Actors and Actresses that look(ed) better at 30 than 20

Cafe Society
1

In this culture, it’s not unusual to hear people proclaim that folks are their most attractive in their 20s, but a lot of people, including actors and actresses simply don’t look complete that young. I thought of this while watching Haunted a few days ago - compare how Kate Beckinsale looks in Much Ado About Nothing to how she looks in Underworld. IMHO she’s far prettier now than when she was in her early twenties.

This happens with the gents too. Joshua Jackson as Pacey Witter vs Joshua Jackson as Peter Bishop. Alexander Skarsgard in Zoolander (sorry, can’t find a better pic from this movie) vs True Blood. Peter Facinelli in Foxfire (also hard to find pics from) vs Fastlane…

I’m not the only one to have this opinion about some actors and actresses, right? So who else?

2

Jennifer Connelly looks much better now than she did 10 years ago.

3

Carey Lowell looked better at 35 (Law and Order) than at 28 (License to Kill). And Tina Fey sure looks better now than she did in her early 20s.

4

Michelle Phillips

5

I was just watching a movie the other day and thought this very thing about an actress… the only problem, is that now I can’t remember who it was?

Ohh… it was Holly Hunter! Definitely a fine wine that has much improved.

Other actresses that I think this applies to, although they are probably out of their thirties- Liz Hurley and Helen Hunt.

6

I agree that Holly Hunter looks great. However, my husband said she’s scary thin.

I think Leo DiCaprio is better looking now than he was 10 years ago.

7

Johnny Depp looks better as he ages.

8

Surely you’re joking! :slight_smile:

She looked much better (and healthier) before she went with the Hollywood emaciated look.

9

I’d recommend caution in assuming that an actor’s appearance in any particular movie or photograph is characteristic of his/her “real” looks. Makeup, lighting, and wardrobe can do a great deal to make someone look better, worse, or even more immature, as I suspect is the case with the OP’s first picture of Beckinsale. Although there’s about 13 years between the two pictures, that’s not to say you couldn’t find a picture of her in 1993 that makes her look a lot better than a current photo.

10

Connelly looked very good in A Beautiful Mind, maybe she doesn’t look as good now. She looked very young in the Rocketeer when she was about 20.

11

Jennifer Connelly’s “emaciated” phase kinda peaked between Mulholland Falls (1996) and A Beautiful Mind (2001). I was first aware of her in 1991 (Career Opportunities, age 21), when she was unparallelledly stunning, and she’s looking terrific again now.

Lea Thompson (b. 1961) sure looked better in Beverly Hillbillies (1993) than in Some Kind of Wonderful (1987).

12

Most men hit their attractive peak in their late 20’s, imo. The first person who popped into my head was Jensen Ackles.

Jensen at 20ish
Jensen at 30ish

Come to think of it, he also qualifies for the “famous people with stupid names” thread.

13

But the man doesn’t age at all! (Well, maybe a little since Jump Street, but after that he had that “special portrait” painted).

14

I don’t find women in their early twenties particularly attractive

15

I think another note of caution is needed here - pictures taken now will be with a “look” that is fashionable now … pictures taken ten years ago have ten-year-old fashions, and will probably automatically look “worse” to a lot of people.

There’s also the effect of extra care being taken as the person gets more famous. The Tina Fey shots upthread are a perfect example … you’re comparing a grainy high school snap to a profesionally styled/lit/posed shot of today - not apples to apples.

I don’t think women tend to change much in underlying looks between 20 and 30. Guys are a bit different - I agree some of the “young” shots of guys in this thread have them looking not fully adult, which means not so good in a guy.

16

Sarah Palin

17

My Google-Fu is weak today, but all the photos I’ve seen of her from college until she joined the SNL performing cast did not look glamorous. Feel free to prove me wrong.

18

…if that’s even possible!

19

Back when she was a young actress, in the mid-80s, I knew folks who thought Diane Lane was very hot…but she just didn’t do it for me.

These days, OTOH, I find her to be very attractive. To me, at least, she’s definitely gotten better-looking as she’s gotten older.

And, I’ll second elfkin477’s nod to Kate Beckinsale…she was cute in Much Ado, but smokin’ in Underworld and Van Helsing.

20

Julia Louis-Dreyfus. She was kind of plain and doughy when she was on Saturday Night Live but she was very hot on Seinfeld.