23 Actors People Thought Were "Too Old" For The Part, But Nobody Ended Up Caring Because They Killllllllllled It

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21-04-2025

Recently, Reddit user sKullsHavezzz asked the question, "Which actor was too old for the part but nobody cared because they were so awesome?" The good people of r/moviecritic swiftly responded with some A+++ answers. Here's what they thought:
1. Joe Pesci in Goodfellas (1990) — Age: 46, Playing a 17-year-old through to a 28-year-old
"Other than being much older than his character Tommy DeSimone ("Tommy DeVito" in the movie) was in real life, the real Tommy was also a hulk of a guy, like 6'4", 250lbs. Pesci had to come up with an amazing performance to make himself as menacing and terrifying as he could. He nailed it, too. He's scary as fuck in this movie."
— doctor-rumack
Joe Pesci won an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor in 1991 for his role as Tommy DeVito in Goodfellas. His acceptance speech was famously short with only five words: "It's my privilege. Thank you.".
2. Joe Pesci in My Cousin Vinny (1992) — Age: 48, Playing a 35-year-old
"Marisa was 28, and he was 49 (probably 48 while filming), but throw on a hairpiece, and he looks like a cute person in his thirties. We never find out how old Vinny actually is, but based on his background in the movie, he would be around 35 to 40 years old."
— RyzenRaider
3. Shirley Henderson in Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (2002) — Age: 37, Playing a 14-year-old
Warner Bros.
"She played Moaning Myrtle, a teenage ghost who haunted the bathroom in the Harry Potter films when she was almost 40 years old."
— Anaisli
4. Alan Rickman in Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone (2001) — Age: 54, Playing a 31-year-old
"Alan Rickman was more than 20 years older than Snape should've been."
— Enge712
5. Robin Williams in Patch Adams (1998) — Age: 47, Playing a 24-year-old
6. Emma Thompson in Sense and Sensibility (1995) — Age: 36, Playing a 19-year-old
"She wrote the script and did so beautifully as Elinor. There could have been no one else, but she was 17 years older than her character."
— AllynWA1
7. Stockard Channing in Grease (1978) — Age: 33, Playing a 17- or 18-year-old
"Yeah literally everyone in G rease. They are way too old but I couldn't imagine anyone else in the roles."
— PixalmasterStudios24
In case you're wondering, while making Grease, John Travolta (Danny) was 23, Olivia Newton-John (Sandy) was 28-29, and Jeff Conaway (Kenickie) was 27, and the rest of the cast was all at least in their 20s, if not, 30s.
8. Alan Ruck in Ferris Bueller's Day Off (1986) — Age: 29, Playing a 17- or 18-year-old
"Ruck being older probably helped in his performance. You don't get that dead inside look without life beating it out of you at some point."
— Decantus
In case you're wondering, Matthew Broderick (Ferris) was 23, Mia Sara (Sloane) was 18, Jennifer Grey (Jeanie) was 25, and Jeffrey Jones (Principal Rooney) was 39.
9. Stacey Dash in Clueless (1995) — Age: 28, playing a 16- or 17-year-old
— Xanatos2076
In case you're wondering, Alicia Silverstone (Cher Horowitz) was 18 years old, Brittany Murphy (Tai Frasier) was 17 years old, and Paul Rudd (Josh Lucas) was 25 years old.
10. Bing Crosby in White Christmas (1954) — Age: 51, Playing a 30- to 40-year-old
Courtesy Everett Collection
"It's a classic holiday movie, but honestly, he was too old in real life to portray his character in that timeline. He would have been nearly 40 if he got drafted into WWII and was older than the General in real life…yet they treated the General like a father figure to him and Danny Kaye. LoL"
— CosmicOutfield
In case you're wondering, Danny Kaye (Phil Davis) was 43 years old, Rosemary Clooney (Betty Haynes) was 26 years old, and Vera-Ellen (Judy Haynes) was 33 years old.
11. Malcolm McDowell in A Clockwork Orange (1971) — Age: 27, Playing a 15- to 18-year-old
Warner Bros. / Courtesy of Everett
"In the book, his character, Alex, was 15 years old."
— deviltrombone
"I'm sorry...the lead character in that book is 15 years old!? Good god."
— heardThereWasFood
12. Dustin Hoffman in The Graduate (1967) — Age: 29, Playing a 21-year-old
Courtesy Everett Collection
"Also, he and Anne Bancroft, who played Mrs. Robinson, are only 6 years apart."
— Appropriate_Error589
In case you're wondering, Bancroft was 35 years old while making The Graduate.
13. Sissy Spacek in Carrie (1976) — Age: 26, Playing a 16- or 17-year-old
14. Parminder Nagra in Bend It Like Beckham (2002) — Age: 27, Playing a 17-year-old
"For comparison, Keira Knightley was 16. But Parminder crushed that role, and that movie is influential to young POC soccer players today. Plus, she did her own soccer stunts (aside from a few)."
— VivaLaCon88
15. Rachel McAdams in Mean Girls (2004) — Age: 25, Playing a 17- or 18-year-old
"She's 8 years older than Lindsay Lohan and only 7 years younger than Amy Poehler, who played her mother."
— Sic39
In case you're wondering, Lindsay Lohan (Cady) was 17, Amanda Seyfried (Karen) was 18, Lacey Chabert (Gretchen) and Lizzy Caplan (Janice) were 21, Tina Fey (Ms. Norbury) was 33, and Amy Poehler was 32.
16. Skeet Ulrich and Matthew Lillard in Scream (1996) — Ages: 25, Playing 17- or 18-year-olds
"Too old to be high school kids, but they both nailed it."
— SpreadElectronic1232
In case you're wondering, Neve Campbell (Sidney Prescott) was 22, Rose McGowan (Tatum Riley) was 22, Jamie Kennedy (Randy Meeks) was 25, David Arquette (Dewey Riley) was 24, Courtney Cox (Gale Weathers), was 31, and Drew Barrymore (Casey Becker) was 21.
17. Michael J. Fox in Back to the Future (1985) — Age: 23, Playing a 17-year-old
— Admirable-Present510
In case you're wondering, Christopher Lloyd (Dr. Emmett Brown) was 46 years old, Lea Thompson (Lorraine Baines) was 23 years old, Crispin Glover (George McFly) was 20 years old, and Thomas F. Wilson (Biff Tannen) was 25 years old.
Also... Michael J. Fox was 27 in Back to the Future Part II and 28 in Part III (playing Marty, who was still 17 in those films).
18. Toby Maguire in Spider-Man (2002) — Age: 26, Playing a 17- or 18-year-old
— MarqMarw
In case you're wondering, Kirsten Dunst (Mary Jane Watson) was 19 years old, Kirsten Dunst (Mary Jane Watson) was 19 years old, and Willem Dafoe (Norman Osborn/Green Goblin) was 46 years old.
19. James Spader in Pretty in Pink (1986) — Age: 25, Playing a 17- to 18-year-old
"He looks 30, and he's playing as a high school senior. He's great but a little too self-assured for a high school kid."
— hiro111
20. Tom Cruise in Jack Reacher (2012) — Age: 50, Playing a 36-year-old
"He was 50 and 54 in those two movies. The character in the book is in his 30s and 6'5', 235lbs."
— BCJay_
21. Ralph Macchio in The Karate Kid (1984) — Age: 22, Playing a 17-year-old
22. Cary Grant in Charade (1963) — Age: 58
Courtesy Everett Collection
"He was 58 to Audrey Hepburn's 33."
— RulerofHoth
Apparently, Grant actually requested script changes to make their romantic dynamic more age-appropriate and humorous (like having her pursue him instead of the other way around).
23. And finally, Cary Grant (again!!) in Father Goose (1964) — Age: 59
Courtesy Everett Collection
"He was almost 60 and romancing Leslie Caron, who was 33. It's still a great film and it works, but it was the last time Cary Grant played the romantic lead. He only made one more movie, Walk, Don't Run before retiring."
— CalagaxT
What do you think? Do you agree that these actors crushed their roles despite being "too old?" Are there other actors you think fall into the same category? Tell us in the comments below!
Note: Some responses have been edited for length and/or clarity.