Charles Meltondidn’t start acting professionally until 2014, opting to drop out of college and move to Los Angeles to pursue a whole new career path. The former high school athlete had been interested in acting but focused on other aspects of his life. He even took a brief detour into modeling before acting, which did land him work as a model in an episode ofGlee.
Since then, Melton hasn’t slowed down one bit. His longest-running role has been playing Reggie Mantle onRiverdalefor six seasons, but his acting roles in both TV and movies move beyond teen dramas as well. He’s proven himself an incredibly versatile performer and even earned award show buzz in 2023 after his star-making turn in the movieMay December.
Note: Charles Melton’s cameo appearances, uncredited work as an extra or model, and roles as himself are not included.
There are several movies and television series that were made exclusively for YouTube when the website was trying to entice more users to its platform. While some, likeCobra Kai, were eventually picked up by Netflix, others weren’t so lucky.The Thinningmovies remain on YouTube as an exclusive for the platform.
The movies are set in a dystopian future in which a school aptitude test determines whether or not adolescents are executed to help with population control.While the movies have some bright rising talent in them, like Melton and Peyton List, they were definitely not the most well-received of YouTube’s content.Part of that is due to the movies also starring social media influencers, like Logan Paul, who didn’t actually have acting experience. With the focus on Paul’s character, many critics were dissatisfied with the movie.
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Dystopian sci-fi shows Earth in desolate, bleak futures. These movies see the world in terrible states, providing a warning for what could be.
Secret Headquarters
Cast
Secret Headquarters is a superhero comedy film that was released exclusively on Paramount+ in 2022. The movie centers on a group of friends who accidentally discover a superhero headquarters underneath their home. Owen Wilson stars as Jack Kincaid (aka The Guard) alongside Michael Peña, Walker Scobell, Jesse Williams, and Keith L. Williams.
Secret Headquartersis one of the few movies to have a straight-to-Paramount+ release. The movie takes the sense of adventure that comes with a superhero story and gives it to the audience from a new perspective as a young kid (Walker Scobell) finds a superhero hideout under his house with his friends.
Charles Melton doesn’t have a huge role in this movie as his character actually works for the villain of the story. Of the villains though, he’s one of themost likable inSecret Headquarters. That’s because Hawaii is funny, though not particularly clever, and he has a moral code that means he’s not willing to hurt kids. That, of course, means he doesn’t last long as a henchman or in the movie.
Secret Headquartersreceived mixed reviews from critics when it was released, but it’s definitely a fun one for younger audience members.Melton’s part is just a little too short-lived to rank it any higher among his projects.
…critics didn’t have any love for the movie’s ending…
Underdogs in sportstend to make for great movies. Unfortunately forHeart of Champions, many audience members and critics didn’t have any love for the movie’s ending, which caused it to slip a bit in the rankings.
The movie follows a group of rowers during the 1999 season when an Army veteran takes over as coach. The team has been dysfunctional since they came in dead last at the National Championships, and the hope is that this new coach can teach them how to better work together.
Despite the movie not having the best ending, the cast is pretty fantastic.Michael Shannan is the coach while Charles Melton, Alexander Ludwig, and Alex MacNicoll are the rowesr in leadership positions on the team. Everyone pulls their weight in the movie, even if it didn’t come together quite as well as the producers might have wanted it to.
History of the World Part II
History of the World Part II is the unexpected sequel to the original film created in 1981 by writer/director Mel Brooks. Though initially created as a joking subtitle, Mel Brooks decided to revisit the idea, and Part II will be a modern continuation of the satirical world history anthology. Now, as a mini-series on Hulu, the rotating ensemble cast will take on the roles of prominent figures throughout time to tell comedic revisions of history.
History of the World: Part IIis a series that acts as a sequel to the Mel Brooks movie. Though it got mostly favorable reviews from critics, it wasn’t quite as well received as the movie, which might be due in part to the popularity of other shows likeDrunk History.
The series acts as a sketch comedy show by retelling the stories of major world events. The series doesn’t move chronologically, but instead, bounces around through different time periods.Melton appears in the sketches that see a Jewish family living and working in Russia. His character actually meets the lost Princess Anastasia and falls in love with her.
Melton’s part in the show doesn’t feel like some of the most far-fetched of the plots, but there is definitely an absurdist quality to it.With Melton having done so much heavy work in dramas though, a satire is a welcome change for the actor.
American Horror Stories
The creators of American Horror Story reunite to launch American Horror Stories, a horror anthology series created for FX and Hulu. Centering on a new, unique horror story each episode, AHS follows various new characters through each episode as they experience their own terrifying tales, often including the supernatural.
American Horror Storiesis an anthology series from the same team behindAmerican Horror Story. That means there’s a lot of freedom for standalone stories in every episode and the chance for cast members to play multiple roles. So far, Melton has only appeared in one episode as Wyatt.
Wyatt is a character in “The Naughty List,” an episode that explores the idea of Santa Claus through a horror lens.Wyatt lives alongside three other men in The Bro House in which the young men all appear on social media and prank one another. They’re also all on Santa’s naughty list and are systematically killed by him.
It’s a fun concept for an episode, and there are probably plenty of fans wondering whyAmerican Horror Stories(orStory) hasn’t done a holiday-themed season yet instead of just a single episode.
American Horror Story
American Horror Story is a Horror Anthology series created by Ryan Murphy and Brad Falchuk. The franchise has seen stars like Connie Britton, Jessica Lange, Denis O’Hare, Zachary Quinto, Evan Peters, and Dylan McDermott. Each season follows a new premise and spans an array of horror genres like witches, ghosts, serial killers, and more.
Long before Melton appeared inAmerican Horror Storiesfor a single episode, he also appeared in two episodes ofAmerican Horror Story. Specifically, Melton guest stars in theHotelseason of the series. Melton appears as a womanizer who is used to getting what he wants.It’s actually a great preview of his initial work as the cocky and popular Reggie inRiverdalesince he filmed hisAmerican Horror Storyrole the year before.
It’s not a huge role for him as Melton’s character checks into the hotel, is seduced, and then ends up dead. He does, however, get to return to the show in a ghostly role for a second episode. His character becomes an urban legend among the hotel guests. He’s a ghost who is willing to offer up sexual favors to female guests despite being deceased.
Every American Horror Story Season Ranked Worst To Best
Ryan Murphy’s horror anthology has dominated the horror genre for over a decade. AHS has had its ups and downs, but which season takes the top spot?
Bad Boys for Life
In Bad Boys For Life, the third installment in the Bad Boys film franchise, Marcus Burnett wants to retire, but when Mike Lowrey is shot, and the assailant goes after a friend of Burnett’s, the two team up together for one last ride.
Because it had been nearly 20 years since the lastBad Boysmovie, fans knew going in that there would be some new blood brought into the franchise. Melton is some of that new blood.
Melton plays one of the team members of the Advanced Miami Metro Operations (or AMMO) teamalongside Vanessa Hudgens and Alexander Ludwig. The three are largely there to give a youthful counterpoint to Will Smith and Martin Lawrence, and to introduce new weapons and technology for the movie.They fill a trope in legacy sequels for action movies, but that doesn’t mean their roles aren’t fun for the audience.
While Melton likely could have been utilized better in an action movie, there’s no arguing with the fact that this is the highest-grossingBad Boysmovie.
Bad Boys For Lifewas nominated for Best Movie at the BET Awards and Best Action Adventure Movie at the Saturn Awards. It won Outstanding Motion Picture at the NAACP Awards.
The Sun Is Also a Star
The Sun Is Also a Star, directed by Ry Russo-Young, follows two young New Yorkers, Natasha and Daniel, who meet and fall in love over the course of a single day while facing life-altering challenges, including Natasha’s impending deportation and Daniel’s future at Dartmouth.
…the work of Melton and Shahid was nearly universally praised
The Sun Is Also A Stargives Charles Melton one of his first starring movie roles. It’s alsothe first time a Korean American man plays the romantic lead in a teen romance out of a major Hollywood studio, meaning Melton didn’t just get one of his own first leading roles, but a first for Asian Americans as well.
The movie is inspired by the novel of the same name by Nicola Yoon. It sees a young man form a connection with a young woman (Yara Shahidi) just as her family faces deportation from the United States. When the two meet as the result of a delayed subway train and a car accident, she says she doesn’t believe in love, but he believes he can make her fall in love with him in just the one day they have together.
Because of the compressed time frame, the movie gets to run the full gamut of emotions pretty quickly. Shahidi and Melton, however, are more than up for the task. The movie received mixed reviews as a result of its premise, but the work of Melton and Shahid was nearly universally praised.
Poker Faceis a great mystery series for the streaming service Peacock. It features Natasha Lyonne in the lead role as a casino employee who can always tell when someone is lying. She ends up on the run in the first season of the show after she ends up in the middle of the business of a few shady characters.
The show itself is a great blend of both comedy and drama with plenty of action and mystery elements thrown in for good measure.Melton appears in a single episode of the show, “The Future of the Sport,” as a dirt track race car driver. His character is targeted by someone when his car is sabotaged. Melton, however, gets the chance to really dig into the character considering he only appears in one episode.There’s a fascinating flip as he goes from a cocky and ambitious competitor to someone willing to take a life to make a point.
Melton does great work in such little screen time, and the episode is a great showcase for his talent.
Riverdale
A darker take on Archie, Betty, Veronica, and their friends from the Archie Comics series, Riverdale is a CW supernatural mystery series that sees the group trying to illuminate the truth surrounding various strange occurrences and murders in the titular town. When a teenage girl is found dead in the once-quiet town, the event starts a series of ever-growing mysteries that ultimately lead to darker secrets in the town’s history. Led by Archie, the Riverdale gang will attempt to navigate their new normal while dealing with all of the drama that comes with being high school teenagers.
It’s hard to imagineRiverdalewithout Charles Melton. Melton, however, didn’t join the series until the second season. He took over the role of Reggie Mantle from Ross Butler who had a scheduling conflict as a result of his role in the Netflix series13 Reasons Why.
Initially, Reggie isn’t much more than a frenemy of Archie Andrews (KJ Appa) and a potential love interest for Veronica Lodge (Camila Mendes). He’s an athletic and romantic rival of Archie’s, but as the show continues, he’s given a lot more depth beyond simply being a popular football player who likes to get the girl.
The expansion of his character allowed the show to delve into issues of childhood abuse, as Reggie’s father was abusive to him growing up.WhileRiverdalewas often seen as going off the rails, the series was able to repeatedly reinvent itself and allow its cast to really have fun exploring their roles, which Melton certainly did.He even had the chance to play the teenage version of his character’s father for a flashback episode.
Riverdaleis likely going to be the show that Melton is best known for for many years.
All 7 Seasons Of Riverdale, Ranked Worst To Best
While Riverdale’s seven seasons saw the show rise and fall dramatically in terms of quality, the teen drama/murder mystery was at least never boring.
