No Like...Why Are You 30 Playing a High Schooler?
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- Äas pĆidĂĄn 27. 05. 2024
- like let's really talk about it...
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Hey Rummates, today we're here to talk the impact that older actors playing teenagers has/has had on actual teenagers and Gen Z. We've got a lot to get into so let's talk about it
Timestamps:
0:00 intro
1:19 what's the issue?
2:31 the suspension of disbelief
4:04 the impact on teens
5:28 what shows do an actual good job?
6:02 why things are the way they are
7:02 the dangers of "age casting"
9:50 final thoughts
#imurgency #genz #commentary #highschool
Honestly after reading Jennette McCurdy's book I don't mind if adults get teenager roles as lolng as actual kids don't have to suffer through movie sets
came here to say this. rather have a 35 y/o play a 16 year old in euphoria than an actual 16 y/o
ââ@@cyl0118 there's nuances to this. I know that the director of euphoria created the show based on his own high school experiences, but if this is supposed to be teenagers why are we seeing teenagers in the nude or doing sexual activities on screen? It doesn't make it right that these actors are old enough to do those things because when children are watching shows that are supposed to be about children, they will emulate those behaviors or compare themselves to these fully grown adults who have already been through puberty. There really should be a restriction on ages with adults playing teenagers. Shows like sex education have actors that are adults but at least they look like kids and the story is actually about teenagers and 16 + yrs olds can watch it . The show has teenagers that do drugs and drink but it also has teenagers that are hyper-sexual but also teenagers who are still virgins/ abstain from sex. What I find funny about shows like Euphoria, Riverdale, Gossip Girl and etc
Is that these teenage storylines are often about sex, drugs and parties. Euphoria could have literally been set at college, and this would have given more room for intense storylines. Shows like these make teenagers feel like their lame or missing out because they don't drink, do drugs or have sex. In euphoria case it's about sex (because the show actually shows how drugs and alcohol is detrimental to oneself and the relationship we have with others).
Euphoria also have freaking 16 year olds dress like strippers, as if children aren't already being sexualised. I know the child labour laws plays a huge role in why adults are playing teenagers, but the solution to that problem opened room for a whole new one
Edit: I would like to add that having Euphoria be a college show would make much more sense because I don't even understand how these high schoolers aren't usually in high school, they're out partying. And how are they always onthe street? If atleast with a college show, you'll have college students, those who didn't go to college, and some who are repeating high school. Additionally, college students aren't normally on the campus, they live/stay elsewhere.
I donât have a problem unless they donât look like a teenager and a lot of them donât đ
iâd rather have the show be about older people than grown adults playing teens. it puts teens in this weird position where adults see them as more grown than they actually are
@@aanyamallick7747 teenagers have sex and do drugs thatâs why
Its get weird when they cast a teen and their parents and they're literally in the same generation in real life.
frđ some of the "high schoolers" in the gossip girl reboot were older than the teachers
@@inseungwoonamewestan1196what?? fr?
ur weird
Ginny and Georgia
Or the fact that the main teacher in the Gossip Girl spinoff is younger than the actors playing the students.
I honestly give huge props to Katie Douglas who's 24 in real life but manages to look and pull off being a 16 year old in every movie/series, especially in Ginny and Georgia
I really like this actor, so natural - and she's Canadian :) I def want to see more that she's in.
I really admire her! She seems like really humble and down to earth person
@@elimo3901 sheâs plays a killer role in Level 16
fr
And Mary kills people or whatever itâs called
I think what can really offset this common occurrence is if they stop having all these damn shows set in highschool. We already got hundreds of shows set in highschool anyway.
If they set more shows in a college setting and age range then there's more flexibility and it'll be WAAAAAY less creepy when there are scenes that are sexually charged.
There needs to be a conversation on the almost senile and creepy obsession studios have with making "Adult Shows" that revolved around characters who aren't even old enough to drive yet
Absolutely. Thereâs this obsession with high school.
also college is more interesting, ANYWAY? Like my life as a high schooler was boring as fuck compared to college.
Also about life in your 30s as a whole since everyone in their mid-late twenties will be there in the blink of an eye. People are still having fun i t heir 30s who donât have kids or 9-5s
Exactly! They just give all these high school students college level experiences anyways, why not set it in college? The only reason they don't is because the shows plots are often not too complex / they are a little juvenile overall (aside from all the sex and drugs). They also want that market of teen viewers, which I'm assuming they think they won't get if they have their shows set in college.
@@stephwiller9089 little did they realize đ college opens the door to so many things
As a teenager, I wish we had the representation. But with all the creepy producers out there and all the perverts, sometimes I feel itâs better to have protected and well respected adults who can better handle the blow than newbie teens who can fall the the scams that the television/movie industries try to use
I agree, but I think the creepy adults behind the scenes should be called out and held accountable more too. If the set's culture was healthy, teens playing teens would be the best option in my opinion.
I agree. I do think that there is space both for young adult (like 20-25) actors and actual teen actors in teen and young-adult targeted media. I just feel that behind-the-scenes work needs to be handled better so that both parties can feel comfortable and aren't being exploited in the work.
I honestly prefer a young looking adult play a teenager depending on the role. If it involves mature themes like nudity and drug use, I would prefer an adult to portray that even though people my age do things like that. I'm a sophomore and I legit see freshmen smoking/vaping in the girls bathroom and talking a loud about their sexual lives. Some even do both in class, I've seen and heard it with my own eyes and ears.
Aside from explicitly the sexual stuff I'd actually rather someone that age or close to it play those "risky behavior" roles, just so teens could see what they really look like doing that stuff. I think in their heads they picture themselves as people they see doing it on, say, Euphoria... but they really do come across like children playing grown-up half the time. It also would bring home how vulnerable teens really are when they do things way past their maturity level. Imagine the Drake-era cast of Degrassi High talking about all the sex they're having and you might get the idea of what I mean.
@@kristinanance7100 This is how we got "cuties". The director was portraying her own experiences trying to show the negative outcomes of preteens/young teens getting exposed to explicit dancing and basically how it affects them and everyone was freaked out by it (to some extent, appropriately, to some extent an over reaction). Because in choosing to embrace realism instead of break it a little, the envelope was pushed on film with actual young teens. So, no, I don't think having age appropriate kids cast in "risky behavior" roles helps, because adults watch this stuff too and so "movie with kids/teens" isn't restricted to a same-age audience. Also, that's not an imaginary person it's someone's ACTUAL KID being signed off on to film a movie or TV show with "risky behavior" in it. And at some point when they are an adult they will have to look back on the fact they were allowed (if not pushed) into filming something like that at a young age.
The problem is also when we do use appropriate aged young teens playing age appropriate roles and "keep it clean" we also end up trapping them and most end up in the "not allowed to grow up" curse where people refuse to see them as anything but 15 or something (common with Disney and Nick kids). So then they go into "prove I am grown up" mode usually and really fly off the chain having had repressed it for so long to keep a clean image. If they are already actually adults. A ton of these problems are eliminated.
That 70s show was great....all the teens in the primary cast (minus one) actually adults. I do think 30 is too old, but there are plenty of actresses and actors out there in there early 20s who get carded still. A good friend of mine is unfortunately baby faced and 5' even. And still gets assumed to be about 14-15 years old a lot (she's well into her 20s). At most no one thinks she's older then 18 if she is among adults.
Iâd prefer if they stopped making shows are about children that are sexual and graphic
The 401k was dragging it đđđ. I definitely agree that Ginny and Georgia is a great example of believable teens. I think stranger things can be put into that category because most of the cast started the show when they were actual teens yk. I would love to see a show in the future of 18-20 year olds thatâs actually good.
I really loved I am Not Okay With This because though again the actors were all late teens early 20s, they really did look like the teenagers they were portraying (at least the main cast did).
@@poam388 I agree and StanleyđđI wanted to see more of his character sm
I was just having a similar conversation with my mom about Sydney Sweeney. I was watching white lotus with my mom and noticed how Sydney looked more like a teenager in white lotus than in euphoria. A lot of that had to do with the costuming which plays a large role in this conversation especially for female and femme presenting characters. Like take everyone in S1 of euphoria where you know someone from your high school wore at least one outfit seen to school vs. S2 which I felt with Cassie and Maddie specifically none of the outfits could be worn in an actual high school.
She was also in Everything Sucks and she rly looked like a teen in that show but Euphoria sexualized the hell out of her. Even in The Voyeurs, she looked like her age (around 25) and fit it perfectly. She's an amazing actress and I can't wait to see more of her films.
Ironically, when you put Cole Sprouse in the thumbnail, you reminded me when he explained in his Wired Auto Complete interview that the reasons TV and film prefer to cast e.g. identical twins to play the same young character, is that they can double the production time without worrying about child labor laws. I guess it's just the same with 18+ actors playing teenagersđ.
Right, they did the same thing with the Olson Twins on Full House.
I watched a video covering this a while back about old Hollywood and how it exploited minors. Itâs a bit crazy if you think about it. I wouldnât want my child or sibling acting in a role that could have sex scenes or drugs as a legit minor. Also the physiological affects that could have on a person who itâs mature enough to separate them selves from the role. I would rather have grown adults playing minors over actual minors. Hollywood is weird enough.
I think what the point is the loophole situation of casting older actors as minors to do more explicit stuff rather than getting a story about highschoolers doing dumb highschool stuff that actually fits their age. It would make sense if they casted 18-20 year old to play as a 16/17 because it's not that far off appearance wise for some people.
Exactly, but you would already prevent the problem by not showing sex in series with actors of the right age. The storytelling is most important.
Exactly. There are a lot of predatory people and practices that children are exposed to in Hollywood. If they're not brought to parties with pedos, they're overworking them, or just exploiting them and stealing from them. Adults are exploited enough. I would rather have a 20-something-year-old play a teenager if that would help mitigate some of the harm.
@@watergoat2603 they have been doing expensive things on TV since teens were on TV, though. Even in the 60s when things are supposed to be more wholesome the kids were drinking and getting in trouble for "staying out all night" (which was explicit then).
@@Animefreak242drinking,drugs & having sex is normal in high school always have been but the problem is these writers arenât mixing enough innocence in with it like gilmore girls,degrassi ,one on one ,never have i ever & even ginny & Georgia
Keep in mind that actors might look age-appropriate when they're casted for the first season. But seeing as a lot of shows drag on for years if not decades, the age gap just grows and grows - especially since actors age faster than their characters (who don't age in between seasons unless there is a massive time jump)
A really good example of this is Pretty Little Liars. They weren't insanely far off from high school juniors, but then the show kept them in high school for 5 years.
5:33 should've mentioned skins! the cast was literally like 16-19 while shooting and there were lots of mature scenes!
young royals as well
Wednesday also
a show that did well with casting people close in age to the characters was the Norwegian show Skam! most of the actors were maximum two years older than their character, and some actors even attended the high school that they used as a set. Young Royals and Skins also did this well.
I came to say the same. In Skam and Young Royals and other great Nordic or European shows we see real teen agers with acne and dental braces etc playing teenagers. But here in Nordic countries the style is more realistic anyway.
I highly recommend Skam!
I think my biggest thing is the large age gaps between love interests, especially since like you said Hollywood is quicker to hire older men but yet keep younger women. Like with Never Have I Ever, Maitreyi was 17-18 and Darren was 27-28 when they started filming and were featured as love interests. Yes, LEGALLY Maitreyi was of age, but if they weren't actors everyone would throw a fit over their age gap. Another example is in the movie Love Actually, Keira Knightly was 18 but her actor love interests were 26 and 30. I know Hollywood expects us to just suspend belief, but it's hard for me to do that knowing one of the actors is just out of high school (or even still in school đ) and the other is old enough to be their mentor. Either they're all full fledged adults or none of them are.
They're COINCIDENCES. They aren't purposely casting older dudes and younger women, it's just that the actor they might have chosen happened to be much older. Casting doesn't even KNOW the ages of the actors when they're auditioning, unless they're really famous actors. They strictly go off of looks and acting ability to see if they fit the role.
This is also harmful for younger girls/women thinking they have to have youth to be considered beautifulâŠ
@@claudeseymour even if itâs a coincidence the actors still have to act out the roles, and hollywood obviously has a fascination with young women and older men
Here's why:
1. The sex scenes - Having minors do sex scenes would be extremely unsettling bordering on illegal/child p**n. Not many parents would consent to their teens acting out sex scenes, especially on screen, at such a young age.
2. The hours - It's not uncommon to have 12-20+ hour set days. Minors can't work for that long due to child labor laws. I remember the guy who played Vecna in Stranger Things said it took them like 12 hours JUST to put his makeup and costume on everyday. Imagine if they do that everyday only to shoot for 2 hours. It'd be ridiculous. It'd also take longer to shoot shows and movies if the child/teen actors could only work a certain amount of hours a day. That'd mean more days on set which means more days you have to pay the crew, more food for the crew, more days you have to pay for camera/equipment rentals, etc. Itâd overall make filming both a longer and more expensive process.
3. School/tutors - Again since they'd be working with children, they legally have to allot time for school/tutoring until they graduate. Which can be annoying and break up the flow of filming. This is why Full House needed the Olsen twins. When one twin had worked enough for the day or needed to take a schooling break, then the other could step in and they could continue shooting.
Still doesn't justify anything
Another aspect is that adults don't change as much as teenagers in short period of time. Good example is Alex from Modern family, one season she looks like a child and boom, next season puberty hits and she looks completely different. So if they cast an adult with young looking face there is better chance of them looking the same for six seasons.
@@thatonegirlie-lz It actually does, especially #2âŠ
@@DorkDork87 Very true. I think they had the same issue with Stranger Things. Season 1 they actually look like kids and then they all hit puberty and voices changed and it was a little harder for them to act and look younger whilst they were going through such drastic changes. Season 4 feels better since they had a long hiatus and almost everybody is acting near their real life ages (at least for the main kid cast).
Also adults are more responsible and easier to work withâŠ. Most teens donât really understand work ethic
I spent a decent portion of high school feeling a bit insecure about how I looked because "teens" on tv looked so much older than I did, I thought I wasn't physically maturing the way everyone else was. Until I realized half those "teens" are played by adults, and when I paid more attention to my peers, most of them looked as young as I did.
I'm sorry you went through that. I experienced something similar and it is tough. I think we all have to remember that everyone matures at a different rate and to take certain things we see on TV with a grain of salt.
I generally agree with this, that itâs important to not depict teenagers unrealistically - itâs really harmful, and it was definitely as harmful back in the 2000s when I was a teen as it is now. One potential drawback that you didnât touch on though is the negative effects that fame can have on any actor - particular young actors. Like in your intro you included Jennifer Lawrence as Katniss, a 17 year old. By the end of filming she was 24, but when she first began filming she was 20, playing a 16 year old. And I would not wish the social scrutiny and pressure she faced on anyone younger than that. Even the Heartstopper cast, which I agree was a good example of age-appropriate casting, has dealt with some pretty bad online bullying that just seems unmanageable for a cast of that young age and greenness. Once you get down to underage casts like Stranger Things, or the Harry Potter kids, you start to worry about it being abusive to inflict that type of fame on anyone whose brain is at that impressionable stage of development. So itâs tough, and definitely requires some nuanced thinking, like you said.
i feel like the only show that didnât cast older actors was Degrassi. most of the actors were playing a character that were their age.
Not the only show. Freaks and Geeks did the same thing.
Because Canada doesnât have child labor laws like USA
well.. one place has child labor laws, and the other does â ïž
They filmed Degrassi during the kids summer break I think, so having school time on-set wasn't necessary.
That 90s show I think did really well in casting actors who are much closer to the age of their character, and I think itâs a good thing but Iâd be lying if I didnât admit that while watching the show I was like, âwhat are these twelve year olds doing here?â Because weâre so use to seeing people in their 20s and 30s playing teenagers.
Stranger Things had legit good casting with actual real ages as the characters. Yet as the season progressed the the age gaps increased. This happens with a lot of shows.
That's what I like about Heartstopper because the Autors there are about 18 and look like they could be 15
Lockwood and Co is a new Netflix show and thatâs a great example of age appropriate casting, wish we saw it more often
That show deserves more attention, period đ
Also, The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina had age appropriate casting especially in season 1. Kiernan Shipka was 19 when she was cast to play a 15/16 year old.
I was thinking about that too
Theyâre all in their twenties right?
some of the actors in sex education can definitely pass as teenagers but a lot of them donât lol. the good thing is they dress them like teenagers so itâs easier to look past the fact that theyâre actually in their mid to late twenties
I think part of the issue is the disparity between the time between when seasons are filmed and how much time has passed in the show. And this will likely become more of an issue than it used to be. Pre-streaming it would be 1 season every year, but in the streaming era shows typically take more time for new seasons to release. Stranger Things is an example of this, Season 1 and Season 4 were released 6 years apart, but only 2.5 years passed in the show. The aging is more noticeable with the younger group, even though they are only a few years older than their characters, but most of the actors playing the older teens are in their late twenties.
I think they should get Judi Dench to play a High Schooler. It would look more plausible.
@Kristian Alexis Thank you. But imagine Judi Dench on Euphoria. She would be the HBIC.
Omg now I need this to be real. Add Jane Fonda as the queen bee mean girl đ
@@Mndz113 even though she's 85, I think she could pull it off
KJ Apa is the youngest cast member he was 19 when the show started airing lol
Young Royals was also great with this, especially Wille who even had acne and generally they all look like average teenagers and most of them arenât âperfect according to society standardâ đđ»
I agree, and I also appreciate that they used an intimacy coordinator and made intimate scenes relatable and teen-realistic (awkward, tentative, etc.). However, it also seems to have put hard limits on the number of seasons. I think Edvin must have added like 10 cm of height between seasons 1 and 2. The other young actors in smaller roles have also changed significantly. The show has stayed in in a one-year time frame, but the young actors have not. I also liked the diversity of physical types on the show, it better represented the world we live in today and helps young people be more confident in how they are rather than how they are shown in media.
I personally want to see more teenagers playing teenagers because it's easier to route for them and make kids feel like Oh, there's someone more like me on screen that I can ID with.
that 90's show is another example fo good casting! They are all like legit 15, 17
So, Iâm an actor. Iâve been on tv before. Heres the thing about casting. It comes down to a number of things such as legal labor hours, contracts, and subject matter. The industry is trying to make money and casting adults that can look younger is less of a contractual and financial liability. Now if the show is PG-13 youâll notice that actual teenagers are being used.
People are OBSESSED with high school and high school experience
Degrassi deserves more recognition for casting actors that are the age of their characters! đ
The creator of the show, Linda Schuyler, is a former school teacher. She always wanted to tell stories that would authentically connect with her target audience, and start a conversation about important topics that could help teens communicate more with their peers and parents. Aside from a couple of actors in the young cast, most of the actors were the age of their characters, give or take a year. You could see the glow up season to season, year to year. It not only was a better, more authentic and healthy visual for young people to grow up watching, it felt more real. While casting older actors in teen roles means the characters can be sexualized more on screen, shouldn't we be wondering why showrunners WANT to sexualize underage characters on screen so much? đ€
If they showed some things and alluded to others, wouldn't that be a better, more authentic storytelling for young viewers, especially through the awkward stage of puberty and self discovery?
I love how talented Bianca Lawson is, but I have been watching that woman play a teenager for at least 20 years. She's gorgeous and glowing in every role, but she has portrayed a high schooler since Save The Last Dance and Dawson's Creek. She also played Maya in Pretty Little Liars (which is a whole conversation on its own about age-inappropriate romantic pairingsđ), and she was even in Teen Wolf, and the Vampire Diaries, apparently. Even though I love her acting, at some point, it has to be said that hiring an older actor or actress to play a younger character is not only a disservice to the audience, but the age-appropriate actors who can't find work.
If all characters were played by actors who had the same physical attributes in real life, be it race and nationality, sexuality, disability, size, or age, that would significantly level the playing field in Hollywood, and give audiences actual, tangible role models.
The age-appropriate actors who canât find work should work on their audition skills if they donât like losing roles to Bianca Lawson and other performers of a similar age.
@@thomashong2938 But if the studios are purposely hiring older actors for teenage roles, it doesn't matter how talented the younger actors are. Imagine if the casting call started at age 20 or 25 or something for a teen role. The teenage actors wouldn't even be able to audition unless they lied about their age.
â@@enjoyabel89 Bianca Lawson as an example tho? She looks too young to play actual adult roles. Some actual young actors look older than her.
@@Noa...... The point is, she is an adult. People should play roles that are realistic for their actual age, and not give in to weird Hollywood visions of what a teenager should look like. She should want to play an adult, and not pick roles where she is being romantic with actors significantly younger than her. That's part of the problem too. She's extremely talented, but if I was in her shoes, I would want to play roles around my age. The casting agents shouldn't seek adults for teen roles, and the writers and directors shouldn't over sexualize teen characters to the point where adults are required to play the roles. It warps young minds (the viewers) into thinking they should look and act like adults much earlier than they need to in life.
@@enjoyabel89 It is calling acting for a reason. Also, the role of the casting director. :)
i love ginny and georgia, i was thinking about them the whole time, they really did a great casting job!
ummm.. marcusđźâđš
no cause, letâs actually talk about it. đ
I feel like child labour laws would play a big role in this and acting is a very demanding job so casting someone who 'looks' younger and can be available (for example) is more useful to the production than working around so many stringent child related laws - and tbh other factors too like acting abilities, content of the show / movie etc ..
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I feel like a small part of this is the lack of stories set in the young adult stage of life where 25-30 year old actors would make more sense. It seems like every show is set in high school or its set when the characters are already married and living in the suburbs etc. Actors in the 25-30 range just end up playing teens because they are still slightly too baby faced to play the alcoholic parent having an affair with the neighbor or whatever the hell.
401K you wrong for that đđđđđđ Great channel BTW and you're right. I always go back to the show my older sister watched with the Hard Times with RJ Berger. RJâs best friend in s1 was already 35.
I do like that you talk about it not being very black and white. I do agree that casting actors older then, especially those a decade older, the characters they're playing especially if they are deemed conventionally attractive can be a detriment to youth and looks shouldn't really ever be a huge focus when it comes to casting on how attractive someone is deemed (which is subjective anyways). However teens and kids shouldn't be subjected to long work hours and shouldn't be exploited by producers and execs (there's so many stories that prove that) so the answers aren't exactly straight forward like you acknowledge
A HUGE ick for me is when people who are supposed to be 16 literally have deep set forehead wrinkles, like bfr đđđ
Or that permanent five o'clock shadow/ grey facial skin. Most teen boys don't even have that much hair/ haven't had it long enough for their skin to get that way.
I feel bad for some of these actors though because I remember someone saying that they were only getting casted as a teenager for like 10 years. They wanted to play other roles but I think they had been playing a teenager for so long that they couldn't get more mature roles. There are a lot of actors who continually get teen roles even though they would rather move forward like Matt Shively, Leo Howard, Olivia Holt, and Madison Pettis. It might have to do with growing up a child star as well considering the amount of child stars that find it hard to get mature roles after leaving Disney and Nickelodeon as an adult. It's almost like Evan Peters constantly getting casted for the most mind boggling roles even though he says it affects his mental health. Like I understand he's a great actor but give him a break dang. Give him a rom-com or something cause man's seems down.
I was screaming at the tv « young Royals » when u were mentioning tv shows with a younger/teen cast lmao
Honestly I'm kind of happy to see adults in teen movies. Before there were 15 year old actors "dating" 25 year old actors. There were minors being abused.
I think this is better...
With all the Disney nickelodeon kids who got exploited by the industry and tossed aside I'm ok with adults playing teens as long as they look the part to a believable extent
I grew up in Canada which had Degrassi. The show was basically a rite of passage for any young actors in the country. There were open casting calls held every season. No one was looking for actors with name recognition and a fanbase, just any random Canadian teen with some acting skills. I would have begged my parents to participate in the casting calls but I didn't speak english so it wasn't going to happen for me.
You're a Canadian but you didn't speak English? I thought it was a requirement in Canada to teach children both English and French.
@@SkyeID It is a requirement, but a passing grade in a second language class isn't the same as being fully fluent in both languages. The country has two official languages, but most of the population isn't actually bilingual.
@@marielaberge8236 oh okay, I didn't know that. forgive my ignorance.
Euphoria should be set in college, thereâs no reason why it has to be about high schoolers. Especially since, for obvious reasons, minors canât watch the show.
It's nothing new. In the 90s and 2000s we had the original Beverly Hills 90210, Dawson's Creek, Felicity... All actors were mostly a lot older than the roles they played. People are not more analytical about the ages actors play today, we just have: the Internet. Back then we couldn't just look up an actor's age on imdb, we could only assume or buy some magazine with an interview with the actor in question. The most notable were Angela Zuckerman in 90210 played by Gabrielle Carteris, the oldest in the cast, and Keiko Agena from the Gilmore Girls who is known the play teenagers in her late 20s. So it's nothing new under the sun, just for the reasons you mentioned; longer work hours, raunchier scenes and more experience as actors.
This is why I love Canadian shows like "Ready or Not" and the original "Degrassi Junior High" that were teenage shows that actually showed us teenagers. They could still insinuate sex and talk about sex without showing or doing the deed.
The problem is that sex in general is forced on the public through all kinds of shows and media today, which makes our tolerance higher and we expect more, but it's hardly necessary for good storytelling. I'm not a prude, but as a teacher, I can see the disadvantage to having so much sexual reference in all media when it comes to young people. I think it's healthy to explore sexuality, but not shove it down people's throats or make them believe that sex should be easily accessible. It should always be a personal choice and not stem from peer pressure. And that might be the problem with putting adults in the roles of teeangers on teen shows.
Also in one of your previous videos you talked about why we really need to have so many shows based on high school when this is only a fragment of a whole life lived. Yes, I know the whole coming-of-age genre is exciting, I think so too or I wouldn't be here ;) But maybe it's time to also portray other aspects of life.
So glad you are covering thisâš
omg we really needed someone to cover this thank you
I felt so awkward when i started working in a high school because as a 24 year old, i realized that Iâm the same age as the actors who play teenagers. These kids think Iâm one of them because thatâs what they see on tv.
Ginny and Georgia and Young Royals have a good cast that look like teenagers. I couldnât believe the ages of Ginny and her friends when I searched up the cast they look unbelievably young. Heartbreak Highâs cast looks old in my opinion if they were in college that would make sense but Most of them just look like 25+. Same with Sex Ed. They look like the would be in college
I actually prefer adults playing teens but not past 25. Like how are you old enough to be my parents, but playing my age
This channel has grown so much since I last watch it⊠Well freaking deserved !!! Time to sub âđŸ
I think a perfect example of a realistic high school depiction that showed all sides of the high school experience, even fi there was a lot of added "drama" was Degrassi. Degrassi had a very large cast all the time, so it was able to explore a lot of different angles in how children live their lives during those four very formative years. I do believe many of the actors started as actual children on the show tho. However, I do think there is a niche market for college drama that often goes ignored. Black-ish started when I was in college and The Sex Lives of College Girls started right when I graduated from college, so I could relate to the characters a lot more.
I understand that Sam Levinson wrote Euphoria with the intent of showcasing his own high school experiences. However, if that was the case, I don't know why he set it int he modern day (that might just be nitpicking tho đ€·). I think it would actually be more interesting if he set it in the era in which he actually was a teenager. Teenagers know express themselves in a very different way. With social media, the advancement of technology, etc., teenagers (even ones in circles where drugs and sexual activity are common) don't necessarily act like this. Euphoria feels very reminiscent of Skins and those shows back in the early 2000s and 2010s. However, I do feel that those shows served their purpose in a way. I watched Skins as a child and it honestly made me never want to have drugs or participate in sexual activity for the rest of my life.
There are also dangers to casting very conventionally attractive adults as teenagers tho. It creates very unrealistic standards of what kids should look and dress like at that age. Again, this may be nitpicking but in a regular high school, 90% of what Maddy and Cassie wear would not be allowed in a regular school building (I worked at a high school TA for two years and now many substitute as a temporary job). Also, the dialogue between the characters is not how teenagers speak. Likely due to the fact that these characters are portrayed by adults. I think that may also have to do with Sam Levinson's writing. Another problem I have is his over sexualization of characters like Cassie and Maddy. I had friends who are very similar to both of them personality-wise in high school, but they still didn't dress like this. This is based on my own personal experience tho and speaking to my own students about what they think of the show. Nothing can be perfect, but Sam Levinson may also not be the best person for the job đŹ. That Euphoria set is SUPER toxic without the actors being actual children tbh.
im rewatching gossip girl and read that taylor momsen was acting out a lot on set, gave me a new perspective
Hiii†I love your vids and youâre energy and commentary makes them better!
Thank you so much!!
@@imuRgency your welcome!
Your videos cheer me up every. single. week. Also, insightful as always!!
I donât know for me as long as they give a good portrayal of a teen and can pass I have no problem with it like example Alexa Demie from Euphoria everyone thought she was in her early 20s and come to find out sheâs actually 32 .. I feel like some genz ppl are clearly ageists but the reality is you will grow up too and itâs sad that ageism will NEVER go away .. and when they do put actual age based actresses and actors on these raunchy ass shows yâall cry and say a that they are too young to be doing these scenes
To be fair, Jennifer Lawrence was only 21 when the Hunger Games came out in 2012 which isn't bad
Who cares? I'd rather them get the best actor who fits the role than to try to cast age-appropriately and have to settle for a bad actor. They have been casting older people to play teens for decades, and most of the time it's not a problem. People just like to complain about everything now. It's much safer for 18+ people to play teens than for a bunch of minors to be put on sets in compromising sexual and drug related situations.
Hey can you review Outerbanks next? Season 3 just dropped and best believe I watched it in a day. Canât wait for the review đđ
Lot's of reasons, 1 being that working with minors is always a headache no matter the industry, but especially in tv and film. So much gray area, plus you don't know if they're going to stay attractive during puberty, or if once they have the choice they're going to want to leave acting, they're also teenagers so they're unpredictable and hormonal, tv shows now (even teen shows) typically have more mature ratings which is something you can't do with actual teens- the list goes on and on, but really it's cause there's a million reasons to never hire actual teenagers and like 5 to do it.
I'm a huge Heartstopper fan, even before the show came out, and I'm so glad they casted 18-20 year olds. Kit Connor filmed S1 at 18 and S2 at 19, so he was in the age group for his character Nick Nelson, which I loved!
I havenât really seen anyone talk about the movie mid 90s where the kid playing Stevie was 11 at the time of filming and Alexa Demie was casted as a 16 year old and they both made out. It was so weird to watch because I knew the ages of the cast.
I was a teen when vampire diaries came out. And i thought they were teenagers and it really messed me up. Constantly wondering why i did have an hourglass figure like that. Meanwhile they grown adults đ
I've honestly seen a film series from the early fifties with adults playing teenagers (the film series is called the "Teen-agers and is about how ridiculous postwar teens are)
I honestly donât care? They cast people because they fit the role and are a good fit for the character. We fall in love with the characters not the age or in what way they can look like us. You see similarities in their actions and experiences , with yourself and never really care they look better than me? Like Sydney is perfect in Euphoria and I look up to her, not because sheâs way more pretty, but because of the character and experience she represents. I do relate to Cassie . If an actor can make a perfect role , age is just a number and I donât think itâs a problem we find a character attractive if theyâre adults. I would find it weird to find a teen attractive. You kind of know itâs an actor playing them lol. Idk if this makes sense
This is the thing about Degrassi. Drake, Shenae Grimes and Nina Dobrev were all teenagers when they were acting in that show. Because it was about the issues that teens face in real life, he wanted teenagers to play teenagers.
I canât always tell age by looks, because in highschool I knew a number of guys who looked older than I do in my 20s still. Nice video though!
I feel like they need to age up teens shows. Like, we need more shows set in college, or maybe shows of young people entering the workforce. In comparison to those categories, the high school setting seems a lil bit overdone tbh. Plus, it wouldn't be as jarring to see people in their 30s play those characters.
i have a friend whoâs an actresss and weâre currently in highschool. she had to stop working because sheâs not 18 yet but she clearly canât play like middle schoolers anymore bc of the way she looks. due to themes in shows even when sheâs so close to age range the characters actually are, she canât act because sheâs a minor
The issue is directly related to the weird âadultâ fetishization of teens (I donât know what to call it), but basically a lot of people like seeing (or were told they like seeing) teens having sex, doing drugs, drinking, staying out all night, but obviously you canât have actual teens doing this (at least not yet hopefully).
This means showrunners need to get adults to play teens so they can continue to bank on this creepy fetish while, you know, not breaking the law.
Someone get this person a Ted talk
I do kind of think itâs a problem, because why am I reacting weird when I found out a character that plays a 15 year old is actually 15 like Iâm actually shocked by it and I shouldnât be
The simple answerâŠ.college and child labor laws. Itâs much easier not to hire a child who still has to go to school and/or get a tutor. Bella Ramsey on last of us is like 18/19 or something playing 14.
That's why Degrassi IS and always WILL BE that girl! the Kids were KIDDING and we believed them and their stories. When I talk about Degrassi, I'm not talking about that very very distant cousin that was on Netflix.
"Like, girl, it's because they're 30." XD I'm deceased
i grew up watching skins which cast close to character age and whilst that show was important for these reasons, the cast were poorly treated (which i think is changing now especially if you look at how heartstopper was handled behind the scenes) and they had minimal diversity especially body diversity... but there was more than most shows in that time.
i am often told i dont look my age, im now 28, and i think a lot of it is because people my age play teenagers on tv. i have to stamp my age on all my socials to avoid some weird interactions tbh. i think we should be casting close to age, because its the same on the other end too, like JLo is 50 and playing a 30-35 y/o in her recent film. shes gorgeous but... theres plenty of 30-35 year olds to cast. and 50 year old characters look ancient. my mum is 50 and looks nothing like the current day characters of 50 year olds (except on the odd occasion where they do cast closer to age)
bit of an essay sorry lol but definitaly something that interests me a lot i love analysing media. but also the film and tv and theatre industries have a lot of changes to make all in all, behind the camera and in front.
I don't care that much but I'm always shocked when I find out the actor/actress who plays a teen is an adult lol. I looked up the ages for the All American cast and it's still shocking that most of them are in their late 20s-mid 30s
This was actually a main reason why me and my friend didn't want Devi to end up with Paxton, because his actor is so clearly a decade older than hers
Eighth Grade, which was a film made by Bo Burnham, is such a good example of authentic rep for, well, an 8th grader.
Itâs good that you discussed every angle of the conversation. The pros and the cons.
it also has to do not just with body type but with things like acne, braces, glasses, etc. these are things kids and teens have but everyone on screen has to look so perfect, only the âuglyâ or ânerdyâ characters are allowed to have braces or glasses etc.
I feel like the only problem is beauty standers i am in middle school and with all the shows that come out i always hear someone compare themselves to actors when we arenât anywhere close to collegeor adulthood so to be comparing at such young ages is a big problem
It definitely does set unrealistic expectations cause we do not look like that as teenagersđ
When I searched up the age for that 90's show I was surprised by their ages, because their ages are mostly age appropriate. It's kinda sad.
Many reasons. Less red tape on hours to work on set, certain actions in roles like stunt work/choreography, kissing scenes, sexual actions, and all that. However I do like seeing teens in proper roles if it fits like 8th Grade and even Kids was pretty racy but had such an impactful message.
I could be wrong, but the show I remember this happening in initially was the original 90210 cast. The Andrea character was in her early 30's. With that said, I don't have a problem with it really, but do prefer when the actor playing the roll looks somewhat close to the age. I have noticed an improvement as of late. Young Royals is a good example - I noticed all the pimples on Wilhelm's face. It was odd to see, and I don't know how old the actor really is, but it seemed fitting given that is often what 15 year old boys experience.
I agree that they need to at least start casting actors and actresses that LOOK like they could be teens. Also I get why they put sex scenes in shows, but i find it weird how much of it they put in shows centered around teens. In my opinion, if the shows centered around teens alluded to it and focused more on the plotlines instead of treating sex as the plotline it would be more interesting (this is coming from someone in their late teens, also I know I can fast-forward, just wish I didn't have to) I know it also depends on what the show is centered around, just makes me uncomfortable when characters are sexualized when there is no need for it
I totally agree wiht this (I'm also in my late teens as well). And honestly I feel like it's lazy at this point because many of the sex scenes in these shows serves no purpose except to cut some screen time. They serve no lessons, no message is portrayed, and nothing relevant happens except to cause drama or further the plot. Plus it makes sex itself so unrealistic for teens that are venturing into their sexuality and most likely than not have never had sex a day in their lives. We come out with these unattainable exceptations instead of retaining any form of sexual education.
đ¶ 25 BROODING HOT YEAR OLD TEENAGERRRRRRRR đ¶
See the thing for me growing up was that I would watch these shows and I WOULD compare myself to them, like âwhy is my face not skinny like hersâ âwhy donât I have those eyebrowsâ âwhy isnât my nose like hersâ âwhy is the girl with dark hair considered the ugly oneâ âwhy arenât my legs as smooth as hersâ âhow come I have acneâ âwhy arenât my teeth growing in straightâ âwhy donât I have a chestâ âwhy isnât my voice highâ âwhy are the girls with piercings and tattoos the mean girls I was them and i donât want people to think im meanâ etc.
Kennie J.D has the funniest song when this happen it's something like in her bad movies and a beat "30 something brooding teenager"
Are you gonna do a video on the On My Block spin off Freeridge?
Donât know if youâre gonna see this comment but Iâm loving the frequent videos youâve been giving lately. Also, all of them have been very entertaining! Keep at it!
when I googled the riverdale cast and saw the actress that plays Josie was 31 my jaw dropped but I believe it's better to hire adults than children as a lot of children, especially children who worked for Disney have suffered a lot like Jenette McCurdey and Miley Cyrus.
Thank you for addressing this!
Great video as usual ^^đSome love for the algorithm.
Yeah, actors should be almost the same age as a character and not more than 21
But if there are some kind of sex scenes - then more than 18.
But not 25-35 for sure. Wtf? Thatâs why I thought I am ugly, because no teenager can look like grown mature person.
Honestly, I think one of the issues is that there are just mostly teenage series in the first place. Why not make more diverse shows about different age groups?
Before I even watch this
Yâall have to remember itâs these peopleâs dreams and lives to act
And get paid for doing it
So if both the dream and check are cleared honey what is stopping međ
Edit: that said, I agree with you in the problems that can come from these types of portrayals