12 Actresses Who Were Rejected For Being “Old” — Some Were Not Even 50

It is no secret that the fear of getting old and losing professional opportunities is a problem that affects a large part of the planet, as it is also known that today the mass media generally do not help to think differently. Although things are changing, the truth is that there is still a long battle to prevent heightened beauty stereotypes from continuing to harm actresses who, over the years, begin to notice how job opportunities are dwindling.

O awesome.club brings you a list of 12 female celebrities who were rejected for not being “young” enough, showing that, compared to their male counterparts, the barriers to growing in the area begin to be perceived very early.

Seeing Reese Witherspoon on this list, some might think, “Are you serious? Can she be considered ‘old’?” Apparently, for the film industry, yes. When the opportunity arose to make a biopic of singer Stevie Nicks, Reese Witherspoon was one of the favorite candidates for the lead role. But as the project expanded, it was no longer considered the best option. Later, when the singer was asked again if Reese Witherspoon would be the lead, Nicks replied, “I already told Reese she’s too old for the role.”

The truth is that, at the time, the actress was 37 years old, so we can say that such a statement is exaggerated. Either way, such a rejection meant very little to her career. The artist founded her own production company, Hello Sunshine, which carries out projects with women playing protagonists and without stereotypes. She is currently starring Big Little Liesalong with other celebrities, a project of which she is also a producer.

Another artist rejected at age 37 was Maggie Gyllenhaal, who stated in 2015: “There are really disappointing things about being an actress in Hollywood that surprise me all the time. I’m 37 and I was recently told I was too old to be the mistress of a 55-year-old man. It was terrible for me. It made me feel bad, it made me angry, and then I laughed.” Although she did not state the name of the project that rejected her, the truth is that this obstacle did not stop her from continuing to advance in her career, as to this day she continues to work in films and series.

Probably best known for playing the character Effie Trinket in the saga of game of Thronesat age 28 Banks was rejected for the role of Mary Jean in the spiderman, in 2002. The actress hired was 18-year-old Kirsten Dunst. The option would make sense since Mary Jean’s character in the comics is a teenager and we couldn’t argue about it, but in telling the story Elizabeth hinted at the reason for her concern: “Laura Ziskin said, ‘She’s too old’ . OK. I’m much older than Kirsten Dunst, I understand. But I’m not much older than Tobey.”

In fact, who played Peter Parker was Tobey Maguire, who at the time was almost the same age as Elizabeth, 27, and as far from being a teenager as she was. As a result, who kissed Spider-Man in the rain was Kirsten Dunst. At the time, Elizabeth landed a supporting role in the film and continued working on important projects that were age-insensitive.

Anne Hathaway didn’t even reach 40, but claims that after turning 30, job opportunities were still limited to play roles with characters of the same age. “When I was in my twenties, I would get the roles that were written for women in their fifties. And now I’m in my thirties and I’m wondering, ‘Why did that 24-year-old get that role?’” Fortunately, the rejections haven’t stopped us from continuing to watch Anne on the big screen, starring in films of all genres, as well as fiction. science, drama and comedy.

When 29-year-old Olivia auditioned to be Naomi in the wolf of Wall Street, rejected her on the grounds that she was too “sophisticated” for the role, and chose Margot Robbie. When talking about it, she stated, “I thought, ‘Oh, that sounds good.’ I like the feedback. I didn’t get the role, but I’m a very sophisticated person (…). And then I found out that they really meant ‘old’.” Ironically, the lead actor was ten years older than Olivia. The actress, who remembers the event with humor, says that the apparent failure left her free to play a role in vinyl🇧🇷

Can you imagine any other actress playing Elinor Dashwood in Reason and sensibility🇧🇷 Well, when the project was still in its infancy, given the fact that Emma Thompson was 36 at the time, many doubted that she was the right choice for the role. She stated: “I remember someone telling me that I was too old for Hugh Grant, who is about a year younger than me, in Reason and sensibility🇧🇷 Both the director and the cast ignored all prejudices and made the film that was a big hit on the big screen with the chemistry of the protagonists.

Surprisingly, it was not her, but her daughter, Dakota Johnson, who expressed disagreement over Melanie Griffith’s lack of job offers. In an interview, Dakota said, “Why isn’t my mom at the movies? She is an extraordinary actress! (…) This industry is brutal”. Although Melanie’s movie list has dropped compared to other years, she currently enjoys being a mother, making public the pride she feels for her daughter Dakota and her growing success. What a beautiful mother-daughter relationship!

The 58-year-old actress and comedian isn’t afraid to say that when auditioning for movies, she knows that the moment she’s told “we’re not considering women right now”, in reality what they’re saying is subtle: “We like from you, but we decided to go with younger actresses.” Away from the cinema, Kathy knew how to continue sharing her humor with the public, releasing books, CDs of stand-upcomedies and some projects for television.

When he showed up in 1995 to make the film Batman Forever, directed by Tim Burton, Rene Russo was the logical choice to play Dr. Chase Meridian, as she had played the role in the prequel. However, the moment the protagonist of the previous film rejected the role, she, at 41, was also dropped from the project. The producers felt that Russo was too old for the new Batman: Val Kilmer, 5 years her junior. This stumble didn’t mean much to the career of the actress who, until recently, moved us with her portrayal of Frigga, the beautiful and intelligent mother of Thor in the saga of The Avengers🇧🇷

Probably not everyone knows the name Jamie Denbo and, perhaps, when looking at her photo, she looks familiar without remembering anything concrete. So, to give you a clue, we will say that many will probably remember her for her participation as Shelly Ginsberg in the series. Orange is the New Black, among other projects. Unlike other actresses, she didn’t have so many subtleties when talking about her nonconformity for being rejected in a project because of her age. In fact, she dedicated a few Twitter posts on the matter:

In 2017, Denbo wrote a tweet which read, “I’ve just been told that, at 43, I’m TOO OLD to play the wife of a 57-year-old man.” Later continued with an even nastier detail: “Oh, the characters also have an 18-year-old daughter. I am TOO OLD to be a mother to an 18 year old girl.” Despite the heartbreak, the actress did not cross her arms and today continues to work on various projects on television.

If you were intrigued by what age it is wise to be considered a mother to the film industry, here is an enlightening example. In this case, the 44-year-old actress was not rejected, but it was she who rejected the role in the film. Wonder Woman because of his age, which he told in an interview:

“Here’s a great example of how Hollywood slaps you when you start to age,” he said. Charlize explained that when she was offered a role in the project, she thought she was the lead. However, they wanted her as Hippolyta, Wonder Woman’s mother. The proposal was a not very pleasant surprise, which showed her what the current situation was in the cinema, given her age. Ironically, if she accepted the role, her “daughter” would only be 10 years younger. Fortunately, the actress and model can still choose amazing roles that reflect her beauty and talent, even without being Gal Gadot’s mother.

At this point on the list, perhaps seeing Catherine Zeta-Jones being “rejected” because of her age no longer draws attention, but perhaps the fact that she was denied a role at 19 does. According to the actress, as a teenager, most of her projects focused on Broadway, so she wanted to audition for a role in Aspects of Love.

“Trevor (the director), always charming, told me I was a little too old and too pretty for the part… I wasn’t even 20 and I remember telling him I could be as pretty or as grown up as he was. wanted, but it didn’t help. Some time later, the director gave her the opportunity to play other roles in which she was able to show her talent, and finally triumphed in cinema with important characters for which we know her today.

Which of these cases surprised you the most? Let us know if you’d like to see more diversity in the ages of celebrities on the big screen and who your favorite actress is, regardless of age. After all, as we have seen, talent does not age.