For decades, the narrative surrounding women in Hollywood was as predictable as it was unforgiving. A female actor would enjoy a meteoric rise in her twenties, solidify her status in her thirties, and by the time she reached her forties, the offers would begin to taper off. She would be shuffled into the role of "the mother," "the wife," or worse—the character who simply disappears from the story.
While some genres still rely on the "witch-queen" or "crone" tropes, mature women are increasingly breaking into spaces previously reserved for younger stars.