Former Disney Star Joined REAGAN For This Reason

Published: September 6, 2024

Former Disney Star Joined REAGAN For This Reason

By Movieguide® Contributor

Former Disney Channel actor David Henrie explained why he uses his platform for good and how this led him to take on the role of young Ronald Reagan in REAGAN.

“I was humbled in life as I grew up,” Henrie told CBN. “When I was younger…I had a big fan base and everything, and I was like, ‘I don’t have any responsibility towards them. I’m just an actor. I’m doing my thing.”

“People care about you and you should try to do something good with it,” he continued, explaining the shift in his mentality that caused him to care. “‘With power comes responsibility,’ right? So, as I got older, I was like, ‘I need to do something with this. This life is a gift.’”

As Henrie came to realize that he was meant to do something meaningful with his platform, he also returned to his faith after years as an agnostic. His reawakening of faith was ignited by his role in the movie LITTLE BOY which reminded him of God’s love.

“[The producers] were instrumental in changing my life, helping me find the greater good and awaken the little boy in my heart, and led me back to my faith, let me back to my beliefs, and it has completely changed my life,” Henrie said when the movie premiered in 2015.

“When we were on set, there were people of all different beliefs,” he continued. “I had no clue that there were Christians behind the movie. I will forever be grateful for LITTLE BOY because it was the film that saved my life.”

In the nine years since, Henrie has worked to use his platform to glorify Christ and create uplifting movies rather than live for himself and his own fame.

“Who am I? I’m a speck of sand on this whole tapestry of life, and just do what you can with what you’ve been given,” Henrie said. “So…that’s my thing…just try to use my platform to do good, show the beauty of family life, make good content, be a part of projects that can make an impact.”

This is his hope for REAGAN, especially as he portrays a side of the man that even those who remember him back in his Hollywood days would not know.

“Everyone knows Reagan,” he said. “So, it comes with a lot of baggage, but a lot of people don’t know young Reagan like they know old Reagan. And young Reagan sounds nothing like old Reagan. So, the challenge was [to] make it authentic, but don’t be an SNL character doing some old Reagan thing.”

REAGAN is in theaters now.

Movieguide® previously reported on Henrie:

Christian actor turned filmmaker David Henrie said that his Christian faith helps him be selfless when making movies.

“Being a man of faith, it causes me to constantly make my work and life about more than myself. And it encourages me because, you know, I think selfishness is opposed to faith.” He added, “It encourages me to be more about making things for others, doing things for others, trying to be good to my neighbor and my family. Especially with the content we’re making, to do it for the good of the other person and to make it positive and to make it uplifting.”

Henrie makes his directorial debut in THIS IS THE YEAR, a movie that explores love in all its forms.

“I really wanted to explore love in all its facets. There’s brotherly love, there’s friendship love, there’s romantic love,” the soon-to-be-father of two said.