Cast Interview, The Princess and The Frog

Walt Disney Animation Studios serves up a joyous gumbo of adventurous storytelling, captivating characters, offbeat comedy and memorable music in their new animated comedy feature “The Princess and the Frog,” set in 1920s New Orleans.

From the creators of “The Little Mermaid” and “Aladdin,” John Musker and Ron Clements, “The Princess and the Frog” marks the Studio’s return to hand-drawn animation and features music by Oscar-winning composer Randy Newman and an end-credit song by multi-platinum, three-time Grammy Award-Winning recording artist Ne-Yo.

“The Princess and the Frog” is a modern twist on a classic Brothers Grimm fairy tale featuring a beautiful girl named Tiana, a frog prince who desperately wants to be human again, and a fateful kiss that leads them both on a hilarious adventure through the mystical bayous of Louisiana.

MoviesOnline had the pleasure of sitting down with the amazing voice cast of “The Princess and the Frog” including Tony Award winner Anika Noni Rose (Tiana), international star Bruno Campos (Prince Naveen), Emmy Award winner Keith David (Dr. Facilier), Jenifer Lewis (Mama Odie), Michael-Leon Wooley (Louis the trumpet-playing alligator), and Academy Award nominee Terrence Howard (Tiana’s father, James). They talked to us about their characters, the unique beauty of hand drawn animation, and what it means to be part of the first Disney animated feature that boasts an African American princess:
 
Q: Anika, with this film being such a landmark, having the first African American Disney princess, what did you think the first time you saw the character?
 
Anika: There were a couple of first times. The first time I saw it in color, we were doing the Toy Fair in New York and I sang. It was the first time that I sang the song publicly. They were like, “Okay, Anika, why don’t you do the soundcheck?,” so I did. And then, they said, “We have a little something to show you.” When they hit play and I saw my face, but a little better, hanging off the side of that balcony, I couldn’t even breathe. I just started to cry. Even talking about it now. It was the most amazing, awesome experience. I don’t even know that I have real words for it. Every time something happens and we do something different, I have a new experience with this. This is something that I’ve always dreamed of doing. I didn’t dream of being a princess. I could have been a dandelion. So, this is when your dreams take off and become bigger than what you had imagined. It’s amazing.
 
Q: What did you think of the hand-drawn animation?
 
Anika: As a Disney geek, the thing that hand-drawn animation does in this movie, that I haven’t seen since the CGI has come out, is that when you look at the bayou, you can see the humidity in the air. It is hazy, warm, moist and thick with it. That’s something that Disney specifically does by hand, with their color palette, that other people don’t do and that the CGI hasn’t quite managed to hit. When you’re watching a fairy tale, you’re not looking for reality. You’re looking for softness and for an extension of your disbelief, so that it takes you into your dreamland. That’s what hand-drawn animation does, when I watch it.
 
Q: Terrence, you are a great presence in the film, even though your character is only in it for a short time. How long was your recording process for this?
 
Terrence: I thought that I was fired. They said they were bringing me back to do some more stuff, and then a month went by and another month went by, and I thought, “Oh, man.”
 
Q: As the first Disney animated feature with an African American princess, what do you think this film will mean to people?
 
Anika: I think that it will mean different things to different people, depending on what time they grew up in. For my nephew, it will be the norm. He will think nothing of it. It will be his first princess, period. For my mother, it will be something she’s been waiting for, and it’s her child, no less. For my grandmother, it will be something that she never thought would happen. Each person that sits in that theater will have a different journey that they’re bringing to the story and it will make the story different for them. I think that’s something that’s really beautiful about this. Disney is Americana, and we’ve opened a new chapter in Americana. It’s been here for a very long time, but hasn’t necessarily been shared. So, in that respect, it’s just another step in the completion of the story of what America is.
 
Terrence: I’m in complete agreement with what Anika just said. When they began the production on this film, during the initial talks, Barack Obama wasn’t in the White House. So, it’s very apropos that we have two African American princesses, at the same time that this movie is coming out. It’s just a happy accident. But, there’s always been nobility, in every culture and every race, and there are geniuses, in every culture and every race. It’s nice to have Disney platform that.
 
Q: Anika, when you were a little girl, did you ever wonder why there were no African American animated characters?
 
Anika: I don’t remember wondering that. I was just watching the movies and enjoying them. I do remember wondering to myself, one day, “Will there ever be a Chocolate Brown?,” after seeing Snow White. But, I didn’t necessarily feel deprived. When you’re a child, you don’t know. I do remember, very strongly, seeing Charlayne Woodard in a production on TV, called Cindy, and it was Cinderella. Charlayne Woodard was fantastic and I was shocked because it just wasn’t something that I thought was the norm.
 
Q: What do you want to say to all the little girls out there, who you’re now a wonderful role model for?
 
Anika: That’s difficult. I think it’s wonderful. I’m honored that people would think of me as a role model. On the other hand, I think it’s dangerous to choose a person and lift them up so high. I’m going to take a role that somebody doesn’t like, at some point. They’re going to be like, “She was awful!,” and think bad things. But, if you can separate those things and think, “Wow, I like the way she’s handled her career and I like the way she handles herself, as a person,” then I think that’s amazing and I hope that it does push other children to look up and say, “See that star up there? The one you can barely see, that twinkles really small? That’s the one I’m gonna grab,” and they do it. That’s a wonderful thing. If they want to see Tiana as a role model, I think that’s brilliant. Her story is finite. She’s not going to turn the corner and fall out and have 20 children. It’s not going to be the type of situation where she’s going to go wrong because she’s there.
 
Q: Terrence, how was this role for you to play?
 
Terrence: It’s really one of the easiest roles I’ve ever done because I was talking to my own little girls. I’ve got two daughters, who are my princesses. They gave me the words, but the inspiration of how to say it came from the natural inclination to teach my own children.

Q: What are you hoping for with this film?
 
Terrence: That this movie will set a landmark and a precedent for other culturally diverse films. I’m very happy that Disney took this step, and I’m looking forward to seeing more of it. Disney has always covered most of the world, in the films that they have made. The Little Mermaid was a fish, but every little girl could relate to that. With Mickey and Minnie Mouse, you never wondered whether they were black or white. Every child can relate and associate with them. I’m just looking forward to the numbers coming back and this film doing very well. I’m very happy to have participated.
 
Q: Jenifer, how did you find the voice of Momma Odie?
 
Jenifer: I have a painting, in my breakfast nook, of “Moms” Mabley, so when they said, “Will you do an old lady?,” I pulled her out. My mother had all of her albums, and I had listened to them as a child. As a child, I remember hearing, “The only thing an old man can do for me is introduce me to a young one.” So, I took my teeth out and created Momma Odie.
 
Q: Keith, did you do your own singing?
 
Keith: Amen, yes I was.
 
Q: How did you approach the way you’d sing?
 
Keith: The music dictates how you deliver it. Randy Newman has his own particularities. You’ve gotta sing it the way he wrote it. I was only too glad to be singing it. Thank God, I could sing my own music and got a chance to do it. It was a grand opportunity that we were able to participate in.
        
Q: Bruno, did you channel anyone to find your inner prince?
 
Bruno: I was actually channeling my dad, throughout the whole movie. He’s a funny, upstart guy. That’s where I got my inspiration. That’s what I was channeling.
 
Q: Michael, how did you find your inner alligator?
 
Michael: I thought I’d go into this role with all of my Shakespeare and theater training, and use it to develop this character. But, after hearing Louis, once I did the first few records, I realized that it’s just me at 10 and crazy and out there. It’s me. I thought I was creating this character, but when he’s loud and crazy, it’s just me being loud and crazy.
 
Q: Did you have fun, voicing this character?
 
Michael: Totally, yes. We had a lot of fun. It was a real collaborative effort to find the humor of Louis. We worked a lot to find lines and develop the character. He evolved into what he is now. He wasn’t quite that, a year ago. As an actor, being a Disney voice and character is the Holy Grail. My niece is quite happy, too. She is crazy excited.
 
Q: Keith, what was it like to play the evil villain, Dr. Facilier?
 
Keith: I was surprised at the effect of the whole. There was a moment when I sat back and went, “Wow, that is kind of scary.” When all the spirits come out and he sends them to get Tiana, I was like, “Holy crap!” I’ve got a 5-year-old kid and she may freak out a few times. Not to the point where she’ll have nightmares, but she’ll grab onto me and bury her head in my arm. That was fun. Anybody who’s a fan of horror goes to the movies just to get that feeling and then get over it, as soon as the credits start to run. You want that feeling. If you get anything less than that, it’s not quite as satisfying.
 
Q: Bruno, did you get to record with Anika at all?
 
Bruno: I recorded with Anika a lot. I was really happy to do that. We really hit it off. I had never done anything like this before and it was very contrary for me. I felt like I was throwing up the windows of a house first and just suspending them there. I didn’t understand it. I didn’t trust how this was going to, all of a sudden, come together. I’m used to preparing a part and executing it. Here, we’d go as we went. They’d give me a scene and say, “Read that,” and so I’d read it. Then, they’d say, “Okay, now do it again, except this time, you’re really mad,” and I’d do that. And, they’d say, “Okay, now do it again, except this time, you’re running.” I’d say, “Where am I running to?,” and they’d say, “We’re not sure yet. Just run.” I’d say, “All right, where am I coming from?,” and they’d be like, “Listen, you’re asking too many questions.” So, after about a month of that, I started to groove with it.
 
Q: Jenifer, were you allowed to bring some of your own personal experiences to voice this character?
 
Jenifer: That’s always open, most definitely. You go in and they have the script, but there you are, speaking with no lips, and the character comes out. You just add things. Whatever you feel comes out and they’re like, “Oh, that’s just great. That wasn’t there. Do that again! Bring more.” They get really excited about you bringing that other element in. When you develop a character, you can only come from where you are, and your interpretation of what you’ve seen when you were in New Orleans, and what you heard from somebody Southern. If you’ve been to a psychic’s house, they don’t know no more than you do, but it’s about the whole set-up. You want to put the kids at ease. All of that came. You can’t write that. That laugh would come and then there was excitement in the room and they’d go, “Yeah, we want more of that!” So, yes, they’re open to that and they’re very happy when you’re generous with your creativity.
 
Keith: Filmmaking is the ultimate art of collaboration. One of the reasons why they pick you, as opposed to somebody else, is because of what you bring to the table. Every actor has their own particular uniqueness. We all try to channel that uniqueness through these characters. Something of yourself comes through, and you use what you know about the world, about this story and about the input you get from the directors and writers, and you put that in.
 
Q: Bruno, how did you get inspired to voice such a sexy, charming character?
 
Bruno: A lot of pampering. The thing that I always found funny about this character is that he gets turned into this slimy frog and, for the entire movie, his attitude is, “I’ve still got it!” I just thought that was so hilarious, and that reminds me of my dad. I was inspired by how hilarious that was to me because it was so comedic.
 
Q: Do you realize what a huge landmark this film will be for people?
 
Jenifer: I walked into the Disney store, down in San Diego, and there was a little African American girl with her hair in braids, like I had when I was a kid, and she had Princess Tiana in her hand. I said, “Are you going to get that doll?,” and she said, “Oh, yes. She’s beautiful. Don’t you think?” It was over!
 
Q: Did you tell her you were in the movie?
 
Jenifer: Oh, yes! I said, “If you come right over here, to this little ugly lady who you didn’t buy, that’s me, little girl.”
 
Q: It’s almost universal that every girl feels she’s a princess. For the guys, do you grow up feeling like you’re a prince?
 
Michael: I grew up feeling like I was a king.
 
Keith: Yes, indeed.
 
Bruno: I wanted to be a bank robber, until I was about 12, and then I wanted to be an actor.
 
Michael: It’s the whole rags to riches premise of it. And, wishing upon a star. I’ve done it. I have looked up at the evening sky and wished my hardest for something I wanted so bad, in the core of my soul and my being, and one of those wishes was to be a Disney character. Go figure!

“The Princess and the Frog” opens in theaters on December 11th.