Summary

• Nicholas Galitzine, the breakout star of Red, White & Royal Blue, has quickly made a name for himself in franchise films and prestige series.
• Galitzine is not only a talented actor but also a capable singer, starring in the Cinderella musical adaptation and releasing his own single.
• Despite often playing gay characters, Galitzine identifies as straight and seeks to deliver honest and empathetic performances in his roles.

Nicholas Galitzine is a young and actor who appears in the 2023 romantic comedy Red, White & Royal Blue is based on the book of the same name by Casey McQuiston. In this LGBTQ+ love story, the son of the American President, Alex Claremont-Diaz (Taylor Zakhar Perez), and Prince Henry of England (Nicholas Galitzine) find themselves falling for each other in a classic example of the beloved enemies to lovers rom-com trope.

Upon release, Red, White & Royal Blue hit No. 1 on Amazon Prime Video and even led to a surge in hip for the streaming service. This is thanks, in part, to the lead performance by Nicholas Galitzine. This young actor has only just begun his career but has quickly moved into starring roles in franchise films, prestige series, and more. But besides being an impressive new acting talent, who exactly is Nicholas Galitzine?

Nicholas Galitzine Was Born In England

Many of his roles are in British films, so it's no surprise that Nicholas Galitzine was born in England, specifically Hammersmith, London on September 29, 1994 (via GQ). His mother emigrated from Greece and his father was a financier. When Galitzine turned 18, he got his first role, starring in an adaptation of the coming-of-age rock musical Spring Awakening at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe called Rites: A Children’s Tragedy. His parents were nervous at first about his wish to pursue acting, considering it a difficult career path, but he quickly proved his talent in only a few years.

Nicholas Galitzine's First Role Came In The Beat Beneath My Feet

Nicholas Galitzine's very first film role came in 2014 in The Beat Beneath My Feet, a small family drama about a young man Tom (Galitzine) who discovers his neighbor Steve (Luke Perry) is secretly a disgraced rock hero who faked his own death to escape his debts. Tom gets Steve to teach him guitar in return for keeping his secret and the pair begin to form a friendship. The film flew under the radar and only has a 50% score on Rotten Tomatoes, but it is a worthwhile watch for the strong chemistry between Galitzine and Perry.

Nicholas Galitzine's Break-Out Role Was In Red, White & Royal Blue

While Nicholas Galitzine was in a number of films and TV shows after his first screen debut in 2014, it was the 2023 Red, White & Royal Blue that was the real breakout for the actor. He showed a wide skill set in the lead-up to this romantic film, but it's in this movie that he puts all his tools together for a star-making performance. Galitzine is funny, charming, and believably romantic in Red, White & Royal Blue and he effortlessly plays off his costar Perez.

Nicholas Galitzine Is A Talented Singer

Not only is Nicholas Galitzine a talented actor, but he is also a very capable singer. In his first role in The Beat Beneath My Feet, Galitzine also appears on seven songs of the movie's original motion picture soundtrack. More notably, he starred in the 2021 Cinderella musical adaptation. There, he plays Prince Robert and sings "Am I Wrong" alongside Camila Cabello and Idina Menzel, a cover of Ed Sheeran's "Perfect", and more. His musical talents are not only reserved for the screen as he also wrote and released a single in 2022 called "Comfort".

Nicholas Galitzine Is Descended From A Royal Russian Family

Maybe one of the reasons Nicholas Galitzine is able to play royal characters so well is because he himself has royal blood. Galitzine's father is a descendant of the House of Golitsyn, a former Russian princely family (via Teen Vogue). They, like all the Russian princely families, were ousted from Russia during the Revolution in 1917. The family was founded back in the 15th century and so at this point, their family tree is so extensive that Nicholas and his family probably pay little attention to their royal connection.

Anne Hathaway And Nicholas Galitzine Are Set To Star In The Idea Of You

Nicholas Galitzine has not slowed down since he stepped into acting, and his slate of projects suggests he plans to continue working steadily. He is set to star alongside Anne Hathaway in the , though unscheduled, romantic comedy The Idea of You. An adaptation of the romance novel of the same name by Robinne Lee, from director Michael Showalter, The Idea of You follows Sophie (Hathaway) a middle-aged mother who brings her daughter to Coachella and ends up sparking a romance with a musician, Hayes Campbell (Galitzine). Not much more is known about the film but Galitzine should have the chance to show off his musical prowess.

Nicholas Galitzine Identifies As Straight Despite Often Playing Gay Characters

Many of Nicholas Galitzine's characters identify as gay or bisexual: Conor Masters in Handsome Devil, Timmy Andrews in The Craft: Legacy, and now Prince Henry in Red, White & Royal Blue. Galitzine himself identifies as straight, which may be a surprise considering how comfortable he is playing characters of different sexual orientations. Director López is an openly gay man and Galitzine had this to say about his casting in a Just for Variety podcast:

"I think it’s a very sensitive subject, I think the important thing for me was to let Matthew [López] know that I loved who Henry was as a person, and I empathized with him as a character, and I just wanted to try and deliver as honest a performance — never a caricature — as I could."

Nicholas Galitzine Will Star In Mary & George

While Nicholas Galitzine's most notable roles have come in film, he's also had a successful career in television, including one episode of Legends as Angelo, a starring role in the TV film The Watcher in the Woods as Mark Fleming, and a main character Elliott Lefevre on Chambers. He is also set to star in another TV series, Mary & George, based on Benjamin Woolley's non-fiction book The King's Assassin. The series will feature Galitzine as George Villiers, 1st Duke of Buckingham, and Julianne Moore as Mary Villiers, Countess of Buckingham. Set photos have been revealed, but a premiere date has not (via Vogue).

Nicholas Galitzine Originally Wanted To Be A Rugby Player

Before Nicholas Galitzine had planned on becoming an actor, he was a fervent and talented rugby player. Galitzine played for the Harlequins Academy, a top-league rugby academy, and may have stayed with it if a rotator cuff injury had not sidelined him (via Screen Daily). The injury wasn't the only thing that brought him away from the sport. In his GQ interview, Galitzine says how the world he grew up in was extremely masculine, but he never could quite gel with that because he was, "...a very feeling young man." His injury was most likely the final straw in his dwindling interest in athletics.

Nicholas Galitzine's Role In Bottoms Revealed His Comedic Range

The same year Nicholas Galitzine appeared in Red, White & Royal Blue, he also starred in the sleeper comedy hit Bottoms. Galitzine plays high school quarterback Jeff in Bottoms' large ensemble cast. Directed by Emma Seligman and co-written with Rachel Sennott, Bottoms is a satirical teen-sex comedy. PJ (Sennott) and Josie (Ayo Edebiri) are lesbian best friends who start a girls' self-defense club in order to entice their crushes at school to hook up with them. It's over-the-top but an effective satire on sex and victimization. Nicholas Galitzine reveals a comfort in comedy and absurdity that will surely serve him well in a wider range of roles in the future.