Caleb McLaughlin (born October 13th, 2001) is a 20 year old American actor and singer, known for his lead role in the Netflix original television series Stranger Things as Lucas Sinclair.
His acting career was launched in 2012 when the short film Noah Dreams of Origami Fortunes was released. He starred in this film as the main character Noah.
He also appeared in the television mini-series New Edition: The Movie as Ricky Bell, which was released in 2017.
Biography
Early Life
McLaughlin grew up in Carmel, New York. He attended Kent Primary School and later attended George Fischer Middle School for one year. He studied dance for a year at Happy Feet Dance School in Carmel, New York and then at The Harlem School of the Arts under Aubrey Lynch, former The Lion King producer.
Career
Caleb began his career when he appeared in an opera called Lost in the Stars in Cooperstown, New York at the Glimmerglass Opera House. He trained in ballet, tap, and jazz.
His first appeared in the short film Noah Dreams of Origami Fortunes in 2012. The same year, he was cast as Young Simba in the Broadway musical The Lion King. This play was staged at the Minskoff Theatre from 2012 to 2014.
During this time, McLaughlin also appeared in an episode each of Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, Unforgettable and Forever. After this, he was featured in an episode of What Would You Do?.
In 2015, he was cast as Lucas Sinclair in the Netflix series Stranger Things. That year, he also had small roles in the TV programs Shades of Blue and Blue Bloods. In 2017, McLaughlin played Ricky Bell in the miniseries The New Edition Story. Also in 2017, he was in two music videos.
He voiced young Gary in an episode of another Netflix TV series Final Space and voiced Ghost in an episode of Cartoon Network TV series Summer Camp Island.
In 2019, he played Darius in a Netflix sports drama High Flying Bird.
Caleb graduated high school in 2019. He has plans to continue his education, although not in an on-campus classroom. He went to college in fall 2019 but he was doing it online because he was filming Stranger Things and other projects.
In 2021, Netflix released Concrete Cowboys which starred Caleb and Idris Elba.
Personal Life
Caleb is a well- balanced kid and a true humanitarian. He loves God, his family and appreciates all those who support him on this journey. While his religious beliefs are unknown, during the COVID-19 pandemic he stated, "Even though we aren’t together we can still pray together" the pray means to keep you and other people safe from the COVID-19 pandemic and pray if you believe in God or not.
He has been home-school since the fifth grade. In 2019, he graduated from high school and began taking online college courses.
Influences
His acting influences are Ludacris, Emma Stone, Chadwick Boseman, Michael B. Jordan, Kevin Hart, Tiffany Haddish, Lupita Nyong'o, Jamie Foxx, Will Smith, Tom Hanks, Mahershala Ali, Chris Rock, Maya Rudolph and Cameron Boyce.
His music influences are Drake, Jaden Smith, SZA, Childish Gambino, the Migos, Kendrick Lamar, Frank Ocean, Otis Redding, Aretha Franklin, Mary J. Blige, Prince, H.E.R., Michael Jackson, Winnie Harlow, Gary Clark Jr. and Ludacris.
Beside of acting, singing and dancing, he loves basketball and his basketball role models are Stephen Curry, Kobe Bryant and Michael Jordan.
His favorite movies are Black Panther (2018), Pretty in Pink (1986), Spider Man movies, Stand by Me (1986), E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial (1982) and The Matrix (1999).
His favorite TV shows beside Stranger Things are Black Mirror (2011-2019) and Black Lightning (2018- ).
Filmography
Film
|
Year |
Title | Role |
|---|---|---|
| 2012 | Noah Dreams of Origami Fortunes | Noah |
| 2019 | High Flying Bird | Darius |
| 2020 | Concrete Cowboys | Cole |
Television
| Title | Role | |
|---|---|---|
| 2013 | Law and Order: Special Victims Unit | Boy |
| 2013 | Unforgettable | Older Brother |
| 2014 | Forever | Alejandro |
| 2015 | What Would You Do? | Caleb |
| 2016 | Shades of Blue | Jay-Jay |
| 2016 | Stranger Things | Lucas Sinclair |
| 2016 | Blue Bloods | Tone Lane |
| 2017 | The New Edition Story | Ricky Bell (age 10-15) |
| 2017 | Lip Sync Battle | Himself |
| 2018 | Final Space | Young Gary (voice) |
| 2018 | Summer Camp Island | Ghost (voice) |
Music Videos
| Year | Artist | Title |
| 2017 | Jimmy Fallon | "Jimmy Fallon's Golden Globes 2017 Opening" |
| 2017 | Sia | "Santa's Coming For Us" |
Stage
| Year | Title | Role | Location |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2012–14 | The Lion King | Young Simba | Minskoff Theatre, Broadway |
Awards & Nominations
| Year | Award | Category | Nominated Work | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2017 | Screen Actors Guild Awards | Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series | Stranger Things | Won |
| Young Artist Awards | Best Performance in a Digital TV Series or Film – Young Actor | Nominated | ||
| BET Awards | YoungStars Award | Nominated | ||
| 2018 | Screen Actors Guild Awards | Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series | Nominated | |
| NAACP Image Awards | Outstanding Performance by a Youth (Series, Special, Television Movie or Limited Series) | Won | ||
| 2018 | MTV Movie & TV Awards | Best On-Screen Team | Stranger Things | Nominated |
| 2019 | Kids' Choice Awards | Favorite Male TV Actor | Stranger Things | Nominated |
| 2019 | Teen Choice Awards | Choice Summer TV Actor | Stranger Things | Nominated |
External Links
Gallery
Trivia
- He played Young Simba in The Lion King on Broadway in 2012.
- He studied dance at the Harlem School of the Arts in New York City, New York.
- He first met Stranger Things co-stars Gaten Matarazzo and Sadie Sink at a playground when they were on Broadway.
- He is left handed.
- When the Duffer Brothers called Caleb to tell him he got the part of Lucas, they actually pretended like he didn't get to be Lucas, just to mess with him.
- He is a germaphobe.
- His first kiss was with Sadie Sink during the Snow Ball scene in Season 2.[2]
References
| Cast and crew of Stranger Things | |
|---|---|
| Directors | |
| Writers |
|
| Major Cast Members | |
| Recurring/Minor Cast Members | |
