'The Baby-Sitters Club' Cast Members Are All Older Than Their Fictional Counterparts

Most teenagers in movies and on TV are not, in fact, teenagers in real life. These days, that's a given for shows like Riverdale on the CW, wherein the actors are all in their twenties even though they play 16-year-olds.

When it comes to The Baby-Sitters Club on Netflix, the age difference isn't quite as drastic, but the cast is in fact older than the characters they play.

In other teen dramas or even comedies, the point of getting an older actor to portray a teenager on screen has to do with child labor laws. If someone is 18 years of age or older, they can work on set for much longer than a real-life 15-year-old would be able to in the role of a 15-year-old kid.

Luckily, in The Baby-Sitters Club, we don't have 25-year-olds playing junior high school children.

So, how old is the cast of The Baby-Sitters Club? Read on to find out!

Actress Sophie Grace plays Kristy Thomas, the club's president and an all-around activist. In the show, Kristy is supposed to be 13 years old. In real life, Sophie is 15 years old. It's not a huge leap, but it does make the actress a bit more mature and able to take on any serious storylines her character might face in the series.

Like most of the other girls in The Baby-Sitters Club, Claudia Kishi is supposed to be around 13 years old. In real life, Momona Tamada, who plays her, is 15.

Again, it's not a stretch. And producers likely still have plenty of child labor laws to work around to ensure the young actors get fair treatment.

Shay Rudolph plays 13-year-old Stacey McGill in The Baby-Sitters Club. In real life, Shay is 16 years old. Luckily for her, she can pass for her younger character. And as the characters in The Baby-Sitters Club grow up, it will be easier and easier for older actors like Shay to successfully and realistically portray them.

Although Xochitl Gomez played Dawn Schafer in Season 1, Kyndra Sanchez took over in Season 2. And while Dawn is around 12 or 13 in the show, Kyndra is 15 in real life. Kyndra is just old enough to understand some of the issues the show's characters face without being too far removed from where Dawn is in her life.

Malia Baker turns 16 years old in 2022, unlike the character she plays, who is supposed to be around 12 or 13 in The Baby-Sitters Club.

But honestly, for these particular actors, the age difference actually works. It's not impossible to believe that these young actors are a few years younger than they are in real life. And the stories in the show still resonate with people of all ages.

The Baby-Sitters Club takes on all kinds of issues that kids of varying ages face, like transgender acceptance, diabetes, and loss. And who better to help deliver the message than real teenagers who are just a bit more mature than the characters they play?

Watch The Baby-Sitters Club on Netflix.