‘Thirty and flirty and thriving’ – 13 Going on 30’s most iconic quote has become a standard birthday message for anyone celebrating that special day.
But as the movie turns 20, where do we find the 13-year-olds who were fed that message back in 2004 in their lives? And what about the 30-year-olds of 2024?
13 Going on 30 is a rom-com that inspires intense and fond nostalgia, even if it’s shocking to realise two decades have passed since we first met Jennifer Garner’s Jenna Rink, a tweenager who gets trapped in her adult body after an embarrassing birthday party.
That means it’s also been 20 years since the group dance number to Michael Jackson’s Thriller, 20 years since Jenna was horrified by seeing her New York Rangers boyfriend’s ‘thingy’ – and 20 years since you forgot Andy Serkis plays her camp magazine editor boss.
Also, it’s probably 20 years since you developed a soft spot for now four-time Oscar nominee Mark Ruffalo, playing one of the *nicest guys* in cinema history, Matty. (He built you your own dream house Jenna, jeez what more do you want?!)
It hits differently rewatching the film as an adult, although luckily it holds up pretty well – helped by a game cast, led by a pitch-perfect Garner – as well as a sweet script, fantastic soundtrack and the exciting backdrop of New York City.
However, the elephant in the room is how much the reality of being in your 30s now differs from what the film suggested was in store for its 13-year-old audience members back then.
It doesn’t appear to get in the way of fans’ enjoyment too much, but it’s quite stark to observe the contrast between 30-year-old Jenna’s life in the movie and what is actually on offer to those in a similar position today.
Namely, her lifestyle in the Big Apple sees her living in a swanky apartment on Fifth Avenue and working as an executive editor at a glossy magazine with her own personal assistant. Sound workable to you? I didn’t think so…
Myth vs truth: The realities of renting in 2024
‘Blissfully unaware of the reality of house prices and complexities of adult life, younger me watching 13 Going on 30 dreamed of having that busy, luxury lifestyle, taking in the views of the city from my penthouse apartment,’ admits 33-year-old Shal, who was 13 when she first watched the film.
However, Jenna’s living situation is laughably dismissed as ‘a myth’ by Rishma Dosani, Metro.co.uk’s very own 33-year-old US assistant entertainment editor who is currently living a real journalist’s life in New York.
In 2024, it’s fair to say the dream doesn’t quite match up to reality.
‘How she managed to afford such a luxurious Fifth Avenue apartment – with a LIFT no less – on a journalist’s salary is wild to me,’ she points out.
‘In today’s economy, she would definitely be skipping over the rats with her laundry on her way up to a stupidly high walk-up – and paying through the nose for the pleasure.’
Jenna’s address is shared as 61 Fifth Ave in the film, putting her right near Union Square. A newly constructed 10-storey ‘boutique condominium’ was built there in real life in 2013, with the rental prices quote as starting from $32,000 per month for a three-bed apartment. And one a similar size sold for $17,500,000.
Now, Jenna’s high-ceilinged apartment is only shown as having one bedroom, but it has a big open-plan living space – room for a dining area, living room, and a sizable kitchen – however, I don’t need to tell you that even rent a quarter of that cost is far, far beyond even the most handsomely paid American journalist.
In fact, that eye-watering price tag is beyond the vast majority of workers in their 30s, and likely ever, with New York City one of the most expensive rental markets in the world, ahead of London.
So if you’re languishing in London’s zone six with a 70-minute commute, or making it work in zone three with a box room and a wardrobe out on the landing – it could be worse!
Myth vs truth: The lies of Jenna’s work/lifestyle balance
‘The huge New York City apartment and also going to a work party until late and still being sprightly at work the next day as a 30-year-old is super unrealistic,’ shares Josie Copson, a senior TV reporter at Metro.co.uk, who lives in London and has just celebrated reaching that age.
Jenna is seen going to a party to promote her magazine, Poise, by limousine, at 8:30pm and later comments about how exciting it is being out at 11pm on ‘a school night’ – which is before the event even kicks off properly.
This might be her 13-year-old self talking as she knocks back the pina coladas, but any event starting after 6:30pm on a work night would fill most workers outside their 20s with dread, especially when journalist shifts routinely start at 6am if you work at a news-focused title.
Once you’re in your 30s, these events have to be sorted in advance, around a schedule of good sleep, if you want to actually function in your role for the rest of the week. The fact Jenna just skips off for the day, minutes into her morning senior staff meeting at Poise (having already arrived late) to go and find Matty to help her, and there are no baffled calls asking what she’s doing during the rest of her work day? Preposterous for a journalist, and – to be honest – any profession.
What about in general, what 13 Going on 30 was suggesting could be achievable to us all at that hallowed ‘adult’ age, given the state of the world as it is today, post-recession, in a cost-of-living crisis and with property prices through the roof?
‘I think I was wildly unrealistic about what life would be like and about the lifestyle I wanted at 30,’ says Shal – and she was certainly influenced by aspects of Jenna’s life.
‘I remember at 13 wanting that high-flying lifestyle with a PA who’d wait on you, being chauffeured around – although with the amount I donate to Uber, maybe this has been achieved – and getting dressed up to go to fancy work parties.
‘I neglected to consider there would be work involved to create that.’
Exactly –the trappings of a glamorous job rarely come for free, and as you tick over into your 30s a solid eight hours of sleep is one of the greatest luxuries you can give yourself.
Myth vs truth: The pressure of peers hitting big life milestones – from marriage to parenthood
For others, the thought of turning 30 was daunting more than exciting, likely given the emphasis and pressure society likes to put on ‘goals’ you should work towards – or achieve – by that age.
‘I actually enjoyed being a teenager and so I think if anything the film made adulthood look even more scary!’ says Josie.
‘30 is a long way off being 13 and so much happens in those years, but also – you are still young. Realistically, you’ve only had a fully developed frontal lobe for about five years. If you went to university, you’ve only been in the adult world for nine years.
‘You’re still figuring it out – and probably always will be.’
For Rishma, she jokes that 30 still seems old and a long way off even now, let alone as a teenager – ‘and the curse of a Covid birthday means I’ll probably still feel 29 forever!’
And at 13? ‘I used to think 21 was unthinkably old so I didn’t even have the courage to figure out what my 30s would be like.’
For the others, they reveal they fell victim to the pressures that women born in the 1990s have long been under – namely to get married and have kids.
‘I think I thought what everyone thought, that I’d be married with one or two babies. I wonder if teenagers now think that now?’ ponders Josie. ‘I wanted to be a journalist so I’m glad I at least did that!’
‘There was definitely the thought that I’d be settled with kids by now and that life would pretty much be set,’ agrees Shal. ‘I think mentally, I forever feel like a child – until I spend time with people who are younger.’
In fairness, this doesn’t form a major part of Jenna’s life in the first go around at being 30, but when she goes back in time to fix the mistake she made by chasing popularity over a real bond with Matty, they are then shown getting married – and moving into the real-life version of Jenna’s dream house. So… very domestic.
Shal now knows it’s the intangible things that she values most in life – ‘friendships, personal growth, a sense of contentment’ – over the more ‘chaotic’ depiction of Jenna’s life.
‘I still would really like a personal chauffeur and personal chef, but I need to find my billionaire hubby for that,’ she jokes. ‘It used to be a millionaire husband when I was 13, but I have had to adjust for inflation.’
So what did 13 Going on 30 get right?
Despite the glaring disparities between real life and 13 Going on 30, the film still rings true with certain aspects and has elements that are remembered fondly.
‘I love the frenemy plot with Judy Greer, which is the biggest staple of good noughties movies,’ says Rishma. ‘Plus, the twist that Jenna was actually the one who was the magazine mole!’
Of course, the Thriller routine also gets its moment here too as Shal’s highlight of the film.
‘It really made me smile and was particularly heartwarming as it was very reminiscent of my childhood – I’d spend hours learning routines from videos, and I kind of miss doing it. I also thought Mark Ruffalo’s character was pretty dreamy too; I’ve always thought he’s got the kindest eyes.’
Josie’s favourite part is a poignant moment – ‘when she reunites with her parents after her life goes to s**t’.
‘The way you always need your parents, that bit is true. There is nothing like a hug from them to put everything right. She didn’t need to tell them her problems, she just needed to be in their presence for things to start to feel better,’ she shares.
For Josie, she sees 13 Going on 30 as being realistic in how life is ‘baffling at every age’ and sometimes ‘blind optimism’, like Jenna displays for the first two-thirds of the movie, helps her survive.
‘I do like that they are showing Jenna trying to figure out life as a 13-year-old in a 30-year-old’s body because that’s what I feel like I’m doing sometimes!’
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