The concept is observable in teen dramas such as Glee, Gossip Girl, and Pretty Little Liars where adults are cast to play teenage characters.
[2] Canadian teen drama franchise Degrassi is often noted and praised for being one of the few major exceptions to the trope within the genre (along with Skins[4]), casting most of its actors age-appropriately.
These commonly include accusations of unrealistic beauty standards, negative body image, low self-esteem, and general mental health problems, especially in regard to one's self-perception.
[4][9] A clinical psychologist, Barbara Greenberg, told Teen Vogue that casting twenty-year-old actors for the roles of high-school students can worsen the struggles of adolescents, stating "It can give the message that they’re supposed to look good all the time", adding "That leads to all kinds of body-image and social-comparison issues".
[12][13][14] Outcry from the Parents Television Council, along with numerous companies pulling their advertising from the program,[15][16][17][18] led to the series being canceled after one season of ten episodes.