In this exclusive interview, the actor shares how he gave heart to a legendary villain—and why “I Always Wanted a Brother” resonated with so many people.
Category
🛠️
LifestyleTranscript
00:00Man, I was so hyped. I was, I literally, I was in New Orleans at the time. It was 2021. I was prepping for a movie and me and my friends came to visit me that weekend and to come hang out. We were doing a crawfish boil.
00:17Oh yeah. Okay. I got the call and I literally put on Be Prepared and I danced around the house. I stood on chairs, tables, like it was a full outperformance because, you know, it was right after pandemic too. So to get a job like that and to get a dream job and to be able to work with a fantastic filmmaker, that was, that was like, man, I can't, you know, I'm actually living out some of my childhood dreams.
00:47This was a bad idea. We're alive. I did it. I saved us.
00:58You were saying?
01:02Well, again, thank you for taking the call, man. But I wanted to ask you two, your visibility has heightened a lot within the past 12 months, man. How has your life changed since Mufasa the Lion King hit theaters and you became a global sensation?
01:15I get a lot of people saying, I always wanted a brother or asking me to say it, but that's the full extent of it really. It's just, they want the song, but I'm, I'm really proud of the movie.
01:28And I'm really grateful that it's resonated with people so much. You never really know what's going to happen with a movie like this. You're like, okay.
01:36There are people kind of like, I already seen it, or I felt like they already seen it. But I, I found that people really identified with the story, whether they felt like they were Scar or Taka or Mufasa and kids have obviously really responded to it as well.
01:51But it, it's, it's, it's brought a whole new sense of community to my life. And I'm really grateful that I got to be a part of that. Yeah.
02:02So what was your first reaction when you were offered the role in that Lion King origin story?
02:06Man, I was so hyped. I was, I literally, I was in New Orleans at the time. It was 2021. I was prepping for a movie and me and my friends came to visit me that weekend.
02:21Uh, and to come hang out, have, we were doing a crawfish boil. Oh yeah. Okay.
02:25Um, I got the call and I literally put on be prepared and I danced around the house. I stood on chairs, tables, like it was a full out performance because, you know, it was right after the pandemic too. So to get a job like that and to get a dream job and to be able to work with a fantastic filmmaker, um, that was, that was like, man, I can't, you know, like I'm actually living out some of my childhood.
02:51dreams. Like that is crazy. We're at home where it began, you know, the thing that I thought I would never be able to do a reach I'm actually being able to do right now.
03:00So. Yeah.
03:02So I'm actually glad you brought up the filmmaker too, cause I'm a huge fan of Barry Jenkins, man. Um, what was it like working with Barry as a director on a project that's so beloved and iconic?
03:11Uh, he's this thing is the care. It's the care. He takes us to attention to detail. You know, I think what a filmmaker like that. And also his, his instinctual, um, ability to find the nuance, but find a way to simplify it just enough so that audience can understand who these young men were.
03:34were, you know, the theme of brotherhood, the theme of coming of age, the theme of finding your role in leadership. Um, the theme of feeling like an outsider and, and, and spaces are themes. Barry does so elegantly.
03:50And I knew we were going to be in good hands though. You know, I definitely challenged him some days and I was just kind of like, I, all I see is these sketches on the screen and it's been a year and a half.
04:05So I want to see the movies soon, but I'm in here with you. I know you got this. And then I started seeing some of them. I was like, this is absolutely beautiful, Barry.
04:15So, um, I just was grateful that, um, uh, something that was so beloved to me and Aaron being a movie that came out our birth year, 94, a movie that we grew up with, um, was in the hands of a filmmaker who cared, who loved it, who understood it, and who was definitely going to create something epic and beautiful.
04:35So, uh, origin stories and prequels have always been really interesting, um, to me personally.
04:42Um, we all know Scar is a villain, but this film gives us insight into his younger self.
04:47Uh, what drew you to explore that complexity in Taka?
04:52Um, I think it was the, it was the naivete and it was also the, um, the assumptions.
05:02I think in naivete, naivete is sometimes an easy way for people to not necessarily take the time to recognize other people.
05:11And we're always looking for our own agenda or our own goal, our own purpose.
05:15And it's so self-absorbed when, um, this is such a community project, being a human and living in the world.
05:23And I think that doesn't work without everyone working together to make it work.
05:28Um, I think that was a theme as well from the original film.
05:31You know, we got Timon and Pumbaa and everyone that came together to lift Simba up again to make him the man that he was so that he can be the rightful king and, um, and, and save the pride lands.
05:43And I think Taka is on a journey of not feeling like he has community, um, not feeling like he has support, not knowing what his calling is, what he's good at, what his purpose is.
05:56He just knows that some, a title is supposed to be passed down to him and it comes with these certain responsibilities.
06:02It's like playing the role.
06:04Um, and I think that is a easy trap for a lot of young people.
06:10Um, and I, I wanted to offer them an opportunity to look at someone like Taka as not only a perspective onto those or themselves, if they feel like they're not heading down the path that they want to, but also as a cautionary tale.
06:25And maybe it's inspirational at times for when they feel stuck that communication works, that earning your, your way works like Mufasa that, um, not thinking about yourself only is actually a good thing.
06:41You know, we don't always have to be so consumed and overwhelmed or what are we doing?
06:45We can, we can kind of look to other people to ask for help.
06:48Having someone like Azazu isn't a problem.
06:50You know, the hierarchy doesn't really exist at times.
06:55Um, so it's just kind of breaking down some of these notions that I think society can sometimes get us trapped into.
07:01And that's what made me excited to explore the character.
07:04And you're an amazing actor, so I'm pretty sure you know how to compartmentalize, but I know different actors have different methods of the way that they prepare.
07:12But, um, how did you prepare emotionally and vocally to step into a character with such a, uh, a rich and dark legacy?
07:19Hmm.
07:20Uh, it was a lot of watching Jeremy Irons because that was the one that I resonated with at first.
07:26Um, and watching his interviews, because I think what, what happened with him was he's fantastic actor, brilliant, brilliant, brilliant actor.
07:36And he has, he brings a lot of his nuances isn't where he's from into that role.
07:45You know, Jeremy sometimes sounds like that in interviews.
07:49And I was like, well, that's established already.
07:52And if I were to establish the character, um, and they hired me for the, some of the qualities and sensibilities that I had.
07:58And then they asked me just, you know, I've done that before.
08:00Like a lot of people, actors do that.
08:02You bring some of your sensibilities to the role in the given circumstance.
08:06But now my job was to continue his legacy.
08:09So then I had to understand who was he as well.
08:12Who was Jeremy?
08:13Who was Scar?
08:14And then who was written on the page?
08:16In addition to that, I had, I have a fantastic dialect coach named Jerome Butler that I've worked with since 2016.
08:23When I started, um, working on monster, um, where A$AP Rocky, Jennifer Hudson and, um, Jeffrey Wright.
08:29And he's been with me on every project since.
08:32And so I was like, let's build this guy.
08:34And we used some different references like, um, Draco from a Harry Potter at times.
08:40And then like, uh, Joffrey from Game of Thrones.
08:43And then to lighten it, we started using like Ron Weasley at moments and then finding our own rhythm of it and playing with pacing.
08:51Um, but the villainous aspect, uh, I think came from what is the intellectual processing of what that means.
09:00And to me, it was about, um, finding a way to speak your truth without getting in trouble.
09:05You know, when people are starting to try to silence you, then that's when you come up with those sly witty remarks to make your point known that you see it, you hear it.
09:13Cause you want to know that I know, you know, you're not going to just play me like that.
09:17I know.
09:18And I think that's where the scar starts to come out in, in the dragging and, uh, the drama and blah, blah, blah, you know, whatever that is.
09:28Um, and then, you know, talk guys a little bit like, you know, you know, it's like not thinking too much.
09:35It's like, there's no worries in the world kind of thing.
09:37So that was how I compartmentalize it and kind of started to build a character.
09:41So we, uh, spoke about the, um, the song.
09:44I always wanted a brother a little bit earlier in the conversation.
09:47I kind of wanted you to expound on that, you know, with its, uh, newfound popularity too.
09:52How has it felt to watch fans connect with that song so deeply and create, uh, you know, creatively?
09:57I love it.
09:58I love it.
09:59I love it.
10:00I love it.
10:01I love it.
10:02I love it.
10:03I heard it the first time and I was like, this is going to be the one.
10:04I was like, this is the one that I want to play in the car.
10:06And I think it's so cool.
10:07Cause everyone's once again, it's about communities, about loving on the people that you want to protect,
10:12you know?
10:13And I've, I've seen the videos of like sisters doing it with their brothers or a brother doing it for their brother,
10:18you know, to each other, or like, you know, the ladies going, I always wanted a brother.
10:24You know what I mean?
10:25Like I love the renditions of it and I think it's something we all can share.
10:32And I think that's, what's so cool about that song.
10:35It, it resonates with people like the lyric, what did you say about my brother?
10:39That's not as straight as my brother.
10:41It's like, there's a pride in your family.
10:44There's a pride in the people you choose in your life to be close to you, to be your people.
10:49And we should celebrate that.
10:51We should protect them.
10:52So I thought that was, it just was dope.
10:55I wanted to do the challenge, but my sister said no.
10:58So that's all right though.
11:02So there's a lot of heart and a lot of hurt in this version of scars story.
11:08Are there any moments or experiences in the film that stayed with you the most after you finished filming?
11:14Ooh, that's a good question.
11:17I think the, the notion of a Malay, you know, what is home?
11:21I thought about a lot actually.
11:23Like where is home is home.
11:25New Orleans for me is home in LA where I have, I have my girlfriend and my friends is home someplace else, you know, is home.
11:35I joke and say a plate of food, but sometimes eating food that tastes like the way my mama made it feels like home.
11:42There's so many versions of a Malay lay.
11:46And I think it is important to identify that and get back to it.
11:50I think a lot of us lose track and lose sight of what Malay lay is for us.
11:54And then we figure out what, and we started to wonder why we've lost our soul and our version of ourselves, our sense of identity, our authenticity.
12:01And Malay lay lay can be wherever you want it to be, as long as it's true and honest, as long as you can feel true and honest and safe.
12:13And I think that is something I really protect and honor.
12:16And even when I'm away, like I'm in Orlando right now, is having people that I love near me in the process of working with people that I love to make sure that it feels like Malay lay.
12:27So that aspect is a really beautiful theme of the film and something that I didn't know what I was still thinking about, but I took from the movie, yeah.
12:38How does it feel knowing that audiences around the world can revisit the story anytime that they want to now?
12:43That's exciting, man. I mean, that's why we make these movies, especially a movie like this.
12:47I told my team a while ago, I was like, I want to make movies that feel rewatchable and I love a movie that can challenge.
12:53I love a movie that sometimes I start provoking and convicting at times.
12:57But I also think that being a part of an entertainment industry, it's just what I do, what we do, you know, is a social consciousness,
13:08but also a desire to make people laugh and smile and and feel something wholesome.
13:16And the fact that kids who love it or adults who love it or anyone who loves it gets to put it on any time.
13:21It makes them feel good, makes that make them feel like they have a Malay lay from watching the movie.
13:26That's a beautiful thing. And then they got some dope features.
13:29We got special features on there now. You get to see some of the behind the scenes.
13:32It's my favorite part of watching movies growing up, too.
13:35We got a sing along for all the people that really love it. You know, that's beautiful.
13:39So it's a full experience.
13:41And I'm excited to get the get more people on board with the with the Mufasa the Lion King bandwagon right now.
13:49Well, Kelvin, thank you so much, my brother. I really appreciate this conversation.
13:53It's always good to speak to, you know, a hometown hero, too, man.
13:57It fills my heart with pride, too, man. Keep doing what you're doing, brother.
14:00Thank you, brother. Appreciate you.