# Most unconvincing portrayal of a teenager in movies/films **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [October 28, 2009, 3:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-unconvincing-portrayal-of-a-teenager-in-movies-films/515449 "2009-10-28T15:21:30Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![cormac262](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f14d63/32.png) [@cormac262](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cormac262)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2009, 10:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-unconvincing-portrayal-of-a-teenager-in-movies-films/515449/21 "2009-10-28T22:49:17Z")
How about Crispin Glover in “Back to the Future” ? Marty’s father back in high school looked older than most of the teachers ! Of the list in the OP, I vote for Stockard Channing. I always thought she looked way too old for a high schooler. ---
**Author:** ![Magiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4491bb/32.png) [@Magiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Magiver)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2009, 10:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-unconvincing-portrayal-of-a-teenager-in-movies-films/515449/22 "2009-10-28T22:51:13Z")
> [@Dorothea\_Book](#): > > But wasn’t that an accurate portrayal of permanently arrested mental age? Thank you. ---
**Author:** ![Chessic\_Sense](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/7c8e57/32.png) [@Chessic\_Sense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chessic_Sense)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2009, 10:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-unconvincing-portrayal-of-a-teenager-in-movies-films/515449/23 "2009-10-28T22:56:39Z")
I’m voting for [this “17 year-old”](http://caffeine-headache.net/blog3/bradpittold_2.jpg). He looks, like, 63! ---
**Author:** ![jackdavinci](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackdavinci/32/3259_2.png) [@jackdavinci](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jackdavinci)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2009, 7:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-unconvincing-portrayal-of-a-teenager-in-movies-films/515449/24 "2009-10-30T07:16:23Z")
As a pre-college bloke I bought every amovie teen as a teen because I didn’t know better. Then I got to college and I was like wow! everyone looks so young! Weird… Nowadays _every_ actor looks too old, and instead I’m surprised when an actor actually looks young enough to be their character’s age. ---
**Author:** ![Justin\_Bailey](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/justin_bailey/32/8792_2.png) [@Justin\_Bailey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Justin_Bailey)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2009, 7:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-unconvincing-portrayal-of-a-teenager-in-movies-films/515449/25 "2009-10-30T07:23:03Z")
> [@JohnT](#): > > My wife and I were watching _Halloween_ when the following conversation ensued: > > Me: “Don’t you think that Jamie Lee Curtis is one of the worst ‘teenagers’ you’ve ever seen? She looks 26! And there’s no way she’s a virgin - her eyes are too ‘knowing’.” > Wife: “Eh, I buy it. Now if you want a bad teenager, look no further than _Grease_ - John Travolta looks in his early 20’s, and Olivia Newton John and Stockard Channing look as if they’re pushing 30.” Jamie Lee Curtis was 19 during the filming of Halloween, so she was a real, live teenager. And while I agree with you that she didn’t look like the stereotypical “virgin loser” movies usually like to show, I’m not sure she looked “knowing”, I think it was just the 70s. ---
**Author:** ![Speak\_to\_me\_Maddie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/58956e/32.png) [@Speak\_to\_me\_Maddie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Speak_to_me_Maddie)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2009, 1:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-unconvincing-portrayal-of-a-teenager-in-movies-films/515449/26 "2009-10-30T13:56:01Z")
> [@Wendell\_Wagner](#): > > Everybody in _Grease_ was too old for their part. The following ages are quoted from a post made to the SDMB a few years ago: > > John Travolta: 24 > Olivia Newton John: 30 > Stockard Channing: 34 > Jeff Conaway: 28 > Barry Pearl: 28 > Michael Tucci: 32 > Kelly Ward: 22 > Didi Conn: 27 > Jamie Donnelly: 31 > Annette Charles: 30 I don’t remember when or where I read this, but IIRC Kleiser claims that the decision to use adults for the lead roles in **Grease** was deliberate. He said he wanted to emphasize the difference in maturity between the seniors at Rydell and the rest of the student body who were played by actual high school age extras. He said it highlights the theme of striving for adulthood/coolness or something. Then again it could just be his way of responding to criticism. ---
**Author:** ![alice\_in\_wonderland](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alice_in_wonderland/32/176_2.png) [@alice\_in\_wonderland](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/alice_in_wonderland)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2009, 2:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-unconvincing-portrayal-of-a-teenager-in-movies-films/515449/27 "2009-10-30T14:02:18Z")
I choose ‘Other.’ Lindsay Lohan in _I know who killed me_ looks about 40 even though she was actually an appropriate age for her character when the film was made. Seeing her beside her school ‘peers’ was cringe-worthy because she looked so old and used up. ---
**Author:** ![lieu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c2a13f/32.png) [@lieu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lieu)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2009, 2:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-unconvincing-portrayal-of-a-teenager-in-movies-films/515449/28 "2009-10-30T14:24:19Z")
James Dean was what, 24 when he did **Rebel Without a Cause**? He of course did a masterful job of capturing the angst but regardless looked years beyond a teenager. ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2009, 2:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-unconvincing-portrayal-of-a-teenager-in-movies-films/515449/29 "2009-10-30T14:37:53Z")
I could never buy into Michael J. Fox in the \*Back to the Future \*movies. He just doesn’t seem like a teenager. Way to responsible, sensible and acts more adult than he should. ---
**Author:** ![gwendee](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/35a633/32.png) [@gwendee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gwendee)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2009, 4:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-unconvincing-portrayal-of-a-teenager-in-movies-films/515449/30 "2009-10-30T16:12:26Z")
> [@Dorothea\_Book](#): > > I can’t remember if anyone yet has mentioned Emma Thompson as Elinor Dashwood in the film version of _Sense and Sensibility_. Personally I really like the movie alot and like Thompson’s performance. But it’s true that it leaves viewers with the impression that Elinor is around 30 when in the novel she is 18 or 19 IIRC. I thought of this, too. I’ve watched the DVD with commentary and Emma T talks about Ang Lee asking her to do particular scenes again “only try and be more ‘19’ this time”. Since her age is never explicitly given in the film and having her seem older than she really is fits with the degree of responsibility Elinor takes upon herself I can suspend a lot for this one. ---
**Author:** ![AncientHumanoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ancienthumanoid/32/278_2.png) [@AncientHumanoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AncientHumanoid)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2009, 4:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-unconvincing-portrayal-of-a-teenager-in-movies-films/515449/31 "2009-10-30T16:15:42Z")
Don’t forget Steve McQueen in _The Blob_ ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [October 31, 2009, 9:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-unconvincing-portrayal-of-a-teenager-in-movies-films/515449/32 "2009-10-31T09:04:03Z")
When I first saw _Grease_, I only saw parts of it (mostly the musical parts, I think). I never realized the students were supposed to be in high school. And when I did figure that out, I thought it was supposed to have intentionally cast older people, who are reenacting their childhood years. Man, did they look old. (I chose Travolta, as I still think he looked older than John, and she pretty much looks her age. ---
**Author:** ![MadTheSwine](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/9fc29f/32.png) [@MadTheSwine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MadTheSwine)\ **Post date:** [October 31, 2009, 2:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-unconvincing-portrayal-of-a-teenager-in-movies-films/515449/33 "2009-10-31T14:27:39Z")
> [@JohnT](#): > > Damn. Winner in post #2. Might as well close this thread. 😉 Lets not. > [@Wendell\_Wagner](#): > > Everybody in _Grease_ was too old for their part. The following ages are quoted from a post made to the SDMB a few years ago: > > John Travolta: 24 > Olivia Newton John: 30 > Stockard Channing: 34 > Jeff Conaway: 28 > Barry Pearl: 28 > Michael Tucci: 32 > Kelly Ward: 22 > Didi Conn: 27 > Jamie Donnelly: 31 > Annette Charles: 30 Dinah Manhoff,Lorenzo Lamas both 19 ---
**Author:** ![Green\_Bean](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/green_bean/32/1760_2.png) [@Green\_Bean](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Green_Bean)\ **Post date:** [October 31, 2009, 3:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-unconvincing-portrayal-of-a-teenager-in-movies-films/515449/34 "2009-10-31T15:12:31Z")
I think that Stockard Channing gets singled out here because while all the main actors looked too old to be high schoolers, they all looked more or less like they were in one “age category.” Stockard Channing looked like she was older than that age category. ---
**Author:** ![dangermom](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e274bd/32.png) [@dangermom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dangermom)\ **Post date:** [October 31, 2009, 4:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-unconvincing-portrayal-of-a-teenager-in-movies-films/515449/35 "2009-10-31T16:20:37Z")
> [@Dorothea\_Book](#): > > I can’t remember if anyone yet has mentioned Emma Thompson as Elinor Dashwood in the film version of _Sense and Sensibility_. Personally I really like the movie alot and like Thompson’s performance. But it’s true that it leaves viewers with the impression that Elinor is around 30 when in the novel she is 18 or 19 IIRC. Yeah, I re-watched that recently and she looks to be about 40, even in movie-land it gives the impression of around 30. And in the book it says she’s 19. (It also gives the impression that Mrs. Dashwood gave birth to 3 children, each 10 years apart.) ---
**Author:** ![Markxxx](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/5daacb/32.png) [@Markxxx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Markxxx)\ **Post date:** [October 31, 2009, 10:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-unconvincing-portrayal-of-a-teenager-in-movies-films/515449/36 "2009-10-31T22:36:51Z")
I didn’t mind the cast of “Grease” 'cause everyone was so old they kind of evened themselves out. It would’ve been much worse had all the main actors been around 20 and ON-J was the only one 30 years old. But since they were all a little “long in the tooth,” that it kind of didn’t matter. Add to that the actors they did choose were excellent. It’s hard to see anyone else playing the parts. And certainly without Olivia Newton-John’s involvment you would’ve lost the songs “Hoplessly Devoted To You,” and “You’re The One That I Want” which were written by ON-J’s producer John Farrar. If you can remember to the 50s you had Richard Crenna playing Walter Denton was in his late 20s early 30s during the run of “Our Miss Brooks.” Of course that started in radio where it didn’t matter what age an actor was. In fact on “The Great Gildersleve” the nephew was played by an old man and had to be replaced with an actual kid for the movie version. ---
**Author:** ![elfkin477](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/a9a28c/32.png) [@elfkin477](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elfkin477)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2009, 6:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-unconvincing-portrayal-of-a-teenager-in-movies-films/515449/37 "2009-11-03T18:53:42Z")
> [@AuntiePam](#): > > I voted for Stockard Channing. I was okay with the others. > > Another actor too old for the role he played was William Holden in _Picnic_. I know he wasn’t supposed to be a teenager – maybe mid to late 20’s. But he was 37 and he looked even older. He could have been Kim Novak’s dad. I doubt if he looked like a teenager when he was one – some actors are like that. That’s the sort of disconnect I get from **The Graduate**. Dustin Hoffman **looked** like a 30-year-old he was which, for me, spoiled much of the shock of him being hit on by an older woman. It would have been more startling if a. the two leads were farther apart in age, because just shy of six years isn’t a big deal b. the boy they picked to play a 22-year-old actually was 22 or the older woman was actually played by someone middle-aged at the time, not 36. ---
**Author:** ![Rilchiam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/2bfe46/32.png) [@Rilchiam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rilchiam)\ **Post date:** [November 14, 2009, 4:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-unconvincing-portrayal-of-a-teenager-in-movies-films/515449/38 "2009-11-14T04:10:33Z")
I don’t expect many people to remember **Endless Love** , and the film was a trainwreck for many reasons, but one of those reasons was Martin Hewitt playing the 17y/o main character. Hewitt was 23, but his teenage ship had sailed far out onto the open sea. Brooke Shields was 16, her character was 15, same difference really, and watching their love scenes makes one want to call Chris Hansen to come catch a predator. ---
**Author:** ![Lamia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/8e7dd6/32.png) [@Lamia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lamia)\ **Post date:** [November 14, 2009, 5:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-unconvincing-portrayal-of-a-teenager-in-movies-films/515449/39 "2009-11-14T17:40:09Z")
> [@Dorothea\_Book](#): > > I can’t remember if anyone yet has mentioned Emma Thompson as Elinor Dashwood in the film version of _Sense and Sensibility_. Personally I really like the movie alot and like Thompson’s performance. But it’s true that it leaves viewers with the impression that Elinor is around 30 when in the novel she is 18 or 19 IIRC. I’m not sure this counts, because IIRC they don’t mention Elinor’s age in the movie. If the character is older in the movie that’s just a difference between the movie and the book, not a case of an actress trying (and failing) to act like a girl half her age. I think _Sense and Sensibility_ works pretty well with a bigger age gap between Elinor and Marianne, and with Elinor on the verge of being an “old maid”. For period pieces it also makes sense to age the female characters a bit, just because it’s now unusual, even unacceptable, for girls in their teens to be worried about finding a husband. It’s going to work better for the audience if the women are a bit older, even if this isn’t historically accurate. ---
**Author:** ![Magicicada](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c67d28/32.png) [@Magicicada](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Magicicada)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2009, 2:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-unconvincing-portrayal-of-a-teenager-in-movies-films/515449/40 "2009-11-22T02:33:12Z")
Just occurred to me: How old was the character Yentl supposed to be? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-unconvincing-portrayal-of-a-teenager-in-movies-films/515449.md?page=1)