MISS VIRGINIA - MATTHEW MODINE & NILES FITCH INTERVIEW

Uzo Aduba and Niles Fitch in, Miss Virginia

Emmy Award winner Uzo Aduba, Matthew Modine and Niles Fitch team up in the powerful new movie, Miss Virginia.

In 1996, Virginia Walden Ford was trying to do an ordinary thing against extraordinary odds. The single mother of a teenage son was trying to help him resist the temptations of easy drug money on the streets and focus on his education, but the D.C. public school system was failing them both. After enrolling him in private school, Ford realized, like many working-class families, that she simply couldn’t afford to keep him there, and questioned why parents had so little recourse when it came to their children’s futures. 

Matthew Modine and Uzo Aduba in, Miss Virginia

Walden Ford’s subsequent fight for school choice and the passage of the nation’s first-ever Opportunity Scholarship Program in 2003 is documented in the film Miss Virginia, starring Emmy winner Uzo Aduba in the titular role. The Orange Is the New Black star is joined by a stellar cast which includes Matthew Modine (Stranger Things, 47 Meters Down), Aunjanue Ellis (The Help) Niles Fitch (This Is Us) and friend Amirah Vann (Underground).

Matthew Modine plays Congressman Clifford Williams, a politician who becomes Virginia’s unlikely ally in her fight for the district’s poorest children. Niles Fitch plays Virginia’s gifted but troubled son.

Matthew Modine is an Emmy® and Golden Globe® nominee for his outstanding work in the miniseries And the Band Played On. He rose to prominence through his role as US Marine Corp Private Joker in Stanley Kubrick's Full Metal Jacket. His other film roles include the title character in Alan Parker’s Birdy, the high school wrestler Louden Swain in Vision Quest, Drake Goodman in Pacific Heights and Dr. Ralph Wyman in Short Cuts. On television, Modine portrayed Dr. Martin Brenner in Stranger Things, the oversexed Sullivan Groff on Weeds and Ivan Turing in Proof.

Niles Fitch is best known for his role as young Randall in the hit series This is Us. He made his television debut with a guest appearance in Tyler Perry’s House of Payne, followed by a recurring role in Season 7 of Army Wives. His film credits include St. Vincent and Roman J. Israel Esq. 

I spoke with Matthew Modine and Niles Fitch about working on the powerful film and I also asked them about their hit shows, This Is Us ( Niles) and Stranger Things ( Matthew).

Check out our interview below:

Miss Virginia Premieres on BET Wednesday, February 18th at 10pm ET/PT