‘The First Time’: Actor Ashton Sanders

Most people may remember Ashton Sanders from his pivotal role as high school-aged Chiron in the Oscar-winning film Moonlight.

That moment he shared a kiss with his crush, Kevin (Jharrel Jerome), we knew he’d cemented his acting career with one of the most indelible moments in contemporary cinema. Since then, he’s appeared in Equalizer 2 opposite Denzel Washington and was cast as RZA in the Wu-Tang: An American Saga TV series.

For our latest episode of The First Time video interview series, Sanders answered questions about the first time he felt successful, hearing Wu-Tang Clan, and meeting Jeffrey Wright, who co-stars in his latest film All Day and A Night. This new release, now streaming on Netflix, was written and directed by Joe Robert Cole (Black Panther), and is described as “equal parts gangland thriller, prison drama and coming-of-age story.”

Remembering the first time meeting actor Mahershala Ali while filming Moonlight in Miami, he cracks a rare smile and laughs while telling the story of meeting in a hotel lobby when he was checking into his room: “We were, like, the only black people staying in this hotel, so we knew the entire cast, so…”

And as for the first albums, he remembers buying: Lil Bow Wow and Lil Romeo, since he was in the ideal age demo of between seven to nine years old. “Definitely bumpin’ that Lil Bow Wow.”