Unless you were a die-hard Riverdale fan until the end (we see and acknowledge you), then you'd be forgiven for not knowing the name Charles Melton before these last few weeks. Social media has been popping off about the young actor, who recently starred in the gut-wrenching Netflix film May December alongside Hollywood heavyweights Julianne Moore and Natalie Portman. Melton has received near-instant accolades for his breakout performance – he's just received his first Golden Globe nomination and is getting Oscar buzz – a real feat given the roll call of names he starred alongside. So for those still wondering, we're here to answer all your burning questions about who exactly Melton is, and what he's got coming up next.
On his upbringing...
View this post on Instagram
Melton was born on January 4, 1991, in Juneau, Alaska to an American father and Korean mother. He's the eldest of three children (he has two younger sisters), and the family spent much of their adolescence travelling between military bases for his dad's job.
On his career...
View this post on Instagram
Melton cut his teeth with some smaller acting gigs that included guest spots on hit shows like Glee and American Horror Story. But the actor really hit the mainstream in 2017 when he was cast as football star Reggie Mantle in the second season of the CW series Riverdale. The role was a re-cast, given that the series one actor who portrayed Mantle was unable to continue filming due to scheduling conflicts.
Though he called the series finale "bittersweet" and likened his experience over the show's seven seasons to "my Julliard" in a recent interview, the actor has busied himself in a slew of new projects including Natasha Lyonne's series Poker Face and romantic comedy The Sun Is Also A Star, where he starred alongside Yara Shahid.
Then of course, the feature film May December. His quietly powerful part as Joe Yoo, an emotionally stunted young man married his abuser, has caught the eye of critics and fans – recently winning Melton a Gotham Award for his performance, and just recently, receiving his first Golden Globe nomination. The actor has also been getting Oscar buzz for the role – though we'll have to wait another month to see if those rumours prove to be true.
On what's coming up next...
View this post on Instagram
According to his IMDb page, Melton is slated to appear in a film called K-Pop: Lost in America – which is currently in pre-production. But otherwise, Melton said in an interview that the list of artists he wants to work with in future projects “is so long.” We're feeling confident that Melton's got plenty more in store for us. We'll keep you updated as we hear more.
