In news that will probably surprise no one – a Hollywood actress has revealed that sexism in the industry is still very much alive.
American actress Maggie Gyllenhaal has recently revealed that she was passed over for a role playing the lover of a 55-year-old man because she was “too old” – at 37.
Speaking to The Wrap, Ms Gyllenhaal, an Oscar nominee (just a friendly reminder), said the incident was “really disappointing”.
“There are things that are really disappointing about being an actress in Hollywood that surprise me all the time,” said the actress, “I’m 37 and I was told recently I was too old to play the lover of a man who was 55. It was astonishing to me. It made me feel bad, and then it made me feel angry, and then it made me laugh.”
But this ugly little facet of the industry is no secret – in fact, it’s something that is almost celebrated. When actors get older, they’re described as “rugged”, or “distinguished”, and as a reward, their love interests get younger and younger. And younger.
When Emma Stone was cast in Woody Allen’s whimsical and wacky, Magic in the Moonlight, as Colin Firth’s clairvoyant love interest, no one batted an eyelid at the fact that Firth was 53, and Stone 25 – a 28 year age gap.
Keira Knightley and Steve Carell’s 22 year gap in Seeking a Friend for the End of the World didn’t faze anyone either.
Neither did Liam Neeson and Olivia Wilde’s 32 year gap in The Third Person.
And that’s what intrigued Vulture, who did a little digging, and discovered that the love interests cast alongside an actor usually stay the same as the actor ages.
“As leading men age, their love interests stay the same,” said Kyle Buchanan, “If our actor was sharing the screen with an A-lister of commensurate star power like Julia Roberts or Angelina Jolie, the age difference would drop somewhat, but in movies that relied solely on our guy’s big name, the lesser-known love interests would nearly always be decades younger.”
Welcome to Hollywood.
37-year-old Maggie Gyllenhaal has been told she is “too old” to play the love interest of a 55-year-old man.
Olivia Wilde (29) and Steve Carrell (50) in The Incredible Burt Wonderstone.
Violante Placido (34) and George Clooney (49) in The American.
Laetitia Casta (34) and Richard Gere (63) in Arbitrage.
Liam Neeson (61) and Olivia Wilde (29) in The Third Person.
Bella Heathcote (24) and Johnny Depp (49) in Dark Shadows.
Lymari Nadal (29) and Denzel Washington (52) in American Gangster.
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