Netflix can turn just about anyone into a star. Incredibly popular and successful Hollywood actors like Adam Sandler and Jason Statham routinely find their movies trending on the streaming service, while someone like Millie Bobby Brown went from an unknown to a global star through Stranger Things, the Enola Holmes franchise, and additional Netflix partnerships.
The latter is a rare case where someone can become a household name at such a young age. Now, there’s an 18-year-old actor who is dominating Netflix as his career continues to grow. He’s already achieved a great deal of box office success at a young age, and now those same films are keeping him at the forefront of audiences’ minds, as two of his recent films are proving to be quite popular on Netflix.
Mason Thames Is The Star Of Two Different Trending Movies On Netflix
After getting his start in acting in 2017 when he was just 10 years old, Mason Thames is now the leading man in two of the most-watched movies on Netflix right now. He occupies the No. 2 and No. 4 spots on Netflix’s top 10 movies chart in America, with How To Train Your Dragon and The Black Phone being the titles in the respective slots.
How to Train Your Dragon is one of Thames’ most recent roles, as he plays Hiccup in the live-action remake of DreamWorks’ beloved animated movie. It came out just last summer, and, after streaming on Peacock originally, its now found a new audience on Netflix. How To Train Your Dragon climbed to No. 1 right after it came to the streamer but has since been knocked down to second by Tyler Perry’s Joe’s College Road Trip.
On the other hand, The Black Phone is Thames’ original breakout role. While he had some acting experience prior to the 2021 horror film, it was his performance opposite Ethan Hawke’s villain in the Scott Derrickson-directed flick that made Hollywood start to really pay attention to him. In many ways, this could be considered the role that led to him landing How To Train Your Dragon.
Mason Thames’ Netflix Dominance Continues A Very Successful Run
The double-dose of Thames in Netflix’s top 10 movies in America speaks to how successful he’s been at such a young age. Both How To Train Your Dragon ($636 million) and The Black Phone ($161 million) were critical and financial successes during their theatrical runs, and now they’ve proven to have great appeal on streaming, too.
He’s made some very smart choices with what movies he’s making early in his career. In addition to How To Train Your Dragon’s success last year, Thames also returned for Black Phone 2 and headlined a Colleen Hoover book adaptation, Regretting You. Both projects were financially successful ($132M and $90M, respectively) and have experienced their own streaming success on other services.