On this awards season’s circuit, few teams seemed as tightly knit as that of May December, with its Oscar-winning stars, Julianne Moore and Natalie Portman, laughing together from event to event, in lockstep with their director—and Moore’s frequent collaborator—Todd Haynes. This group had made these rounds before—collecting trophies and rave reviews. However, among them was a face very new to the world of tastemaker screenings, private awards luncheons, and industry nominations: Charles Melton.
In my months of getting to know him, though, the breakout star has proved himself to be a quick study. Best known for his six-season run on the teen soap Riverdale, Melton carries himself with the suave, smiley charm of an Old Hollywood heartthrob—humbly, if confidently, holding his own opposite actors he calls “masters of their craft.” Melton matched them beat for beat in May December, in which he plays Joe Yoo, who at 13 began a sexual relationship with Gracie (Moore), the mother of his schoolmate; 20-plus years later, he and Gracie, now a convicted sex offender, lead deeply repressed lives as spouses and parents. Moore and Portman, who plays an actor set to portray Gracie in a movie, are terrific, but Melton provides the movie’s revelatory heart.
For the role, Melton won the New York Film Critics Circle Award for best supporting actor, in addition to other prizes and nominations. He navigated the kinds of spaces he could previously only dream about, loudly supported by his costars every step of the way.
We’re thrilled to have Melton as part of our 2024 Hollywood issue. I spoke with him at his home in the Los Angeles hills at the end of that campaign journey, just as he was beginning to process the whirlwind of May December—and what might come next.