CHARLES MELTON IN CHARGE

THE FORMER RIVERDALE BIG-SCREEN STAR GRADUATES TO ACCLAIM WITH MAY DECEMBER

- CLARISSA CRUZ

There's more to Charles Melton than meets the eye-though what meets the eye at the moment is pretty darn pleasing. It's a rare overcast day in Los Angeles, and the May December star and former model is lounging on a chaise in the lush pool area of a house in Silver Lake, seemingly unaware of the People photo shoot commotion surrounding him.

The 33-year-old actor is relentlessly chill between snaps, stealing his sister's leftover french fries, chatting with the photographer about Brooklyn neighborhoods and, in a refreshing twist from the usual celeb shoot demands, making only two requests: "Everything in Its Right Place" by Radiohead and "Rich Spirit" by Kendrick Lamar on the playlist.

It's hard to reconcile this ridiculously handsome, amiable guy-or, as his former Riverdale costar Cole Sprouse joked on Instagram, "slab of A5 Wagyu beef"-with the repressed, prematurely middle-aged character he plays in Todd Haynes's critically acclaimed Netflix drama. It's a stunning performance that garnered accolades immediately after the film's release in November: wins at the Gotham and New York Film Critics Circle Awards and a Golden Globes nomination among them.