That’s So Raven actor Annaliese van der Pol speaks out on ‘racism’ during initial casting

A former cast member on the hit Disney Channel show That’s So Raven has spoken out about “racism” had an impact on the initial casting process.

Annaliese van der Pol played Chelsea in the children’s series, the best friend and sidekick to Raven Symoné’s titular character.

The programme was a major success for the channel and garnered two Emmy nominations during its 2003 to 2007 run. Critics and audiences were particularly impressed with Symoné’s comic timing and charm as the series protagonist.

Yet, during an appearance on fellow child star Christy Carlson Romano’s Vulnerable podcast, van der Pol noted that the show initially featured Symoné in a supporting role.

“When I went in to audition, the show was called Absolutely Psychic,” she explained on the Tuesday (25 April) episode. “It wasn't called That’s So Raven at all.

“At the time, Raven wasn’t the lead. She was the sidekick. They were looking for a lead and I came in to audition for the lead. I think the character’s name was Molly.”

While van der Pol was not cast in the lead role, she says that Symoné was successful in getting the part as the sidekick. When filming began, however, the production team decided to make a major change when they noticed the former Cosby Show star’s talent.

“When they filmed, they realized Raven was the funniest one and had a following, and so they bumped her up to first position, and then they started auditioning people again,” van der Pol stated.

“I think that was kind of, like, racism at a low level – I guess if that's even a possibility. They couldn't really see a Black girl leading a show. They only saw her as a sidekick.”

The Independent has reached out to a representative at Disney for comment.

In 2017, Symoné and van der Pol returned to the That’s So Raven universe for Raven’s Home – a reboot of the original series that sees the friends navigating motherhood together.