Sergio G Sánchez thinks Charlie Heaton is a mix of Leonardo DiCaprio and River Phoenix
There’s been much speculation about which cast members of Stranger Things will have the best careers in the years to come, but Charlie Heaton has been making a case for himself as the most interesting alumnus of the show.
When a show like Stranger Things reaches its conclusion, there will naturally be a discussion about which of the stars will find the most success in their subsequent roles. The fact that the cast skewed so young indicates that they could all go in very different directions; similar discussions were held after the release of the final Harry Potter film, which had also marked the conclusion to actors playing their roles for almost ten years.
Many of the stars have already gone on to do interesting work, such as Finn Wolfhard being a scene-stealer in the It films, Joe Keery turning in a standout performance in the fifth season of Fargo, Sadie Sink with a prominent run on Broadway, and Millie Bobby Brown has certainly starred in a lot of Netflix productions, even if none of them are very good. However, Heaton, who played Jonathan Byers, has been making interesting choices that suggest he will be in the industry for quite some time.
Even during his time on Stranger Things, Heaton found a character in Jonathan who was complex, yet flawed, and ultimately became a better person, despite dealing with immense personal stress. He has also had the benefit of working with one of the greatest actors of all time, as he co-starred with Al Pacino in the upcoming film Billy Knight.
It was only shortly into the run of Stranger Things that he was cast in Marrowbone, a psychological thriller about troubled siblings who inherit their family’s mansion, which contains dark secrets. While it wasn’t necessarily a film that became a mainstream hit, it featured a cast of really talented young actors who went on to become increasingly popular, including Mia Goth, Anya Taylor-Joy, and George MacKay, with the film’s director, Sergio G Sánchez, claiming that Heaton’s talents were just waiting to be exploited.
“Charlie will never stop working,” Sanchez said, “He will be a star. He has incredible strength, and there’s a weird thing: he reminds you of different actors. Sometimes on camera, he looks like River Phoenix, and sometimes it is Leonardo DiCaprio.”
Those are certainly bold comparisons. Phoenix was the rare actor who represented an entire generation with his great performances, and held a tremendous impact on the industry, despite dying at a young age, and DiCaprio may have begun as a child star, but he quickly evolved into an actor who would exclusively work with great directors, and has appeared in many of the best films of the last three decades.
Since Heaton started young, it’s easy to see why Sanchez may have made a prediction about his potential, especially given the platform he had with Stranger Things, but now that the series is over, he will have more time to commit to doing different sorts of films and shows, and he’s already indicated greater ambitions with many of his follow-up projects.
In addition to a standout role in Joanna Hogg’s semi-autobiographical coming-of-age sequel The Souvenir: Part II, Heaton had a standout performance in this season of HBO’s Industry, which could very well lead to his first Emmy nomination.
