In 2014/2015, Franco achieved mainstream success as the winner of ''
America's Got Talent''.
AGT appearances • June 17, 2014: Audition – In Los Angeles, during Episode 904, Franco used
card manipulation to impress the judges (
Howard Stern,
Heidi Klum,
Mel B and
Howie Mandel). With a shuffled deck of cards he told a story that he wrote about America's Got Talent. (The audition was recorded in April in the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles.) And got a standing ovation. • July 22, 2014: Judgment Week – In Episode 907, Franco performed a visual interactive card trick where he painted a picture of Howie Mandel on the Judges' desk, using just a deck of cards. This performance earned four Yes votes again. • August 5, 2014: Quarterfinals – Franco appeared in Episode 911 and used Heidi Klum as his assistant. His tricks with fire and with disappearing and reappearing cards earned him four Yes votes and standing ovations. • August 6, 2014: Quarterfinals – In Episode 912 in New York, Franco was one among five acts to proceed to the Semifinals. • September 2, 2014: Semifinals – In Episode 919, Franco was one of twelve acts competing for six opportunities in the Top 12 Finals. After having Howie, Howard, and Heidi choose three random cards (6, 4, and 2), he borrowed Mel B's phone; dropped it into liquid; vanished the phone using a hair dryer; and then moved into the middle of the audience at
Radio City Music Hall to cut open seat #642, revealing Mel's phone inside the seat cushion. • September 3, 2014: Semifinals – In episode 920, Franco was Voted through to the Top 12. • September 9, 2014: Top 12 – In episode 921, Franco performed an interactive trick with the live audience, including the judges, and even the home viewers. He had everyone at home select a card, and using cannon, was able to get the selected card stuck to the ceiling at Radio City Music Hall. • September 10, 2014: Top 12 Results – in episode 922, Franco was voted through to the Finals, and was declared the last magician standing in the competition. • September 16, 2014: Finals – In the finale, each performer had to do a reprise of a previous performance. Franco chose to do a twist on his audition, by doing a version of
cups and balls, accompanied by another story that he wrote about the judges. Later on in the episode, Franco performed a large scale trick which included a "human deck" of cards, which consisted of 52 random audience members that Nick Cannon chose, and brought on stage. • September 17, 2014: Finals Results – Franco appeared as one of six finalists at
Radio City Music Hall in New York City. At the conclusion of the finale, Franco was announced as the winner. After winning season 9 in 2014, Franco was the first guest performer to appear on the
tenth season. He also made a second guest appearance later that season for another performance on the finale episode in 2015. Franco returned for guest performances in 2016 and 2017. Later that year, Franco created a Holiday-themed performance for the AGT Christmas Special. In the
season 15 finale, Franco appeared in a comedic segment in which he taught
Terry Crews how to perform magic. That same season, Franco appeared on the show with a special “socially distanced” performance. In 2021, Franco appeared on the
season 16 Finale episode for a special collaborative performance with
Dustin Tavella, who went on to win that season. Most recently, Franco was a featured guest on the finale episode of ''
America's Got Talent: All-Stars'' in 2023.
Reception Since Franco's Las Vegas show opening in 2015, it has raked in a slew of accolades and awards including "Best Magic Show" "Best Performance Venue" "Best Production Show" in the Best of Las Vegas Awards sponsored by the Las Vegas Review Journal. The
Las Vegas Review-Journal wrote of Franco's stint on ''America's Got Talent
: "Franco did a crafty job of customizing his prediction-based, sleight-of-hand magic to make maximum use of Talent'' judges Howard Stern and Mel B. And he displayed a personality and sense of humor that other magicians were not able to convey in their limited camera time." It's been said that Franco "specializes in creating customized, interactive presentations for his audiences that allow for spontaneity and improvisation. For Mat, magic isn't about 'tricking' or 'fooling' the audience; it's about connecting with people and bringing smiles to their faces." ==Career==