Hamilton Star Austin Scott on Rapping with Lin-Manuel Miranda, Rocking a Speedo on Pose & More

To make a Broadway debut is impressive, but to make one in a role as demanding and desired as Alexander Hamilton—now that is truly revolutionary. After leading the first national tour of Hamilton in the title role, Austin Scott is doing just that. The talented 26-year-old started auditioning for the musical (interestingly for the roles of Washington and Marquis de Lafayette/Thomas Jefferson) years ago but was told, "There’s something special in you, but not quite yet. You may be a little too young for this, too old for that.” Not unlike the character he plays in Lin-Manuel Miranda’s game-changing musical, Scott proved himself to be young, scrappy and hungry enough to take his shot at the coveted part. He sat down with Broadway.com to talk about the early influences that inspired his career as a performer, his In-N-Out burger obsession, strutting his stuff on FX’s Pose and more.

Fresh Prince
To take the Richard Rodgers stage as the ambitious, opinionated Alexander Hamilton requires a lot of swagger, and Austin Scott has been studying the artform since childhood. “I remember watching a lot of The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air with Will Smith and all of his early 90s movies," he says. "I always kind of saw a lot of myself in him or who I kind of hoped I would be as an actor." (Don’t mind us, we’ll just be over here dreaming about Scott starring in a stage musical adaptation of Hitch.)

The Most Swankified Place in Town
Though Scott did not consider himself "a big theater kid” growing up (he was captain of both his varsity basketball team and his improv team in high school), he did appreciate the Broadway shows he was able to see. One in particular changed him for good. "Wicked was the first live show I ever saw. I saw the original cast, and I was just blown away by the artistry and the energy and the choreography,” he recalls. “That just blew my mind.”

Cali Boy
Scott hails from Benicia, California. He moved to New York three years ago. “I lived in L.A. for a little while, and things are happening there, but here it’s like: this is where the party’s at,” he says. Scott definitely maintains his laidback Cali vibe. “I’ll talk to [Hamilton director] Tommy Kail sometimes, and he’ll say, ‘Austin, it’s so great. You’ve just got this Cali boy vibe about you. Maybe pump in some New York every now then.’" The West Coast quality he refuses to shake? “My love for In-N-Out Burger," Scott says. “My friend just came to the show the other day and brought me an In-N-Out Burger t-shirt so I am going to be converting as many New Yorkers as I can.”

Just Can’t Wait to Be King
Like Elphaba or The Phantom, Hamilton is one of those iconic musical theater roles aspiring actors hope to sink their teeth into. Now that he has made his Broadway debut as the ten-dollar Founding Father, there is another one Scott would love to tackle: “I’d like to play Simba in The Lion King,” he reveals. “It was one of the first shows I ever saw, and I loved it so much. Getting to be a part of something with so many strong black performers is so powerful for me. I’d love to be a part of that someday."

The Category Is
Hamilton isn’t the only sweet gig Scott has going. He made an appearance on season 2 of FX's smash hit series Pose as Adrian, a Long Island lifeguard who takes a liking to Mj Rodriguez’s character Blanca during a girls trip. “It was so much fun. That’s another huge, groundbreaking show that I get to be a part of,” he says. “Everyone on the crew—there was so much love, so much acceptance, so much warmth.” Both Pose and Hamilton have revolutionized their respective mediums, but Scott’s ruffles and coats in the Broadway juggernaut were a little different from his beach look: “I was in a speedo on television for the first time in my life, so that was an interesting moment.”

Bit of a Day
Hamilton was not Scott’s first introduction to certified genius Lin-Manuel Miranda. Back in 2016, he played the role of Benny in a production of In the Heights at the Hangar Theatre. "I didn’t full-on meet him, but he did a little FaceTime video with the entire cast and wished us well,” he recalls. “The next time I met him was at one of my first auditions for Hamilton. It was really cool. I was rapping ‘Guns and Ships,’ and he was behind the table. As soon as I started, he was rapping with me. My mind was blown.”

Watch Austin Scott in action at his Broadway.com photo shoot below!

Photos by Emilio Madrid-Kuser | Video directed and edited by Kyle Gaskell