4 years ago
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I'm still not over Andrew Garfield being 31 while he played Peter Parker graduating from high school.
1. In Never Have I Ever, Darren Barnet plays 17-year-old Paxton Hall-Yoshida, but in real life Darren is 30 years old.
Netflix
2. In Alexander, Angelina Jolie played Colin Farrell's mother, even though she was only a year older than him in real life.
Warner Bros. / Everett Collection
3. In Little Women, Florence Pugh played 13-year-old Amy March even though Florence was 23 in real life.
Sony Pictures Releasing
4. In Apocalypse Now, Laurence Fishburne played a soldier fighting in the Vietnam War, even though he was only 14 years old at the time.
United Artists / Everett Collection
Later on, he admitted that he lied about his age to get the part.
5. In The Amazing Spider-Man 2, Andrew Garfield was 31 years old, while his character Peter Parker was just graduating high school at 18.
Sony Pictures
6. In Lost in Translation, Scarlett Johansson played Charlotte, a college graduate, while Scarlett was only 18 in real life.
Focus Features / Everett Collection
7. In Riverdale, Ashleigh Murray played 16-year-old Josie McCoy but was in her 30s IRL.
The CW
8. In Se7en, Gwyneth Paltrow played Brad Pitt's wife and high school sweetheart, even though she was only 22 and Brad was 32 at the time.
New Line Cinema / Everett Collection
9. In Derry Girls, Nicola Coughlan began playing 16-year-old Clare Devlin when she was 31 in real life.
Netflix
10. In Joy, Jennifer Lawrence played Joy Mangano at age 34 and up, even though Jennifer was only 25 at the time.
20th Century Fox
11. In Hannah Montana, Jason Earles began playing 16-year-old Jackson Stewart when he was 29 years old.
Disney Channel
12. In The Hobbit series, Orlando Bloom was actually two years older than Lee Pace, the actor who played his father.
Warner Bros.
13. In Pretty Little Liars, Bianca Lawson played 16-year-old Maya St. Germain, despite being 31 years old in real life.
Freeform
14. In Orange Is the New Black, Elizabeth Rodriguez played Dascha Polanco's mother, despite only being two years older than her in real life.
Netflix
15. In Outer Banks, Chase Stokes began playing 16-year-old John B. when he was 27 years old.
Netflix
16. In Titanic, Gloria Stuart played 100-year-old Rose even though she was only 87 years old.
Paramount
17. In Grownish, Francia Raisa plays 22-year-old Ana Torres, but Francia is actually 33 in real life.
Freeform
18. In Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again, Cher played Meryl Streep's mother, even though at the time, Cher was 72 and Meryl was 69.
Universal Pictures / Everett Collection
19. In the Harry Potter movies, Shirley Henderson played Moaning Myrtle but was actually 35 when she originated the role.
Warner Bros.
20. In Monster, Charlize Theron played Aileen Wuornos from the ages of 33–36, despite only being 28 herself.
Newmarket Releasing / Everett Collection
21. In Happy Days, Henry Winkler played 19-year-old Fonzie but was actually 29 in real life — he was about 39 years old by the series finale.
ABC / Everett Collection
22. In Man of Steel, Diane Lane was only 47 when she played Martha Kent, who's always been portrayed as a much older, elderly woman in the comics.
Warner Bros.
23. In Gilmore Girls, Keiko Agena played Rory's best friend Lane and fellow high schooler, despite being 27 when the show aired.
The WB
24. In The Manchurian Candidate, Angela Lansbury played the onscreen mom of Laurence Harvey, who was only three years younger than her.
United Artists
25. In Sense and Sensibility, Emma Thompson played 19-year-old Elinor Dashwood but was 35 in real life.
Sony Pictures Releasing / Everett Collection
26. In Mean Girls, Amy Poehler played Rachel McAdams' mother, even though she was only seven years older than Rachel in real life.
Paramount
27. In Smallville, Tom Welling was actually 24 years old when he played a literal 14-year-old on the show.
The WB
28. In Golden Girls, Estelle Getty played Bea Arthur's mom, even though Bea was actually a year older than Estelle in real life.
NBC
29. In 8 Simple Rules, Amy Davidson played Kaley Cuoco's younger sister, but in real life, she was actually six years older than her.
ABC
30. In Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, Lionel Jeffries played Dick Van Dyke's father, even though Dick was actually six months older than Lionel.
United Artists
31. And finally, in Grease, despite all playing high schoolers, none of the cast was even remotely close to their characters' ages.
Paramount
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