Men get older, women get old.
Older women are constantly forgotten in Hollywood, which leads to a lack of needed representation. It has been known for years Hollywood favours older men, the Oscars are infamously known as the ‘straight white boys club’ from most of the nominees and awards being scooped up by older white men.
In recent years, the oldest woman to win an Oscar for Best Actress was Frances McDormand, 63 who won for Nomadland in 2020. Comparing this to the Leading Actor, Anthony Hopkins, 83 in 2020 when he won for The Father. Although this is only one example this has been a recurring trend that demonstrates how older women are less favoured, in comparison to men.
In comparison to younger women, older women get given less opportunities for roles, often being pushed to take unflattering roles based on unflattering stereotypes. Including older women being jealous of younger women which we have constantly seen since we were younger with Disney princess films presenting the villain as an older woman attempting to take the beauty and life from the young princess, e.g. Tangled and Cinderella.
Women are also frequently portrayed as hags, a word that describes a woman as old, malicious and ugly. This example is mostly seen in horror films using the woman's older body as the horror. In the Golden Age of Hollywood, it was seen as the only place left for a role of a leading lady after they have gained wrinkles.
These tropes do not get pushed onto men, as when they age they earn more respect from society and Hollywood, whereas women get ridiculed. However there are some leading women who are changing the standards for women.
Pamela Anderson
An icon, former Playboy bunny and sex symbol. In the 90s, she was hypersexualised, often posing nude for magazine covers and known for her relationship with Tommy Lee. Unfortunately, during their relationship a stolen sex tape of the pair got leaked to the public and became a defining part of her career. As a response she was repeatedly ridiculed by the media and the punchline of many jokes. When questioned in 1996 about the event in an interview with CNN, she described the situation as “humiliating”.
Anderson has now redefined her career, at the age of 58, she has had a resurgence of her career in 2022 with her Broadway debut as the main character in Chicago. Followed by her starring in The Last Showgirl, an independent film with themes of aging. Pamela portrays an older woman who is put to the side and replaced by younger women as a Vegas showgirl.
She has stated she wants to breakaway from the personas of her youth and redefine herself in the public eye. She has also opted to go makeup free, embracing her natural beauty when attending premieres and red carpets. As she stated in a 2023 interview with Elle, she calls it “freeing, and fun, and a little rebellious too.”
Jamie Lee Curtis
“At 66, I get to be the boss”. The words of Jamie Lee Curtis herself in a 2025 interview with The Guardian . Curtis is an A-list actress born and raised in Hollywood, with her first film, Halloween (1978), being shot when she was just 19. After that, she became a renowned scream queen, a prominent, iconic figure who continued to appear in various films in the horror genre, which led to her stardom.
Her career didn’t slow down either as she grew out of her teens and twenties. In 2022 at the age of 64, she won her first Oscar, for best supporting actress in Everything Everywhere All at Once. Her career continues to grow as she consistently plays roles in mainstream films, including the popular film Knives out (2019) and Freakier Friday (2025).
She is very open about not caring what others think about her and deters from fitting into Hollywood's expectations of women. She avoids plastic surgery since she got a procedure when she was 25, and sports her natural grey hair. She is not afraid to stay true to herself and tell people to, “Back the f**k off”.
