They are not a niche genre. They are not a charity case. They are the most exciting demographic in entertainment today, because they have nothing left to prove and everything left to lose.
Cinema, slower to evolve due to higher financial stakes, has finally entered the fray. The 2020s have seen a remarkable run of films where the engine of the story is a woman over 60.
Furthermore, the success is largely concentrated among white women. Actresses of color—Viola Davis (59), Angela Bassett (66), and Sandra Oh (53)—are fighting a double battle against both ageism and a lack of systemic roles that aren't defined by trauma or servitude. The industry has made progress, but intersectional ageism is the next frontier.
But the cinema is changing. The audience is changing. And the gatekeepers, however reluctantly, are being forced to catch up.