History Main / UnderageCasting

* Sally Field played TomHanks' mother in ''Film/ForrestGump'', though she's only ten years older than him. Granted, the two didn't share the screen together much since many of her scenes are flashbacks to when he was younger. Once it came time for them to act off one another, Field was in old-lady makeup while Hanks was invoking DawsonCasting by playing a man in his 20's.

You know how sometimes you're watching a show and you think, "Hey, isn't that person too young to be a doctor?" This is an example of under-aged casting, and it happens when an actor or actress is not actually old enough to be their character, for instance, when a twenty-three-year-old actor plays a character with a PhD.

* Katie Holmes played an assistant district attorney in ''Film/BatmanBegins'' despite being 26 years old and looking to be about 23. She should still be in law school by all accounts. Aside from that, she was romantically involved with ChristianBale who is older by a decent amount.

* On ''Main/MiamiVice'', HelenaBonhamCarter was twenty when she played a doctor who was supposed to be about thirty. At the time, she looked like she was twelve.
* ''Series/TheNewsroom'': OliviaMunn was 29 years old when she started shooting Season One when the character is supposed to have two PHD's and several years of real world experience beside, prior to the start of the show, making her character at least a few years older than her actual age.

* ''Series/{{House}}'': Real doctors (not including DoogieHowser) usually graduate from medical school in their mid-20s, and at that point they've still got years of residency ahead before they can do the kinds of jobs the characters on the show do. When their respective characters joined the cast, OliviaWilde was 23, Jesse Spencer and Charlyne Yi were 25, and Odette Annable was 26.

* ''Series/{{House}}''
** OliviaWilde was twenty-three when she started as Thirteen. Doctors typically graduate from medical school at twenty-five or twenty six.
** Similarly, Jesse Spencer and Charlyne Yi were both cast at twenty-five and Odette Annable was twenty-six (her character had previously worked in a prison and thus, was clearly not right out of medical school).

* In ''SupermanReturns'', Lois Lane is played by Kate Bosworth, who was only 23 years old and looked it. She was supposedly an experienced reporter with a Pulitzer or two under her belt. Not to mention, she was supposed to have a 5-6 year old son and was engaged to James Marsden who is ten years older. (Brandon Routh was lesser a difference, being 4 years older)
** What makes this example even more prominent is that Superman Returns ''isn't'' a reboot it's supposed to be set in the same continuity as 1 and 2 (with 3 and 4 being retconned.) This means that she is supposedly the future of Margot Kidder who was 31 during the events of Superman 2 - this incarnation of Lois Lane should be knocking forty by this point.

* ''Series/TheNewsroom'': OlivaMunn was 29 years old when she started shooting Season One when the character is supposed to have two PHD's and several years of real world experience beside, prior to the start of the show, making her character at least a few years older than her actual age.

* Gillian Anderson was cast as Dana Scully on ''TheXFiles'' at twenty-four. The character in question had not only graduated from medical school, but worked two years at the FBI afterwards. She lied about her age to get the part, but still, she looks very young. One deleted scene of the pilot shows Scully teaching at Quantico, yet being only 24, she looks years younger than her students. This actually coincides with a case of ImprobableAge for the ''character'' as well, which makes this trope even more noticeable. Becoming a forensic pathologist in the US requires a person to graduate from college with an undergraduate degree (4 years), graduate from medical school (another 4 years) and complete a residency (4-5 years), plus a fellowship (1-2 years). The average length of education required is about 13-15 years, plus the two years she'd been working at the FBI. Scully ''should'' be in her mid-30's or older at the start of the series, yet she was born in 1964--putting her at 28 when she is assigned to work with Mulder, since the pilot is set in 1992.

* On ''Main/MiamiVice'', HelenaBonhamCarter was twenty when she played a doctor who was supposed to be about thirty. At the time, she looked like she was twelve.

This can cause PlayingGertrude if the character has a teenage or adult child. However, it can also result from PlayingGertrude if the actor or actress portraying the parent is physically too young to have bore the child in question (e.g. a character played by a forty-year-old actress having a thirty-year-old daughter).

This can cause PlayingGertrude if the character has a teenage or adult child. However, it can also result from PlayingGertrude if the actor or actress portraying the parent is physically too young to have bore the child in question (i.e. a character played by a forty-year-old actress having a thirty-year-old daughter).

** Olivia Wilde was twenty-three when she started as Thirteen. Doctors typically graduate from medical school at twenty-five or twenty six.

* Gillian Anderson was cast as Dana Scully on ''TheXFiles'' at twenty-four. The character in question had not only graduated from medical school, but worked two years at the FBI afterward. However, this trope is still possibly subverted due to the fact that she lied about her age to get the part.
** Hilariously noted in fans who watch deleted scenes of the pilot. One shows Scully teaching at Quantico, yet being only 24, she looks years younger than her students.
** This actually coincides with a case of ImprobableAge for the ''character'' as well, which makes this trope even more noticeable. Becoming a forensic pathologist in the US requires a person to graduate from college with an undergraduate degree (4 years), graduate from medical school (another 4 years) and complete a residency (4-5 years), plus a fellowship (1-2 years). The average length of education required is about 13-15 years, plus the two years she'd been working at the FBI. Scully ''should'' be in her mid-30's or older at the start of the series, yet she was born in 1964--putting her at 28 when she is assigned to work with Mulder, since the pilot is set in 1992.

** OliviaWilde was twenty-three when she started as Thirteen. Doctors typically graduate from medical school at twenty-five or twenty six.

** Also,to top this, according to the original script, available online, Holmes's character is supposed to be some two or three years older than Bale's, to justify her being an intern at the district attorney's office when he's still an undergrad. In real life, he's around five years older.

* Katie Holmes played an assistant district attorney in ''Film/BatmanBegins'' despite being 27 years old and looking to be about 23. She should still be in law school by all accounts. Aside form that, she was romantically involved with ChristianBale who is older by a decent amount.

** OliviaWilde was twenty-three when she started as Thirteen. Doctors typically graduate from medical school at twenty-six.

* In ''SupermanReturns'', Lois Lane is played by Kate Bosworth, who was only 23 years old and looked it. She was supposedly an experienced reporter with a Pulitzer or two under her belt. Not to mention, she was supposed to have a 5-6 year old son and was engaged to James Marsden who is ten years older.
** To add to this, Brandon Routh

** In ''Film/TheDarkKnight'', she is replaced by Maggie Gyllenhaal who appears only slightly older than Holmes (indeed, she is a year older). In that film, she was still the assistant DA in a love triangle between the aforementioned Bale and Aaron Eckhart's Harvey Dent.

** Olivia Wilde was twenty-three when she started as Thirteen. Doctors typically graduate from medical school at twenty-six.

* Gillian Anderson was cast as Dana Scully on ''TheXFiles'' at twenty-four. The character in question had not only graduated from medical school, but worked two years at the FBI afterward. However, this trope is still possibly subverted due to the fact that she lied about her age to get the part.

* On ''Main/MiamiVice'', HelenaBonhamCarter was twenty when she played a doctor who was supposed to be about thirty. At the time, she looked like she was twelve.

[[AC:{{LiveActionTelevision}}]]
* Olivia Wilde was twenty-three when she started as Thirteen on ''HouseMD''. Doctors typically graduate from medical school at twenty-six. Similarly, Jesse Spencer and Charlyne Yi were both cast at twenty-five and Odette Annable was twenty-six (her character had previously worked in a prison and thus, was clearly not right out of medical school).
** Interestingly, Amber Tamblyn, who was cast as TeenGenius, Martha Masters, at twenty-seven, is an example of DawsonCasting.

** This actually coincides with a case of ImprobableAge for the ''character'' as well, which makes this trope even more noticeable. Becoming a forensic pathologist in the US requires a person to graduate from college with an undergraduate degree (4 years), graduate from medical school (another 4 years) and complete a residency (4-5 years), plus a fellowship (1-2 years). The average length of education required is about 13-15 years, plus the two years she'd been working at the FBI. Scully ''should'' be in her mid-30's or older at the start of the series, yet she was born in 1964--putting her at 29 when she is assigned to work with Mulder.

* Gillian Anderson was cast as Dana Scully on ''TheXFiles'' at twenty-four. The character in question had not only graduated from medical school, but worked a year at the FBI afterward. However, this trope is still possibly subverted due to the fact that she lied about her age to get the part.

* Sally Field played TomHanks' mother in ''Film/ForrestGump''. Not only are they only a few years apart but Field is actually younger than Hanks. Granted, the two didn't share the screen together much since many of her scenes are flashbacks to when he was younger. Once it came time for them to act off one another, Field was in old-lady makeup while Hanks was invoking DawsonCasting by playing a man in his 20's.
** Actually, Field is ten years older than Hanks.

* Sally Field played TomHanks' mother in ''Film/ForrestGump''. Not only are they only a few years apart but Field is actually younger than Hanks. Granted, the two didn't share the screen together much since many of her scenes are flashbacks to when he was younger. Once it came time for them to act off one another, Field was in old-lady makeup while Hanks was invoking DawsonsCasting by playing a man in his 20's.