Aurora Boy, the New Voice of Nemo, is on the Road Promoting 'Finding Dory' in Week Before Release

Eleven-year-old Hayden Rolence is getting an exciting start to his summer break.

Rolence, who just finished up sixth grade at Still Middle School in Aurora, is now on the road as he promotes Finding Dory, which is scheduled to hit the theaters on Friday, June 17,  according to the Aurora Beacon-News. Rolence plays the voice of Nemo in the long-awaited sequel to Disney Pixar’s Finding Nemo. 

Rolence was at the red-carpet movie premiere of Finding Dory Wednesday in Los Angeles. 

“It’s very exciting. I used to love watching Finding Nemo as a kid. I watched it over and over again,” he said in an interview with ScreenSlam.com before Wednesday’s premiere. “And I just never thought I would’ve gotten to do something as big as an animated movie. Let alone by Disney.” 

Rolence also joined the crew of Finding Dory, which stars Ellen DeGeneres as the voice of Dory, during a Talks at Google interview on Wednesday. He shared his thoughts on what it was like to play Nemo.

“It’s very fun to pretend that I’m just a cute little fish and I’m not just me. I actually get to pretend I’m something that’s a very good idea and very fun to do,” Rolence said during the interview. 

Rolence also has been sharing updates from his week on his Twitter page. 

When Pixar’s “Finding Nemo” was released in 2003, it garnered rave reviews and a hefty box office take. Now, more than 10 years after its release, Rolence will play the new voice of Nemo, a clownfish who was searching for his dad the last time we saw him. 

Alexander Gould, the original voice for Nemo, has obviously aged out of the role. Aside from Nemo, Gould is best known for playing Shane, the troubled younger brother on Showtime’s “Weeds.”

Rolence was actually cast in the film two years ago but was unable to say anything about his role until last fall, according to the Chicago Tribune. 

>>>> RELATED: Aurora Student Lands Role of Nemo in 'Finding Dory' 

Here is a sneak peak at the movie in the official trailer.

Scott Viau contributed to this article

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