How Much Older Gracie Is Than Joe (& How It Compares To Julianne Moore & Charles Melton)

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• May December portrays a 23-year age gap between Gracie and Joe, similar to the real-life story of Mary Kay Letourneau and Vili Fualaau.
• The film premiered at Cannes and received critical acclaim, with a release on Netflix. It is expected to generate buzz during awards season.
• Julianne Moore, who plays Gracie, is 30 years older than co-star Charles Melton, but this doesn’t change the impact or framing of the real-life story. Natalie Portman, 42, stars as Elizabeth in her 30s.

The age gap between Gracie and Joe May December closely resembles the true-life story of Mary Kay Letourneau and Vili Fualaau. The visually stunning and thematically challenging new film stars Julianne Moore (Still Alice, Boogie Nights) as Gracie Atherton, Charles Melton (Riverdale) as Joe Yoo, and Natalie Portman (Black Swan) as Elizabeth Berry. Vili and Mary Kay were involved in an international scandal when their illicit relationship made headlines in the late 1990s, resulting in a maximum prison sentence for Mary Kay on a charge of second-degree child rape.

The May December cast also features portrayals of Gracie’s two families and children from her two marriages, including her ex-husband Tom Atherton. The film originally premiered at the Cannes Film Festival in May 2023 to critical acclaim. The film also screened at the New York Film Festival in September and began playing in select theaters in November 2023. The Todd Haynes (Carol, Safe) film is currently streaming on Netflix and should generate some buzz come awards season.

Gracie Is 23 Years Older Than Joe In May December

Gracie Atherton is 23 years older than Joe Yoo in May December. The fictional couple began their illicit sexual relationship when Joe was thirteen years old and was transitioning between sixth and seventh grade. Joe got a job at a pet store through Gracie, who was 36 years old at the time. This indicates that there was a clear 23-year age gap that was known between the two characters, especially since Gracie was once Joe’s school teacher.

The age gap is obviously not the worst or illegal part of Gracie and Joe’s relationship. The dramatized portrayal in May December closely resembles how Mary Kay and Vili started their relationship in real life. They had first engaged in sexual activity during the summer of 1996 and had two children in 1997 and 1998 while Mary Kay was serving a seven and a half year prison sentence. The two got married in 2005 and got divorced in 2019.

Julianne Moore Is 30 Years Older Than Charles Melton In Real Life

Julianne Moore, 62, is 30 years older than her co-star Charles Melton, 32. The central point of the age gap between Joe and Gracie is felt in May December, although literally speaking, the age gap between Moore and Melton is 7 years larger than the true story it is based on. This fact really doesn’t change anything in regard to the film and does not significantly alter or frame the real-life story of Mary Kay and Vili in any way. Natalie Portman, who mirrors Moore’s Gracie throughout May December as an actress in her 30s, is 42 years old at the time of writing.

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  May December

  Release Date:

  2023-12-01

  Director:

  Todd Haynes

  Cast:

  Natalie Portman, Julianne Moore, Charles Melton

  Rating:

  R

  Runtime:

  113 Minutes

  Genres:

  Drama, Romance

  Writers:

  Samy Burch, Alex Mechanik

  Studio(s):

  Gloria Sanchez Productions, Killer Films, MountainA

  Distributor(s):

  Netflix