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Harrison Ford made his major television debut at 80 with the Yellowstone spin-off 1923,
starring alongside Helen Mirren, 77. Photo: Paramount
Chris Newbould
Jan 28, 2023
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I f you’re among the millions around the world who have been
transfixed by recent shows such as The Old Man and Yellowstone
spin-off 1923, you may have noticed that your favourite leading
actors are getting older.
The trend isn’t confined to TV. If we look at the four top-billed cast of
2022’s highest-grossing movies, Jurassic World: Dominion features a
cast with an average age of 52.5; Top Gun: Maverick's leads have an
average age of 45.5, while the year’s biggest hit Avatar: The Way of
Water, also averages 52.5.
Older actors have always existed in film and TV, but historically
they’ve played some fairly predictable roles — the loveable
grandparents of Cocoon and The Golden Girls or the grumpy old
men of Frasier and, well, Grumpy Old Men.
It’s not only men’s roles that are getting better. Meryl Streep
famously complained at the 2006 Venice Film Festival of the lack of
“serious roles for 50-year-old women,” returning to the theme in a
2016 interview with the Wall Street Journal.
Since that 2016 interview she has personally been nominated for two
Best Actress awards, while the prize has been won by Frances
McDormand (currently 65) twice, Olivia Coleman (48) and Renee
Zellweger (53). You wouldn’t need to be a risk taker to back 60-year-
old Michelle Yeoh this year either.
Data from IMDb reveals a similar trend. Taking the average age of
the top-three listed actors from every non-animated film that took
:
the top-three listed actors from every non-animated film that took
more than $10 million at the US box office between 2000 and 2021,
there is a steady and consistent rise from under 20 senior citizens in
2000 to more than 40 in 2021.
The success of the Harry Potter franchise may have skewed the
younger end of that scale early in the century. However looking at
IMDb data on which lead actors have featured in the top grossing
films since 2000, prior to 2010, the oldest are Jim Carey (then 38),
Johnny Depp (43) and Viggo Mortensen (45) — 42 on average. Post-
2010 the average jumps to 55.6 with Mickey Rourke (58), Martin
Lawrence (55) and Robert Downey Jr (54).
:
Meryl Streep complained at the 2006 Venice Film Festival of the lack of “serious roles
for 50-year-old women”. MJ Kim/Getty Images
The phenomenon appears to be making its way into reality TV, too.
Perhaps the biggest breakout in the genre of 2022 was The Traitors,
a Dutch creation that has been adapted in the US, the UK and
Australia. This show replaced the aspiring Boohoo models and Insta-
influencers-in-waiting of Love Island et al with a remarkably normal
bunch — the UK version even featured 72-year-old Andrea among its
contestants.
:
contestants.
One of 2022's highest-grossing movies, Jurassic World: Dominion, features a cast with
an average age of 52.5. Pictured are Laura Dern, left, and Sam Neill. Universal Pictures
and Amblin Entertainment via AP
:
and Amblin Entertainment via AP