They have fun together and really complement each other in their adventure skills and resourcefulness and the comedic tête-à-tête between them. They’re there for each other, but they fight-and there’s teamwork. They fumble, they stumble, they fail, they succeed. In Tangled, they really took a swing at making two well-rounded characters who aren’t perfect. ZL: Fairy tales used to be much more cookie-cutter and there was a very definitive prince and a very definitive evil character, whomever that might be. I trust the animators to bring all those little bits of Eugene to life and they do in tremendous ways.ĭ23: Why do you think that Rapunzel and Eugene remain so beloved to fans? There are cameras in the booths, so the animators kind of use a little bit of whatever you might be bringing, as far as how a character might gesticulate. Ever since I was a little kid I was a massive “Dis-nerd”-I watched everything Disney under the sun-and I always loved the idea of being able to create a character with your voice. Is portraying him more of a challenge than a live-action role, given that you can only use your voice to bring him to life? He’s rough around the edges but he’s still learning and coming to terms with the bad decisions that he made in the past.ĭ23: Speaking of back story, Eugene is a pretty complex character. He’s not accustomed to any of this stuff and what’s appropriate and what’s not appropriate. Now he’s in with the royal family and living in the lap of luxury, but he’s still learning. He connected to the child in all of us and told really great stories that are classic and timeless.”ĭ23: What’s Eugene up to in the new series? “I have a massive affinity for everything Walt Disney created. ET)-in advance of the debut of Tangled: The Series on March 24 (7:30 p.m.)-about the enduring appeal of Eugene and Rapunzel as well as Levi’s enduring love for all things Disney. We talked with Levi recently about Tangled Before Ever After, the Disney Channel Original Movie that premieres Friday, March 10 (8 p.m. We could be talking about Eugene Fitzherbert-aka Flynn Rider-who burst into Rapunzel’s tower in the Walt Disney Animation Studios’ 2010 hit feature Tangled and ended up sticking around for “ever after,” but those qualities are just as evident in the actor who voices Rapunzel’s true love, Zachary Levi.

The actor-a self-proclaimed “Dis-nerd”-is reprising his role as the charming and adventurous Eugene Fitzherbert (formerly Flynn Rider) in Disney Channel’s brand-new Tangled: The Series.

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