For Older Male Actors, Streaming Means Age Is Just a Number | Charts

Age is proving to be just a number for many older male actors, as streaming productions turn to familiar faces who are still proving popular — not just with fans who watched their TV shows and movies but with younger audiences as well.

One of the most popular older actors over the age of 70 is George Takei, renowned for his role in the original “Star Trek” series and celebrated for his wit, social activism and vibrant presence on social media. He’s still playing Hikaru Sulu in the Paramount+ animated series “Star Trek: Below Decks.” Following closely is Harrison Ford, globally famous for his iconic portrayal of the Indiana Jones character, who, at the age of 80, recently starred in a new installment of the franchise while also boosting the prospects of Apple TV+ and Paramount+ with star turns in “Shrinking” and “1923.”

The examples abound: Henry Winkler played a significant role in the HBO show “Barry,” which recently concluded its final season, Sylvester Stallone stars in Paramount+’s “Tulsa King,” Mark Hamill is a prominent figure in multiple Disney+ shows within the Star Wars franchise, and Arnold Schwarzenegger features in the newly released Netflix original “Fubar.”

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These prominent roles represent something of a change from the past. A 2016 Polygraph study found that men over 65 accounted for only 5% of words spoken in an analysis of thousands of screenplays.

Male actors over the age of 70 now account for 17% of the total demand for male actors in the U.S. market, according to Parrot Analytics’ talent demand data, which takes into account consumer research, streaming, downloads and social media, among other engagement.

Intriguingly, the demand for some of these older male actors comes from younger audiences, we found after combining Parrot’s talent demand data with demographic data for the top 20 male actors over 70 years old in the U.S. market.

George Takei, despite leading the ranking by a significant margin, attracts an audience that is predominantly over 30 years old, with nearly 90% falling into that category. On the other hand, Danny DeVito emerges as a favorite among younger audiences within the talent ranking, likely due to his role in the sitcom “It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia,” which resonates more with Zennials.

The actors who have achieved the remarkable feat of both high demand and significant engagement with younger audiences are represented in the blue area of the chart. Schwarzenegger, Hamill, Ford, and Stallone have succeeded in forging connections with younger viewers, transcending generational gaps and enticing new audiences, even those who weren’t yet born when their careers began — while keeping their old fanbase.

For this analysis, we limited our study to male actors over 70. The intersection of ageism and sexism in the entertainment industry is a complex topic, one that many women in Hollywood have spoken out against. We plan to do a separate analysis of demand for women actors over 70 in the near future.

Daniel Quinaud is a senior data analyst at Parrot Analytics, a WrapPRO partner. For more from Parrot Analytics, visit the Data and Analysis Hub.

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