10 Things To Know About Bly Manor’s Henry Thomas 

In 2018, The Haunting of Hill House released on Netflix, and on October 9, 2020, its follow-up series dropped: The Haunting of Bly Manor. Both of these shows featured stars such as Victoria Pedretti, Kate Siegel, Carla Gugino and Henry Thomas, who may have looked familiar to some viewers.

Thomas has been acting since he was a child, he starred in a very well-known movie back in the day, his skills go beyond acting, and he has a family, too! Yes, there is a lot to learn about and to love about him, including the 10 facts that are listed out down below.

10 His Breakout Role Was In E.T.

As soon as people tuned in to The Haunting of Hill House and/or The Haunting of Bly Manor, they probably recognized Thomas, as he played Elliott in E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial.

Directed by Steven Spielberg and released in 1982, this celebrated film focused on a young boy who became friends with an extraterrestrial, and it served as Thomas’ breakout role. 

9 He Is From Texas

Before starring in one of the greatest flicks of all time, Henry Jackson Thomas Jr. was born on September 9, 1971 in San Antonio, Texas, to a homemaker and a hydraulic machinist. 

Ten years later, he made his film debut in Raggedy Man, and the rest is history. And while most film fans will recognize him from his role in E.T., that certainly wasn’t the last fans would see of him. 

8 Last Year, He Reprised His E.T. Role

It is the day and age of reboots, reunions and revivals, though some fans feel like classics should not be touched. Whether or not there will be a remake of E.T. remains to be seen, but Thomas did get to play Elliott again last year. 

It was in a commercial for Xfinity and Sky UK, and it featured the extraterrestrial visiting a grown-up Elliott, along with Elliott’s family, during the holiday season. How cute!

7 He Starred In  The Haunting Of Hill House & Bly Manor

Of course, this actor was in both of these Netflix shows, and though they featured some of the same stars and were both scary, the plots differed. 

The Haunting of Hill House told the story of five siblings who were haunted in a mansion and into their adult lives, and Thomas played their father, Hugh Crain. The Haunting of Bly Manor is about a nanny who starts to see ghosts, and Thomas played Henry Wingrave, who hired her. 

6 He Has Been In More Of This Filmmaker’s Horror Pieces

Both of these series were created by Mike Flanagan, and Thomas has been in some of his scary films, too, such as Ouija: Origin of Evil in 2016, Gerald’s Game in 2017, and Doctor Sleep in 2019. 

A fun fact is that this filmmaker is married to Kate Siegel in real life; she was Theodora Crain at Hill House and Viola Willoughby at Bly Manor, and she was in Hush, which this couple wrote together.

5 And He Has Appeared In Several Of Stephen King’s Works

Some of Flanagan’s movies are adaptations of Stephen King stories, and Thomas has been featured in more by this King of Horror author; this makes sense, as Flanagan’s style is similar to King’s, and King has even praised him on his storytelling abilities before.

Thomas seems to enjoy appearing in these types of tales and has a knack for it, as well. In 2006, he portrayed Peter Jackson in the television film Stephen King’s Desperation, and he portrayed Robert Fornoy in Nightmares & Dreamscapes: From the Stories of Stephen King.

4 He Is Also A Musician

Besides acting, this man was also part of a band in San Antonio called The Blue Heelers. In the 1990s, this group put out an album, Thomas put out his own songs, and he worked with Nikki Sudden, an English singer, songwriter and guitarist who passed away in 2006, to create music for the movie Honey Baby.

Fans haven’t heard much from him of his band recently, but there’s still hope to hear more in the future. 

3 He’s Been Married Three Times & Has Three Children

In his personal life, Thomas was married to Kelly Hill ​ ​from 2000 to 2002, then to Marie Zielcke (who is pictured here) between 2004 and 2007. With Zielcke, he has a daughter named Hazel.

Since 2009, he has been wed to Annalee Fery, and they have two children together: a daughter named Evelyn and a son named Thomas.

2 He Was Arrested Last Year

It hasn’t been all ups and positives and smiles for him: Last year, this actor was arrested for driving under the influence of intoxicants, which led to a year-long diversion program and a breathalyzer being installed in his car.

Plenty of celebrities have had similar problems, so it’s not exactly like this is something surprising coming from anyone in Hollywood, but it’s important to note things like this when discussing celebrities. 

1 He Has Been In Other Notable Films

While Thomas is known for befriending E.T. and appearing in the horror genre, he has been seen in other notable films over the years.

For instance, in 1994, he was in Legends of the Fallwith Brad Pitt (pictured here) and Anthony Hopkins. And in 2010, he was in Dear John, one of Nicholas Sparks’ romantic and dramatic stories, which starred Channing Tatum and Amanda Seyfried.

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