Streaming has accelerated this evolution. Platforms like Netflix, Apple TV+, and Hulu are data-driven. Their metrics reveal that audiences over 50 (a demographic with disposable income and time) want to see themselves on screen. Grace and Frankie ran for seven seasons not despite its septuagenarian leads, but because of them. The Kominsky Method and Hacks (with the brilliant Jean Smart) prove that generational conflict is funnier and sharper when the older generation is allowed to be wrong, horny, and ambitious.
(74) remains the North Star, but even she has evolved. Her turn as the Miranda Priestly-esque aunt in Only Murders in the Building or the fading rock star in Ricki and the Flash shows a willingness to play with vanity and vulnerability.