Niles Fitch is making Disney history!
The This Is Us actor has been cast as Disney’s first-ever black prince in the Secret Society of Second-Born Royals. The movie will appear on Disney’s streaming service Disney+. Fitch will star as the charismatic second-born royal, Prince Tuma.
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“Welcome Disney’s first Black prince,” Fitch captioned a screenshot of a news story. In the comments section, Sterling K. Brown wrote, “When did you squeeze this in, Slim?!”
According to Entertainment Weekly, the new sci-fi film follows Sam (Peyton Elizabeth Lee), a rebellious teen living in the kingdom of Illyria – and in the shadow of her older sister Princess Eleanor (Ashley Liao), who is next in line for the throne. “Sam has always felt like not only is she second born, but she is also second best,” Lee told Entertainment Weekly. “She is struggling to find where she can shine and where she belongs.” However, Sam soon discovers that being a second-born royal has its own perks: not only does she get superpowers, she is also drafted into a top-secret group of other second-born royals who are in charge of keeping the world safe.
“Sam is going to be a unique addition to the Disney princess family because she doesn’t want to be a princess, she doesn’t want to be royalty,” Lee said of her character. “Because of that, it takes her on this journey of figuring out how to make it work for herself that’s going to break that delicate princess mold. When she finds this secret society that feels the same way, they figure out how to create their own legacy and have an impact on their country and the world.”
Leading the new class of recruits is Professor James Morrow (Skylar Astin), a superhuman second-born royal himself. “He is such a fun character and provides a little levity to this otherwise fantasy action movie,” Astin told the outlet. His character will help guide the trainees as they uncover their full potential of their unique super-abilities, as well as the importance of teamwork.
The second-born royals’ mission to keep the world safe becomes more urgent when a villain (Greg Bryk) – who has his eyes on the crown and world domination – emerges. Known simply as Inmate 34, he manages to escape the kingdom’s most secure prisons after being imprisoned for over a decade.
Secret Society of Second-Born Royals is slated to release this summer on Disney+.