Nearly 10 years afterSons of Anarchy’s conclusion,Charlie Hunnamis finally starting to get promising roles after his performance as Jax Teller in the FX series. Born in Newcastle upon Tyne, Charlie Hunnam fatefully dipped his feet in acting after he was discovered by a production manager when he was 17. Soon after, he landed his first major role inQueer as Folkwhen he was 18, paving the way for him to explore bigger opportunities in film and television.
After playing myriad roles in several relatively lower-budget films and TV shows, Hunnam got his big break when he got the opportunity to playJax Teller in FX’sSons of Anarchy. The critically acclaimed series soon made him a household name, highlighting his potential as a leading man. Strangely, however, even though Hunnam has played diverse roles in several renowned movie franchises and shows sinceSons of Anarchy, none have been as iconic as Jax Teller. Fortunately, his upcoming roles might finally allow him to elevate his acting career in a new direction.
Monster & Criminal Give Charlie Hunnam Two Very Exciting Upcoming Roles
His Career Will Likely Experience A New Upward Trajectory Soon
Charlie Hunnam has been cast to play one of the leads in Amazon’s upcoming comic book adaptation,Criminal. While only time will tell how the show will eventually perform, it already seems to have immense potential since it is based on Ed Brubaker’s highly acclaimedCriminalcomics. What makes the show even more exciting is that Ed Brubaker is one of its two co-showrunners. Apart from landing a role in the Amazon show,Charlie Hunnam has also been cast to play the real-life serial killer, Ed Gein,in the third season of Netflix’sMonster.
The actor’s casting as Ed Gein is surprising because it is unlike any other role he has taken in the past. However, at the same time, it is hard not to be confident that he will do justice to the part, considering his memorable performances inshows likeSons of Anarchyandmovies likeThe GentlemenandJungleland. With leading roles in promising shows from two of the biggest streaming platforms, Charlie Hunnam seems on the right track towards reinventing his career afterSons of Anarchyand expanding his repertoire.
Charlie Hunnam Should’ve Been A Bigger Star After Sons Of Anarchy - What Happened?
He Took A Few Missteps
Charlie Hunnam has had a few critical and commercial hits afterSons of Anarchy. For instance, he was a part of Guy Ritchie’sThe Gentlemen, which grossed $115 million worldwide against its $22 million budget. He also portrayed the real-life geographer, Percy Fawcett, inThe Lost City of Z, which boasts an impressive Rotten Tomatoes score of 86%. However, these post-SOAhighs in his acting career were weighed down by several missteps from forgettable movie and TV projects, likePapillon,A Million Little Pieces,Shantaram, and theRebel Moonmovies.
After many missed opportunities and commercial and critical disappointments, Charlie Hunnam is finally getting the chance to redefine his career with Amazon’sCriminaland Netflix’sMonster.
Guy Ritchie’sKing Arthur: Legend of the Sword, in which Charlie Hunnam played the titular figure, had the potential to become a franchise cornerstone for the actor. However, it failed to leave its mark at the box office, leaving Hunnam with another commercial failure. Over the years, Charlie Hunnam has also missed the opportunity to play several other roles that could have significantly boosted his career trajectory.
DID YOU KNOW:Charlie Hunnam only wore plaid shirts and even avoided getting inside his car for seven years straight to immerse himself in his Sons of Anarchy role. To ensure he convincingly portrayed Jax Teller on the small screen, Hunnam only rode his bike and hung out with real biker gangs.
For instance, he was not onlyamong the frontrunners to play Thor in the Marvel Cinematic Universebut also declined to play Green Arrow because of a lack of interest in the role. After many missed opportunities and commercial and critical disappointments,Charlie Hunnamis finally getting the chance to redefine his career with Amazon’sCriminaland Netflix’sMonster. Hopefully, likeSons of Anarchy, the two shows will allow him to put his acting talent and range on full display and help him achieve more mainstream success.
Charlie Hunnam’s Ed Gein Casting Could Transform His Career
It Makes Way For Him To Show His Acting Range
Charlie Hunnam has played a diverse set of roles in the past, butMonsterseason 3could bring a new side to his acting range since he’s never portrayed a cold-blooded killer. HisSons of Anarchycharacteralso goes down the criminal path and viciously kills many of his enemies without showing remorse. However, the show always balances this with scenes where it is hard not to empathize with Jax Teller.Monster, in contrast, will show him as Ed Gein, who isnotoriously known for committing some heinous crimes like robbing graves and murdering several women.
Like Evan Peters, Charlie Hunnam has also never disappointed with his performances in movies and TV shows in the past but needs a challenging role to cement his reputation as a versatile actor.
Monsterseason 1 was not a hit among critics but still ranks as the third most viewed English language show on Netflix. It also helped Evan Peters showcase his acting forte and paved the way for him to win a Golden Globe and an Emmy win. Like Evan Peters, Charlie Hunnam has also never disappointed with his performances in movies and TV shows in the past but needs a challenging role to cement his reputation as a versatile actor. Since Monster’s Ed Gein is a far cry from his previous roles, playing the character could significantly alter his career’s trajectory.
Charlie Hunnam’s New Roles Probably Won’t Top Jax Teller - And That’s Ok
It’s Fine For Sons Of Anarchy To Be His Greatest Role
Although Charlie Hunnam’s new roles sound great and could play a crucial role in redefining his career, it seems unlikely that they will be as iconic as Jax Teller. Since Hunnam played Jax for seven seasons ofSons of Anarchy, it is one role that he will always be associated with, regardless of what he ends up playing on the big and small screens in the future. InMonsterseason 3, he will only play Ed Gein for one season. Owing to this, expectingMonsterto be aSOAreplacement for him may be unrealistic.
Criminal
Leo Patteson
Considering the scope of theCriminalcomics,the Amazon show has the potential to give Charlie Hunnam another major, long-running TV role. If the show performs well, it could also expand into a full-fledged franchise, allowing Hunnam to have another iconic, morally complex character under his belt. However,Criminalwill only add to his legacy instead of replacing what he achieved withSons of Anarchy. There is also nothing about Hunnam being remembered as Jax Teller fromSons of Anarchy, given how committed he was to playing the role, even though his performance in the show remains fairly unappreciated.
Charlie Hunnam’s Best Post-Sons Of Anarchy Roles
Some Of Hunnam’s Recent Work Remains Underrated
Despite the fact that Charlie Hunnam did not become the huge star some people thought he would be following theend ofSons of Anarchy,he has had a number of memorable roles in the years after the show. As mentioned,The Lost City of Zis an epic, brutal adventure story that also features one of Hunnam’s best performances. He is gripping as a man driven by obsession, ignoring the fact that he is likely journeying to his own death while bringing others with him.
Hunnam also had some great collaborations with Guy Ritchie in recent years.King Arthur: Legend of the Swordwas a big-budget action movie that turned out to be a massive box office flop. Its failure likely contributed to Hunnam losing some steam in Hollywood, but in the years since, it has been reevaluated as an underrated and fun adventure. Hunnam also got to show off a more comedic side of himself in Ritchie’s crime-comedyThe Gentlemen,standing out in a cast that included Matthew McConaughey, Hugh Grant, and Colin Farrell.
Triple Frontierwas another example of how Hunnam didn’t necessarily need to be a leading man as he was a solid part of the ensemble movie that included Ben Affleck, Pedro Pascal, and Oscar Isaac. He has also had some underseen but excellent movies likeJunglelandwhich gave him a more grounded, complex, and vulnerable character than he is known for. While Hunnam’s career afterSons of Anarchyhasn’t been hugely successful, he is still doing great work on interesting projects.
Based on the comic series, Criminal is an action crime series developed by Ed Brubaker and Jordan Harper for Prime Video. This adaptation follows various characters within and adjacent to a bustling criminal underworld and comprises several arcs that occasionally intersect. The series was greenlit by Amazon in 2024.
Dahmer - Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story
Dahmer - Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer story is another limited crime drama biography series created by Ian Brennan and Ryan Murphy, starring Evan Peters in the titular role. This series tells the story of Jeffrey Dahmer from the perspective of surviving victims while exploring the missteps taken by the police that allowed Dahmer to continue his three-decade-long killing spree, leading to the murder of at least seventeen young men. In addition, the show covers the earlier years of Dahmer’s life, including the difficult divorce between his parents, his murderous origins back in high school, and his demise in prison.
