Kyla Pratt Shares Her Excitement & Fears About ‘The Proud Family’ Revival on Disney+

Penny Proud Family Kyla Pratt
Q&A
The Disney Channel/courtesy Everett Collection; Pamela Littky/FOX

The Proud Family is coming back, and as the title of the revival tells us, they’re Louder and Prouder.

The cast, including Kyla Pratt (Call Me Kat) as Penny Proud, is back as executive producers Bruce W. Smith and Ralph Farquhar revisit the show still loved by fans for its humor and relatable stories.

Here, Pratt discusses returning to the world of The Proud Family.

Talk about stepping back into the character of Penny Proud.

Kyla Pratt: I got to do that character from the age of 14 to 17, so it’s a part of my childhood and for years, people have always been like, “You guys need to bring that back. There weren’t enough episodes. It was so amazing.” I always tell people, “Don’t harass me. I can’t make this happen.” But it’s coming back now, it’s going to be on Disney+, we have a bunch of new episodes, and it’s basically the old Proud Family rebooted, an upgraded version.

What I love about that show is we talked about so many things a lot of shows weren’t talking about in 2001, and so now, of course we gotta bring it extra hard. There are a lot of people who are going to be looking at the episodes and saying, “Wow, I can’t believe they went there, but I’m glad they did.” There’s certain discussions we need to have that sometimes it can start with something as simple as a cartoon.

Is there anything you’re doing now that you wanted to do in the original run?

Not really. This is a completely different experience. We were going to record together, and then the pandemic happened, so I got to record a few episodes from home. I got to learn how to use my computer more than just checking my email. It’s the same amazing feeling. Our writers are amazing. I wish I was able to be around our other cast members more, but safety first.

What are the biggest challenges of bringing back the show and character for you?

When I was younger, I used to lose my voice a lot. I have not perfected breathing from the diaphragm, and I’m a very loud person, so the challenge for me is to always make sure I’m understandable as Penny because me losing my voice, I do not sound the same.

The Proud Family Concept Art

(Disney+)

It was really scary at first, knowing it was coming back, because I hope we’re able to do it justice. A lot of things are getting rebooted and to me, it’s only best to go backwards if it’s going to be absolutely great. Within my first meeting with the creators and executive producers again, I knew right away, “They got this. It’s going to be no worries.” I keep telling everyone, “I’m so sorry you have to wait.” But it will definitely be worth the wait.

The Proud Family: Louder and Prouder, Coming Soon, Disney+