10 “ancient” actors who couldn’t fool us when they refused to act their age

Stop me if you’ve been here before: You’re watching a show set in high school but the main character has five o’clock shadow and the kind of muscle definition a 15-year-old could only dream of. “There’s no way they really think I’ll believe that’s a high school freshman,” you scoff in disbelief, already looking up the cast’s ages on your phone. Your suspicions are soon confirmed — that man is nearly twice the age of the character he’s playing. 

It’s common knowledge that our favorite teens in film and television are often portrayed by actors who are nowhere near the age of the characters they play. There are good reasons for this. Employing minors means sets have to comply with child labor laws and limits the amount of hours the cast could film. Hiring actual teens often leads to exploitation as evidenced by the number of documentaries exposing toxic practices on children’s shows. Given the sexualized nature of many of these teen shows — looking at you, Euphoria! — it’s better for legal adults to portray teens on screen.

Sometimes these adult actors are believable in their roles, but other times we’re left scratching our heads and wondering how anyone could think this clearly grown person could be in high school. Here are ten actors who make it difficult to suspend our disbelief when they play younger.

The entire cast of Grease 

Don’t get me wrong: I truly cannot imagine a better cast for the film adaptation of Grease but these are clearly not teenagers. The film’s casting director, Joel Thurm, has defended the cast’s ages in the face of complaints they look too old for their roles. “People might say the cast is too old, but Grease is not a documentary,” he said in an oral history published by The Guardian. “It’s a fantasy … The only thing that was important was that the cast all looked about the same age as each other, which they did.” 

Tom Welling 

Clark Kent is supposed to be a high school freshman in the first season of Smallville. I don’t know about you but none of the freshmen at my high school looked anything like 24-year-old Tom Welling (much to my teenage dismay) but honestly, it kind of works in the show. He is an alien after all: Maybe they age quicker on Krypton.

Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield 

Both Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield were in their mid to late 20s when they portrayed teenage Peter Parker in their respective Spider-Man films. Neither actor resembled a teenager, however, especially compared to Tom Holland’s first appearance in Captain America: Civil War. However, this didn’t stop teenage me from developing a crush on Garfield in his film. Kudos to the casting director!

Lucas Black

Although much of The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift cast were only in their early 20s, it’s hard to believe they’re supposed to be in high school. Lucas Black looks especially out of place as high school Sean Boswell, though some fans argue some 17-year-olds just look like that. Black was only 22 at the time of filming so the argument has some weight.

Darren Barnet 

Darren Barnet was 29 when he landed the role of Paxton, the 17-year-old heartthrob jock in Never Have I Ever. He nailed the heartthrob look but looked very much his age. Co-creator Lang Fisher defended his casting, saying “When you see an actual 15-year-old boy, they’re just not going to be a heartthrob. They look like a tiny baby.”

Gabrielle Carteris 

Gabrielle Carteris was also 29 when she began playing Andrea in Beverly Hills 90210. Carteris was worried she was too old to play a 16-year-old and lied about her age in order to keep the role. She consulted a lawyer who gave her the go-ahead, “as long as [she just said she’s] over 21.” A magazine eventually outed her age and while she didn’t lose her job, it’s more surprising that she was the only castmate nearing 30.

Michael C. Hall 

Season 1 of Dexter features flashbacks of a younger Dexter and instead of hiring a different actor, the staff decided to just put a wig on Michael C. Hall and call it a day. Intentionally or not, the result is hilarious: They can’t really believe we wouldn’t notice.

Chase Stokes 

Chase Stokes was almost 30 when he began playing 16-year-old John B. in the first season of Outer Banks. If you were wondering why John has a sense of maturity — and a six-pack — beyond his years, this is the reason. 

Emma Thompson

Emma Thompson does not look 19 in Sense and Sensibility like her character but I never would have guessed she was 35. Regardless of her age, Thompson was a perfect fit for the part, especially after she spent five years crafting the screenplay. 

Jennifer Grey

Dirty Dancing’s teenage protagonist “Baby” Houseman was portrayed by 27-year-old Jennifer Grey. Given the film’s mature themes, a younger actor would seem out of place, especially next to 34-year-old Patrick Swayze. Though she was about a decade older than her character, the film was career-defining for Grey and shows that casting the right person is more important than someone who’s the “right” age.