Maggie Gyllenhaal Told 37 Is "Too Old" to Play 55-Year-Old Man's Love Interest

Most people would consider an 18-year age difference between two people to be fine. A bit too much, even. But not in Hollywood!

Maggie Gyllenhaal says she was recently told that, at 37 years old, she was "too old to play the lover of man who was 55" in a movie, according to The Wrap.

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"It was astonishing to me," she told the site. "It made me feel bad, and then it made me feel angry, and then it made me laugh."

Hollywood's problems with women have been pretty consistent over the years: Sexism, ageism, and racism have affected actresses for decades. Just this week, the ACLU announced it was launching a petition in response to dismal reports about the lack of female directors.

Vulture put out a series of infographics a couple of years ago that show how leading men in Hollywood grow older, but their on-screen counterparts stay about the same age.

For her part, Gyllenhaal is taking the insult in stride.

"A lot of actresses are doing incredible work right now, playing real women, complicated women," The Honourable Woman star told The Wrap. "I don't feel despairing at all. And I'm more looking with hope for something fascinating."

She declined to say what movie she had been going for, so just to be on the safe side, boycott any movie with an older man sleeping with a much younger woman. (...So, all of them, basically.)

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