Would You Rather…

July 1st, 2009

wouldyourather

With this week’s news that 31 year-old hottie Trevor Donovan will be joining the cast of 90210 as a new (ahem!) high school student at West Beverly High, this TV Addict thought now would be as good a time as any ask: Would you rather…

(a) Watch really good looking albeit slightly older actors playing high school students on some of your favorites shows such as 90210 and GOSSIP GIRL. Or (b) watch more age-appropriate actors, more along the lines of the ‘DEGRASSI model,’ a show which has become famous for casting actual high school students to play fictional ones.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, July 1st, 2009 at 12:34 pm and is filed under 90210, Degrassi The Next Generation, Gossip Girl, Random Musings. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

16 Responses to “Would You Rather…”

Jill Says:

July 1st, 2009 at 12:44 pm

Oh, Degrassi Junior High! Real kids – so great! (Another thing that makes Canada so great. That and The Polka Dot Door.) That’s why Election was such a great movie. Yeah, Reese Whitherspoon was older, but she plays young well. So I vote B. If you throw in a few older folks that look super young, so be it, as long as no one’s the wiser.

Ace Says:

July 1st, 2009 at 1:00 pm

Is it just me or does this seem to be more of a phenomenon with male actors? It seems more common to find the female actors playing their own age (Marisa “The OC”, Jenny “GG”, Rose “Privileged”, etc.).

It doesn’t really bother me when you have say a 20 year old playing a high schooler (like most of the guys on Gossip Girl). I think it makes certain shows more authentic to use some younger actors though — like Freaks and Geeks (and how cute did John Fancis Daley turn out!). That said, I’m sure they could find guys the right age if they really tried (Jared Padalecki was 18 when he started on GG playing 16…).

Jacob Says:

July 1st, 2009 at 2:39 pm

Depends on the show. Obviously they aren’t looking for talent and tremendous acting ability when they cast a show like 90210, the end results tell us so.

Drive down Hollywood Blvd, pull the first hot 18 year old guy off the streets you see and make him an actor. Same thing. More age appropriateness.

Amelia Says:

July 1st, 2009 at 3:48 pm

personally i’d prefer to see a show with actors that can actually exhibit some sort of talent rather than choosing them by age. on friday night lights, the actors are clearly older than the characters they play but they are all so great it doesn’t even phase me. unfortunately 90210 and degrassi both fail in the talent department, not to say that i dont watch them as guilty pleasures lol.

what about greek, most of the people on that show are fairly decent actors or comedians, and they all look about the right age. i just looked up their ages, they all fall around 24-28 years which isn’t THAT bad.

TVFan Says:

July 1st, 2009 at 3:52 pm

I’m going to agree with Amelia. Great acting on shows like FNL covers up any age difference.

theTVaddict Says:

July 1st, 2009 at 3:56 pm

Jacob,
You win today’s unofficial contest for best comment of the day!

“Depends on the show. Obviously they aren’t looking for talent and tremendous acting ability when they cast a show like 90210, the end results tell us so.”

Tim Says:

July 1st, 2009 at 4:47 pm

i agree. 90210 wants their actors hot first and talent 2nd. i watched bbc’s skins season 1 and 2 and the actors looked age appropriate and it was an entertaining show. look at that 31 yr old actor, he was on a daytime soap which is known for looks over talent.

chrispian Says:

July 1st, 2009 at 5:25 pm

The “older guy” looks just a little weird. Well, so does the younger one, but the older one looks kinda like plastic. Maybe it’s just the shot here. Unless this is casting for V in which he should look a little alien, then yeah, go with the older guy.

Hils Says:

July 1st, 2009 at 8:24 pm

I don’t care how old they are as long as they reasonably look their age they are supposed to be. The guy in question here doesn’t look like he should be in high school.

Although it would be weird if a 16 year old actor plays the GF of a 35 year old actor. If they are great actors it might pass…but I’d know. And be a little icked by it.

Nick Says:

July 2nd, 2009 at 7:44 am

I recall, again, the words of Jason Priestly: “Degrassi is just 90210 with ugly people.”

shanna Says:

July 2nd, 2009 at 1:18 pm

Hils- Yes, on That 70s Show Mila Kunis was the only one who was the age of her character and was about 14 when dating Ashton Kutcher on the show who was about 25 or so. Kind of a big difference.

I think they should have actors who look close to the age and can mostly importantly ACT. I don’t mind a 20 year-old playing a 16 year-old (I looked about 16 until I was …. well sometimes I still get confused for one of my students) but a 31 yea old will not look 16. No matter how you cut it.