Dear Gossips,
On the train to work this morning I watched a trailer for an upcoming new Netflix show starring Ted Danson, by showrunner Michael Schur (The Good Place, Parks and Recreation etc), called A Man on the Inside. It’s about a retiree who goes undercover at a retirement home to investigate a theft. And my next thought was that if I had more time, I’d spend it working on a thinkpiece about this thesis: seniors are currently at the center of pop culture instead of being pushed to the margins. Which, like, even talking about this is probably dooming LaineyGossip because this is not a conversation TikTok gives a goddamn about at all, LOL.
There are so many senior characters who are the Main Characters right now. Jean Smart is 73 years and plays Deborah Vance in Hacks, also in her 70s. She is the current Best Comedy Actress Emmy winner. The show is produced by millennials and is popular across demographics, including Gen Z.
Then of course there’s Only Murders in the Building starring Steve Martin, Martin Short, and Selena Gomez. Of course Selena brings a lot of attention to the show, but you’ll note, the central romance on the show features two seniors – it’s Oliver and Loretta, played by Marty and Meryl Streep. And this is the couple everyone is shipping right now.
Speaking of senior romance, over on Shrinking it’s Harrison Ford’s character, Paul, falling in love, reluctantly with Julie (Wendie Malick) who is a f-cking smokeshow. So that’s four fictional examples that I can name off the top of my head and in real life, Cher seems to be everywhere right now, including performing at the Victoria’s Secret fashion show.
Is it just me or are seniors in the pop culture nucleus more right now than they have been in a long time? I mean, of course, we can’t have this conversation about right now and in a long time without mentioning The Golden Girls who were very much the nucleus in their era. A major hit show that continues to attract a new fan base with every generation. I see Golden Girls clips on social media all the time. This, I think, is a good time to segue to one of my favourite Golden Girls scenes ever:
In the age of streaming, the descendants of The Golden Girls are making their statement. If you’ve read a thinkpiece about this, send it my way. Or if you’re going to write one, send it my way when you’re done.
Yours in gossip,
Lainey
