Silver Screen Seniors

Oscar Ageism

By Cutright Elizabeth on Feb 23, 2017 in News

The limelight may favor the young, but as Hollywood strives for inclusivity, a recent study entitled “Over Sixty, Underestimated: A Look at Aging on the ‘Silver’ Screen,” reveals senior citizens are woefully underrepresented on the big screen.

With the Terminator eligible for social security, and Die Hard’s Jon McClane just a few years shy of retirement, it might be time for filmmakers to expand their character demographics. Nevertheless, according to the study, a joint effort between Humana and USC’s Annenberg School, though senior citizens make up almost one-fifth of ticket buyers, only 11.8% of film characters over the last two years have been over the age of 60.

“This underrepresentation is unfortunate,” says Dr. Stacy Smith, Associate Professor at USC’s Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism and co-author of the study. “Aging is one of those areas where exposure to stereotypes can initiate negative cognitions, and those negative cognitions can have negative health effects.”

“It seems important to take this [exclusion] just as seriously, if not more so, than some of the other groups that are included in the inclusion conversation.”

Cartoons and Action Figures

Hollywood film producer Gary Lucchesi, who participated in a recent panel on the topic, lays some of the blame on lack of opportunity. Last year’s top ten films included four animated films, five superhero movies, and another entry into the Star Wars canon. Not much room for dramatic turns by some of the industry’s seasoned professionals. While perennial Oscar nominees like Meryl Streep and Denzel Washington managed to nab some meaty rolls, many older performers are left scrambling for work.

“We’re not getting a lot of investment in traditional dramatic stories,” says Lucchesi. “When you have that as a reality, you’re obviously going to have [a situation] where the numbers don’t come out as well.

“We need more parts for actors of that age so that they can continue to be represented.”

Demoralizing Dramatics

As Smith points out, the dearth of senior characters in major Hollywood films not only ignores an important demographic, it can also negatively affect how senior’s see themselves. Often depicted as weak and feeble minded, mainstream cinema’s portrayal of society’s older citizens tends to careen into hurtful and demeaning stereotypes.

“It is clear from this analysis that critically praised movies still invoke outdated stereotypes about what it means to be a senior citizen,” write the report’s authors. “Across the 100 top-grossing movies of 2015, over half of films with leading and supporting senior characters contained at least one ageist comment.”

“Even among films that are purported to showcase the best of Hollywood’s creativity and skill, discussions of aging differ little from dialogue in film more broadly.”

In fact, the Humana study revealed that six out of the 14 films from 2016 featuring an older character in a leading or supporting role contained ageist comments ranging from references to “mentally feeble, sick old ladies” to one-liners like “…just sit here and let Alzheimer’s run its course.”

“Clearly, there’s more work to be done before we can say precisely how inaccurate media portrayals impact self-image in seniors, from their sense of being valued to their sense of optimism, but what really concerns me as a physician is how a diminished sense of self-worth can, in turn, impact a senior’s health,” said Dr. Yolangel Hernandez Suarez, vice president and chief medical officer of care delivery at Humana.

“In our survey, we showed that aging Americans who report feeling more valued in society tend to have more healthy days. At Humana, we believe aging with optimism contributes to health, and that’s why we’re committed to reversing societal perceptions and promoting aging with optimism,” she said.

“When we think about diversity, we often talk about including the usual suspects of race, gender, sexual orientation, people with disabilities, but age is often left out of the conversation,” says Stacey.

“It’s a missed opportunity for Hollywood. These are people with disposable income and time on their hands to view and stream and download films.”

The Academy Awards will air on Sunday, February 26, 2017.