"These days kids get paid enough that they probably don't need to work too much. The problem is when the person is old enough that they need to work to make a living, and the only thing that they know how to do is what they are already washed up in"
About this Quote
The blunt phrase “washed up in” is doing most of the work. It’s not just about aging out of cute roles; it’s the humiliation of being tethered to an identity the market has already marked down. Entertainment sells youth as a product, then treats the person attached to it as obsolete inventory. Olsen’s subtext is that the industry doesn’t merely fail to prepare young performers for adulthood - it actively disincentivizes preparation. Why invest in training, education, or a second craft when the checks are arriving and adults around you are telling you this is your gift?
There’s also an implied accusation aimed offstage: parents, managers, studios, and audiences who love the story of the prodigy but don’t stick around for the midlife resume rewrite. The quote works because it flips the usual envy of rich kid actors into something closer to dread. It’s a warning about a peculiar kind of precarity: being financially ahead early, then professionally stranded later, with your only marketable skill tied to a version of yourself you can’t access anymore.
Quote Details
| Topic | Reinvention |
|---|---|
| Source | Help us find the source |
| Cite |
Citation Formats
APA Style (7th ed.)
Olsen, Susan. (2026, January 16). These days kids get paid enough that they probably don't need to work too much. The problem is when the person is old enough that they need to work to make a living, and the only thing that they know how to do is what they are already washed up in. FixQuotes. https://fixquotes.com/quotes/these-days-kids-get-paid-enough-that-they-123121/
Chicago Style
Olsen, Susan. "These days kids get paid enough that they probably don't need to work too much. The problem is when the person is old enough that they need to work to make a living, and the only thing that they know how to do is what they are already washed up in." FixQuotes. January 16, 2026. https://fixquotes.com/quotes/these-days-kids-get-paid-enough-that-they-123121/.
MLA Style (9th ed.)
"These days kids get paid enough that they probably don't need to work too much. The problem is when the person is old enough that they need to work to make a living, and the only thing that they know how to do is what they are already washed up in." FixQuotes, 16 Jan. 2026, https://fixquotes.com/quotes/these-days-kids-get-paid-enough-that-they-123121/. Accessed 10 Feb. 2026.
