If you’re among the millions around the world who have been transfixed by recent shows such as The Old Man and Yellowstone spin-off 1923, you may have noticed that your favourite leading actors are getting older.
The trend isn’t confined to TV. If we look at the four top-billed cast of 2022’s highest-grossing movies, Jurassic World: Dominion features a cast with an average age of 52.5; Top Gun: Maverick's leads have an average age of 45.5, while the year’s biggest hit Avatar: The Way of Water, also averages 52.5.
Older actors have always existed in film and TV, but historically they’ve played some fairly predictable roles — the loveable grandparents of Cocoon and The Golden Girls or the grumpy old men of Frasier and, well, Grumpy Old Men.
More recently, however, we’ve seen Jeff Bridges return to TV at 72 as an all-action CIA agent on the run in The Old Man and Tom Cruise, who at 60, sits at the younger end of an all-star cast, reprising his role as crack fighter pilot Pete “Maverick” Mitchell.
It’s not only men’s roles that are getting better. Meryl Streep famously complained at the 2006 Venice Film Festival of the lack of “serious roles for 50-year-old women,” returning to the theme in a 2016 interview with the Wall Street Journal.
Since that 2016 interview she has personally been nominated for two Best Actress awards, while the prize has been won by Frances McDormand (currently 65) twice, Olivia Coleman (48) and Renee Zellweger (53). You wouldn’t need to be a risk taker to back 60-year-old Michelle Yeoh this year either.
The evidence isn’t purely anecdotal. A 2021 study by American senior living specialist Amica found that in 2000, senior actors (aged 60+ at the time of the film's release) were named in the main cast of 14 per cent of the year’s bestselling Hollywood movies. In 2021 it was 56 per cent.
Data from IMDb reveals a similar trend. Taking the average age of the top-three listed actors from every non-animated film that took more than $10 million at the US box office between 2000 and 2021, there is a steady and consistent rise from under 20 senior citizens in 2000 to more than 40 in 2021.
The success of the Harry Potter franchise may have skewed the younger end of that scale early in the century. However looking at IMDb data on which lead actors have featured in the top grossing films since 2000, prior to 2010, the oldest are Jim Carey (then 38), Johnny Depp (43) and Viggo Mortensen (45) — 42 on average. Post-2010 the average jumps to 55.6 with Mickey Rourke (58), Martin Lawrence (55) and Robert Downey Jr (54).
The phenomenon appears to be making its way into reality TV, too. Perhaps the biggest breakout in the genre of 2022 was The Traitors, a Dutch creation that has been adapted in the US, the UK and Australia. This show replaced the aspiring Boohoo models and Insta-influencers-in-waiting of Love Island et al with a remarkably normal bunch — the UK version even featured 72-year-old Andrea among its contestants.
Olivia Ahmed was on the UK casting team, and personally responsible for casting 54-year-old traitor Amanda. She says: “I think more reality shows are going to go the way of The Traitors. Casting older people is much more fulfilling. They just haven’t been given a chance in reality TV and I think it is going to come full circle.”
The evidence certainly seems to back up the casual observance of the trend, but why would this be? Figures from US non-profit AARP revealed that people aged 55-64 spent an average of $3,520 on entertainment in 2020, second only to the 35-44 age bracket. It’s simple logic, then, to make content that some of your biggest customers can relate to.
A second factor could be the sheer volume of content that is made today compared to 20 years ago, largely thanks to the rise of streaming. In 2000, data from Statista shows that a total of 371 films were released in the US and Canada, the world’s biggest markets. By 2019, the last year before Covid-19 affected production schedules, that had more than doubled to 792.
With so many films to cast, and a finite number of recognisable stars, it perhaps stands to reason that older actors are finding themselves with more and better roles to choose from.
Perhaps that’s why someone like Liam Neeson (70), a solid banker but more Hollywood everyman than full-blown A-lister, has churned out 53 films, with a further six currently in production, in the 14 years since Taken’s global release in January 2009. In the 14 years prior to Taken he appeared in 23.
Whether the trend will continue, or if Neeson, Bridges, Streep and their peers will prove the final golden age of Hollywood, only time will tell. But for now, it's a good time to be an older actor.
UAE SQUAD
Ahmed Raza (Captain), Rohan Mustafa, Jonathan Figy, CP Rizwan, Junaid Siddique, Mohammad Usman, Basil Hameed, Zawar Farid, Vriitya Aravind (WK), Waheed Ahmed, Karthik Meiyappan, Zahoor Khan, Darius D'Silva, Chirag Suri
Should late investors consider cryptocurrencies?
Wealth managers recommend late investors to have a balanced portfolio that typically includes traditional assets such as cash, government and corporate bonds, equities, commodities and commercial property.
They do not usually recommend investing in Bitcoin or other cryptocurrencies due to the risk and volatility associated with them.
“It has produced eye-watering returns for some, whereas others have lost substantially as this has all depended purely on timing and when the buy-in was. If someone still has about 20 to 25 years until retirement, there isn’t any need to take such risks,” Rupert Connor of Abacus Financial Consultant says.
He adds that if a person is interested in owning a business or growing a property portfolio to increase their retirement income, this can be encouraged provided they keep in mind the overall risk profile of these assets.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
21 Lessons for the 21st Century
Yuval Noah Harari, Jonathan Cape
Sweet%20Tooth
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SPECS
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Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Sholto Byrnes on Myanmar politics
Results
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Cultural fiesta
What: The Al Burda Festival
When: November 14 (from 10am)
Where: Warehouse421, Abu Dhabi
The Al Burda Festival is a celebration of Islamic art and culture, featuring talks, performances and exhibitions. Organised by the Ministry of Culture and Knowledge Development, this one-day event opens with a session on the future of Islamic art. With this in mind, it is followed by a number of workshops and “masterclass” sessions in everything from calligraphy and typography to geometry and the origins of Islamic design. There will also be discussions on subjects including ‘Who is the Audience for Islamic Art?’ and ‘New Markets for Islamic Design.’ A live performance from Kuwaiti guitarist Yousif Yaseen should be one of the highlights of the day.
Coffee: black death or elixir of life?
It is among the greatest health debates of our time; splashed across newspapers with contradicting headlines - is coffee good for you or not?
Depending on what you read, it is either a cancer-causing, sleep-depriving, stomach ulcer-inducing black death or the secret to long life, cutting the chance of stroke, diabetes and cancer.
The latest research - a study of 8,412 people across the UK who each underwent an MRI heart scan - is intended to put to bed (caffeine allowing) conflicting reports of the pros and cons of consumption.
The study, funded by the British Heart Foundation, contradicted previous findings that it stiffens arteries, putting pressure on the heart and increasing the likelihood of a heart attack or stroke, leading to warnings to cut down.
Numerous studies have recognised the benefits of coffee in cutting oral and esophageal cancer, the risk of a stroke and cirrhosis of the liver.
The benefits are often linked to biologically active compounds including caffeine, flavonoids, lignans, and other polyphenols, which benefit the body. These and othetr coffee compounds regulate genes involved in DNA repair, have anti-inflammatory properties and are associated with lower risk of insulin resistance, which is linked to type-2 diabetes.
But as doctors warn, too much of anything is inadvisable. The British Heart Foundation found the heaviest coffee drinkers in the study were most likely to be men who smoked and drank alcohol regularly.
Excessive amounts of coffee also unsettle the stomach causing or contributing to stomach ulcers. It also stains the teeth over time, hampers absorption of minerals and vitamins like zinc and iron.
It also raises blood pressure, which is largely problematic for people with existing conditions.
So the heaviest drinkers of the black stuff - some in the study had up to 25 cups per day - may want to rein it in.
Rory Reynolds
How The Debt Panel's advice helped readers in 2019
December 11: 'My husband died, so what happens to the Dh240,000 he owes in the UAE?'
JL, a housewife from India, wrote to us about her husband, who died earlier this month. He left behind an outstanding loan of Dh240,000 and she was hoping to pay it off with an insurance policy he had taken out. She also wanted to recover some of her husband’s end-of-service liabilities to help support her and her son.
“I have no words to thank you for helping me out,” she wrote to The Debt Panel after receiving the panellists' comments. “The advice has given me an idea of the present status of the loan and how to take it up further. I will draft a letter and send it to the email ID on the bank’s website along with the death certificate. I hope and pray to find a way out of this.”
November 26: ‘I owe Dh100,000 because my employer has not paid me for a year’
SL, a financial services employee from India, left the UAE in June after quitting his job because his employer had not paid him since November 2018. He owes Dh103,800 on four debts and was told by the panellists he may be able to use the insolvency law to solve his issue.
SL thanked the panellists for their efforts. "Indeed, I have some clarity on the consequence of the case and the next steps to take regarding my situation," he says. "Hopefully, I will be able to provide a positive testimony soon."
October 15: 'I lost my job and left the UAE owing Dh71,000. Can I return?'
MS, an energy sector employee from South Africa, left the UAE in August after losing his Dh12,000 job. He was struggling to meet the repayments while securing a new position in the UAE and feared he would be detained if he returned. He has now secured a new job and will return to the Emirates this month.
“The insolvency law is indeed a relief to hear,” he says. "I will not apply for insolvency at this stage. I have been able to pay something towards my loan and credit card. As it stands, I only have a one-month deficit, which I will be able to recover by the end of December."
Results:
Men's wheelchair 800m T34: 1. Walid Ktila (TUN) 1.44.79; 2. Mohammed Al Hammadi (UAE) 1.45.88; 3. Isaac Towers (GBR) 1.46.46.
ON%20TRACK
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How does ToTok work?
The calling app is available to download on Google Play and Apple App Store
To successfully install ToTok, users are asked to enter their phone number and then create a nickname.
The app then gives users the option add their existing phone contacts, allowing them to immediately contact people also using the application by video or voice call or via message.
Users can also invite other contacts to download ToTok to allow them to make contact through the app.
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
