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Kate Mara was 21 when 25-year-old Heath Ledger played her dad in Brokeback Mountain.
It was recently announced that Tom Holland (25) was cast in a new TV series, where Emmy Rossum, who's only 10 years older than him, will be playing his mom.
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The series, The Crowded Room, will be an anthology series about people who have successfully learned to live with their mental illnesses.
Pablo Cuadra / WireImage / Getty Images
And since Tom Holland is 25 and Emmy Rossum is only 35, many people feel that their age gap is too small to play parent and child.
However, writer Carina Adly Mackenzie clarified that most of Emmy's scenes will be flashbacks to when Tom's character was around 4 years old.
Guys — Emmy Rossum is playing Tom Holland’s mom because the vast majority of her scenes are flashbacks to his character’s very early childhood when he endured the trauma that caused his Dissociative Identity Disorder. It started before he was 5 years old. Okay, carry on.
Still, since this casting has started a conversation around age differences in movies and film, I figured I'd compile a list of other TV shows and movies that have strangely small age gaps between actors who played parent and child.
Paramount Pictures
1. Kate Mara was 25 during the filming of Brokeback Mountain.
Focus Features
Heath Ledger was 25 during filming.
Focus Features
In the movie, they played father and daughter.
Focus Features
2. David Duchovny from The X-Files was born in 1960.
Fox
Rebecca Toolan was born in 1959.
Fox
In The X-Files she plays his mom, even though they are only one year apart.
Fox
3. Adam Garcia was 28 when Riding in Cars with Boys came out.
Sony Pictures Releasing
Drew Barrymore was 26 when the film came out.
Sony Pictures Releasing
So Adam Garcia was two years older than Drew Barrymore when he played her son in the film.
Sony Pictures Releasing
4. Elizabeth Rodriguez was born in 1980.
Netflix
Dascha Polanco was born in 1982.
Netflix
In Orange Is the New Black, Elizabeth Rodriguez played Dascha Polanco's mother even though they have a two-year age gap.
Netflix
Elizabeth is older than Dascha by exactly one year, 11 months, and six days.
5. Gina Rodirguez was 29 when Jane the Virgin started filming.
The CW
Andrea Navedo was 36 when it started filming.
The CW
In Jane the Virgin, Andrea Navedo and Gina Rodriguez played mother and daughter.
The CW
"Granted, Xiomara (Andrea Navedo) was a teen mom, so I think they’re only supposed to be 16–17 years apart, but still."
6. Taron Egerton was 28 when Rocketman, started filming.
Paramount Picturees
Bryce Dallas Howard was 37 during filming.
Paramount Pictures
They played mother and son in the film.
Paramount Pictures
7. Rachel McAdams was 26 years old during the filming of Mean Girls.
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Amy Poehler was 33 during the filming of the movie.
Paramount Picturese
In the movie, Rachel McAdams plays Regina and Amy Poehler plays Regina's mom.
Paramount Pictures
8. Tom Selleck is currently 77 years old.
CBS
Len Cariou is currently 82 years old.
CBS
In Blue Bloods, Len Cariou plays Tom Selleck’s father.
CBS
9. Colin Farrell was 28 in Alexander.
Warner Brothers
Angelina Jolie was 29 in the film.
Warner Brothers
She played his mother in the movie.
Warner Brothers / courtesy Everett Collection
10. Orlando Bloom was 35 during filming of The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug.
Warner Bros. Pictures
Lee Pace was 33 years old during the filming of the movie.
Warner Bros. Pictures
Even though Lee Pace is two years younger than Orlando Bloom, Lee played Orlando's father in the movie.
Warner Bros. Pictures
11. Zachary Quinto was 30 when the 2009 Star Trek movie started filming.
Paramount Pictures
Winona Ryder was 36 when the movie started filming.
Paramount Pictures
In the movie she played his mother.
Paramount Pictures
12. George Lopez was 41 at the start of The George Lopez Show.
ABC
Belita Moreno was 52 at the start of the series.
ABC
Belita played George's mother on the show.
ABC
13. Monique was born in 1978.
UPN
Countess Vaughn was born in 1967.
UPN
For five years, Countess Vaughn played Monique's daughter on The Parkers.
UPN
14. Meryl Streep was 69 in Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again.
Universal Pictures
Cher was 72 during filming.
Universal Pictures
In the movie, Cher played Meryl Streep's mom.
Universal Pictures
15. Janet Hubert was born in 1956.
NBC
Karyn Parsons was born in 1966.
NBC
In The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, Janet Hubert and Karyn Parsons played mother and daughter despite having a 10-year age gap.
NBC
16. Tom Hanks was 37 during the filming of Forrest Gump.
Paramount Pictures
Sally Field was 47 during filming of the movie.
Paramount Pictures
Sally Field played Tom Hanks's mom in the movie.
Paramount Pictures
17. Essence Atkins was 25 when the first season of Smart Guy aired.
The WB
John Marshall was 35 during the first season.
The WB
They played father and daughter on the show.
The WB
"Essence was born Feb. 7, 1972, while John was born July 5, 1962."
18. Harrison Ford was 46 during the filming of Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade.
Paramount Pictures
Sean Connery was 58 during filming of the movie.
Paramount Pictures
Sean played Harrison's father despite only being12 years older than him.
Paramount Pictures
19. Jennifer Lopez was 27 years old when she starred in Selena.
Warner Bros.
Constance Marie was 31 years old when she was in the movie.
Warner Bros.
They played mother and daughter in the movie with only a four-year age difference.
Warner Bros.
20. Mandy Moore is currently 37 years old.
NBC
Sterling K. Brown is currently 45 years old.
NBC
Justin Hartley is also currently 45 years old.
NBC
Christina Metz is 41 years old.
NBC
In This Is Us, Mandy Moore plays Sterling, Justin, and Christina's mother despite being younger than all of them
ABC
21. Bellamy Young was 50 in the first season of Prodigal Son.
Fox
Michael Sheen was 51 during the first season.
Fox
Tom Payne was 38 during the first season.
Fox
In the show, Bellamy Young and Michael Sheen play Tom Payne's parents.
Fox
22. Peter Krause was born in 1965.
HBO
Frances Conroy was born in 1953.
HBO
In Six Feet Under, Frances Conroy and Peter Krause play mother and son, even though they’re only separated by 12 years.
HBO
23. And lastly, Estelle Getty was 62 when Golden Girls started.
NBC
Bea Arthur was 63 when the show started.
NBC
Despite Estelle Getty being younger than Bea Arthur, Estelle played Bea's mother on the show.
NBC
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