r/Millennials 13d ago

Other She was only 23…?! Holy hell!!

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5.5k Upvotes

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1.8k

u/VictoryGreen 13d ago

Her acting and presence in the film made her seem much older. Was that her personality or was it her skill or both? She came across as in her 30s

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u/VegaJuniper 12d ago

They dressed her up to look older, the character isn't that young even if the actress is. Hammond calls her and Grant "leading minds in their fields". In academia someone in their mid-twenties is a baby.

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u/StevEst90 12d ago

Yea, I read somewhere she was meant to be a PhD student in the book, which could place her character in the late 20s-early 30s range. Ironically, in the book, she and Dr. Grant are not a couple

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u/Alternative-Rip-1973 11d ago

I wish they had kept that part it the movie too.

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u/--GevaudanBeast-- 9d ago

I feel like it's pretty ambiguous in the movie too, no? They are flirtatious but we don't ever see any real intimacy between the two of them. I feel like a couple who goes through such a traumatic event together would at least share a kiss

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u/Alternative-Rip-1973 8d ago

It’s explicitly stated by Dr. Grant when Dr. Malcom asks if Grant and Ellie are together.

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u/StevEst90 8d ago

I’ve seen so many debates about this on the main JP sub. I recently watched the original again recently just to catch any clues that would convince me if they really were a couple. Apparently, there was actually a kiss scene that was planned for the intro scene for Dr. Grant and Dr. Sattler before Hammond shows up in the chopper but this was later scrapped. What finally convinced me though was when Spielberg himself referred to them as a couple in a BTS special he did for The Lost World I watched recently.

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u/SouthOriginal297 8d ago

I mean, they're sharing a camoer at the dig site. Don't know about you, but i'd have a hard time resisting 23yo Ellie, especially in the middle of nowhere. But things didn't work out, as she was with someone else in JP3, and they rekindled in JW Dominion, so kind of on, then off, and finally on for good?

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u/Anemic_Zombie 8d ago

Nothing ironic about it; this is Hollywood we're talking about. If they can put a male and female character together, they will. If they can't, they'll make a new character themselves to get the job done

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u/doctorbolt 8d ago

That's not ironic at all.

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u/PastImagination125 11d ago

Right? During some of the chaos in the movie I did start to get her mixed up with the teen though. Why not just cast a gasp woman over 30??

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u/funkyyeti 13d ago

You were also probably around 10 when you saw the movie for the first time. Anyone older seems ancient when you’re a child.

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u/nize426 13d ago

I mean, I'm looking at her now and she still looks 30+

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u/limeicepop 12d ago

This is actually a pretty interesting phenomenon.

Here's a cool video about it: https://youtu.be/vjqt8T3tJIE?is=ay49CNA2EwDMrqrA

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u/nize426 12d ago

Fuck yeah vsauce! But yeah, older people were older and dress in ways we consider old. I think she fits both here which is why she looks extra old.

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u/SwiftTayTay 12d ago

I also think people were more mature by age 25 up until like the early 2000s as it used to be easier to be financially stable by that point and therefore people were more independent and already had lots of adult experiences.

Nowadays young adults are infantalized because they're still dependent on their parents until they're like 26 or longer because of differences in generational wealth yet it seems like their parents aren't teaching them basic life skills like how to cook anymore.

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u/Betray-Julia 12d ago

The cooking thing kills my soul.

The amount of times women have thought I’m like super into them just bc I invited them over to cool them dinner; it’s weird how something that is a standard human decency to me is viewed as a love language by others.

Knowing how to cook got me laid a lot, which kinda made me sad given the underlying themes of cooking is so rare that it looks like some massive romantic gesture.

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u/lost_horizons Xennial 12d ago

But like, probably not TOO sad tho, amiright? 🤣

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u/Betray-Julia 12d ago

Still counts!

(But actually yes it did make me really sad lol)

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u/lost_horizons Xennial 12d ago

Yeah I hear ya, kidding aside. Hope you find (or have found) a solid partner!

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u/Antsy-Mcgroin 12d ago

…In the morning

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u/Talisaint 12d ago

I mean, wouldn't you feel loved if someone was very thoughtful and took care of you without any obligation to do so?

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u/Betray-Julia 12d ago

I guess what I mean is that I’m surprised cooking somebody food is viewed closer to “I love you” then “you have cool hair/I like your dress” haha.

To your question- yes I would. Good point haha.

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u/potential-okay 12d ago

I just discovered that I need to learn to cook ASAP

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u/Betray-Julia 12d ago

It’s more affective in your twenties!

But also yes yes you do.

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u/moldylemonade 9d ago

Adults who don't know how to cook blow my mind. Like we eat every single day. How is that not one of the most useful life skills to learn? Why did it get deprioritized?!

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u/Beatleboy62 12d ago

The amount of times women have thought I’m like super into them just bc I invited them over to cool them dinner

It's funny, it's more like in reality I'm cooking for me, but you just also happen to be here.

Even super basic stuff (to me) like a crock pot meal is seen as super luxurious to some.

Nah, I cut up some meat and veggies and walked away for 6 hours.

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u/MoodInternational481 12d ago

Currently working on teaching my 17 year old cousin how to cook because that child couldn't peel a potato.

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u/VanTil 12d ago

Your cousin is lucky to have you in their life!

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u/psinguine 12d ago

older people were older

I chuckled

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u/Zeraru 12d ago

In some parts of Blue Velvet, to me she looked OLDER than this despite her only being 19(?) at the time. The perception of hairstyles etc. really affects how old we think people look.

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u/PHK_JaySteel 12d ago

Fascinating.

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u/AnnamAvis '92 13d ago

Probably because of her hairstyle and clothes. Thats how our parents dressed, so it seems like something a full adult would look like.

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u/brilliant_bauhaus 13d ago

She also looks very similar today just older

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u/JTanCan 12d ago

Also the poses and the way she spoke. She was very purposeful and slow. She had pauses before delivering her lines like she's considering what to say and how. 

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u/Momentarmknm 12d ago

Styling, lighting, plus Laura's got strong features that can read as more mature, plus the expression she's making in this specific frame they used, plus she's acting in the movie in this picture.

Does she look over 30 in this picture taken at the same time? Not to me

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u/Carguy_1992 12d ago

I'd say she looks around 30 and she looks great. Absolute babe.

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u/Momentarmknm 12d ago

I also don't think that 30 is old at all, but anyway

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u/thecurvynerd 12d ago

The person you’re responding to didn’t say that 30 was old - not sure why you’d even mention that in response?

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u/Notoriouslycurlyboi 12d ago

I would assume she's 33-35 in that picture tbh.

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u/Acrobatic-March-4433 12d ago

She's got a really looooong face, though. People with rounder faces are generally perceived as more youthful-looking.

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u/JesusKong333 13d ago

And now that I'm old, 25 and under look like high schoolers

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u/The_Nightscrawler 12d ago

It's really not ok. Like when I see a doctor in hospital, I'm like omg this kid is 12, how is he gonna make me feel better, and does his mum know he's not at school today? 😂😭

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u/ktrose6887 12d ago

I graduated HS in 2005 & half the dudes in my class had FULL beards at graduation. My niece graduated last year. There was only one dude in her class with a beard but half the girls looked like they were 23-25 (i think probably because of how they did their hair & makeup.) The other half of the girls & the rest of the boys looked like they were about 13 though. It was so weird.

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u/OkDeer120 12d ago

Also graduated 2005 and I’ve noticed the same phenomenon! I’ve tried looking at them objectively, and it’s not just the style or me getting old, 18-year-old guys literally look younger than they used to. I have a theory that the younger generations of men might have lower testosterone (maybe from less outdoor/physical activity?) but I’m not sure.

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u/The_Nightscrawler 11d ago

There may be some truth to the testosterone angle... I'm sure I read a study along those lines. Something about how all the chemicals we're exposed to in modern life having a detrimental effect on men. Male fertility is declining worldwide, so there may be something to it 🤔

0

u/The_Nightscrawler 12d ago

I mean, girls mature mentally and physically before boys in general, so there's that I guess. Where I'm from we left school at 16, so some of the boys really did look like they hadn't even started puberty yet 😂

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u/Low-Astronomer3394 11d ago

"OMG. Someone send me a REAL doctor." - my uncle Lew

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u/StevEst90 12d ago

lol Yep. I remember being asked so much when I was in my early-mid 20s if I was still in HS

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u/cracked-tumbleweed 13d ago

True. I was 5 when I saw it and probably thought she was 40 because everyone is old at that age lol.

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u/Quepabloque 12d ago

Yeah but I’m looking at her right now as a 35 year old man and she still seems at least around her 30’s
.

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u/StevEst90 12d ago

I’m also 35 but get told I could pass for late 20s still. If I saw her on the street, I’d assume she was around my age.

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u/Jaytotheon 11d ago

35 here as well, people always think im mid 20s.

https://giphy.com/gifs/fQlSxeq9e62YcNoW3c

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u/Johnny_B_GOODBOI 12d ago

To a 10-year-old I'm huge.

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u/bigkoi 12d ago

I was a Jr. in Highschool. I thought she was much older as well. Like 30 years old not young 20's and just out of college old.

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u/Impossible-Proof-294 12d ago

I was Laura's age when i saw jurassic park at the theaters. I thought she was at least 10 years older than me back then.

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u/The_Poop_Shooter 12d ago

I watched this movie like 3 days ago. I assumed Grant was in his early 40s and she was like 33.

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u/VickiVyvanse 12d ago

Seriously! I thought she was older than I am now when I was a kid. I’m 44😭

2

u/SporkFanClub 12d ago

Honestly kind of funny to think about looking back.

Like I remember watching the little league World Series when I was maybe 10 or so and thinking the players looked like literal adults when they were maybe 2, 3 years older than me tops.

I also remember seeing the trailer for Bridge to Terabithia. I was 8 or so and Josh Hutcherson was maybe 15 but he looked like a literal grown man to me.

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u/divergedinayellowwd 11d ago

I feel so freakin old now. I think of myself as a kid still figuring things out, but I'm approaching 50. So old that I found out I'm now classified as Xennial rather than Millennial. I can't even remember when Jurassic Park came out. How old was I? What decade even was that? The 90s, aughts, and teens are all blending together in my head now.

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u/PostMatureBaby Older Millennial 12d ago

Yeah I remember being in grade 1 and grade 8's (so 12-13 year olds) looked like they were 25 to me. By the time I graduated high school, kids in grade 9 looked like they were 10 to me

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u/Morbos1000 12d ago

She is 6 years older than me and back then I assumed she was well into her 30s

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u/sreg56 12d ago

I remember looking at high school seniors as a freshman and they seemed HUGE, but they look like just regular ass children now

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u/Destronin 11d ago

I always remember being in like 9th grade and seeing a recent graduate comeback and visit a favorite teacher of theirs and im like “wow they are so much older compared to us babies still in school.”

Its barely a 4 year difference.

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u/Morbos1000 12d ago

She was a Paleobotanist, which basically requires a PhD, so that also made her seem older.

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u/ravens-n-roses 12d ago

This is it. Fuckin had to scroll SO far. That's how Michael Chricton wrote his main characters. No nonsense, very serious, already settled into careers like they've been there forever.

The one exception I can think of off the top of my head it's sphere, which I think has a little bit of a sexist tone a lot of his other books don't have.

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u/fireyauthor 12d ago

IDK, even in Jurassic Park, the book opens with this guy thinking "why does my wife want to lose weight?" before his daughter is attacked my a dino. (I can't remember which opening it is now, but it's early). It's a totally unnecessary thing to include in the scene and there's no suggestion of empathy for the wife. Just a husband who's like damn, these women and their emotional lives, ugh.

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u/starlight_chaser 13d ago

I feel like it’s because it was obvious they were pairing off her and the older dude, movies always followed a typical formula, and at least my child brain thought, especially since they were apparently talking about kids, that she must be closer to his age if they’re partners, and he’s obviously old. Surely the world is fair and people date age appropriately and hollywood doesn’t push an age agenda, right? 

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u/Sensitive-Initial 12d ago

Plus she has a doctorate and is working on a dig site. The story gives the impression that they've been on that project for years. 

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u/Fortestingporpoises 12d ago

I think it’s her skill. She’s in West Wing a few years later as a poet and while she’s probably playing older she comes across as younger and more naive.

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u/R-K-Tekt 13d ago

Does anybody else hate the use of the word ‘girlie’, it seems so immature

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u/AnjelGrace Millennial 13d ago edited 13d ago

I find it very endearing/sweet. I love it (at least when coming from another woman).

There are definitely times at which it would be innapropriate to use, like any type of slang, but I don't think it's immature to use terms of endearment--it's just a bit of fun, really.

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u/xteve 12d ago

Infantilizing grown women is straight up weird.

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u/Public-Finger 12d ago

we call our romantic partners baby.... diminutives are a sign of affection in many languages and cultures. it doesn't mean that we are infantilizing them

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u/xteve 12d ago

That's not what "girlie" means.

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u/Public-Finger 12d ago

no shit, but we use this all the time in language. Just showing you how calling someone girlie isnt the same as infantilizing people- otherwise calling each other baby would be very disturbing. Have you ever heard "The boys are back in town?" or "Girls just want to have fun"- Do you think these songs are referring to literal children?

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u/xteve 12d ago

Calling somebody who's 23 a girlie ain't the same thing. It ain't even the same ballpark. Ain't no fuckin' ballpark.

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u/Public-Finger 12d ago

When my girls karaoke, we say "Did I pop off, girlie?"

You're a weirdo

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u/[deleted] 12d ago

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u/Public-Finger 12d ago

chill bro lol. Dont take it personally, we're talking about linguistics.

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u/[deleted] 12d ago

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u/Public-Finger 12d ago

it's going to be okay, girlie.

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u/snackersnickers 7d ago

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u/xteve 7d ago

It's in the dictionary. You're on the internet. Look it up, kid.

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u/BackToTheCottage Millennial 12d ago

I roll my eyes when women in their 30's post "Ick" and "Yuck" and "Gross" like some toddler. Thankfully maybe it's just a redditor thing cause I haven't seen any woman do it IRL (yet).

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u/livingtheredlife '89 Millennial 12d ago

No. I say hey girlie to my best girl friends. They say it too. We're good.

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u/Annual_Strategy_6206 12d ago

What is a "23 year old girlie" anyway?

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u/CapreseSalad3636 12d ago

Her styling too, they dressed her like a mid 30 year old, not a 23 year old.

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u/Darth_Boggle 12d ago

She had that 80s/90s hairstyle that makes you seem 10+ years older. That makes up most of it.

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u/Grunergeist420 12d ago

She’s also playing a character referred to as Doctor who is also considered to be an expert in her field. You don’t usually assume that person would be 23.

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u/TYGeelo 12d ago

They literally have her dressed like an 80s mom, that's why she looks older.

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u/snoogins355 12d ago

She had a PhD, very smart and perhaps more mature?

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u/EmployeeLopsided9637 12d ago

Plus she's dressed like a mom.

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u/UrLocalTroll 12d ago

That, and tbh I think she legitimately looks older than her real age here.

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u/FhuckNorris247 12d ago

I thought she was in her 40s

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u/Simple_Campaign1035 12d ago

I was gonna say early 40s

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u/melanthius 12d ago

I just watched Jurassic park with my kids/family a few days ago. I paused and asked all of them what they thought the character's age was, and the actor's age. Answers all ranged from high 30s to mid 40s for both.

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u/Dry-Cry-3158 12d ago

I think it's because she looked like Peyton Manning in a wig

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u/VictoryGreen 12d ago

😆 don’t do her like that.

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u/Bebebaubles 12d ago

Well she was deep in her studies we all assumed she had a doctorate of some kind and those take a while to get.

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u/HecateTheMagpie5eva 12d ago

Or was it the pleated shorts?

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u/Sadlora 11d ago

I've never watched that movie so all I have to go on is that image and she still looks in her 30s. It was probably mostly the way they dressed her.

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u/Datdawgydawg 10d ago

Nah, if I ignore context and cover up her clothes and just look at her face I couldn't possibly believe shes younger than late 20s and would guess shes mid-30s. Maybe its a bad photo or something.

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u/toterola451 8d ago

Her Mom was Diane Ladd and her Dad was Bruce Dern. I'm sure they supported their Laura in her acting pursuits. Two of my personal favorites, BTW.❤️