Kyla Pratt was 14 when she began voicing Penny Proud in “The Proud Family,” which premiered on Disney Channel in 2001.
The animated series ran for two seasons before ending with “The Proud Family Movie” in 2005.
She joined the Disney family two years after 13-year-old Raven-Symoné landed a role in the Disney Channel Original Movie “Zenon: Girl of the 21st Century.”
Pratt came in with a lead role, whereas Raven-Symoné played the secondary lead to actress Kirsten Storms.
Looking back, Pratt told People she was grateful to be apart of an illustrious group she could grow with.
“When I think of Disney, I think of Raven-Symoné. I was fortunate enough to be her sister in Dr. Dolittle. For me, Raven was the face of Disney,” she explained.
“I was the cartoon character, and I had maybe the voice. But for me, [It was good] seeing a young black woman navigate that space and become a director, producer, writer, and director.”
Childhood legends Kyla Pratt and Raven Symone promoting their movie Dr. Dolittle…These two deserve soo many flowers because they held my childhood down!
— Blex (@blex_media) June 26, 2022
🎞️ Dr. Dolittle | June 26, 1998
🎥 Director: Betty Thomas
📺 Stream: Disney, Amazon Prime pic.twitter.com/uyx1L6pXKK
Prat explained that they “have an unspoken bond, so whenever I see her or see her doing anything, I support it.”
Raven’s breakout role paved the way for starring turns in 2003’s “The Cheetah Girls.” Her hit series “That’s So Raven” aired from 2003 to 2007.
“Black representation is everything. Our stories were not meant to be told,” added Pratt.
Continuing that representation, Raven-Symoné returned for the six-season reboot, “Raven’s Home,” which aired from 2017 to 2023.
No to add into discourse, but certain people act as if Raven Symone' starts & ends with #ThatsoRaven.
— Brit 💖 👸🏾👏🏾💥 (@JacksonBrittsny) March 14, 2026
Yall act as if she wasn't our childhood; Cosby show, Little Rascal, Fillmore, Zenon, cheetahgirls, Princess Diaries…
She was a pro while some of your favs were in diapers! pic.twitter.com/GNsjkGLfyk
Due to high fan demand, Pratt and the cast returned for “The Proud Family: Louder and Prouder” in 2022.
The acclaimed reboot concludes with its fourth and final season premiering on Disney+ on Wednesday, July 29.
Pratt said she never expected to land the role because she disliked the sound of her own voice.
“Recording the show when I was a teenager, I didn’t like my voice,” Pratt said. “I was like, ‘How am I auditioning for a voiceover? How is this happening?’ And I was like, ‘I’m going to get fired. They are not going to like this.’”
But fans do, and they appreciate Pratt and Raven-Symoné’s artistic contributions to the Black girl magic born of Disney in the early 2000s.
“This is So Real Kyla is the ‘sound’ but Raven is the ‘face,” said one supporter online. Another said, “An argument can be made that Disney’s greatest era was when Raven was the face of the brand. No other era since then has come even remotely close.”
Many were happy to hear Pratt’s take as they wondered about previous tension from the Disney queens.
“Yayyy!!! @kylapratt This is so heartwarming! I was thinking there was some beef, cause y’all always seemed to be so distant over the years!!” they wrote.
A few commenters respectfully disagreed, arguing that Hilary Duff from “Lizzie McGuire” was the true face of Disney Channel because it debuted before “That’s So Raven” — and months before “The Proud Family.”
One white woman acknowledged that Raven-Symoné helped elevate the network but said they wouldn’t consider her the network’s defining star, regardless of identity politics.
Yet many countered, pulling receipts of who really had numbers at Disney, pointing out that “Lizzie McGuire” only had two seasons and Raven’s series lasted four seasons.
Raven-Symoné names herself, Hilary Duff, Shia LaBeouf, and Lee Thompson Young as her Disney Channel Mt. Rushmore 📺⭐️ pic.twitter.com/iUqYhH2oVW
— Dubs⛧ (@onlydubsX) March 12, 2026
“So Lizzie was the face of Disney at first, for sure, because Raven came after the first season of Lizzie. Raven became the face & for much longer,” one person explained. “Lizzie’s first 4 episodes [did] 2.6M. ‘That’s so Raven’s first 4 [episodes did] 3.6M. It’s fair to say [that] for you, Lizzie was the face, but millions more watching Raven say differently.”
Millions are still watching “The Proud Family” and “That’s So Raven,” as well as the reboots on Disney. Many are hopeful that Pratt and Raven will soon unite for another film after Eddie Murphy‘s “Dr. Dolittle” franchise.
“I’d love a next Gen Dr. Doolittle with them as sisters and their kids with the gift of talking to animals. That would be so cute,” said one hopeful person.
Raven-Symoné exited “Dr. Dolittle” after the 2001 sequel, while Pratt stayed on for four additional films as the lead without Murphy.
