Looks can be deceiving, it’s sometimes hard to discern exactly how old an actor, athlete or musician is just by watching them on the television.
Over the years many people have been left bemused after learning the surprising age of their favourite stars, but what’s more striking is just how different A-listers have appeared at the very same age.
Just a couple of weeks ago, thousands were stunned after casting their eye upon a comparison between former Bond actor Sean Connery and the baby-faced Thomas Brodie-Jones at 34.
And there are a host of photos of stars who it’s almost implausible are the same age still yet to be unearthed, until now.
So, from a fresh-faced Tom Holland to Tom Selleck without his iconic bushy moustache, let’s take a look at some of the best.
Tom Holland and Tom Selleck (29)
At the age of 29, a fresh-faced Tom Selleck (pictured in the The Wide World of Mystery in 1974) looked much older than ‘adorable’ Spider-Man actor Tom Holland (pictured in January 2024) at the same age
One actor with a striking baby-face is Zendaya‘s boyfriend Tom Holland.
The much-loved British movie star, 29, rose to fame playing Peter Parker in Spider-Man: Homecoming and Spider-Man: Far from Home.
In a shocking development this week he was touted for the part of James Bond, according to Variety, in a update which left many supporters bemused.
The fresh-faced star was dubbed too ‘adorable’ for the role – ‘Tom Holland as James Bond is like making a James Bond kids movie’, one fan quipped.
Indeed, it is almost impressive that Tom ‘could still pass for a high school senior,’ as one fan wrote, at the age of 29 when you compare him to A-listers of years gone by.
Take iconic American actor Tom Selleck, now 80, for example, who even before he grew his iconic bushy moustache looked far older at the same age.
Prior to his days as the curly-haired Thomas Magnum PI or Richard Burke in Friends, a clean-shaven Tom appeared in a host of television shows and movies in the 1970s.
But the lack of beard didn’t make Selleck look any younger, as even in a fresh-faced photo of him at the age of 29 Tom had the rugged appearance of a man much older.
Wayne Rooney and Cristiano Ronaldo (38)
At 22 and 23, Wayne Rooney and Cristiano Ronaldo were arguably at the peak of their powers as they led Manchester United to European glory in 2008
Rooney looked a far-cry from his playing days as he lined up for a charity game at Old Trafford last summer at the aged after Ronaldo netted a whopping 44 goals in a season for Al Nassr at the same age
At 22 and 23, Rooney and Ronaldo were arguably at the peak of their powers as they led Manchester United to European glory in 2008.
But some 17 years later and the physical differences between the pair are stark.
While Ronaldo continues to defy the odds at the age of 40 playing for both Portugal and Saudi League club Al Nassr, his old teammate Rooney is appearing in charity games having called time on his career in 2021.
After seemingly enjoying his first couple years of retirement, the former England striker lined up for a Man United Legends XI at Old Trafford last summer sporting some grey hairs and a slightly more out-of-shape physique than during his playing days.
It came the summer after Cristiano had just netted a whopping 44 goals for his new club Al Nassr, despite being a year older than Wayne.
And it seems even Ronaldo himself noticed the difference between him and his old teammate as they neared 40, telling Piers Morgan in a bombshell interview that Rooney is ‘jealous of him’.
Asked about Rooney’s criticism of him following his return to Manchester United, Ronaldo told Piers: ‘Probably (it’s jealousy). Probably – because he finished his career in his 30s. I’m still playing at a high level, I’m not going to say that I’m better looking than him, which is true!’
And Just Like That and The Golden Girls (50s)
In series one of The Golden Girls, despite looking rather like pensioners, Dorothy (left) and Rose (centre top) were 55 while Blanche (right) was even younger in her early 50s
And Just Like That’s main characters Miranda (Cynthia Nixon), Charlotte (Kristin Davis) and Carrie (Sarah Jessica Parker) (pictured left to right) are all too in their 50s, leaving The Golden Girls fans in disbelief
Following the death of Betty White at the age of 99 in 2021, discussions began about the ages of the cast of The Golden Girls.
In particular, fans were left shocked after comparing the ages of Rose (Betty White), Blanche (Rue McClanahan) and Dorothy (Bea Arthur) to the leading ladies of And Just Like That, a HBO revival series of Sex and the City.
In series one of The Golden Girls, despite looking rather like pensioners, Dorothy and Rose were 55 while Blanche was even younger in her early 50s.
After watching Miranda (Cynthia Nixon), Charlotte (Kristin Davis) and Carrie (Sarah Jessica Parker) of And Just Like That – all too in their 50s – viewers couldn’t get their head around the fact that they were all portraying characters of the same ages.
Fans took to X to express their surprise, writing: ‘Watching a Season 1 episode of The Golden Girls
One X user wrote: ‘Watching a Season 1 episode of The Golden Girls, and Rose’s age was just revealed to be 55. This unsettles me. This is Charlotte’s age on And Just Like That… we have reached the convergence’,
‘The fact that the sex and the city characters are the same age as the golden girls characters blows my mind a little bit’,
‘The main characters in the first season of Golden Girls are younger than in the current Sex and The City (53/44 in GG and 54’55 in And Just Like That!) Amazing how different our view of women at that age is now’.
Tobey Maguire and Tommy Lee Jones (50)
Tobey Maguire turned 50 this year, but the baby-faced star looks far younger than the stern Tommy Lee Jones at the same age
In his final appearance as Peter Parker in Spider-Man 3, Tobey was 27 but supporters had no qualms with him playing a character 12 years his junior thanks to his youthful-looking face
Tommy Lee Jones has regularly played characters older than himself – Agent K in Men In Black was in his 60s
It seems Spider-Man producers are a fan of a baby-face, with the first actor to portray the adored superhero being Tobey Maguire, who bagged the coveted role in 2002 at the age of 22.
In his final appearance as Peter Parker in Spider-Man 3, Tobey was 27 but supporters had no qualms with him playing a character 12 years his junior thanks to his youthful-looking face.
He turned 50 this year, but you wouldn’t know it, as despite growing a hint of facial hair over the years the actor looks as healthy and young as ever.
That’s in juxtaposition to Men In Black star Tommy Lee Jones, now 78, who was rocking wrinkles and some grey hairs at 50 when the film released in 1997.
In fact Lee Jones has regularly played characters older than himself – Agent K in Men In Black was in his 60s and Ty Cobb was decades older than Tommy was in the 1990s.
One fan one Reddit amusingly quipped: ‘Has Tommy Lee Jones ever not looked like a stern old guy?’
Christopher Lloyd and Brad Pitt (60)
Comparing Christopher Lloyd (pictured left in Back To The Future IV) at 60 to Brad Pitt, who it may surprise you hit the milestone late last year, offers quite the comparison (pictured at the F1:The Movie premiere in London earlier this month)
Pictured alongside fellow A-lister Tom Cruise – rocking a longer brown haircut than usual – the pair seemed in great health with no doubt plenty more box office movies still in the tank (pictured together at the F1: The Movie premiere in London)
Appearing alongside the film’s star Michael J. Fox in the first Back To The Future movie in 1985, Christopher Lloyd became a fan-favourite portraying Dr. Emmett ‘Doc’ Brown in the forthcoming sequels.
But fans found it hard to pin down exactly how old the doctor was in the first and proceedings films, with his wild grey hair and and wrinkles obvious to see.
The Back To The Future books, however, revealed that the character was 65 years old in the first movie, meaning a 46-year-old Christopher was playing a doctor some 20 years his senior.
Six movies later and a balding 60-year-old Lloyd was still portraying the doc in 1999 but with – of course – a slightly less wild haircut.
Comparing Christopher at 60 to Brad Pitt, who it may surprise you hit the milestone late last year, offers quite the comparison.
Harking back to his noughties days with a new buzz cut, Brad looked not a day over 50 as he stepped out in London a couple of weeks ago for a premiere of his new F1: The Movie film.
Pictured alongside fellow A-lister Tom Cruise – rocking a longer brown haircut than usual – the pair seemed in great health with no doubt plenty more box office movies still in the tank.
Christie Brinkley and Donatella Versace (70)
Christie Brinkley (pictured left in 2024), now 71, spoke about embracing her wrinkles following her 70th birthday, something Donatella Versace (pictured right in 2025) seemingly hasn’t done
She’s long been thought of as one of the most beautiful women on the planet and has even been ranked in the top 10 supermodels in history.
And age doesn’t even seem to be catching up to Christie Brinkley, who still looks as sensational as ever after celebrating her 70th birthday last year.
Following celebrations, Christie opened up about ageing in an interview with People, telling the publication she’s accepting her ‘wrinkles’.
‘Sometimes when people get older, and they overdo it, they can look waxy and – I don’t know what the word is – preserved or something,’ she said.
‘I want a little life to show on my face you know? I want to accept certain wrinkles. That’s the way I’m approaching aging.’
One celebrity who seemingly hasn’t taking a similar approach however is Donatella Versaca, who turned 70 in early May.
She’s sparked plastic surgery rumours on a number of occasions over the years after undergoing dramatic makeovers.
Donatella was in attendance at the 2025 Met Gala just a month or so ago, showing off her blonde locks days after she celebrated her 70th birthday.
Dennis Waterman and John Thaw
The late Dennis Waterman (left) and John Thaw (right) starred side-by-side for three years in The Sweeney, playing two ‘hard-edged’ detectives of the Metropolitan Police pursuing criminals across London (pictured in the series)
You’ll likely be surprised to hear however that – despite their ageing appearances and occasionally grey hair – Thaw and Waterman began filming for the series in the mid-70s when they were just 33 and 24 respectively (pictured in the series)
The late Dennis Waterman and John Thaw starred side-by-side for three years in The Sweeney, playing two ‘hard-edged’ detectives of the Metropolitan Police pursuing criminals across London.
Thaw appeared as the no-nonsense Jack Regan from The Flying Squad, while Dennis Waterman impressed as his chummy partner, Detective Sergeant George Carter.
You’ll likely be surprised to hear however that – despite their ageing appearances and occasionally grey hair – Thaw and Waterman began filming for the series in the mid-70s when they were just 33 and 24 respectively.
Their time playing the characters finished in 1978 with the second spin-off movie of the series titled The Sweeney 2, with Waterman 27 and Thaw 36.
John Thaw sadly died in October 2002 of throat cancer almost exactly a year after his final episode playing Inspector Morse aired.
Dennis passed away aged 74 in 2022 after a two-year battle in secret with lung cancer.
Thomas Brodie-Sangster and Sir Sean Connery (34)
Thomas Brodie-Sangster, now 35, and the late great Sean Connery went viral just a couple of weeks ago after photos of the pair when they were 34 surfaced
Actor Thomas shot to fame in Love Actually when he was just 13 and has gone on to star in hits like The Maze Runner series and Nanny McPhee
Connery, who became well known for a having a rugged lifestyle during his Bond era, died at the age of 90 in October 2020
Thomas and the late great Sir Sean went viral just a couple of weeks ago after photos of the pair when they were 34 surfaced.
Having shot to fame at the age of just 13 in the iconic Love Actually, Thomas has become known in the world of acting for his baby-face.
While Connery bagged the part of James Bond in the 1960s thanks to his rugged yet handsome appearance.
In fact, such was Sean’s older-looking exterior that he played Indiana Jones’s father in The Last Crusade when he was just 12 years Harrison Ford’s senior.
Sharing a comparison between Connery and Brodie-Sangster at 34, UNILAD dropped supporters’ jaws in late-June.
The post was captioned: ‘Both of these guys are 34 in these photos – and yep, we’re doing a double take too.
‘On the left: the timeless swagger of a mid-century icon. On the right: a modern-day star who’s somehow looked 17 for the last 20 years.
‘Same age, completely different vibes.’
In the comments fans couldn’t believe it, posting: ‘That’s a perfect visual representation of how I saw people in their thirties in my twenties, vs how I see people in their thirties in my forties!’
‘Sean Connery smoked, drunk heavily and lived life roughly, the Nanny McPhee lad did not.’
‘I’m not even surprised because these days the living conditions are way better and health care is more advanced where as Sir Sean Connery was born in the times of the wild wild west where if you broke your arm you had to walk it off.’
