The Lion King promotional tour is already super-fun. The lesson is that “Beyonce’s presence makes everything fun,” but it also helps to have funny dudes like Seth Rogen, John Oliver and Billy Eichner around too. So far, John Oliver hasn’t done anything, but I feel like he’s saving it for something special (hopefully). In lieu of John Oliver, we have Seth Rogen and Billy Eichner freaking out about all things involving Beyonce and the Duchess of Sussex. As it turns out, Eichner also graduated from Northwestern, same as Meghan. So that’s what they talked about at the London premiere of The Lion King:
Meghan Markle joined her husband, Prince Harry, at the Lion King premiere on Sunday, and it looks like she ran into a familiar old face! Billy Eichner, who voices Timon in the new live-action adaptation of the hugely popular Disney classic, has revealed that he and Meghan actually went to the same university! Chatting on Capital Breakfast with Roman Kemp, he said: “We both went to Northwestern which is outside of Chicago which has a big theatre programme.”
He continued: “She was a theatre major, I was a theatre major and so when I met her the other night all we did is have this strange casual conversation about our acting teachers, because we had some of the same acting teachers.” Speaking about meeting the royals at the London premiere, Billy explained: “They give you a list of things you’re supposed to do when you meet them, all of this protocol and it all sounds very formal and very old fashioned and we didn’t actually know if people do it or not. And so when they started to approach I didn’t know what to say!
Seth Rogen, who voices Pumbaa, added: “We were gauging what to do! Do you really say, ‘Your Royal Highness’? I kept thinking, ‘Or else what?’ What could go wrong?” Billy joked: “That sounds crazy and we’re not from this country, I don’t know… What I need to figure out what words are going to come out of my mouth… I really started freaking out.”
I’m including Eichner’s IG below, where he can be seen freaking out to Rogen about how to address Meghan and Harry and the order of greeting and handshakes and all that. I’m glad they do pass out those little pamphlets or whatever so all of us vulgar Americans know what to do. We always find a way to screw it up though, and honestly, I doubt Meghan and Harry cared much about that kind of protocol at the premiere. Meghan was full-on hugging people as she greeted them, and I still say that she was so happy to be amongst her fellow Americans for a night. And she probably loved reminiscing about Northwestern with Billy.
Photos courtesy of Getty.
I love the “Or what??” part. Seriously…or what? What can they do to you? Jail you if you don’t say Your Royal Highness? Cut off your feet if you don’t curtsy?
F that. I am a huge Meg/Harry fan and I adore them but also, they’re just people. Nooobody can convince me that you HAVE to treat or address them a certain way.
Ha that’s adorable!!! I really like Billy Eichner. And I imagine its weird meeting royals like Meghan and Harry in that setting – the Queen, okay, you obviously don’t hug. But Meghan? I feel like I would want to hug Meghan lol.
He’s the best part of Friends From College for me.
He was so good in Friends from College (or as I call it, Horrible Friends)! I love him playing the straight man against all of those horrible people.
I LOVE LOVE LOVE him in that. (too bad it got cancelled.)
I couldn’t figure out why he was so familiar to me, and then I realized…
…he’s Billy on the Street! Dude is FUNNY.
I thought that was cute, too!
I was watching a video on Youtube of some Brits meeting the Queen and they didn’t curtsey or use titles. If Brits can get this stuff wrong, when it’s subliminally drilled into us from childhood, I think the royals will be forgiving of people from other countries not knowing protocol.
God, I just love him.