10 Times You Might Have Missed the Age Difference Between Movie Duos Due to How Well They Performed
Talent is a wonderful thing, and these actors are here to prove it!
Some movie pairings look so natural on screen that it is easy to forget the actors playing them may be far apart in age. That is part of the magic of a great performance, and it can make a big age gap almost impossible to spot.
In this list, the focus is on famous movie duos and co-stars whose real ages may surprise you, whether they played lovers, friends, or family members. The characters may have felt perfectly matched, but the actors behind them often had very different life stages.
Keep going, because a few of these pairings are much more surprising than they first appear.
1. Time (2011) - Justin Timberlake and Olivia Wilde
Olivia Wilde plays Justin Timberlake's mother. In the film, she is 50 years old, while her son is 28. However, in reality, Olivia was 27 years old, and Justin was 30.
© In Time / 20th Century Studios2. The Lord of the Rings (2001) - Orlando Bloom, Sean Astin, Elijah Wood
Orlando Bloom, who was only 24 years old when the film was released, portrayed Legolas. His co-stars were Sean Astin and Elijah Wood, who played 38-year-old Samwise Gamgee but was actually 20, and 50-year-old Frodo Baggins but was actually 39.
© The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring / New Line CinemaThat first pairing already sets the tone for the rest of the list.
3. Beowulf (2007) - Angelina Jolie and Crispin Glover
Crispin Glover is actually 11 years older than Angelina Jolie, who played Grendel's mother. At that time, she was 32 years old, and he was 43.
© EVERETT COLLECTION / EAST NEWS, © EAST NEWS
4. The Wolf of Wall Street (2013) - Leonardo DiCaprio and Margot Robbie
Leonardo DiCaprio and Margot Robbie played an intense couple, but DiCaprio is actually 16 years older than Robbie.
© The Wolf of Wall Street / Paramount Pictures
5. The Vampire Diaries (2009) - Nina Dobrev and Ian Somerhalder
Dobrev and Somerhalder play a couple. Nina portrayed a 17-year-old high school student but was 20 years old when the show started. Ian was 31 but played a 145-year-old vampire.
© The Vampire Diaries / The CW
Some of these on-screen pairings looked closer in age than they really were.
And it gets even messier than Hollywood’s biggest stars trying to escape embarrassment after their public moments went sideways.
6. Mamma Mia! 2 (2018) - Meryl Streep and Cher
Cher plays Meryl Streep's mother and was so convincing, but Cher is only 3 years older than Streep.
© Mamma Mia! 2 / Legendary Pictures
7. Beauty and the Beast (2017) - Emma Watson, Dan Stevens, Luke Evans
Belle was portrayed by 27-year-old Emma Watson, while the Beast, played by Dan Stevens, is 35. Luke Evans was 38 years old at that time.
© Beauty and the Beast / Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures
8. Seven (1995) - Brad Pitt and Gwyneth Paltrow
At that time, Paltrow was 23 years old, and Pitt was 32.
© Seven / New Line Cinema
By this point, the age gaps are getting harder to ignore.
9. Girl, Interrupted (1999) - Winona Ryder and Angelina Jolie
28-year-old Winona Ryder played a high school student, while 24-year-old Angelina portrayed a 24-year-old girl.
© Girl, Interrupted / Columbia Pictures
10. Pulp Fiction (1994) - John Travolta and Uma Thurman
Both looked so great that you wouldn't notice the huge age difference. At that time, Thurman was 24 years old, and Travolta was 40.
© Pulp Fiction / Miramax Films
Wow, it’s truly amazing how people can portray characters that are way beyond their age. And not just that; they perform so well that no one actually notices the difference.
Now that you have read about the reality of some of your favorite movie duos, what are your thoughts on their age differences?
Some of these casting choices are still hard to believe.
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