In Lethal Weapon, Dany Glover’s character has a catchphrase that expresses how old he is for a given situation. Well, while played for laughs on that movie series, it’s quite true for certain action heroes that should’ve retired long ago, at least when it comes to action scenes.

Elderly actors still have a place in the cinematic world, but clearly they can’t do the action scenes they once did; asking them to do it would be irresponsible. There are camera tricks, CGI, and other ways to make them look believable, but all in all, we much preferred if they accepted their age and took other roles.

Harrison Ford

By the time Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny arrived, Harrison Ford was 80 years old. The film openly addressed Indy’s age, but many viewers still struggled to accept an octogenarian performing globe-trotting action heroics.

Robert De Niro

The Irishman used extensive de-aging technology to make Robert De Niro appear decades younger. Unfortunately, one infamous fight scene became a frequent target of criticism because his movements still reflected his real age.

Sylvester Stallone

Sylvester Stallone kept returning as both Rocky Balboa and John Rambo well into his sixties and seventies. While fans admired his dedication, many critics questioned whether the physical demands still suited the aging action icon.

Arnold Schwarzenegger

Arnold Schwarzenegger’s later Terminator appearances leaned heavily into the character’s age. Even so, seeing the former bodybuilding legend engage in large-scale action sequences in his seventies often stretched credibility.

Liam Neeson

Liam Neeson reinvented himself as an action star with Taken at 56. As he continued headlining thrillers into his late sixties and seventies, audiences increasingly joked about the veteran actor still playing unstoppable fighters.

Clint Eastwood

At 91, Clint Eastwood starred in Cry Macho, a film that still required him to handle physical confrontations and dangerous situations. Many reviewers felt the movie pushed the limits of the aging-action-hero formula.

Roger Moore

Roger Moore himself later admitted he felt too old for some of his final James Bond appearances. By A View to a Kill, even fans noticed that 57-year-old Bond looked considerably older than his romantic interests.

Sean Connery

Sean Connery returned as Bond in Never Say Never Again at age 53. His charisma remained intact, but the film often felt like it was asking an aging spy to perform feats designed for a younger man.

Bruce Willis

Before his retirement, Bruce Willis appeared in numerous low-budget action films that relied heavily on his established tough-guy reputation. The productions often seemed designed to minimize the physical demands placed on the aging star.

Steven Seagal

Steven Seagal’s later action movies became notorious online. As the actor aged, productions increasingly relied on seated fight scenes, minimal movement, and creative camera work to avoid showcasing his physical limitations.

Chuck Norris

Chuck Norris remained an action hero far longer than most of his contemporaries. While fans loved seeing him return in projects like The Expendables 2, his advancing age inevitably became part of the conversation.

Mel Gibson

Mel Gibson’s return to action roles in films like Blood Father and Force of Nature leaned heavily on experience and attitude. Still, some viewers found it difficult to buy him as an unstoppable action protagonist.

Jean-Claude Van Damme

Jean-Claude Van Damme continued performing action roles deep into his fifties and sixties. Although still impressively flexible, later films often highlighted the contrast between his legendary athletic past and advancing age.

Dolph Lundgren

Dolph Lundgren remained physically imposing longer than most action stars, but his later appearances in franchises like The Expendables and Creed II inevitably raised questions about how much punishment an aging hero can realistically endure.

John Travolta

John Travolta spent much of the 2000s and 2010s headlining action thrillers despite being well past the age when most actors transition out of the genre. Films like Killing Season and I Am Wrath often asked audiences to believe he was still an elite fighter and pursuer.

Articles that talk about how back in the day, the danger was real for the performers on stage, tend to sound like they miss those days. We don’t. We believe we live in an era where safety needs to come first, and where animals aren’t exploited. It isn’t a perfect world, but we’re trying.

Instead, we are focusing on these images to remember the strange things we thought were fun. Dangerous stunts still happen, but with a much more dedicated medical staff. Animals are still used in entertainment, but with far more laws protecting them. These are the windows to a past we won’t be returning to.

Polar Bear Chorus

Training a bear to do something is one thing, training a whole group of them is quite another. These bears had to balance on balls, look cute, and jump over rings of fire just to earn a meal and go back to their cells.

Basketball On Wheels

Perhaps one of the more quaint auditions to the list, here we have some players of basketball with an additional difficulty spike: balancing on monocycles. It’s hard to imagine any dribbling taking place.

Elephant Parade

While the animals here seem to be treated better than the bears (and better than in Dumbo), these poor elephants must have been scared of being around so many people. And believe me, a scared elephant is one of the most dangerous things in the world.

Balancing Without A Net

Yes, seeing acrobats doing their craft without need of a safety net is impressive, but only because you fear for the poor person’s life. Is it really all that less impressive if you know the artist will survive at the end?

Monowheel Confidense

Riding a monocycle is already hard, but it is harder if you also need to balance someone on top of you. Fortunately, the audiences will be focused on the person on top, since the one below will be too focused to be charismatic.

The General

Moving on to films, The General featured one of the most expensive and dangerous stunts of the silent era when a real locomotive was sent crashing through a burning bridge.

Ben-Hur

Ben-Hur used a massive practical chariot race involving real horses, real collisions, and significant risk to performers and stuntmen.

The Man with the Golden Gun

The Man with the Golden Gun included a record-setting corkscrew car jump performed for real, requiring precise calculations and leaving little room for error.

Police Story

Police Story featured Jackie Chan doing many of his own stunts, suffering burns and injuries during one of cinema’s most famous scenes.

Roar

Roar was filmed with dozens of real lions, tigers, and other big cats. More than 70 cast and crew members reportedly suffered injuries during production.

As actors and performers grow in age, the roles they can play change dramatically. Child actors grow into teen dramas, who later play adults and veterans until only elderly roles are left. But not everyone functions that way, since not all bodies grow in the same manner; some people are eternal children, while others look 40 from before and after they turn that age.

Chalk it up to a receding hairline, a weathered face, or simply an unusually mature screen presence, these actors often found themselves playing authority figures, parents, and grizzled professionals long before their actual age suggested it. Looking back, it’s hard not to wonder whether some of these actors were somehow born looking 40 years old.

Wilford Brimley

Wilford Brimley is the patron saint of this category. He was only 49 when he played a retiree in Cocoon, and generations of moviegoers have joked that he looked 65 for roughly half a century.

Tommy Lee Jones

Even in his younger roles, Tommy Lee Jones carried the weathered face and stern expression of a veteran lawman. Fans often remark that he seemed middle-aged from the very beginning of his film career.

Richard Dreyfuss

Richard Dreyfuss was only 27 when Jaws was released, yet many viewers assume he was at least a decade older. His mature appearance became a frequent topic of discussion among movie fans.

Christopher Lloyd

Christopher Lloyd somehow looked elderly for decades without appearing to age much further. Many viewers remember him as an old man in the Back to the Future era, even though he was much younger than they assumed.

Jack Nicholson

Jack Nicholson had the receding hairline, grin, and world-weary demeanor of a man well into middle age long before he actually got there. Even his early breakout performances projected a surprisingly mature image.

Michael Shannon

Michael Shannon built a career playing authority figures, hardened criminals, and intimidating professionals. Fans frequently joke that he looked 45 at 25 and has barely changed appearance ever since.

Gene Hackman

Gene Hackman rarely looked youthful, even during his earliest major roles. His rugged features and serious screen presence made him seem like a seasoned veteran long before he reached that age.

Walter Brennan

Walter Brennan made a career out of playing grizzled old-timers and elderly sidekicks. Audiences often assumed he was much older than he really was, even during the height of his popularity.

Paul Giamatti

Paul Giamatti has long looked like somebody’s experienced accountant, coach, or neighbor. Fans frequently joke that he arrived in Hollywood already looking like a dependable forty-something character actor.

Jonathan Banks

Jonathan Banks became famous as tough authority figures and hardened criminals, but his weathered appearance had people assuming he was older than he actually was for much of his career.

George C. Scott

George C. Scott possessed a stern, commanding presence that made him seem older than many of his contemporaries. Even in earlier films, he projected the authority of someone decades older.

Abe Vigoda

Abe Vigoda became so associated with elderly characters that many viewers are surprised to learn how long his career lasted. He looked old, played old, and somehow stayed looking old for decades.

Edward Asner

Ed Asner’s balding head, deep voice, and serious demeanor gave him the appearance of a much older man early in his career. As a result, he slid naturally into elder statesman roles.

Donald Sutherland

Even in films from the early 1970s, Donald Sutherland carried himself like a seasoned professional rather than a young leading man. His distinctive look often made audiences assume he was older than reality.

Some actors seem to maintain the face and physicality of youth for longer than other people, letting them play young adults or even teens well into their thirties. Emphasis on some, since there are other actors that simply don’t look the part. Adults act better than teens, but they need to fit the bill.

We’ve gathered here a few actors that played teens for a bit too long, traversing high school halls looking more like teachers than students. Some of them were able to trick us for years, but not forever; at some point, it’s time to pass the torch to the new generations.

Bianca Lawson

Bianca Lawson is the gold standard for this topic. She played high school students in Saved by the Bell: The New Class, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Dawson’s Creek, Pretty Little Liars, and Teen Wolf well into her thirties.

Nicholle Tom

Nicholle Tom was in her twenties for part of her run on The Nanny, yet Maggie Sheffield remained a teenager for much of the series. Her youthful appearance helped extend the illusion longer than most actors could manage.

Stacey Dash

Stacey Dash spent much of the 1990s and early 2000s playing teenagers. She was 28 in Clueless and continued portraying high school-aged characters long after most actors had moved on.

Gabrielle Carteris

Gabrielle Carteris was nearly 30 when she started playing Andrea Zuckerman. She remained a high school student for multiple seasons despite being significantly older than the rest of the teenage cast.

Jason Earles

Jason Earles was almost 30 when Hannah Montana began and continued playing teenager Jackson Stewart throughout the series. He may be one of Disney Channel’s oldest “teen” stars ever.

Michael J. Fox

Michael J. Fox spent much of the 1980s and early 1990s playing characters significantly younger than himself. Between Family Ties and the Back to the Future films, he remained Hollywood’s go-to teenager well into adulthood.

Rachel McAdams

Rachel McAdams wasn’t alone in being older than her character, but she became one of the most famous examples. At 26, she played Regina George so effectively that few questioned it.

Charisma Carpenter

Charisma Carpenter was 27 when she began playing Cordelia Chase on Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Even after graduating the character, she spent years playing someone who had only recently left high school.

Ben McKenzie

Ben McKenzie was 25 when he starred in The O.C., joining a long tradition of twenty-somethings portraying troubled teenagers. The role helped define an entire era of teen television.

Trevor Donovan

Trevor Donovan joined 90210 at age 30 while playing high school student Teddy Montgomery. Few actors have stretched the definition of “teenager” quite so far.

Tom Welling

Tom Welling was 24 when Smallville began, and the series spent years depicting Clark Kent’s adolescence. By later seasons, viewers were watching a man in his thirties play a very recent high school graduate.

James Van Der Beek

James Van Der Beek was 21 when Dawson’s Creek began and spent six seasons playing a high school student and recent graduate. Like many teen drama stars, he stayed younger on screen than in reality.

Chad Michael Murray

Chad Michael Murray was in his early twenties when he started playing Lucas Scott. After previous teen roles in Gilmore Girls and Freaky Friday, he became one of television’s most recognizable perpetual teenagers.

Sara Rue

Sara Rue was 20 when Popular premiered and spent multiple seasons playing a high school student. While not as extreme as some examples, she became part of the late-’90s tradition of adult actors filling teen roles.

Keiko Agena

Keiko Agena played Lane Kim throughout Gilmore Girls, beginning the series at age 27. She spent years portraying a high school student and later a young adult while remaining far older than the character.

What does it mean that something is cursed? Well, in the way the term is used now, it doesn’t mean that something (or someone) is being altered supernaturally, rather, it refers to events or circumstances that are so weird or tragic, they feel like a curse was cast.

No one actually thinks these shows were cursed, but people do agree that parts of their plots, productions or scripts feel that way. These are the TV shows that generate a lot of online discussions, not due to their plots or characters, but due to how they look and feel in the real world.

The Partridge Family

The wholesome family sitcom had a surprisingly troubled legacy. Several cast members faced personal struggles, health problems, financial difficulties, or addiction issues, giving the show’s history a much darker tone than its cheerful premise suggested.

Glee

Few shows have accumulated as many real-life tragedies as Glee. The deaths of Cory Monteith, Mark Salling, and Naya Rivera, combined with numerous controversies involving cast members, fueled its reputation as a cursed production.

8 Simple Rules

The sitcom was forced to radically reinvent itself after the sudden death of star John Ritter during production. Losing its lead actor in the middle of a successful run remains one of television’s most shocking tragedies.

The Young and the Restless

Long-running soap operas naturally experience losses, but The Young and the Restless has seen an unusually large number of cast deaths over the decades, leading some fans to jokingly label it cursed.

Mighty Morphin Power Rangers

The original Power Rangers cast experienced a remarkable number of tragedies, legal troubles, and untimely deaths. Those incidents have contributed to a long-running belief among fans that the franchise is unusually unlucky.

The Curse of Oak Island

A show about misfortune almost seems destined to attract more of it. Over the years, accidents, injuries, equipment failures, and endless setbacks have become part of the series’ identity.

Diff’rent Strokes

The lives of several young stars from Diff’rent Strokes were marked by personal struggles, legal problems, addiction issues, and early deaths. The show’s behind-the-scenes history remains one of television’s saddest.

ALF

The sitcom was successful on screen but notoriously difficult behind the scenes. Cast members frequently described the production as miserable, with technical limitations and stressful working conditions creating constant tension.

The X-Files

Production delays, demanding shooting schedules, injuries, and frequent reports of difficult filming conditions followed The X-Files throughout much of its run. Even the cast has spoken openly about the challenges.

Bonanza

Several cast members died relatively young, including Dan Blocker and Michael Landon. Combined with other tragedies connected to the show’s extended family of actors, Bonanza developed a reputation for bad luck.

The Royle Family

British sitcom The Royle Family became associated with sadness after the deaths of multiple beloved cast members, including Liz Smith, Geoffrey Hughes, and Caroline Aherne, all within a relatively short period.

Deadliest Catch

A show about commercial fishing in dangerous waters almost qualifies automatically. Numerous crew members featured on the series have died over the years, both on and off the job.

The Jerry Springer Show

The show became infamous for the chaos surrounding it. Multiple guests later faced arrests, scandals, or violent incidents that kept adding to its notoriety.

The Simpsons

No major television show has generated more “curse” theories. Fans have spent years pointing to the uncanny number of real-world events seemingly predicted by episodes, giving the series a bizarre reputation online.

TV Tropes are elements of television shows that get repeated constantly, working as plot threads that audiences know and recognize. They might seem repetitive, but it’s a way to suspend our disbelief and accept that this is the reality the show works with. The show must go on.

But as people’s sensitivities change, so too do the things they’ll accept in their shows. Therefore, certain Tropes are no longer usable, since you’ll lose audience, money, and likely get ‘cancelled.’ It should be said, for good reason, since these added sensitivities are here to stay, letting us accept people of all backgrounds and not making jokes at their expense.

The Airport Love Confession

For years, romantic comedies and TV dramas loved scenes where a character raced through an airport to stop a departing lover. Modern airport security makes these grand gestures far less plausible than they once seemed.

The Magical Amnesia Plot

A simple bump on the head used to trigger instant amnesia in countless television shows. Modern audiences are much more aware of traumatic brain injuries, making these convenient memory-loss storylines feel dated.

The Panic-Attack Slap

Classic westerns, noir films, and television dramas often portrayed slapping a distressed woman as a legitimate way to calm her down. The trope was common for decades but has largely disappeared from modern storytelling.

The Very Special Episode

Many sitcoms paused their usual comedy for a “very special episode” about serious topics like drugs, teen pregnancy, or gun violence. By the following week, everything was usually back to normal.

The Clip Show

Clip-show episodes once saved money by reusing footage from earlier seasons. As television shifted toward shorter seasons and serialized storytelling, audiences became far less tolerant of episodes built mostly from old scenes.

Persistence Equals Romance

Older television frequently suggested that relentless pursuit would eventually win someone’s affection. Characters who ignored rejection and kept showing up were often rewarded, a message that tends to be viewed very differently today.

The Gay Panic Joke

Many sitcoms built jokes around male characters being mistaken for gay or appearing too feminine. Shows like Friends used the trope regularly, but changing social attitudes have made it far less common.

Peeping Tom Shenanigans

Teen characters spying on women changing clothes was often treated as harmless comedy. What was once framed as a rite of passage is now far more likely to be recognized as invasive behavior.

Domestic Violence as a Punchline

Television once featured casual jokes about spouses hitting one another, usually for comedic effect. Modern audiences are generally less accepting of treating domestic abuse as a harmless source of laughs.

Cartoon Suicide Gags

Older cartoons frequently used exaggerated suicide jokes to show despair. Characters might dramatically threaten themselves after a setback, a style of humor that has largely vanished from contemporary family entertainment.

The Teacher-Student Romance

Television once portrayed relationships between teachers and students as forbidden but exciting romances. Today, such storylines are far more likely to emphasize the ethical and legal problems involved.

The Lovable Town Drunk

Characters like Otis from The Andy Griffith Show turned public intoxication into a recurring joke. Modern television is generally less likely to treat alcoholism as a charming personality trait.

The Sitcom Dating Pest

Many sitcoms featured characters whose entire personality revolved around relentlessly pursuing women. Figures like Fez or early Howard Wolowitz were common archetypes, but audiences have grown less receptive to that behavior.

Smoking Everywhere

Characters once smoked almost anywhere without comment, from airplanes to offices and even around children. Modern restrictions and public health awareness have made these scenes feel like relics of another era.

The Permanently Unlocked Door

Television characters in New York or Los Angeles routinely left their front doors unlocked, allowing friends to wander in unannounced. Modern viewers often find the practice far less believable than earlier audiences did.

Actors often aren’t the same age as their characters, something mostly seen when adults play teenagers. But if you take into account their real ages, it is a bit wild when you consider the age differences between certain on-screen couples. Granted, they often aren’t real couples, but it feels wild all the same.

Some might say that there is no age for love, and for starters, that’s a dangerous statement in a general sense. But with consenting adults, age gaps of 15 or 20 years mean a world of life experience that one side has over the other. These are the wildest age gaps we could fand in classic movies.

Casablanca

Humphrey Bogart was 44 while Ingrid Bergman was 27 during the production of Casablanca. Their chemistry is legendary, but the 17-year age gap is much larger than many viewers realize when revisiting the classic romance.

To Have and Have Not

In To Have and Have Not, Humphrey Bogart was 44 and Lauren Bacall was just 19. Their 25-year age gap raised eyebrows even then, though the pair famously fell in love and later married.

Charade

Cary Grant was 59 when he starred opposite 33-year-old Audrey Hepburn in Charade. Despite a 26-year difference, their chemistry helped make the film one of the most beloved romantic thrillers ever made.

North by Northwest

In North by Northwest, Cary Grant was 54 while Eva Marie Saint was 34. The 20-year gap is often overlooked because both performers brought so much charm and confidence to their roles.

The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance

James Stewart was 50 when he appeared opposite 22-year-old Vera Miles in The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance. The nearly three-decade difference is striking when viewed through modern eyes.

McLintock!

John Wayne was 56 when McLintock! was released, while Maureen O’Hara was 43. The 13-year gap is smaller than some others on this list, but it paired two classic stars whose screen chemistry often made audiences overlook their age difference.

Sabrina

In Sabrina, Humphrey Bogart was 54 while Audrey Hepburn was 24. The 30-year age difference became a frequent topic among critics, especially since the film revolves around a romantic relationship.

Never Say Never Again

Sean Connery was 53 when he starred opposite 24-year-old Kim Basinger in Never Say Never Again. The unofficial Bond film featured a 29-year gap between its romantic leads.

But Not for Me

Clark Gable was 59 while Carroll Baker was 29 in But Not for Me. The 30-year age difference reflected a common Hollywood trend of pairing aging male stars with much younger women.

Love in the Afternoon

Gary Cooper was 59 when he starred opposite 27-year-old Audrey Hepburn in Love in the Afternoon. Even Hepburn later admitted the 32-year age gap made the romance difficult to fully sell.

Funny Face

In Funny Face, Fred Astaire was 58 and Audrey Hepburn was 28. The musical remains beloved, but its 30-year age gap is one of the first things many modern viewers notice.

The Searchers

John Wayne was 46 while Natalie Wood was only 16 in The Searchers. Although the film’s romance is limited, the attempted pairing remains one of the more uncomfortable age differences in a classic western.

Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner

Spencer Tracy was 67 when he starred opposite 39-year-old Katharine Hepburn in Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner. Their 28-year age difference was overshadowed by the film’s larger social themes.

Man’s Favorite Sport?

Rock Hudson was 41 while Paula Prentiss was 25 in Man’s Favorite Sport? The 16-year gap was hardly unusual by Hollywood standards, though it stands out more today.

Fedora

William Holden was 53 when he starred opposite 22-year-old Marthe Keller in Fedora. The 31-year difference fit a long-running pattern in classic Hollywood casting that audiences largely accepted at the time.

The way movies are made, characters running don’t always look right. There are countless reasons for this, and it’s usually not the actors fault. After all, you shouldn’t outrun the camera man, you need to remain in the frame, and a running scene is rarely done in a single shot.

This is why Tom Cruise and his Mission Impossible movies are so praised in the running department: it’s not just his individual skill (which we can’t deny), it’s also how the scene is filmed and edited. However, it’s still fun to point out silly ways of running, so here are some actors known for doing just that.

Keanu Reeves

Keanu Reeves is famous for handling action scenes and firearms training with impressive skill, but some viewers have long joked about his running form. Clips from films like Point Break and John Wick regularly spark online discussion.

Liam Neeson

Liam Neeson’s late-career action movies turned him into an unlikely action hero. While audiences embraced the tough-guy persona, his sprinting scenes have often been singled out by fans for looking slightly awkward.

Steven Seagal

Steven Seagal’s running has become something of an internet legend. As his action career progressed, many viewers noticed that chase scenes often seemed carefully staged to minimize how much actual running he did.

Nicolas Cage

Nicolas Cage commits completely to every performance, including action roles. Unfortunately for him, that dedication has also produced several memorable running scenes that audiences frequently cite when discussing unusual on-screen sprinting styles.

Maggie Grace

Maggie Grace’s action scenes in the Taken films occasionally drew attention for her distinctive running form. Online discussions have repeatedly highlighted her sprinting sequences as unintentionally distracting moments in otherwise tense scenes.

Ezra Miller

Ezra Miller’s run as Barry Allen in Justice League and The Flash generated countless memes. The exaggerated arm movements and unusual posture became one of the most discussed aspects of the character’s super-speed depiction.

Robert Patrick

Robert Patrick’s run in Terminator 2: Judgment Day is memorable for a different reason. To portray the relentless T-1000, he trained extensively and developed an eerily efficient sprint that many viewers found unsettling.

Leonardo DiCaprio

Leonardo DiCaprio has delivered countless acclaimed performances, but internet users have occasionally poked fun at the way he runs in certain films. His sprinting scenes often appear in compilations of unusual celebrity running styles.

Zendaya

Zendaya’s running scenes have occasionally become a topic of online conversation, particularly among fans who noticed an unconventional sprinting style. The discussions are usually playful, but the clips tend to spread quickly.

Danny Glover

Danny Glover’s Roger Murtaugh spent much of the Lethal Weapon series reminding everyone he was getting too old for this. His increasingly weary action scenes sometimes made his running look appropriately exhausted.

Roger Moore

Roger Moore’s James Bond was known for charm more than athleticism. Producers reportedly used doubles for some running scenes, and fans have long noticed that Bond’s sprinting suddenly looks very different from shot to shot.

Jackie Chan

Jackie Chan is one of cinema’s greatest physical performers, but his running style is unmistakable. His frantic, high-energy sprints became part of his screen persona and often added extra comedy to action sequences.

Dylan O’Brien

Dylan O’Brien spent much of The Maze Runner franchise running from danger, which made audiences especially familiar with his sprinting style. Fans frequently joke that no actor has logged more on-screen miles.

Ben Stiller

Ben Stiller’s comedic roles often lean into physical awkwardness, and his running scenes are no exception. Films like Along Came Polly and Starsky & Hutch feature deliberately goofy sprints that audiences still remember.

Chris Evans

Even Captain America isn’t immune from internet scrutiny. Despite being convincingly athletic, Chris Evans has occasionally appeared in online discussions where fans debate whether his running style looks surprisingly unusual for a superhero.

Child stars often surprise us with their performances, not only for the quality of them, but for how young they were at the time. We are so used to seeing 30 year olds playing teens that, when an actual teen shows up on stage, we have a hard time believing it.

The more time passes, the more we let our perception get the best of us. These stars did incredible work as children and teens in the 90s, but we tend to think they were older than reality. These are the most shockingly young actors at the time of their performances.

Natalie Portman

Natalie Portman was only 12 when filming Léon: The Professional and 13 when the movie was released. Given the emotional complexity of her performance as Mathilda, many viewers assumed she was several years older than she actually was.

Kirsten Dunst

Kirsten Dunst was just 11 years old during the production of Interview with the Vampire. Sharing scenes with stars like Tom Cruise and Brad Pitt made her mature performance seem far beyond her age.

Anna Paquin

Anna Paquin was only 11 when she filmed The Piano, a role that earned her an Academy Award. It’s still surprising to remember that one of the youngest Oscar winners ever was barely in middle school.

Edward Furlong

Edward Furlong was around 13 when he starred alongside Arnold Schwarzenegger in Terminator 2: Judgment Day. His confidence and screen presence made many audiences forget just how young he really was.

Macaulay Culkin

Macaulay Culkin became one of the biggest stars of the decade through Home Alone, but he was only 10 years old when the film was released. Carrying an entire blockbuster at that age remains remarkable.

Christina Ricci

Christina Ricci was just 10 during the filming of The Addams Family. Her deadpan portrayal of Wednesday Addams was so iconic that many viewers remember the character as older than she actually was.

Claire Danes

Claire Danes was only 16 when she played Juliet in Romeo + Juliet. Acting opposite a slightly older Leonardo DiCaprio, she brought a level of maturity that made audiences overlook her age.

Leonardo DiCaprio

Leonardo DiCaprio himself was only 21 when Romeo + Juliet hit theaters. Thanks to his leading-man confidence, many people remember him as being much older during his early stardom.

Joseph Gordon-Levitt

Joseph Gordon-Levitt was only 15 when 3rd Rock from the Sun debuted. Playing the most sensible member of an alien family often made him seem older than the teenager he actually was.

Jodie Foster

Jodie Foster may have become famous in the 1970s, but she was only 29 when she starred in Contact in 1997. Many viewers assumed she was already a veteran actress in her late thirties.

Alicia Silverstone

Alicia Silverstone was just 18 during the production of Clueless. Her portrayal of Cher feels so effortlessly confident that many fans remember her as being several years older.

Elijah Wood

Elijah Wood was only 18 when The Faculty was released. Having already built a lengthy film résumé as a child actor gave him the presence of someone much older.

Thora Birch

Thora Birch was just 16 when she appeared in American Beauty. Considering the film’s mature themes and her central role in the story, many viewers assumed she was already an adult.

Jonathan Taylor Thomas

Jonathan Taylor Thomas was only 13 when he voiced young Simba in The Lion King. His performance became so ingrained in pop culture that it’s easy to forget how young he was.

Haley Joel Osment

Haley Joel Osment was just 11 during the filming of The Sixth Sense. Delivering one of the most acclaimed child performances of the decade, he carried scenes with veteran actors while still in elementary school.

Gaming is now everywhere, particularly due to the fact that we all have smartphones. Between those devices, home computers, and dedicated consoles, we can game in a myriad of ways. And it’s not just accessibility: gaming has become much more ‘mainstream,’ to the point that a capital-G Gamer refers to someone that lives and breathes games, not just plays them.

But there was a time where this wasn’t the case, a time where the hobby was just starting. Home consoles weren’t as common as before, and computers were far more related to work than to leisure. These few pictures showcase a simpler time, where the word gamer wasn’t even being used.

The Novelty

It wasn’t all that weird to see adults play video games back then, particularly if they were tech enthusiasts. Even though only one of them is playing, you can see both of them marvel at being able to interact with something on the screen.

Pong

Like many technological developments, the first recognized video game came about during military tech testing. Legend says it was created by a submarine radar technician, for both fun and to test the software.

Couch Gaming

Even back then, couch gaming was definitely a thing. It involved using the family TV to play games until dinner was ready, or until someone wanted to watch the news on the device.

Publicity

While gaming was a new medium, it was a fast growing one. Arcades were all the rage, and they quickly appeared in magazines and other publicity outlets being sold to potential buyers.

Pelé Soccer

Many sports stars participated with Atari in showcasing sports games, with Edson Arantes do Nascimento, also known as Pelé, having a video game named after him. Winning the Soccer World Cup probably had something to do with it.

Pinball Is Also Gaming

Nowadays, considering the humble pinball machine as part of gaming culture might seem quaint, but back then, you’d see a pinball machine as much as an arcade cabinet, if not more.

Competitive Gaming

Yes, competitive gaming is as old as gaming itself. While some adults were into gaming back then, the competitions were held between kids and teens; the ones with the most free time to perfect their gaming technique.

The Old Guard

As the 70s rolled around, more and more games were added to the arcades, each with a more modernized cabinet look. Even back then, Pong felt like the grandad of the other cabinets due to its more subdued design.

Christmas Spirit

Due to the decorations in the background, we can say that this picture takes place sometime around Christmas. We can see the start of kids no longer running around, but glued to a screen playing games all day.

Publicity, Home Edition

Selling things for corporate conglomerates and selling things for home use are different monsters. Here, we can see the different actors, poses and even angle of the device shown to sell it, even though we are still talking about Pong.

The Perfect Gift

Few things make a child happier than getting that gaming console they were nagging you about for days, weeks or even months. It isn’t just a toy, it’s a device that lets them embark on nearly endless adventures.

In The Way

While kids certainly enjoyed games a lot, this one is a bit too young to have the motor abilities to use a joystick. Clearly the adults were playing, needing to stop since their toddler decided to explore the TV.

The Atari 2600, Today

All of the previous pictures were a window of the 70s, mixing nostalgia with a bit of a history lesson. This is the Atari console as a fan keeps it today, quite dusty, but still in perfect working order.

Handheld Football

Gaming on the go started with the rest of the gaming innovations in the 70s, but as you can see, the screen size is quite limited. It’s incredible to think about how far we’ve come today.

Telstar Arcade

While having a home console meant not having to leave the house, the arcades still had the benefit of having fun ‘peripherals’ like steering wheels and guns. The Teslar Arcade aimed to bring that to user’s homes, to not much success.