Iconic Movie Roles By Age

stars-rolesAt the end of last year I was watching the 1984 Dudley Moore movie Unfaithfully Yours.  Whenever I finish watching a movie I head straight to IMDb to get trivia and facts about the movie. One of the pieces of information I picked up at IMDb was the fact that when I watched the movie I was the same age (47) that Dudley Moore was when he made the movie.  For some reason this really fascinated me.

Over the last 6 months I have been debating if a movie page that looks at the ages of the stars when they made their iconic movies would be interesting to anybody besides me.  About a month ago I decided to do this page….but ran into a huge problem almost right away.  My movie database, which my lovely wife designed, did not include the birthdays of the actors and actresses that were in the database.  Luckily my talented and lovely wife was able to modify the database and now it provides the ages of actors when their movies were released in theaters.

This page lists 4 performances for each age from 13 to 80.  In some cases….trying to pick 4 movie performances for an age was difficult as there were many excellent possible candidates.  On the other hand, some ages had very few candidates (I guess I am trying to explain why Michael Douglas in Last Vegas made the page).  Finally I must admit…..I have actually found this page a little disturbing.  Since I first thought about doing this page, I have turned 48.  That now means I am older than when Marlon Brando made The Godfather.  I am older than Robert Shaw when he played Quint in Jaws. I am the same age as John Wayne when he made The Searchers.  I almost the same age as Shirley MacLaine when she made Terms of Endearment.  I am older than those old guys in the movies….how the hell did that happen?  So here is a warning for you….although I think this is a fun page….it might get your mind thinking about the your own mortality….I know it did when I was researching and writing this page.

Christian Bale was 13 when 1987's Empire of the Sun was released.
Christian Bale was 13 when 1987’s Empire of the Sun was released.

Iconic Movie Roles By Age – Actors In Their Teens

  • Age Column = Age of performer when movie was released in theaters.
  • Actor/Movie Columns = Name of Actor and the movie they starred in.
A NumberAGE of Actor At ReleaseActor/Movie - GoldActor/Movie - SilverActor/Movie - Bronze
9Tatum O'Neal - Paper Moon (1973)Shirley Temple - Little Miss Broadway (1938)Shirley Temple - Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm (1938)
10Brandon De Wilde - Shane (1953)Dean Stockwell - Anchors Aweigh (1945)Elizabeth Taylor - Lassie Come Home (1943)
11Haley Joel Osment - The Sixth Sense (1999)Anna Paquin - The Piano (1993)Ivan Jandl - The Search (1948)
12Elizabeth Taylor - National Velvet (1944)Bonita Granville - These Three (1936)Tatum O'Neal - Bad News Bears (1975)
13Jodie Foster - Taxi Driver (1976)Scarlett Johansson - The Horse Whisperer (1998)Christian Bale - Empire of the Sun (1987)
14Linda Blair - The Exorcist (1973)Hailee Steinfeld - True Grit (2010)Elizabeth Taylor - Life with Father (1947)
15Patty Duke - The Miracle Worker (1962)Shirley Temple - Since You Went Away (1944)Judy Garland - Love Finds Andy Hardy (1938)
16Ann Blyth - Mildred Pierce (1945)Sal Mineo - Rebel without a Cause (1955)Mickey Rooney - Captains Courageous (1937)
17Natalie Wood - Rebel without a Cause (1955)Judy Garland - The Wizard of Oz (1939)Mickey Rooney - Boys Town (1937)
18Angela Lansbury - Gaslight (1944)Diane Varsi - Peyton Place (1957)Keira Knightley - P.O.T.C: The Curse of the Black Pearl (2003)
19Ron Howard - American Graffiti (1973)Anne Shirley - Stella Dallas (1937)Elizabeth Taylor - A Place In The Sun (1947)
19Leonardo DiCaprio in What's Eating Gilbert Grape (1993)Jennifer Lawrence in Winter's BoneOlivia de Havilland in Captain Blood (1935)
Eddie Murphy was 20 when 48 HRs (1982) was released.
Eddie Murphy was 20 when 48 HRs (1982) was released.

Iconic Movie Roles By Age – Actors In Their Twenties

  • Age Column = Age of performer when movie was released in theaters.
  • Actor/Movie Columns = Name of Actor and the movie they starred in.
AGE Actor/MovieActor/MovieActor/MovieActor/Movie
20Timothy Hutton in Ordinary People (1980)Johnny Depp in Nighmare on Elm Street (1984)Olivia de Havilland in The Charge of the Light Brigade (1936)William Holden in The Golden Boy (1939)
21Charlie Sheen in Platoon (1986)Eddie Murphy in 48 HRS. (1982)Jeff Bridges in The Last Picture Show (1971)Cameron Diaz in The Mask (1994)
22Kate Winslet in Titanic (1997)Julia Roberts in Pretty Woman (1990)Emma Stone in The Help (2011)Grace Kelly in High Noon (1952)
23John Travolta in Saturday Night Fever (1977)Audrey Hepburn in Roman Holiday (1953)Anne Hathaway in The Devil Wears Prada (2006)Tom Cruise in Top Gun (1986)
24James Dean in Rebel without a Cause (1955)Ginger Rogers in Top Hat (1935)Anna Kendrick in Up in the Air (2009)Orlando Bloom in L.O.R. Fellowship of the Ring (2001)
25Bette Davis in Of Human Bondage (1934)Orson Welles in Citizen Kane (1941)Shirley MacLaine in The Apartment (1960)Liza Minnelli in Cabaret (1972)
26Vivien Leigh in Gone With The Wind (1939)Greta Garbo in Grand Hotel (1932)Faye Dunaway in Bonnie and Clyde (1967)Barbra Streisand in Funny Girl (1968)
27Ingrid Bergman in Casablanca (1942)Meg Ryan in When Harry Met Sally... (1989)Robert Mitchum in Story of G. I. Joe (1945)Marlon Brando in A Streetcar Named Desire (1951)
28Julie Andrews in Mary Poppins (1964)Errol Flynn in The Adventures of Robin Hood (1938)Jodie Foster in The Silence of the Lambs (1991)Anthony Perkins in Psycho (1960)
29Heath Ledger in The Dark Knight (2008)Sigourney Weaver in Alien (1979)Julie Andrews in The Sound of Music (1965)Sandra Bullock in Speed (1994)
 
Marilyn Monroe was 32 when 1959's Some Like It Hot was released.
Marilyn Monroe was 32 when 1959’s Some Like It Hot was released.

Iconic Movie Roles By Age – Actors In Their Thirties

  • Age Column = Age of performer when movie was released in theaters.
  • Actor/Movie Columns = Name of Actor and the movie they starred in.
AGE Actor/MovieActor/MovieActor/MovieActor/Movie
30Peter O'Toole in Lawrence of Arabia (1962)Sylvester Stallone in Rocky (1976)Meryl Streep in Kramer vs. Kramer (1979)Dustin Hoffman in The Graduate (1967)
31Robert DeNiro in The Godfather: Part II (1974)Tom Hanks in Big (1988)Jennifer Connelly in A Beautiful Mind (2001)Hugh Jackman in X-Men (2000)
32Marilyn Monroe in Some Like It Hot (1959)James Stewart in The Philadelphia Story (1940)Montgomery Clift in From Here to Eternity (1953)Sean Connery in Dr. No (1962)
33Robert Redford in Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969)Bruce Willis in Die Hard (1988)Hugh Grant in Four Weddings and a Funeral (1994)Bill Murray in Ghostbusters (1984)
34Harrison Ford in Star Wars (1977)Steve Martin in The Jerk (1979)Keanu Reeves in The Matrix (1999)Clark Gable in Mutiny on the Bounty (1935)
35Doris Day in Pillow Talk (1959)Cary Grant in His Girl Friday (1940)Kevin Costner in Dances with Wolves (1990)Chris Pratt in Guardians of the Galaxy (2014)
36Charlton Heston in Ben-Hur (1959)Russell Crowe in Gladiator (2000)Paul Newman in The Hustler (1961)Robin Williams in Good Morning Vietnam (1987)
37Jack Nicholson in Chinatown (1974)Barbara Stanwyck in Double Indemnity (1944)Vivien Leigh in A Streetcar Named Desire (1951)Frank Sinatra in From Here to Eternity (1953)
38Angelina Jolie in Maleficent (2014)Steve McQueen in Bullitt (1968)Kirk Douglas in 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea (1954)Harrison Ford in Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981)
39Mel Gibson in Braveheart (1995)Bradley Cooper in American Sniper (2014)Gene Kelly in Singin' In The Rain (1952)Joan Crawford in Mildred Pierce (1945)
Humphrey Bogart was 42 when 1942's Casablanca was released.
Humphrey Bogart was 42 when 1942’s Casablanca was released.

Iconic Movie Roles By Age – Actors In Their Forties

  • Age Column = Age of performer when movie was released in theaters.
  • Actor/Movie Columns = Name of Actor and the movie they starred in.
AGE Actor/MovieActor/MovieActor/MovieActor/Movie
40Ray Milland in The Lost Weekend (1945)Alan Ladd in Shane (1953)Laurence Olivier in Hamlet (1948)Sidney Poitier in In the Heat of the Night (1967)
41Gene Hackman in The French Connection (1971)Bing Crosby in Going My Way (1944)Liam Neeson in Schindler's List (1993)Cher in Moonstruck (1987)
42Humphrey Bogart in Casablanca (1942)Bette Davis in All About Eve (1950)James Cagney in Yankee Doodle Dandy (1942)Woody Allen in Annie Hall (1977)
43Robert Downey, Jr. in Iron Man (2008)Alec Guinness in The Bridge on the River Kwai (1957)George C. Scott in Patton (1970)Lee Marvin in The Dirty Dozen (1967)
44Paul Newman in Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969)Steve McQueen in The Towering Inferno (1974)Katharine Hepburn in The African Queen (1951)Bob Hope in The Paleface (1948)
45Dustin Hoffman in Tootsie (1982)Sandra Bullock in The Blind Side (2009)James Mason in A Star Is Born (1954)Richard Widmark in The Alamo (1960)
46James Stewart in Rear Window (1954)Gregory Peck in To Kill A Mockingbird (1962)Charlie Chaplin in Modern Times (1936)Denzel Washington in Training Day (2001)
47Marlon Brando in The Godfather (1972)Robert DeNiro in Awakenings (1990)Robert Shaw in Jaws (1975)Joe Pesci in Goodfellas (1990)
48John Wayne in The Searchers (1956)Fred Astaire in Easter Parade (1948)Joan Crawford in Johnny Guitar (1954)Jack Nicholson in Prizzi's Honor (1985)
49Shirley MacLaine in Terms of Endearment (1983)Spencer Tracy in Father of the Bride (1950)Frederic March in The Best Years of Our Lives (1946)Susan Sarandon in Dead Man Walking (1995)
Morgan Freeman was 57 when 1994's The Shawshank Redemption was released.
Morgan Freeman was 57 when 1994’s The Shawshank Redemption was released.

Iconic Movie Roles By Age – Actors in Their Fifties

  • Age Column = Age of performer when movie was released in theaters.
  • Actor/Movie Columns = Name of Actor and the movie they starred in.
AGE Actor/MovieActor/MovieActor/MovieActor/Movie
50Daniel Day-Lewis in There Will Be Blood (2007)Henry Fonda in Mister Roberts (1955)Shelley Winters in The Poseidon Adventure (1972)Colin Firth in The King's Speech (2010)
51Humphrey Bogart in The African Queen (1951)Gloria Swanson in Sunset Blvd. (1950)Gary Cooper in High Noon (1952)Dustin Hoffman in Rain Man (1988)
52Al Pacino in Scent of a Woman (1992) Hoo-ah!Morgan Freeman in Driving Miss Daisy (1989)Dean Martin in Airport (1970)Bill Murray in Lost in Translation (2003)
53Anthony Hopkins in The Silence of the Lambs (1991)Charles Bronson in Death Wish (1974)Bette Davis in What Ever Happened to Baby Jane? (1962)James Stewart in The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance (1962)
54Peter Sellers in Being There (1979)Cary Grant in North by Northwest (1959)Edward G. Robinson in Key Largo (1948)William Powell in Life with Father (1947)
55Marlene Dietrich in Witness for the Prosecution (1957)Jack Nicholson in A Few Good Men (1992)Michael Caine in Dirty Rotten Scoundrels (1988)Marlon Brando in Apocalypse Now (1979)
56Sean Connery in The Untouchables (1987)Rex Harrison in My Fair Lady (1964)James Cagney in Mister Roberts (1955)Burt Lancaster in Airport (1970)
57Morgan Freeman in The Shawshank Redemption (1994)Paul Newman in The Verdict (1982)Meryl Streep in The Devil Wears Prada (2006)Tom Hanks in Captain Phillips (2013)
58Gene Hackman in Mississippi Burning (1988)William Holden in Network (1976)Sean Connery in Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989)Charles Laughton in Witness for the Prosecution (1957)
59J.K. Simmons in Whiplash (2014)Robert Duvall in Days of Thunder (1990)Marlene Dietrich in Judgment at Nuremberg (1961)Cary Grant in Father Goose (1964)
Paul Newman was 69 when he made 1994's Nobody's Fool
Paul Newman was 69 when he made 1994’s Nobody’s Fool

Iconic Movie Roles By Age – Actors in Their Sixties

  • Age Column = Age of performer when movie was released in theaters.
  • Actor/Movie Columns = Name of Actor and the movie they starred in.
AGE Actor/MovieActor/MovieActor/MovieActor/Movie
60Jack Nicholson in As Good as It Gets (1997)Katharine Hepburn in Guess Who's Coming to Dinner (1967)Spencer Tracy in Inherit the Wind (1960)Jeff Bridges in Crazy Heart (2009)
61Helen Mirren in The Queen (2006)Gregory Peck in The Boys from Brazil (1978)Sydney Greenstreet in The Maltese Falcon (1941)Katharine Hepburn in The Lion in Winter (1968)
62Clint Eastwood in Unforgiven (1992)John Wayne in True Grit (1969)Henry Fonda in Once Upon a Time in the West (1968)Gene Hackman in Unforgiven (1992)
63Albert Finney in Erin Brockovich (2000)Claude Rains in Lawrence of Arabia (1962)Michael Keaton in Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance) (2014)Walter Huston in The Treasure of the Sierra Madre (1948)
64Ethel Barrymore in None but the Lonely Heart (1944)James Mason in The Mackintosh Man (1973)Sylvester Stallone in The Expendables (2010)Barry Fitzgerald in The Quiet Man (1952)
65Sean Connery in The Rock (1996)Victor McLaglen in The Quiet Man (1952)Laurence Olivier in Sleuth (1972)Ray Milland in Love Story (1970)
66Michael Caine in The Cider House Rules (1999)Tommy Lee Jones in Lincoln (2012)James Garner in Maverick (1994)Sally Field in Lincoln (2012)
67John Huston in Chinatown (1974)Morgan Freeman in Million Dollar Baby (2004)Burt Lancaster in Atlantic City (1981)Spencer Tracy in Guess Who's Coming to Dinner (1967)
68Melvyn Douglas in I Never Sang for My Father (1970)Michael Douglas in Last Vegas (2013)Jack Lemmon in Grumpy Old Men (1993)Lionel Barrymore in It's a Wonderful Life (1946)
69Burgess Meredith in Rocky (1976)Helen Hayes in Airport (1970)Paul Newman in Nobody's Fool (1994)Jack Nicholson in The Departed (2006)
Henry Fonda was 76 and Katharine Hepburn was 74 when 1981's On Golden Pond was released.
Henry Fonda was 76 and Katharine Hepburn was 74 when 1981’s On Golden Pond was released.

Iconic Movie Roles By Age – Actors in Their Seventies

  • Age Column = Age of performer when movie was released in theaters.
  • Actor/Movie Columns = Name of Actor and the movie they starred in.
AGE Actor/MovieActor/MovieActor/MovieActor/Movie
70Laurence Olivier in The Boys from Brazil (1978)Clint Eastwood in Space Cowboys (2000)John Houseman in The Paper Chase (1973)Charlton Heston in True Lies (1994)
71Edward G. Robinson in The Cincinati Kid (1965)Ruth Gordon in Rosemary's Baby (1968)Gene Hackman in The Royal Tenenbaums (2001)Martin Sheen in The Amazing Spider-Man (2012)
72Lauren Bacall in The Mirror Has Two Faces (1996)Michael Caine in Batman Begins (2005)Jack Palance in City Slickers (1991)James Garner in Space Cowboys (2000)
73Bette Davis in The Watcher in the Woods (1981)Gregory Peck in Old Gringo (1989)James Mason in The Verdict (1983)Michael Caine in The Prestige (2006)
74Katharine Hepburn in On Golden Pond (1981)Stanley Holloway in My Fair Lady (1964)Clint Eastwood in Million Dollar Baby (2004)Dame Edith Evans in Tom Jones (1963)
75Fred Astaire in The Towering Inferno (1974)Burt Lancaster in Field of Dreams (1989)Jane Fonda in Lee Daniels' The Butler (2013)Morgan Freeman in The Dark Knight Rises (2012)
76Henry Fonda in On Golden Pond (1981)Dustin Hoffman in Chef (2014)Peggy Ashcroft in A Passage to India (1984)Robert Redford in All Is Lost (2013)
77John Gieglud in Arthur (1981)Don Ameche in Cocoon (1985)Robert Redford in Captain America: The Winter Soldier (2014)Bruce Dern in Nebraska (2013)
78Clint Eastwood in Gran Torino (2008)George Burns in The Sunshine Boys (1975)Melvyn Douglas in Being There (1979)Judi Dench in Philomena (2013)
79Bette Davis in The Whales of August (1987)Edward G. Robinson in Soylent Green (1973)Robert Duvall in Get Low (2010)Richard Farnsworth in The Straight Story (1999)
80Jessica Tandy in Driving Miss Daisy (1989)Christopher Plummer in The Last Station (2009)Leonard Nimoy in Star Trek: Into Darkness (2013)Michael Caine in Now You See Me (2013)
(Visited 1 times)

42 thoughts on “Iconic Movie Roles By Age

  1. I won’t try going through which films I have seen here and which ones I haven’t.

    But since you mention your age, I will say that at 39 which I turned this year I have been spending a lot of time thinking about whether I should stay there like Jack Benny did-and the large number of people who understand that reference is actually much higher than I would expect considering how long ago Benny died.

    Flora

    1. Hey Flora….thanks for checking out my latest. The 39 club is pretty good….but the 40 group has one of your favorites…..Sir Laurence Olivier….plus Alan Ladd and 2 Oscar winners in Sidney Poitier and Ray Milland. You are right the Jack Benny line has remained a popular saying years and years after Benny came up with it. Once again it is fun talking movies with you.

      1. Regarding the 39 club you have listed, my favourite is Gene Kelly over Joan Crawford. I have seen Braveheart once. Not likely to see the other film any time soon.
        Yes, the 40 club is more to my liking across them. I know all the films really well.

        Flora

        1. Hey Flora…I think they are all good groups….now you have something else to look forward to on your next birthday.

  2. Very nicely done. Gotta admit I am surprised the greatest movie of all time does not make an appearance on this list. Orson Wells in Citizen Kane. As well as Gene Kelly. On the female side it would be nice if Ava Gardner, Greta Garbo and Grace Kelly made an appearance too. Granted it might be possible that I missed them as there are many movies on many sections.

    1. Hey 194EDtran….thanks for stopping by and thanks for the suggestions. I should put Orson Welles in the page….and Gene Kelly’s Singin’ In The Rain would be a nice addition as well. Grace Kelly and her High Noon made the page. As for Gardner and Garbo…..true they are screen legends….but with the exception of Grand Hotel….which of their movies should be on the page? That being said….I will add a few of your suggestions to the page.

    2. Hey 194EDtran…..I added in 3 of your 4 suggestions. Greta Garbo age 26 has been added….Matthew McConaughey got the boot. Orson Welles age 25 got added…Seth Rogen got the boot. And Gene Kelly age 39 has been added….Arnold S. got the boot.

      1. Impressive. You were very quick in responding and adding my suggestions. Glad to know you read your comments. I am very impressed.

  3. WOW THIS CERTAINLY HAS SOME INTERESTING FACTS. IT MADE ME THINK OF SO MANY MOVIES THAT HAVE SEEN – SOME SO LONG AGO. THANKS FOR THIS SITE AS IT WAS VERY INFORMATIVE. GOOD WORK! Interesting to find out the actors age when they made the different movies.

    1. Hey BERN1960…..thanks for the very nice comment. Glad you liked this page. I had fun putting it together.

  4. An interesting idea Bruce and you’ve covered just about every famous actor in Hollywood. Russell Crowe as Maximus was the same age as Charlton Heston as Ben-Hur, a nice bit of trivia.
    I see your Brit favorite, Michael Caine, has a record number of entries but only once for your American fave, Bruce Willis, oooh. 🙂
    Where’s George C. Scott? You can’t get much more iconic than Patton, he’s up there with Don Vito Corleone. Just nitpicking Bruce.
    I can’t do my usual movie count here, too many films and most of them are well known. I still haven’t seen Cider House Rules, but I do know the story.
    Voted Up.

    1. Hey Steve…..thanks for stopping by. I noticed that Crowe and Heston were the same age. Caine had lots of choices for the late 60s and 70s and 80 age….I actually tried to limit him somewhat….but Caine and Bette Davis both acted late in their lives. I had Bruce a few other times….but he got bumped out every time with the exception of Die Hard.

      George C. Scott…..would be a good one….lets see he would have been 43 when Patton came out….current 43 members….Robert Downey Jr. in Iron Man, Alec Guinness in Bridge River Kwai, Kirk Douglas in Spartacus and Lee Marvin in Dirty Dozen. I will add George and take out Kirk….Kirk is still on the page with 20,000 leagues.

      Too many films to count? Disappointed….lol. As always your input, comments and visit are greatly appreciated.

      1. Ouch I kind of regret mentioning Scott now, Douglas as Spartacus is iconic and hugely popular, I’d say more so than Patton. Can you cheat and add Douglas in the 44 year old group? Bump Hope? Lets see Douglas was born 1916, Spartacus was released in 1960… [wink]

        1. Hey Steve….Kirk is still in the page….the other three only appeared once in the page……so to make you HAPPY……Kirk had to be the one to go….lol. I can not believe a Bob Hope fan like yourself would suggest bumping Hope off the page….you might lose your Hope fan card membership thinking that way…..lol.

  5. I agree with you this is a fascinating and somewhat depressing page. I am 33 but seeing that I am older than Stallone when he made Rocky and older than Jackman when he started playing Wolverine is hard to grasp. But I feel the 33 year old group is stellar. The Sundance Kid, John McClain, and Dr. Venkman.

    1. Hey Timlin33…..thanks for stopping by my latest page. Your group is pretty nice….I have Joan Crawford, Jack Nicholson, John Wayne and Fred Astaire….a pretty good group too. I know how you feel about Stallone and Jackman….thanks for the visit and the comment.

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