Exclusive Interview: Pop Culturalist Chats with Gabby Duran & The Unsittables’ Nathan Lovejoy

Nathan Lovejoy is delivering an out-of-this-world performance as Principal Swift in Disney Channel’s new sci-fi comedy Gabby Duran & The Unsittables. Nathan’s character is a shapeshifting alien who is disguised as, you guessed it, a school principal. It’s a series unlike anything you’ve ever seen on Disney Channel and one of the best debuts of 2019. Pop Culturalist caught up with Nathan to chat about Gabby Duran & The Unsittables.

PC: How did you discover your passion for acting?
Nathan: I discovered my passion for acting in drama class at high school and through school productions. I had to make a choice between basketball and acting, and when I started to feel more passionate about performing, I knew it was the path I had to follow.

PC: Who or what has had the biggest influence on your career?
Nathan: Probably my peers at drama school. I had a really tight group of friends from NIDA [National Institute of Dramatic Art in Sydney, Australia], many of whom are now living and working in L.A. They really pushed me to be better and showed me what was possible. I never imagined I would wind up pursuing a career in the U.S. Watching them succeed and taking risks made me think, why not give it a go?

PC: You’ve had a lot of success already in your career. When you look back, is there a particular moment that stands out?
Nathan: That’s a great question! We spend so much time as actors worrying about what’s next that we don’t often stop and think about what’s been. It would definitely be working with John Bell, one of Australia’s legendary actors and directors and the figurehead of our national Shakespeare company, Bell Shakespeare. I had the privilege of working with John on a number of productions, and it’s something that I will treasure forever. I hope I can get back to Australia and do some more work with the company soon.

PC: What’s one thing you know now that you wish you knew when you started your career?
Nathan: That you will fail over and over again and it will get easier. Resilience is something you learn as an actor, but it takes time. Rejection is a constant, but there’s a lot of beauty and magic in between if you can learn to be resilient. I don’t know if I knew that from the start it would’ve necessarily made things easier. It’s discovering it along the way that’s half the fun!

PC: Tell us about Gabby Duran & The Unsittables, your character, and what drew you to this project.
Nathan: I play Principal Swift, a shapeshifting alien operating undercover as a school principal. He enlists the help of one of his students, Gabby Duran, to babysit a community of extraterrestrials hiding out on earth. What I love about the project was its highly original tone and amazingly creative team. It’s adapted from the original book by Elise Allen and Daryle Conners, which serves as a fantastic jumping-off point for the show. It’s funny as all get-out and Kylie Cantrall, who plays Gabby, is an absolute powerhouse and star of the future. Not to mention the rest of the cast, who are all fantastic! It really is like nothing you’ve seen on Disney Channel before.

PC: How did you prepare to step into Principal Swift’s shoes? What has been your favorite part of playing him? What’s been the most challenging?
Nathan: I traveled to space several times and did ride-alongs with actual aliens! Wouldn’t that be cool? Unfortunately, we didn’t have the budget for that. I think Swift is a conflation of all the TV school principals that have come before. Think Mr. Belding meets Roald Dahl’s Trunchbull. I imagine that’s what he did back on his home planet in preparation—downloaded all the footage of every TV principal ever into his brain, which is kind of what I tried to do. I think that’s probably why the whole thing has gone a little haywire. Instead of figuring out what it really takes to be principal, Swift kind of knows how to look and sound like one, but that’s about it. He doesn’t have any of the detail.

PC: The series has already been picked up for a second season. Where would you like to see Principal Swift’s arc head? If you could write him a storyline, what would it be and why?
Nathan: A lot of Season 1 is about Swift learning to love his life on Earth. He longs to connect with people, to be seen. His closest and most meaningful relationship is with Gabby, a thirteen-year-old. I’d love to see Swift have a little more adult time. It would be great if there was a kid at school with a single mom, let’s say. Look, I heard he had his eye on Dina Duran at parent-teacher night. That’s all I’m saying.

Pop Culturalist Speed Round

PC: Guilty pleasure TV show?
Nathan: U.K. Love Island. CAN. NOT. STOP. WATCHING.

PC: Guilty pleasure movie?
Nathan: I just saw Booksmart. It’s not really a guilty pleasure, but I could watch that movie again and again.

PC: Favorite book?
Nathan: Probably the His Dark Materials trilogy by Philip Pullman, closely followed by Freedom by Jonathan Franzen.

PC: Favorite play or musical?
Nathan: Sunset Boulevard because it’s the first big musical I ever saw.

PC: A band or artist that fans would be surprised to learn is on your playlist?
Nathan: Kylie Cantrall’s “Feeling Some Kinda Way.” Not a surprise really. Give it a spin!

PC: Last show you binge-watched?
Nathan: Probably The End of the F***ing World on Netflix. Season 2 just dropped I think!

PC: Who would play you in the story of your life?
Nathan: Michael Shannon or, if he has any acting chops, maybe John Mayer.

PC: Hidden talent?
Nathan: Intermediate singer and basketball player.

To keep up with Nathan, follow him on Twitter and Instagram. Catch Gabby Duran & The Unsittables on Disney Now.

Photo Credit: Lesley Bryce