Emmy Rossum, 36, defends playing 27-year-old Tom Holland's mom in a new Apple TV+ series: 'It makes sense when I read the script'

• Emmy Rossum has defended her casting as the mother of Tom Holland's character in "The Crowded Room."
• The "Shameless" actor is just nine years older than the Marvel star at 36. He just turned 27.

Emmy Rossum has defended her casting as the mother of Tom Holland's character in the upcoming psychological thriller "The Crowded Room."

While Rossum, best known for her role in "Shameless" is 36 years old, Marvel star Holland recently turned 27, meaning the two share just a nine-year age difference.

Speaking to Entertainment Tonight about the series, which will premiere Friday on Apple TV+, Rossum said that she didn't think there was any issue with her playing a mom to an actor who is less than a decade younger than her.

"It makes sense when I read the script," she told the outlet. "Candy's a super young mom, she's almost a child in her own right when she becomes pregnant at age 16. You watch as I age from 25 to 35, which is actually younger than I am now."

Given Rossum's comments, it appears that Holland is supposed to be portraying someone aged around 19 to 20 in the series, while Rossum at 36 is much closer in age to her character.

Rossum added that she "was so taken with the series" and "loved all my scenes, especially with young Danny," referring to Zachary Golinger, who plays a younger version of Holland's character.

"Our relationship was so beautiful and so I knew everything that we had that I had lost in the scenes with Tom," she said.

Rossum went on to say that the role "brings up a lot" of feelings for her as she discovered she was pregnant with her youngest child while shooting the series.

The "Day After Tomorrow" star shares a 2-year-old daughter and 2-month-old son with film producer Sam Esmail, who she married in 2017.

She said: "Finding out during our last couple episodes that I was pregnant with my son, who was born eight weeks ago, it brings up a lot about our imperfections as people, the unrealistic expectations that we place on ourselves, and how we are really just a product of our own upbringings."

"I think the show has a lot to say about love and empathy and understanding of those who are different than we are."

"The Crowded Room" also stars Amanda Seyfried, Sasha Lane, Will Chase, Lior Raz, Laila Robins, and Henry Eikenberry. It tells the story of a young man who is arrested following his involvement in a shooting in New York City in 1979.