History Main / UnderageCasting

** Interestingly, Creator/AmberTamblyn, who was cast as TeenGenius Martha Masters at twenty-seven, is an example of DawsonCasting.

** There's a deleted scene from the pilot that shows her as an instructor to a classroom full of prospective agents. This was presumably cut in part because baby-faced Gillian Anderson looks years younger than the half dozen students in the shot. She teaches in season 2, as well, though by this point she's grown into the role and the dissonance is not as noticeable.

* In the ''Series/StarTrekTheNextGeneration'' episode [[Recap/StarTrekTheNextGenerationS7E11ThePegasus "The Pegasus"]], Creator/TerryOQuinn plays Riker's first commanding officer, Admiral (formerly Captain) Pressman. Pressman is presumably 15-20 years older than Riker, but O'Quinn is barely a month older than Creator/JonathanFrakes, who plays Riker.
** Within the show, Captain Picard was pushing 60 at the time the series started. Creator/PatrickStewart, on the other hand, [[YoungerThanTheyLook was 47 at the time TNG premiered]].
** Similarly, in "Half a Life", Creator/DavidOgdenStiers played Dr. Timicin, who is soon to turn 60, at which point the people from his society commit ritual suicide. Stiers was 48 at the time he did the episode.

* Played with on the drama ''Famous in Love'' as Rainer is told that, as 20, he's legally forbidden from doing a stunt. However, he says he's really 23 as his mom, Nina, insisted on having him be younger when he started out in the business.
** Nina gets this in a bad way as she had been sleeping with Jordan, Rainer's best friend, for years, ever since his star-making role on a TV show. Jordan tells the truth to his girlfriend, Tangey who then blackmails Nina by revealing Jordan was actually only sixteen at the time and lied about his age. Meaning Nina slept with an underage man which will get her arrested unless she makes Tangey a star.

* ''Series/{{Friends}}'': In the series, Ross is Monica's older brother. In real life, Creator/CourtneyCox (Monica) is actually two years older than Creator/DavidSchwimmer (Ross).

** ''Film/BirdsOfPrey'' attempts to square the circle with Harley by establishing that she is, in fact, [[OlderThanTheyLook a decent amount older than Robbie's actual age]].

* This became a bit of a problem in the Film/XMenFilmSeries. For some inexplicable reason, each of the post-reboot films involved a ten-year TimeSkip from the previous one. It wasn't so bad going from ''Film/XMenFirstClass'' to ''Film/DaysOfFuturePast''; ten years passed and the returning characters were roughly the same age as their actors. But in ''Film/XMenApocalypse'', another ten years pass. Xavier, Magneto, and Moira [=MacTaggart=] were pushing 50 while their actors were in their 30s during filming. Havok and Beast would be at least 40 while their actors were in their mid-20s, and Havok and Cyclops' mother doesn't look nearly old enough for her eldest son to be middle-aged.[[note]]The massive liberties taken with the Summers family are a different story altogether.[[/note]] In fact, some have pointed out that ''Film/DarkPhoenix'', which takes place in the 90s, should have featured the older actors from the original trilogy, since the first ''Film/XMen'' came out in 2000.

* ''Film/BasicInstinct'': According to the screenplay, Gus is 64 and talks about a murder case he remembered from 1955, which is about 35 years before the setting of the film. Gus is played by actor George Dzunda, who was only 46 during filming. This makes him and his partner Nick essentially the same age, instead of having an OldCopYoungCop dynamic.

* ''Series/CobraKai'': Alicia Hannah-Kim plays Kim Da-Eun, a woman around her 40s, while Hannah-Kim herself was 35 by the time Season 5 rolled adround.

** Creator/KatieHolmes played an assistant district attorney in ''Film/BatmanBegins'' despite being 25 years during filming. If Rachel Dawes had gone to law school straight out of college, she'd have graduated at 24 or 25. It's unlikely given her youth and inexperience that she'd be handling cases--especially major, high-profile ones--on her own.

* ''Film/TheInsider'': 34-year-old Creator/RussellCrowe plays Dr. Jeffrey Wigand. The real Wigand was 52 when the events of the movie happened and is three years older than Lowell Bergman, whereas Crowe is 24 years younger than Creator/AlPacino (who plays Bergman in the movie).

* In ''Film/DaysOfThunder'', then-23-year-old Creator/NicoleKidman played a full-fledged neurosurgeon. At that age, she would be at most only halfway through medical school. Even coming from a country that doesn't require a college degree before entering medical school, she would still only be fresh out of school.

** ''Suicide Squad'' also has examples in the couple Rick Flag and June Moone (aka the Enchantress). Flag is a colonel, a rank probably expected for someone older than 35-year-old Creator/JoelKinnaman; June is referred to as "Doctor", meaning she has spent at least a decade studying to get a Ph.D in archaeology, and yet her actress, Creator/CaraDelevingne, was only in her early-20s

** ''Suicide Squad'' also has examples in the couple Rick Flag and June Moone (aka the Enchantress). Flag is a colonel, a rank probably expected for someone older than 36-year-old Creator/JoelKinnaman; June is referred to as "Doctor", meaning she has spent at least a decade studying to get a Ph.D in archaeology, and yet her actress, Creator/CaraDelevingne, was only 23.

* Any incarnation of ComicBook/HarleyQuinn really counts, since she's always presented as a very young (or at least, childlike in manner and appearance) character, despite the fact that she held an M.D., specialised in psychiatry, and was experienced enough to be allowed to spend time alone with highly dangerous patients - meaning that she would presumably be in her mid-thirties at the youngest by the time she became ComicBook/TheJoker's moll, and she was by his side for at least a few years. The version of her in ''Film/SuicideSquad2016'' has to take the cake, though, as she is played by the 25-year-old Creator/MargotRobbie, who in real life would be ''just about'' finishing med school and choosing her specialty at that age, and wouldn't be let loose unsupervised on a prisoner of the Joker's calibre for years to come. And unlike some other professions on this list, psychiatry is one that is very difficult for "teen genius" types to get into early, since it requires not just raw intelligence but rigorous demonstrations of mental and emotional maturity. One depiction tried to explain away her getting to where she is with the excuse that she slept with her professor for good grades. SextraCredit may explain ''one'' professor, but not the entire psychiatry program.

** The latest film in the series ''Film/JasonBourne'' has this problem as well, with 27-year-old Creator/AliciaVikander playing a high-ranking CIA official, who concludes the film angling for an even ''higher'' position.

** Alison Doody was 22 when she was cast as Dr. Elsa Schneider, [[VagueAge and although her age wasn't stated onscreen]], she would have to be at least 30 to have her credentials as an experienced archaeologist.

** Creator/KatieHolmes played an assistant district attorney in ''Film/BatmanBegins'' despite being 26 years during filming. If Rachel Dawes had gone to law school straight out of college, she'd have graduated at 24 or 25. It's unlikely given her youth and inexperience that she'd be handling cases--especially major, high-profile ones--on her own.

** Creator/NicoleKidman was 27 when she played Dr Chase Meridian in ''Film/BatmanForever'' and looked younger at times. She's far too young to be a renowned criminal psychologist who consults with the police; realistically she probably wouldn't have finished her [=PhD=] yet, plus it takes around a decade or more to become a qualified clinical psychologist, so it's highly unlikely she'd have her own practice or be experienced enough to be considered an expert in her field. Originally, Creator/ReneRusso was cast as Chase; at 39/40, her age was far more fitting for the character, but Russo got booted for being "too old" next to Creator/ValKilmer (he's only five years younger).

* In ''Film/SupermanReturns'', ComicBook/LoisLane is played by Creator/KateBosworth, who was only 22 years old and looked it. She was supposed to be an experienced reporter with a Pulitzer or two under her belt, not to mention a kindergarten-age son. Creator/BrandonRouth ([[Franchise/{{Superman}} Clark Ken]]t) was in his mid-20s during production. The most problematic part of all this is that the movie is supposed to take place five years after the events of ''Film/SupermanII'', which makes these characters 35 at the very minimum.

* In ''Film/SupermanReturns'', ComicBook/LoisLane is played by Creator/KateBosworth, who was only 23 years old and looked it. She was supposed to be an experienced reporter with a Pulitzer or two under her belt, not to mention a kindergarten-age son. Creator/BrandonRouth ([[Franchise/{{Superman}} Clark Ken]]t) was 26 during production. The most problematic part of all this is that the movie is supposed to take place five years after the events of ''Film/SupermanII'', which makes these characters 35 at the very minimum.

* An in-universe example happens in the ''Series/AgentsOfSHIELD'' episode "T.R.A.C.K.S": Coulson and Simmons are under cover as a father/daughter couple. Simmons, who is in her mid twenties, remarks that Coulson (in his late forties) is much too young to have a daughter her age.

** To a lesser extent, Creator/EmmaDArcy, who was 29 when she first appeared as adult Rhaenyra Targaryen. She continues to portray Rhaenyra after the timeskip in episode 8, in which her eldest son, Jacaerys, is 16 years old, even though it's been established that she had him when she was 18.

->''"Theatre/{{Hamlet}}'s mother will not be played by a woman who could have gone to high school with the actor playing Hamlet."''
-->-- Rule #142, ''[[http://angevin2.livejournal.com/148520.html The Things I Will Not Do When I Direct A Shakespeare Production]]''

* ''Film/TheRoom2003'': Johnny's fiance Lisa is implied to be at least in her late twenties, since they've been together for seven years, but Juliette Danielle was twenty-two at the time of filming next to Creator/TommyWiseau in his late forties. This is apparently a result of the original actress for Lisa dropping out, and Juliette Danielle (who'd been cast as Michelle) getting bumped up.