Mask, The Truman Show and Bruce Almighty looked unmistakably different – to the point that some observers said he was ‘unrecognisable’

Both the actor’s publicist and a representative for the Cesar Awards felt the need to put out statements confirming it was Jim Carrey

Had the star sent an impersonator, people wondered? Was the trickery the ultimate two fingers to the showbusiness world he has spurned for the past ten years – having not made a single film in that time apart from hamming it up alongside animated computer game characters in lucrative but forgettable Sonic The Hedgehog movies? Some suggested it was some sort of artificial intelligence fakery or even a clone.

An elaborate spoof ‘non-appearance’ would certainly suit Carrey’s taste for the absurd. The actor is nothing if not eccentric and has said more than enough things – such as once telling an interviewer, ‘I don’t exist’ – to keep conspiracy theorists going for months. There was particular excitement after viewers dredged up a decades-old interview with chat show host David Letterman in which Carrey claimed he used decoys to fool paparazzi.

‘It sounds so ridiculous but it works like a charm . . . a Jim Carrey double,’ he said. ‘I send him off in one direction, he sucks all the Press in that direction, and I just have my day.’

Amateur sleuths have dissected such arcane issues as the science behind the actor’s apparently changing eye colour – brown eyes can appear to turn hazel with age, claimed a Facebook post – while diehard Carrey devotees insisted the plumped and wrinkle-free actor on stage couldn’t be him, as the real star wouldn’t be so ‘inauthentic’ as to go under the surgeon’s knife.

As days passed, the theories became ever more nonsensical, including one claim that Carrey (who’s something of a conspiracy theorist himself when it comes to his scepticism over vaccines) had been kidnapped by satanists and then ‘cloned’.

And then, on Sunday, the sceptics appeared to be proved correct when Alexis Stone, a British drag artist famous for accurate celebrity impersonations, claimed he’d posed as Jim Carrey. He posted a few photos of Carrey at the Cesars on social media alongside the caption ‘Alexis Stone as Jim Carrey in Paris’.

Stone included an image of a prosthetic mask (looking like Carrey’s face), dentures, a wig and make-up tray on a table with a blurred Eiffel Tower in the background.

He even appeared to convince other Hollywood stars, with singer Katy Perry posting an emoji of an arrow hitting a target. ‘I can’t handle any more stress right now. I need to know if this is real,’ wrote actress Megan Fox.

Sharp-eyed observers however countered that Stone doesn’t attempt to impersonate celebrities speaking. So that rather ruled him out.

The speculation became so intense, not to say deranged, that both the actor’s publicist and a representative for the Cesar Awards felt the need to put out statements. It definitely was Carrey, they insisted.

Marleah Leslie, Carrey’s publicist, who attended the ceremony, said: ‘Jim Carrey attended the Cesar Awards, where he accepted his Honorary Cesar Award.’

Carrey poses in the winners room with the ‘Honorary’ Award during the 51st Cesar Film Awards at L’Olympia on February 26, 2026 in Paris, France

Carrey at Sonic the Hedgehog 2 film premiere in Los Angeles, California in 2022

Gregory Caulier, the general delegate of the awards, issued a statement to Variety dismissing the frenetic claims about it not being Carrey as a ‘non-issue’ and calling his genuine appearance an ‘historic moment’.

He said Carrey’s visit had been planned since last summer and the actor had been ‘extremely touched’ by the invitation.

The Frenchman claimed Carrey had worked ‘for months’ on delivering his speech in French, ‘asking me about the exact pronunciation of certain words’.

The actor, he added, ‘came with his partner [LA actress Min Ah], his daughter, his grandson and 12 close friends and family members’. Quite a turnout – but perhaps that’s understandable given that, for all his financial success, Carrey’s awards cupboard is pretty bare. He has two Golden Globes but not even a nomination for an Oscar. The French, possibly his biggest fans, had already made him a Chevalier of the Order of Arts and Letters in 2010.

Although many clearly remain unconvinced, the evidence appears pretty conclusive that Chevalier Carrey did pick up the award.

The strange episode, and manic response, once again illustrates the alarming ease with which wild ideas can spread on social media. In Carrey’s case, it also shows the danger of staying out of the spotlight for years, then returning looking different.

Some cosmetic surgeons believe the actor was dealing with the unfortunate side-effect of his face swelling after a recent procedure (perhaps carried out with his Paris appearance in mind).

The way Carrey was talking a few years ago, it’s surprising he’s put himself back in the spotlight at all. He’s said he felt uncomfortable with fame and, in 2022, he announced he was ‘fairly serious’ about retiring from Hollywood.

He didn’t box himself in entirely about his retirement, though, adding: ‘If the angels bring some sort of script that’s written in gold ink, that says to me that it’s going to be really important for people to see, I might . . . continue down the road.’

That comeback turned out to be the anything-but-heaven-sent Sonic The Hedgehog 3.

Although more serious roles elude him (or he’s avoiding them), he’s back in Sonic The Hedgehog 4 next year. At least his screen return is unlikely to spark another online frenzy about his appearance. 

As the franchise’s Dr Eggman, a supervillain whose face is hidden behind a huge handlebar moustache, Carrey is barely recognisable anyway.