5 actors who were much older than their characters
Andrew Garfield and Florence Pugh (collage: RBC-Ukraine)
In movies, actors often play characters who are much younger or older than they are. Thanks to makeup, style, and acting skills, age becomes just a convention. However, some cases are particularly impressive - sometimes the difference between the age of the actor and his character reaches decades!
Andrew Garfield
In the movie The Amazing Spider-Man, the main character, Peter Parker, is supposed to be 17 years old. However, at the time of filming, Andrew Garfield was already 29. In the sequel, his character graduates from high school, while the actor himself is 31.
Andrew Garfield (photo: Kinorium)
Despite the significant age difference, Garfield looked quite convincing in his graduation gown and cap as a high school student. After all, he's Spider-Man, so it makes sense that he'd look a little different from his peers.
Gabrielle Carteris
The 90s school drama Beverly Hills: 90210 repeatedly faced the situation when actors in their 20s played teenagers. The most striking example, however, was the casting decision for Gabrielle Carteris, who was cast as Andrea Zuckerman.
Gabrielle Carteris (photo: Kinorium)
At the time of filming, the actress was 29 years old, although her character was only 16. Despite this significant difference, Carteris managed to organically embody the role. In addition, the image of Andrea, a smart and mature high school student beyond her years, only contributed to her believability in the frame.
Florence Pugh
In director Greta Gerwig's charming adaptation of Little Women, Florence Pugh embodies the character of 13-year-old Amy March. The youngest of her sisters, Amy is both vain and somewhat spoiled, but she also has to take responsibility for supporting her family.
Florence Pugh (photo: Kinorium)
Despite being in her early 20s at the time of filming, Pugh played the role brilliantly. It was obvious to viewers familiar with her other works, such as Solstice, that she was not a teenager, but this did not prevent her from convincingly conveying the character of her heroine.
Henry Winkler
When Henry Winkler got the role of 19-year-old Fonzie in the ABC comedy series Happy Days, he was already 28 years old. One of the peculiarities of classic sitcoms is that the characters hardly change over time, unlike real people.
Henry Winkler (photo: Kinorium)
As a result, after 11 seasons of the show, his character remained 19 years old, while Winkler himself was approaching 40. Playing a teenager at this age is quite atypical, but it only emphasizes the long-term success of both the actor and the Happy Days series.
Darren Barnett
When filming began on Mindy Kaling's high school comedy Never Have I Ever..., Darren Barnett was 28 years old, 11 years older than his character, the charismatic teenager Paxton Hall-Yoshida.
Although Paxton is slightly older than the other students in the story, he looks much older than his years. The creators of the series played up this feature with jokes, hinting that Paxton is not a typical high school student.
Darren Barnett (photo: Kinorium)
He is handsome, athletic, and devoid of any teenage angularity. Of course, it's hard to believe that there could be someone in high school who looked so mature, but this convention is easily forgiven.
