Laura Dern and Liam Hemsworth are the latest stars of a new type of rom-com dominating Hollywood at the moment – and it’s the kind that puts the older woman in the driving seat.
Lonely Planet is Netflix’s latest rom-com offering, written and directed by Susannah Grant and starring Laura Dern, 57, as a novelist who is trying to find herself on a writer’s retreat.
As Dern’s character withdraws from the other writers, she spends time with another misfit on the retreat, one of the other writer’s boyfriends (played by Hemsworth, 34). Things quickly get steamy, and Dern joins an ever-growing list of big-name actresses going for younger men in recent hit films.
It has truly been the summer of love with some of our favourite leading ladies reclaiming their power on screen.
This year alone we’ve seen Anne Hathaway, 41, embroiled in a hot and heavy romance with a dashing young twenty-something popstar (played by Nick Galitzine, 29) and Nicole Kidman, 57, tussling and tumbling with Zac Efron, who is 21 years her junior.
It’s clearly more than a flash in the pan too as this week, even more A-list films with similar themes were announced to be in the pipeline.
Olivia Wilde, 40, is set to romance a ‘nepo baby’ in the upcoming film I Want Your Sex alongside 21-year-old Cooper Hoffman, while Julia Fox, 34, will take the lead in LGBTQ+ romantic drama Perfect, starring opposite the slightly younger Ashley Moore.
Not to mention, Kidman was swept off her feet again on screen starring opposite Harris Dickinson, 28, in the steamy erotica Babygirl.
All of this is happening on screen, of course, although each story does sound like it could be a real-life headline about the latest age-gap celebrity romance.
This type of love story is nothing new to film but it’s fair to say the tables have turned in 2024 with women now taking the lead.
Typically we’re used to seeing age gap romances with an older man and a younger love interest, (i.e. 2003’s Lost In Translation which saw Bill Murray, aged 52 at the time, opposite on-screen love interest Scarlett Johansson, then 18), which, in real life, is usually deemed more socially acceptable.
However, the dynamic has now changed and Hollywood’s new obsession hasn’t gone unnoticed.
Reacting to Kidman’s upcoming erotica Babygirl, X user SaintBrutus predicted that 2024 will be known as the ‘year of the cougar,’ while @thatssocool wondered: ‘Whaaat is this the third older woman – younger man film in 2024?’
Sharing a similar view, @HugoRollinsII chimed in: ‘How many of these movies is Hollywood going to crank out?’
@CinematicMood lamented: ‘So every studio has the same idea.’
On the contrary, @StefSWriter was quite receptive to the theme, and said: ‘Love this concept. Looks like a nice love story. I also love how The Idea of You has opened doors to more movies like this.’
According to industry experts, it was inevitable that Hollywood would eventually reverse the age gap trope to reflect how much our views have changed as a society.
Tina Wilson, relationship expert and Wingman founder, told Metro.co.uk: ‘Nowadays, people care more about forming genuine connections than they do about age differences.
‘Society is also more accepting of different kinds of relationships, so people feel freer to love who they want, regardless of their age. An older man, younger woman dynamic is not as acceptable because an older woman dating a younger man challenges traditional gender roles that are ingrained in society.’
Wilson notes how men were historically seen as the providers while women were expected to be nurturers.
‘When these roles are swapped, it spins these outdated expectations on its head, making the relationship seem more progressive and ultimately more empowering,’ she stated.
Lovehoney’s sex and relationship expert Annabelle Knight described the newly revised age gap as ‘catnip for millennials and Gen-Z’ who are seen to widely embrace the progressiveness.
‘These new age romances are coming from a position of female strength, rather than young male lust,’ Knight said.
She continued: ‘In an era where female protagonists have more control over their fate, it can be empowering to see an older woman romance a younger man and be desired, compared to the opposite; which usually features a vulnerable or hapless younger woman and a somewhat controlling older man. It’s visual confirmation (if it was needed) that even as women age, they can still have it all and have incredible sex.’
So, therefore, is this fresh relationship dynamic fulfilling an elusive fantasy for viewers?
Knight suggested: ‘Age gap relationships are a complicated issue underneath the taboo allure…
‘Age gap romances often explore themes of forbidden love, societal pressures, and personal growth – all of which can resonate strongly with readers and viewers. There’s also the sizzling chemistry that the writers create between these characters, where people can’t help but place themselves in the shoes of Anne Hathaway or Nicole Kidman, and wish we were being swept off our feet.’
Adam Brannon, Founder & Editor of Movie Metropolis, agreed and said it’s ‘less about the fantasy of the younger man and more about the fantasy of the older woman who is free from societal expectations, able to explore her desires and find love or passion on her terms.’
The film expert highlighted how women have greater financial independence, social autonomy and visibility in various industries, which is why these stories resonate so much with audiences.
‘They reflect a reality where women are no longer defined by their age or fertility but by everything,’ he said.
Brannon also noted: ‘Hollywood, and celebrity culture, has traditionally been very unkind to older women.’
The tide has finally changed and, in an industry where roles for older women were notoriously few and far between, there’s clearly a whole new subgenre of rom-coms that will welcome them with open arms.
And it’s been long overdue.
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