Niles Fitch on Being Disney's First Black Prince

Good, how are you doing?

Good. Good morning.

So we're excited to talk to you today.

Thank you. I'm I'm glad to talk to y'all too, Young Hollywood. Look. Love it.

Also, we saw your story time that you did with Disney where you read us a book, we enjoyed that.

Ha, thank you. I appreciate that. That was fun. I was nervous. I was like, how do I do this? Do I sing? Do I how do I hold a book? I was nervous.

Well, you you star on Broadway. You were in Lion King Broadway?

Yeah, so I did Lion I did the tour for eight months and then I did Broadway for nine. Uh and then I like went back when like a kid broke his arm. It was like a super fun time. Like I nothing compares to it.

That's crazy. So you were on the road for eight months?

Yes, I got to travel to eight wonderful like different cities. I I got to go to Syracuse, Buffalo.

I'm from Syracuse.

Oh, for real? Oh, that's what's up. I loved it. It was so cool. Uh I got to go to Canada twice. That was like as a 11, 12 year old blowing my mind and I got to do with my whole family. So that was I think

Oh, wait your whole family did it too?

My mom, dad, and sister all went we're on the road with me the entire time.

That's crazy. Are you super close to your parents?

Uh yeah, I am. Uh sadly my dad passed away uh in 2014.

I'm so sorry.

Oh, thank you. Uh but even with him not him not being here, uh he's still here spiritually. So yeah, I'm I'm still close with that. You know.

Did you watch Disney channel growing up? Like before you got into everything?

I mean, who didn't? I mean, I was I was watching Proud Family, Hannah Montana, That's So Raven, Good Luck Charlie, uh Ant Farm, I grew up on Disney. Uh so, you know, now being in a Disney film, that's crazy. Uh and, you know, very humbling.

Yeah, and you're making like you're literally the first ever live action like black Prince. That's insane. So not only are you on Disney now, like you are literally like making moves too.

Yeah, now and you know, I I I, you know, not only am I making moves, but I'm opening the door for another, you know, another kid to make moves or, you know, not even just a black boy but a black girl. So that's that's what I I I'm really excited excited about. Yeah.

And I'm sure you got asked a million times like how do you feel? So what was like your first like, what did you feel first when you found out you got the part and that you this was going to happen?

Uh, you know, I I don't really even when booking the part, it was, you know, amazing that I I booked the part and I was going to be getting to play a Disney Prince superhero and I was going to Toronto. But I really didn't understand the these the weight of it, I think until post filming. Uh, you know, I don't I I truly didn't understand it until quarantine happened and we were dealing with all this social unrest. And right before we started dealing with the social unrest, uh I I I think probably in the miss, uh the announcement came out about me, you know, me booking the role and it was because all the press had had come out about it. And, you know, seeing that response and seeing, you know, people say saying that they can't wait to see somebody that looks like them on television. Uh, I mean, you know, on the the big screen that you know, that that really meant the world to me cuz then I I started thinking it back, you know, on my life and I was like, yo, I didn't get to see that till Chadwick and I I I remember how much of an, you know, an impact that had on my life. So knowing that I may be able to do that for, you know, the next generation or, you know, another kid that isn't able to always see themselves on television. That means the world.

Definitely. What is some of like, some of the messages that you got cuz you being at home too, like during like finding this out in quarantine, you're just at home. So like you also have a lot more time to process everything too, so it probably hit you a lot harder than it would if life was like normal.

No, I I I and I I I think it's a cool I think it's been a blessing in disguise, uh because, you know, through all this, you know, the the release date got pushed back. So it gave me more time to mentally prepare, you know, cuz you know, they there's more to a role than, you know, it coming out and everything's cool. Like, you know, I actually get prepared for press. I'm also in college. So, you know, trying to make sure I'm also in college too. Yes, I I'm trying to go to school for film because I want to really uh direct and produce. I want to, you know, do that later in life too. So, you know, uh for me, I really enjoyed it because I was able to really focus on that regimen down, getting the regimen of working out and stuff like that and, you know, quarantine was crazy, but I felt like I I grew so much from it.

You're online school. I didn't know you were in college. Do you do like you get up and do your Zoom classes?

Yes, so right now because, uh, you know, quarantine, everything's online. So I have to get up, uh, every Tuesday, I have class, Thursday I have class, Tuesday night I have class. And the hard thing is when I have like photo shoots or like interviews, I'm not able to go to those Zooms, so I have to like watch the recordings and stuff like that. So it's been a lot. Very, yo, so tough, but it's all worth it in the end. Like, you know, nothing, nothing great happens and it's just easy. So, you know, if I'm getting challenged, hey, that means what's on the other side is going to be, you know, worth it.

Definitely. And what's one power that you'd want in real life?

Uh, I got to go with either shape shifting or like super smarts. Cuz like shape shifting, I can be any actor, so like I'm all I'm always going to be working. And I'll do a discount. So, you know, let's say you want Meryl Street for your movie, but you don't have Meryl Streep money. Well, you got Niles Street money, you know what I'm saying?

You do.

Exactly. Uh and and then if I was uh if I had super smarts, you know, I I just I'd be, you know.

You wouldn't even have to rewatch your Zoom classes.

Exactly. I wouldn't even need to do that. So imagine how easy college would be.

That that's that's actually really good. Yeah. That would be a good one.

Yeah. I'd finally understand how to use Canvas, cuz Canvas makes no sense where we have to do our college work. It makes no sense.

Don't you love the discussion boards where you have to like like write like, hi, like my name is. And then you have to then talk to two other students that never respond back. Yeah, it's fun. College is fun.

Yeah. You know about it. Yeah.

Well, thank you so much for talking to us today. I appreciate it. Congrats on everything. Go kill college.

Thank you so much.