Fifteen-year-old Blake Cameron James is making a big name for himself as a rising star in #younghollywood as he brings Will Hanlon to life in the HBO limited series, It: Welcome to Derry.
In It: Welcome to Derry, the Alabama-native is the beloved science-minded student whose family has a larger connection to the folklore of Stephen King’s It. If Blake’s face looks familiar, it should.
Although the talented young actor does not have a long resume to date, he has been busy building his career with some heavy-hitting credits that include Indie film, We Grown Now, television credits that include Found and The Sound of Christmas.
Blake was recently nominated for his second NAACP Image Award for It: Welcome to Derry for Outstanding Performance by a Youth (Series, Special, Television Movie or Limited Series). In 2025, Blake received his first NAACP Image Award nomination for We Grown Now. The nomination was for Outstanding Performance by a Youth in a Motion Picture.
The same year, Blake received another nomination nod by Black Reel Awards for Outstanding Breakthrough Performance for We Grown Now.
If you aren’t familiar with Blake’s latest project, It: Welcome to Derry, let us catch you up on the action. It: Welcome to Derry is based on Stephen King’s 1986 novel, “It,” and serves as a prequel to the films, It and It Chapter Two.
Per a brief synopsis on IMDb, It: Welcome to Derry takes place in 1962 and follows the journey of a couple with their son as they move to Derry, Maine just as a young boy disappears. With their arrival, very bad things begin to happen in the town.
Blake Cameron James is joined by fellow 2026 NAACP Image Award nominee, Amanda Christine on the set of the horror series. If you aren’t already, make sure to follow Blake’s journey on social media, we have a feeling that it is going to be one outstanding ride!
