Billy Corgan And Bill Burr Half-Brother Rumors Reignited After Awkward Howie Mandel Interview

It is not unusual for celebrities to look unnervingly alike. Comedian Will Ferrell and Red Hot Chili Peppers drummer Chad Smith are notable doppelgangers, while many fans have noticed that Isla Fisher and Amy Adams are also dead ringers for each other. And sometimes in celebrity culture, things go even further, with the revelation that two stars might actually be secretly related. This happened in the case of Matthew McConaughey and Woody Harrelson, two real-life friends who speculated in 2023 that they may in fact be half brothers. While they don't exactly look like twins, there is a subtle yet striking resemblance between them. 

And in 2025, it seemed we were in for a Dr. Phil-style reckoning involving two celebrities when Billy Corgan, frontman of seminal alternative rock band The Smashing Pumpkins, and Bill Burr, the stand-up comedian and actor, discussed the rumor that they may actually be half brothers. The pair are both in their 50s, bald, and sport goatees, and recent photographs do reveal an uncanny similarity. Corgan first raised his suspicion that he was related to Burr in November 2024, when he revealed on the "Howie Mandel Does Stuff" podcast that 10 years previously, his stepmother had taken him aside at a family gathering and asked him about Burr. "Now at that point, I had never heard of Bill Burr, I didn't know who he was. I didn't know he was a comedian or anything. He could have been the guy down the street," Corgan said (per The Independent).

Corgan's stepmother found a picture of Burr and pointed out the resemblance between the comedian and Corgan's deceased father, who was a musician. The stepmother reportedly told Corgan that she believed Burr was a child Corgan's father had from his touring days.

Billy Corgan's claim that he and comedian Bill Burr might be related garnered some headlines, but as most outlets reported at the time, Corgan himself wasn't convinced by what his stepmother had told him. "It's my belief at this point, because I've sat on the story for 10 years, that I don't think Bill Burr and I are related ... I think it's just one of those things. There are just people in the world that look alike," he said (per The Independent).

In January 2025, Burr was making an appearance on the "Howie Mandel Does Stuff" podcast when he was joined by an unexpected guest: Billy Corgan. For those watching at home, the stunt was entertaining simply for the fact that, with the two entertainers sitting side by side, it was inarguable that they look uncannily alike. However, Burr, who had no idea the meeting would take place, playfully lambasted Mandel, calling him an "a******" before turning on Corgan, asking: "Did you ever think the fact that I never told that story, that maybe you shouldn't?" (per The Independent). He also joked that their supposed shared father had given two sons born months apart the same name.

Corgan reiterated his belief that the two aren't actually related, pointing to the fact that Burr can't sing and that Corgan himself is unfunny, before Burr again took Mandel to task for the stunt, asking, "What was supposed to happen? Are we going to go play catch? We're both in our 50s," adding, "I think we're on the same page, thinking that you're kind of a d*** right now." But despite the jokes, there is no solid evidence that Corgan and Burr are actually related. More likely, they are just doppelgangers who happened to have found each other.