Have you ever noticed how many Hollywood stars and blockbuster favorites are named Chris? Chris Evans, Chris Hemsworth, Chris Pine, Chris Pratt—the list goes on. The phenomenon has even earned the nickname “Battle of the Chrises,” with social media users enthusiastically voting for their favorite Chris. But behind the playful question of which Chris is the best lies a deeper issue: according to new data from the British organization Ageing Better and its Age-Without-Limits campaign, the chances of landing a leading role on the big screen are higher if you’re a man named Chris than if you’re a woman over 60.

The Study's Findings

The campaign, which aims to combat ageism and encourage people to rethink their views on aging, analyzed the 100 highest-grossing films released in the United Kingdom between 2023 and 2025. The results are stark: only five of those films featured a female lead over the age of 60. In contrast, six films had a lead character named Chris—half of them played by Chris Pratt in titles like The Super Mario Bros. Movie, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, and The Garfield Movie. Additionally, films were four times more likely to have a talking animal in the lead role than a woman over 60. Characters like Po from Kung Fu Panda and Paddington bear now seem somewhat sheepish in light of these statistics.

For those curious about which films with a female lead over 60 performed best at the UK box office, the list includes: Allelujah (2023) starring Jennifer Saunders; My Big Fat Greek Wedding 3 (2023) with Nia Vardalos; Book Club: The Next Chapter (2023) featuring Diane Keaton; The Substance (2024) with Demi Moore; and Freakier Friday (2025) starring Jamie Lee Curtis. Before anyone protests, the second highest-grossing film of 2025 in the UK, Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy, was excluded because Renée Zellweger is still three years shy of 60.

Voices from the Campaign

The Age-Without-Limits campaign is now calling on the film industry to better represent older women, and the message has resonated with Oscar-winning British actress Dame Emma Thompson, 67. “Women make up half the population—and we’re getting older,” Thompson said in a statement. “So where are the stories about us? The older we get, the more interesting we become. I want to see more films that center on older women. We are exciting, relatable, and long overdue for the front row.” She added, “Older women don’t need permission to exist on screen. They already exist in the world—cinema just needs to catch up.”

Dr. Carole Easton OBE, Chief Executive of the Centre for Ageing Better, commented: “It is utterly absurd that so few films have been made in recent years where an older woman is clearly at the center. Up to one in five cinema-goers in the UK is aged 55 or older, and this age group spends hundreds of millions of pounds on cinema tickets each year. The presence of older actors in major film roles is out of proportion to the share of older women in the cinema audience—this lack of visibility is frankly insulting. Unfortunately, this is not just a cinema issue. In many media, industries, and areas of public life, the contributions of older women are downplayed, marginalized, or simply ignored.” Dr. Easton continued, “We must all push back against ageism and its intersection with sexism by telling cultural gatekeepers that we want to see all life stages and realities reflected in what we see, hear, and read.”

Public Demand for Change

The Centre for Ageing Better also surveyed 4,000 people in the UK about their interest in stories featuring women over 60 in lead roles. One in three respondents (33%) said that not enough films are made with female leads over 60, compared to only 3% who thought there were too many such films. Among women surveyed, the proportion who felt there were too few films with older female leads rose to nearly two in five (39%).

The study, authored by researchers at the University of West London’s School of Film, Media and Design, further revealed that female characters aged 65 and over appear more than three times less frequently in British films over the past decade than male characters of the same age. Moreover, female characters over 50 speak 14% less dialogue than older male characters in the films examined. The researchers also found that confident, active, and multifaceted older female characters are rare. Instead, films portray older women more often as “passive, pitiable, ridiculed for not acting their age, and often irrelevant to the main plot.”

The Broader Context of Ageism in Hollywood

This study adds to a growing body of research highlighting systemic ageism and sexism in the entertainment industry. Historically, Hollywood has favored youth and male actors, with older women particularly marginalized. A 2020 study by the USC Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism found that only 4% of speaking characters in top-grossing films were women aged 60 or older, and they were often portrayed in stereotypical roles such as grandmothers or caregivers. The lack of representation not only affects casting opportunities but also shapes societal perceptions of aging, reinforcing the idea that older women are less valuable or less interesting.

The film industry’s reliance on established franchises and star power often leads to repetitive casting of the same younger actors. The prevalence of actors named Chris is a symptom of this broader trend—six of the top 100 films featured a Chris, but only five featured a woman over 60. The disparity becomes even more striking when considering talking animals: 24 films had a lead role for an animated or CGI talking animal, compared to just five for a woman over 60. This imbalance has economic implications as well; older audiences represent a significant and loyal demographic that spends billions on cinema annually.

Harriet Bailiss, co-leader of the Age-Without-Limits campaign, stated: “By not properly representing older people—and especially older women—the film industry is actively contributing to pushing them to the margins of society. For many older people who question their own worth because they’ve internalized the ageism they encounter daily, this lack of representation only confirms the notion that older people matter less with each passing year. No wonder so many women speak of becoming invisible when they can barely see themselves reflected in popular culture or advertising.” She added, “Ageism is the most common form of discrimination, but it is still not taken seriously enough. Ageism curtails career opportunities, attacks health, relationships, ambitions, and confidence—and ultimately determines which lives are invested in. Ageism affects us all, but we can all help end it. Questioning and challenging it begins with each individual.”

Is There Progress in 2026?

The study’s release coincides with early box office data from 2026. The 76-year-old Meryl Streep has helped the sequel to The Devil Wears Prada surpass $600 million worldwide, making it one of the surprise hits of the year. However, both Project Hail Mary and The Super Mario Galaxy Movie are ahead, with worldwide grosses of $670 million and $800 million respectively. The first film features a talking alien rock as the lead; the second stars Chris Pratt. While Streep’s success is encouraging, the overall picture remains unchanged: talking creatures and Chrises still dominate the box office.

The findings underscore the urgency of the campaign’s call for change. As Emma Thompson eloquently put it, older women are not asking for permission—they are already here, and cinema must finally give them their due. Until then, the Chrises and talking animals will continue to rule the screen, while women over 60 remain all too often in the wings.

Source: MSN News