Faly Rakotohavana stars as Fin alongside Kerry Washington and Delroy Lindo in the Hulu comedy series “UnPrisoned.”
Fin is the son of Washington’s character Paige and the grandson of Lindo’s character Edwin. It is produced by the Onyx Collective and streams on Hulu.
Rakotohavana hails from the East African island country of Madagascar. He joked and said the biggest misconception about Madagascar is that the animals talk like they do in the DreamWorks animated film of the same name. In fact, Rakotohavana said most of the animals in the cartoon are not even native to his birthplace.
“There are no lions, hippos, zebras — wait,” he said. “Dad, are there hippos in Madagascar?” Rakotohavana asked his father.
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“No there are not – no hippos, no zebras, and no giraffes,” he continued. “They’re all from a zoo in New York, and they took a boat there.”
From a very young age, Rakotohavana said he always wanted to be an actor. When he was six years old, Rakotohavana said, his family moved to Phoenix, Arizona in the United States.
He first started pursuing acting there but found it challenging because he had a speech impediment. “I did speech therapy for a while,” he said, “then I got over the stutter.”
FALY RAKOTOHAVANA
After overcoming his impediment, Rakotohavana and his family moved to Texas to pursue new opportunities. He discovered the theatre there, and Rakotohavana said the theatre made him fall in love with acting.
“I did local theatre there,” he said. “I loved doing theatre, but you know, I want[ed] to be on TV.” He learned of an audition for the Disney Channel in Phoenix, AZ., and he said his father drove him there to pursue the opportunity.
“It turned out it was for a camp called CGTV,” said Rakotohavana. “I did that, then I met my agent, my manager, and then everything just kind of worked itself out after that.”
When asked what it feels like to have a supportive family while on his acting quest, Rakotohavana replied, “My dad is right here, so I’m about to inflate his ego. They moved to Los Angeles for me, essentially. My parents have stuck through it – I would be nothing without them.”
Before joining the cast of “UnPrisoned,” Rakotohavana had a supporting role in the Disney channel family sitcom “Raven’s Home,” and the Disney original movie “The Secret Society of Second-Born Royals.”
When talking about his character Fin in “UnPrisoned,” Rakotohavana said he brought much of his own personality to the character. “I’m a very dry and sarcastic person,” he said, “and getting to bring that to Fin, especially with Kerry and Delroy – that was just so fun to do.”
He continued, “I enjoy working with them [Washington and Lindo] so much, and Fin is such a fun character. He’s got so much going on in his head, and he has to deal with Paige and Edwin at the same time as he’s dealing with himself. He’s got the craziest parental dynamic ever.”
“UnPrisoned,” as described on the official Hulu site, is a half-hour comedy about a messy but perfectionist relationship therapist and single mom whose life is turned right-side-up when her dad gets out of prison and moves in with her and her teenage son.
Rakotohavana said some of his favorite moments while filming “UnPrisoned” are when Fin turns Paige’s therapy advice back on her.
“Although Fin is growing into his own, and in some ways, he does have to be the adult,” said Rakotohavana, “he really has learned a lot from his mother, and he does pay attention to what she says, and he loves her. It’s crazy to see the impacts these different dynamics have on his life.”
Rakotohavana said he was very familiar with Washington’s work before “UnPrisoned.” He was also familiar with Lindo’s work, although initially, he didn’t know who Lindo was by name.
“He’s [Lindo] amazing,” said Rakotohavana. “On set, I watch him all the time, like a stalker. I am zoned in on him. I love seeing how he works.”
Rakotohavana said there is a “sense of pressure” working with Washington and Lindo because he always wants to deliver a performance that is on par with his co-stars. “These guys are the top of the top,” he said. “I’m just the guy that was lucky enough to be cast to work with them.”
But Rakotohavana said he has worked hard to earn his place on “UnPrisoned,” and he constantly reminds himself that he was cast for a reason, so he always puts his best effort forward.
Season 2 of “UnPrisoned” is currently streaming on Hulu.
