Having featured regularly as self-absorbed, wisecracking jokester Reggie Mantle in Netflix hit series Riverdale for six years, Charles Melton had already shown he’s a talented actor before he bagged the crucial role in May December, which premiered on the streaming platform this month.
However, acting talent is just one of the many requirements actors need to meet in order to convince filmmakers to hand them their desired roles. In that regard, Melton came very close to getting snubbed by director May December Todd Hayness for a trait that many men would do anything to have.
Why Charles Melton Almost Lost His Role in the Netflix Movie May December
Todd Hayness brought the age-gap discourse to the fore with his film May December, which follows the lives of Joe and Gracie Atherton. Charles Melton portrays Joe Yoo, who was groomed and molested by his supervisor, 36-year-old Gracie Atherton (Julianne Moore) when he was just 12.
Years later, the pair is married with three kids. However, almost two decades after their relationship made the tabloid headlines, the couple buckles under pressure after a Hollywood actress (Natalie Portman) meets them for research for her film about their past.
Sharing the screen with legends like Moore and Portman, Melton didn’t look out of place at all in the drama. However, at one point, Hayness found it hard to imagine the Riverdale actor playing Joe because of his hunky appearance.
“His looks were almost a deterrent,” Hayness told Vulture. “I felt that Joe would be a good-looking man, but Charles has that sort of hunkiness and pinup quality that wasn’t necessarily how I pictured him.”
To come close to matching the description of a suburban man – which Joe had become after the marriage – Melton gained 35 to 40 pounds and changed his chiseled self.
Not many fans believe it but there’s indeed such a thing as too handsome. The likes of Brad Pitt and Colin Farrell have struggled to get roles suited to character actors because of their appearances which are considered ideal for leading roles. In fact, Robert Redford lost part in one of Hollywood’s most iconic movies of all time due to a similar reason.
Read more: May December Review: Three Powerhouse Performances
Why Robert Redford Didn’t Get a Part in Dustin Hoffman’s The Graduate
Mike Nichols’ The Graduate is considered one of the most important films of Dustin Hoffman’s career. Playing the role of an awkward out-of-college kid Benjamin, who is seduced by a bored housewife and friend of his parents, Hoffman impressed fans and critics alike and earned an Oscar nomination for Best Actor in a Leading Role.
Interestingly, the sought-after part in Nichols’ movie was also desired by Redford, who at the time was a much bigger star than Hoffman. However, the filmmaker turned him down because he seemed too cool to play the role of a ‘loser’. Nichols told Vanity Fair:
“I said, ‘You can’t play it. You can never play a loser.’ And Redford said, ‘What do you mean? Of course I can play a loser.’ And I said, ‘OK, have you ever struck out with a girl?’ and he said, ‘What do you mean?’ And he wasn’t joking.”
Meanwhile, there are times when some actors themselves reject roles because of their over-the-top handsomeness. According to a report (via The Things), Pitt turned down the 2002 romantic comedy About a Boy because he believed he was too good-looking to play Will Freeman, who needed help from a young boy to land women.
Read more: 7 Actors Who Should Be Playing Hercules in Disney’s Live-Action Adaptation
