Rumours surrounding the casting of Disney’s Prince Charming movie have sparked a debate around age gaps due to stories suggesting that Chris Hemsworth and Daisy Edgar-Jones are being considered for the lead roles.
The film about the titular character from the 1950 animated Cinderella movie, will reportedly be directed by Wonka and Paddington in Peru’s Paul King, with screenwriters Simon Farnaby and Jon Croker.
Variety reports that Thor star Hemsworth, now aged 41, is being lined up for the part of Prince Charming. Meanwhile, The InSneider reports that Disney is keen for Edgar-Jones, 26, best known for her roles in Twisters and Normal People, to play the iconic princess.
Although, at the time of writing, no casting has been officially confirmed, the suggestion that Hemsworth and Edgar-Jones will be cast as love interests, despite there being a 15-year age gap between the pair, has caused some commotion.
Unhappy fans on X/Twitter have spoken out against this casting rumours. “I hope she gets the role, she is an excellent actress. Just change Chris Hemsworth for a younger actor,” wrote one person.
“Why does the prince have to randomly be 45 and the girl be born in 2000?” asked another.
“She’s cast as what? Prince Charming’s controversially young girlfriend??” a third said.
“Wanting to cast a 26-year-old alongside a 41-year-old man ?????? Just get rid of this s***,” demanded a fourth.
This would hardly be the first time that Edgar-Jones has starred opposite a male actor, who is significantly older than her. Although she and Paul Mescal are of a similar age in Normal People, Glen Powell, who she starred in Twisters with, is 10 years older than her.
Although Lee Isaac Chung’s natural disaster movie never showed any romance between the pair, there was a strong insinuation that the characters had feelings for each other, which sparked almost no backlash from viewers.
Age gaps were a more thorny subject in the recent film Miller’s Girl, starring Jenna Ortega, 22, and Martin Freeman, 53.
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The thriller follows a university student, Cairo (Ortega), who embarks on a complicated and inappropriate love affair with her English professor, Jonathan Miller (Freeman).
Following the film’s US release in early February, several viewers expressed discomfort with one particular scene in the movie, which saw Jonathan and Cairo engage in a sexual act.
Responding to the strong online reaction in an interview with The Times, Freeman insisted the movie is “grown-up and nuanced. It’s not saying, ‘Isn’t this great?’”