They used to say that in Hollywood, when an actress got older, first the roles disappeared, then so did she. While leading men were allowed to grow into their salt and pepper hair and crow's feet, women over a certain age were sidelined to matron roles, if they were cast at all. In 1988's Punchline, Sally Field played Tom Hanks’ love interest. In 1994's Forrest Gump, she played his mother. Field is only 10 years older than Hanks.

When Glenn Close, 71, accepted a Golden Globe last month for her role in The Wife, a movie she fought for 14 years to get made, she reflected on how so many women lost themselves at the intersection of sexism and ageism: “I’m thinking of my mom, who really sublimated herself to my father her whole life. And in her eighties she said to me, ‘I feel like I haven’t accomplished anything.’ And it was so not right.” After six Oscar nominations over her 45-year-strong acting career, Close is favored for a Best Actress win at this Sunday’s Academy Awards.

And Close is not alone in claiming hard-won recognition. Her contemporaries are enjoying long overdue visibility in every corner of culture: Nancy Pelosi, 78, is once again the Speaker of the U.S House of Representatives. Cicely Tyson, 94, is on the cover of TIME's “Optimism Issue.” Supermodel Pat Cleveland, now 68, just walked the runways of New York Fashion Week. Tippi Hedren, 89, has a Gucci campaign. Isabella Rossellini, 66, is the face of Lancôme. She had previously been fired at age 43 for being “too old.”

Their presence is more than a corrective to sexism: the talent, humor, and confidence these women bring to their roles is nothing short of awe-inspiring.

So this week, as we count down to the end of awards season, ELLE.com pays tribute to six Hollywood legends: from Michelle Yeoh, who at 56 is the group’s youngest, but whose international career is due for wider appreciation, to Rita Moreno, 87, who says she's most proud of the fact that she's "still employed," as well as Christine Baranski, Debbie Allen, Judith Light, and Jessica Walter. They recount their storied careers, weigh in on #MeToo, and drop the kind of wisdom we could all use right now. To them we say, all hail the queens. To you we say: Watch this space.

NATTH JATURAPAHU