Based on the New York Times bestseller novel of the same name, Red, White, & Royal Blue is a faithful adaptation that impressed the fans and became Amazon Prime's No. 1 global movie over its premiere weekend. Fans of the novel have been looking forward to the adaptation for a few years now, and Matthew Lopez finally turned the novel into a feature film at Prime in his directorial debut.
The film plot has the classic enemies-to-lovers trope, which could have made the entire thing boring for the audience. However, such stories are rarely seen with a queer lead cast. So, it's not surprising that Red, White, & Royal Blueis striking the right chord with the audience because it has beautifully handled queer representation and has given the fans a great romantic comedy they can watch again and again.
It follows the romance between Alex, the son of the President of the United States, and Prince Henry of the United Kingdom. Whether it's Uma Thurman as Ellen Claremont, the first female POTUS, or the lead couple, Taylor Zakhar Perez as Alex Claremont-Diaz and Nicholas Galitzine as Prince Henry, the film is full of interesting characters who play an integral role in making the entire plot engaging. Following are some of the most likable characters in the movie.
11 Shaan
Shaan (Akshay Khanna) is Prince Henry's equerry. Just like most of the audience, Alex is not familiar with what exactly an equerry is, and he asks the same question to Shaan, who replies that he is the personal attendant of Prince Henry. At first, Shaan is only seen to be handling Prince Henry's daily affairs, but it is later revealed that he is in a long-distance relationship with Zahra, the deputy chief of staff of POTUS.
Shaan has very few scenes in Red, White, & Royal Blue. However, he is still a prominent character for the way he is always around Henry and how he helps Alex and Henry reconnect in the last act of the film after their personal emails are leaked to the public.
10 Amy
Aneesh Sheth plays Amy, a Secret Service agent responsible for protecting Alex. She steals the spotlight even with limited screen time and provides comedic relief to the audience. Amy is also the one who facilitates the friendship between Alex and Prince Henry, even just for the sake of the camera, but it ultimately turns into a real relationship. She is the first person to know about the affair when she walks in on them kissing in a room.
Other than being a funny character, Amy is also discreet, as she does not tell anyone about the budding romance between Alex and the Prince. Moreover, it was quite refreshing to see a woman portray the role of a US Secret Service agent, as such roles are typically assigned to men in most other movies and TV shows.
9 Princess Beatrice
Prince Henry has to hide his sexuality because no one in his family is willing to accept it or even discuss it, except for his younger sister, Princess Beatrice (Ellie Bamber). She has an even more detailed personal arc in the novel, especially her struggle with drug addiction, but we don't get to see it in the Red, White, & Royal Blue as the film is more focused on the romance between Alex and Prince Henry.
Princess is a source of comfort for Henry, as she is one of the very few people who know about the Prince's sexuality. Moreover, she helps Henry in accepting his true feelings for Alex and also supports him when his emails get leaked. Even with a few scenes in Red, White, & Royal Blue, Princess Bea manages to leave a lasting impression on the audience.
8 Zahra Bankston
Sarah Shahi delivers a fantastic performance as Zahra Bankston, the deputy chief of staff for the President of the United States. Zahra is a thoroughly professional and highly focused individual who just wants the President to get re-elected and avoid any kind of controversy that could damage her campaign.
When she suspects there is someone in Alex's room, Zahra barges into his room and catches Henry hiding in a closet. This entire scene is quite hilarious, especially the way Zahra scolds Prince Henry but performs a curtsy at the end of her rant. She is in a secret long-term relationship with Shaan and helps Alex reconnect with Prince Henry after the email scandal.
7 Nora
Rachel Hilson brilliantly played Nora Holleran in Red, White & Royal Blue. She is the granddaughter of the Vice President and the best friend of Alex. The novel also had Alex's sister June, who made the 'White House Trio,' along with Nora and Alex. However, June's character is missing in the film, due to which Nora is shown as the confidant of Alex.
Nora is the first person to know about Alex's kiss with Prince Henry. She helps Alex realize his true feelings for the Prince and supports him in whatever decision he takes. Nora has a sweet and important role in the film, especially because June is not in the film, so the audience gets to see Alex open up about his sexuality through Nora's perspective.
6 Oscar Diaz
Congressman Oscar Diaz (Clifton Collins Jr.) is Alex's father, who supports and loves him no matter what. He brought an interesting perspective to Red, White & Royal Blue, particularly because he highlights what it means to be a Latina in the USA. Unlike the novel, he is still married to Ellen in the film, which makes him the First Gentleman of the USA. Oscar supports Alex's political mission of flipping Texas, and is fully chilled out when Alex comes out as bisexual.
Some of Oscar's dialogues highlight his own achievements in the government, such as the introduction of gender-neutral bathrooms in Texas. Overall, Oscar is a supportive father and a loving husband, which makes him one of the best characters in Red, White & Royal Blue.
5 Miguel Ramos
Miguel Ramos (Juan Castano) is an original character created for the film adaptation, as he was not originally in the novel. Miguel is a highly ambitious political reporter who can go to any extent to get a news story, even through unethical and probably illegal means.
He also had a past fling with Alex, but that did not stop him from leaking the private emails between Alex and Prince Henry and putting their reputations in jeopardy. In a way, Miguel can be considered the villain in this hit rom-com as his action forces Alex and Henry to come out, leading to the last act of the film.
4 Prince Philip
Prince Henry is called the 'spare' throughout the film because his older brother, Prince Philip, is first in line and the heir to the throne. He is a traditionalist who believes in maintaining the archaic rules of the monarchy, which also includes telling Henry how to live his life. Red, White & Royal Blue starts with the royal wedding of Princess Martha and Prince Philip.
Keeping up with his traditional views, Philip supports King James III and tries to stop Henry from coming out to the world. Philip is clearly a well-rounded character designed to reflect the core values of the British monarchy, which are typically not in line with the real world. In the film, it is shown that a door had to be removed to get Philip's wedding cake inside the palace. This is an Easter egg to the actual royal wedding of Prince William and Kate Middleton.
3 President Ellen Claremont
Someone with incredible acting chops was necessary to bring the character of President Ellen Claremont to life, and Oscar-nominated actress Uma Thurman definitely did an amazing job, especially the Southern drawl she adopted in Red, White & Royal Blue.
She is the first female President of the United States and loves Alex to bits. Despite having to deal with a variety of political challenges, she finds the time to have a pizza dinner with Alex when he comes out and gives him 'the talk' again. She is one of the best characters of Red, White & Royal Blue not only because of the way Uma Thurman portrays her but also because the entire political drama in the film revolves around her Presidency and reelection campaign.
2 Alex Claremont-Diaz
Alex Claremont-Diaz (Taylor Zakhar Perez) is the first son of the United States. He is a young man with political ambitions, just like his father. He wants to contribute towards her mother's government and reelection campaign, for which he designs a plan to flip Texas, his home state. The 'Cake Gate' results in Alex being forced by his mother to go to the UK and fake friendship with Prince Henry to ensure there is no damage to the potential UK-USA trade deal.
At first, Alex shares a bitter relationship with Henry, but it slowly turns into a romantic relationship, especially when Henry kisses Alex at his New Year's party. Since the majority of the film is focused on Alex, Zakher Perez is getting lots of attention for the way he has risen to the challenge of delivering an amazing performance as a lead in this rom-com.
1 Prince Henry
Prince Henry, also called the 'spare,' is arguably the best character of Red, White & Royal Blue. Nicholas Galitzine convincingly plays the Prince's role and portrays what it means to be a part of an institution like the British Monarchy and be under the public eye at all times. Prince Henry has great character development throughout the film.
At first, Henry is shown to be a quiet guy who does not seem to have any interest in interacting with Alex or befriending him. However, it is later revealed that Henry had a crush on Alex since the first time he saw him at a party. Henry suppressed his feelings by ignoring Alex and even by being arrogant towards him, as he knew that he could not come out without causing a public scandal.
At his core, Henry is a sentimental individual, and Galitzine's powerful performance uplifts the layered character, making it interesting for the audience to see how Henry gets the confidence and courage to finally be himself in front of the entire world.
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