BACKGROUND
2006 was a great year for Disney Channel. It brought out a sequel to the very popular The Cheetah Girls (2003); Hannah Montana (2006-11) premiered on the channel; and High School Musical aired on Disney Channel in January of that year, with all of these becoming global musical phenomena.
That was just the first half of 2006. What about the second half of the year? Well, Disney Channel decided to make a fourth instalment to their beloved Halloweentown franchise. This movie was Return to Halloweentown, and it became the first time Disney Channel released a fourth movie in one of their original movie franchises. Halloweentown has since been outdone by both the Descendants and ZOMBIES franchises, but this was a big deal for all those who had grown up with Halloweentown since its premiere in 1998.
However, what had not been communicated to the fans was that Marnie Piper was not going to be played by Kimberly J. Brown in this fourth film. Disney Channel had secretly recast the role, with Sara Paxton taking over from Brown. This was seen as sneaky, unwanted, and uncalled for by those who had loved the Halloweentown franchise for years. These viewers were not at all happy, to the point that many continue to vent their frustration and disappointment at the recasting every Halloween, because the Halloweentown movies are constantly referenced during that time of year. It is hard to get away from, so the existence of this film only rubs salt into those wounds that even time cannot heal.
I, on the other hand, did not grow up with the Halloweentown films and only watched them for the first time in 2021. Therefore, I didn’t have that nostalgia for the movies, nor did I have that sense of growing up alongside the actress who played Marnie Piper. I did not feel cheated seeing that the main role had been recast and I’ll be perfectly honest and say that it didn’t bother me. That is not a slight at Kimberly J. Brown who played Marnie brilliantly in those first three movies, and that is not to say that Sara Paxton perfectly replicated the character. It’s just that Return to Halloweentown felt so different from the previous three movies that it was pretty easy for an outsider to the franchise like me to get used to the recasting quickly and just enjoy the movie for what it was.
I understand that it is controversial to talk about Return to Halloweentown positively, but I really did like the mystery of the story. It had magic, it had secrets, it had a love story, and for me, it felt like a nice twist on the franchise. I’d even say it is my favourite of the four.
PLOT
Return to Halloweentown begins with a map of Halloweentown and a voice reading out a prophecy. This prophecy states that at the close of the millennium and with the rise of the Halloween moon, a Cromwell of great power will embrace The Gift. This will be Marnie Piper.
At home, eighteen-year-old Marnie Piper is magically sorting out her clothes, ready for college. Meanwhile, Marnie’s mother, Gwen, is trying to contact her mother, and Marnie’s grandmother, Aggie Cromwell, but Aggie is difficult to get hold of as she is travelling with Gwen’s youngest daughter, Sophie. It would seem that now Marnie has become a fully trained witch, it is now Sophie’s turn to be taught by Aggie. Aggie finally appears – in a pot of soup – and says that her and Sophie are about to start working on time travel, so she’ll call when they can. Aggie ends her call by congratulating Marnie. Marnie immediately walks away, but it’s too late – Gwen heard and she wants the news. Marnie reluctantly tells Gwen that she got into Witch University in Halloweentown on a scholarship. Gwen is shocked as that was not part of their plan for Marnie’s college future and warns Marnie that there are some bad witches in Halloweentown, fearing that Marnie won’t be able to cope with it. Marnie isn’t concerned though and couldn’t be more excited to go to “Witch U”.
A few days later, Marnie is off to college, with Gwen giving her a personal witch’s glass so they can keep in touch. Brother Dylan helps Marnie with her luggage and they go through the portal to Halloweentown together. On arriving, they are greeted by a familiar face, Benny the cab driver. Benny tells Marnie and Dylan that Halloweentown is about to celebrate its 1,000th anniversary on Halloween night and everyone is excited. Benny drops the two off at Witch University. On arriving there, Marnie is greeted by Dr. Goodwyn, the university’s chancellor. This greeting is watched by the university’s gargoyles and is passed on to warlock Silas Sinister.
Later, Marnie and Dylan see Ethan Dalloway, one of the exchange students who went to their high school as part of Marnie’s plan to integrate Halloweentown residents in the mortal world. Marnie doesn’t particularly want to talk to him, and tells Dylan he can leave now, thinking that he was only here to help her move in. In actual fact, Dylan is a student here as well, much to Marnie’s annoyance, having graduated high school early. Marnie tries to magically move her suitcases so she can get to her dorm quickly, but a spell is cast stopping them and Marnie falls over her cases. She is met with three sisters, the Sinister sisters, who say magic is not allowed on campus. This is reiterated by a professor.
Marnie eventually finds her room but is upset that Dylan is here and she can’t use magic. She ignores a call from her mother. But soon, Aggie visits her. The visit is brief, with Aggie only able to tell her to be careful and warning her that old family secrets may come out at Witch University, before she vanishes. Gwen, meanwhile, is sad that all her kids have left her, off on their travels, and is very annoyed that they are ignoring her calls. She tries to vent her frustrations to a worker at the grocery store, but he doesn’t care!
Marnie receives a note, telling her to meet her Resident Advisor. Going to the room, Marnie finds the whole place empty, but is transported into a bottle. Marnie’s R.A. is apparently a genie, named Aneesa, and she is very proud of the fact she is the first genie to attend Witch University. Marnie asks Aneesa about the three sisters she met, and learns that they rule the school because their father, Silas Sinister, is a very powerful warlock in Halloweentown, so they use magic whenever they want without getting in trouble.
Aneesa and Marnie go to get some lunch together. In the cafeteria, they soon see Ethan again, with Marnie not able to say much to him. Ethan apologises for everything that happened at the high school, where he helped his father stop Marnie’s integration plan, leading to an actual mob of students hating her for her magic…I can see why seeing Ethan again might be a bit triggering for Marnie! Marnie tries to move on from it, and asks how Ethan is doing with his father being in exile. Ethan says Aggie has been helping him a lot and he even worked for her over the summer. Ethan, Marnie, and Aneesa then discuss the university together, with Marnie once again complaining about the new magic rule. She wonders who was the one to bring about that change. Well, it turns out it was Marnie herself who did that! With the portals between Halloweentown and the mortal world open, many Halloweentown students went to the mortal world for college, so Witch University expanded its enrolment beyond just witches and warlocks to other creatures, and many do not have magic, so the rule against magic levels out the playing field for everyone else.
Back at home, Gwen has begun work as a real estate agent, to give her something to do now that her children have “flown the nest”. She keeps trying to contact Marnie and Dylan, via various water-filled receptacles, like a toilet and a bird bath, but they aren’t particularly chatty with her. Her clients also find her strange. I can’t imagine why…
In Marnie’s first class, she is taught by Professor Periwinkle, who is friendly, if a bit scatter-brained! Marnie witnesses Scarlett Sinister use magic to take Marnie’s book and pass it off as a spare one for Professor Periwinkle to use. In the next class, overseen by Dr. Grogg, everyone in class is tasked with writing an essay on the history of the mortal and magical worlds. Scarlett once again uses magic, this time to write her paper, and then hexes Marnie’s paper. On handing in her essay, Dr. Grogg finds Marnie’s paper completely blank. She complains it must’ve been hexed. Inspecting it, Dr. Grogg sees it was hexed – but blames Marnie for it, despite the fact there’d be no reason for her to hex her own paper. This school is really messed up… The paper is taken as evidence.
Marnie soon finds herself at Dr. Goodwyn’s office. Believing this is about her paper, Marnie pleads her innocence, but Dr. Goodwyn doesn’t care about that. They aren’t even going to look into who hexed the paper. Instead, Marnie voices her disappointment about the no magic rule. Marnie is told it is there for their safety, as any magic cast on the campus becomes permanent at midnight on Halloween. The two then head to Marnie’s next class.
This archaeology class is in the dungeon, which would normally be off-limits, but Dr. Goodwyn and Dr. Grogg have opened it up for them to discover lost magical artefacts. The class are told that Witch University used to be Cromwell Castle, so since Marnie is Aggie Cromwell’s granddaughter, this was her ancestral home once upon a time. In the middle of the dungeon is a huge hole, and Marnie sees something glowing inside it. Scarlett uses magic to pull something out of this hole, much to Marnie’s annoyance. Suddenly, something else rises from this hole. It is a box, with “S Cromwell” written on top of it. The class suspect Marnie must’ve used magic to find that box, but she claims she didn’t.
As per the opening scene, we see the prophecy being read by Silas Sinister to a group of cloaked individuals. The Cromwell power is said to bring peace under her Dominion, with this group appearing to be the Dominion. Dr. Goodwyn and Dr. Grogg are part of this group. They confirm that Marnie found the box containing The Gift, and they task the Sinister sisters with convincing Marnie to use magic to get into it, as the box is locked.
As all of that is happening, Marnie is just trying to do her laundry the non-magical way, whilst also dodging yet another call from her mother as Gwen appears in the washing machine! Ethan arrives and invites her for coffee, but as they are about to go, Marnie is summoned to Dr. Goodwyn again. Dr. Goodwyn tells Marnie she can use magic to open the box. With her blessing, Marnie attempts to open it, but nothing works. Marnie complains to Aneesa that she needs Aggie’s help, not knowing any “S Cromwell” in her family.
After a class with Professor Periwinkle, Marnie asks to have a meeting with her, saying she reminds her of Aggie and hopes she can help her. In the professor’s office, Marnie is delighted to see that Professor Periwinkle happily uses magic on campus, having never agreed to the no magic rule. Professor Periwinkle says she knew Aggie when they were younger, and that “S Cromwell” is Splendora Cromwell, who was a friend of the professor. Marnie asks who she was, but Professor Periwinkle says she always promised to keep Splendora’s identity a secret, at least until Marnie is ready to know.
Marnie asks Dylan for his help, to figure out who Splendora Cromwell is. In the library, Dylan speed reads through numerous books – this being the only magic he really uses – and figures out what is in the box. He learns that The Gift, a very powerful magic, is inside, and that Splendora buried it 1,000 years ago, but no more information is available as pages are missing. Dylan quickly leaves, believing he has a date with Scarlett Sinister. Dylan goes over to Scarlett who says she’d never date him, which makes Marnie angry for her brother. The teachers in the Dominion have been watching Marnie through a cauldron and they realise they need to use Dylan to get Marnie to accept and use The Gift.
That night, Ethan asks Marnie out on a date. She accepts and on walking through the university grounds, Ethan says he hid a broomstick here and asks if she wants to go for a ride off campus. Marnie is very happy to do that and takes the broomstick, flying them away to get ice cream. Their date is going well – until Marnie sees Dylan is also there, with the Sinister sisters. Going over to their table, she sees that Dylan is under some sort of spell, as he is doing whatever is asked of him, including doing the girls’ homework. Marnie is furious and her and Ethan leave. They go back to pick up their broom, but on the way back, it malfunctions and throws them off, before turning into a snake. Marnie blames Scarlett for this. Her and Ethan take a romantic walk back to campus instead.
As the students of Witch U get excited for the Halloween night millennium party for Halloweentown, Ethan explains that no magic is able to control others, so the Sinister sisters have actually just cast a spell on Dylan that amplifies his desires, so he’s doing what he wants to do, but just can’t stop. The Dominion are becoming increasingly irritated that their plan for Marnie to accept The Gift and use it so they can rule Halloweentown is not working. They decide they must change their tactics. At the dungeon, Dr. Grogg and Dr. Goodwyn keep Marnie back after class. They hand Marnie the scroll with the prophecy for her to read. Realising the prophecy is about her, the professors tell her that dark forces are coming to Halloweentown and she must embrace The Gift so she can save Halloweentown. Luckily, Ethan has overhead this and is suspicious. He confirms with the stone gargoyles that they have been spying on her. They tell him about the Dominion. Ethan tries to warn Marnie about the group, something his father was part of once, but Marnie doesn’t believe him.
Marnie goes to Professor Periwinkle and asks for her help to have Marnie travel back in time to meet with Splendora. Marnie is taken back 1,000 years, where she is taken to Cromwell Castle by Benny, in a horse and cart though, not his cab. At the castle, she learns from a young Periwinkle that it is the day of the Coronation, where Splendora Cromwell will become the Queen of Halloweentown. Marnie attempts to talk to Splendora as she walks past her, but she is stopped by her bodyguards – the Dominion as they were then – and is put in the dungeon. Periwinkle comes to help transport Marnie to Splendora’s room.
The room is empty, though Marnie spots the box from the present day. She opens it and finds it is empty, so Splendora must have The Gift on her. Suddenly, Splendora enters the room and demands to know who Marnie is, as only a Cromwell would be able to enter her room. Marnie says she is a Cromwell, from the future. She asks Splendora about The Gift. Splendora says she hates it, as it has the power to control anyone, and it is too much power, being used by the Dominion to rule over Halloweentown. This proves that Ethan was right. Needing three Cromwell witches to destroy it, and not wanting to be queen, Splendora has decided she has no choice but to lock The Gift away that night. Just before she goes, Marnie learns that Splendora’s middle name is “Agatha”, showing that Splendora is in fact Aggie Cromwell, Marnie’s grandmother. She tells Splendora of her future life as Aggie Cromwell. On locking The Gift away, Aggie gives Marnie the key, promising to train her herself in the future, with Marnie making the giant jack-o’-lantern of Halloweentown appear in her room, ready for Halloweentown’s future.
Back in present day, Marnie opens the box and she finds The Gift. However, it is promptly taken by Dr. Goodwyn, who says if Marnie does not accept The Gift, then harm will come to her brother. Marnie goes to get Ethan and Aneesa’s help. They soon find Dylan at the Halloweentown millennium party, where he is working as a waiter. The Sinister sisters, on seeing Marnie, turn Dylan into a dog, who runs off. Needing help fast, Marnie summons Gwen to Witch University. She tells Gwen what has been going on. Gwen reads the prophecy. Marnie is then transported to the Dominion, who have captured both Dylan and Ethan. Marnie calls Gwen on her witch’s glass so she can overhear the conversation. The Dominion order Marnie to wear The Gift, saying she must cast a spell to establish the rule of the Dominion before midnight tonight, so it can become permanent. If she does not, then Dylan will remain a dog forever. Marnie agrees to accept The Gift, but demands time to get ready to be queen for the night, with Aneesa being a dresser. The Dominion agree to this.
A short while later, Marnie is taken to the balcony by the Dominion where she is presented with The Gift. She forces the Dominion to change Dylan back before putting on The Gift, where Marnie becomes all powerful. As midnight strikes, Marnie uses The Gift, putting Gwen, Dylan, and Aneesa under her power. Marnie demands that Aneesa take The Gift and put it in her lamp. She then orders Gwen and Dylan to help her destroy both the lamp and The Gift forever, thwarting the Dominion’s plans. Professor Periwinkle then reveals herself as a longstanding agent for the Anti-Dominion League. She strips the Dominion of their magic and they are arrested for treason. The Sinister sisters lose their magic as well.
Marnie apologises to Aneesa for destroying her home and offers to be roommates. Ethan then admits to Marnie that actually he gave up his magic after his father was exiled and that he is now mortal. Luckily, Marnie doesn’t care about that and the two begin dating. Gwen says that Marnie can stay at Witch University as long as she promises to call more often. Dylan later asks Gwen if Marnie actually did destroy The Gift, as it is a family heirloom. Gwen says that perhaps Marnie gave it to someone she trusts absolutely. That night, as Dylan goes through his books, he discovers The Gift inside one of them. Fearing its power, he quickly closes up the book and puts it back on the bookshelf.
CHARACTERS & CAST
Return to Halloweentown does see us return to Marnie Piper and most of her family, but this Marnie is not the same Marnie as we saw in the previous three films. Marnie was quite self-assured and confident in the earlier movies, but here, Marnie is more uncertain of her magical abilities, and just a little bit naïve. She feels more like a typical teenage girl here with insecurities and teenage angst. In Return to Halloweentown, Marnie likes her newfound freedom at college, but struggles against the dark forces that want to use her and the Cromwell family’s power. She finds allies, with Professor Periwinkle, Aneesa, Dylan, and Ethan, but also finds herself up against much more powerful enemies, a whole group of powerful witches and warlocks, than in the earlier movies. Still, Marnie is a quick-thinker and manages to trick the Dominion, and in doing so, stops The Gift from falling into the wrong hands again – hopefully. Her college experience gets to start over, where she can live a more normal life. Well, as normal as it can be in Halloweentown.
Kimberly J. Brown did not reprise her role as Marnie here, with Sara Paxton taking over the role. Prior to Return to Halloweentown, Paxton had appeared as Tracy Richburg in the Disney Channel Movie Hounded (2001), before starring as Aquamarine in Aquamarine (2006), alongside Emma Roberts and singer Jojo. She had also been cast as Staci in Sleepover (2004) with Alexa Vega. Paxton went on to be cast as Rachel Witchburn in the teen movie Sydney White (2007) which starred Amanda Bynes in the title role. More recently, Paxton was cast as Miss Flynn in the Netflix biopic about Marilyn Monroe Blonde (2022) and as Alicia Barnes in Season 3 of Murder in the First (2014-16). Paxton also had a recurring role as Paige in Season 2 of Peacock’s Based on a True Story (2023-24).
On Marnie’s side, trying to help her go up against the Dominion, are Ethan Dalloway, Aneesa, and brother Dylan. Ethan is also Marnie’s love interest in this movie, despite there being little sign that these two would become a couple after the events of Halloweentown High. Ethan and Aneesa help Marnie adjust to life at Witch University, warning her about the Sinister sisters and explaining the no magic rule to her. Aneesa gets a big role at the end of the movie as well, by using her lamp as a way to destroy The Gift. Dylan is still Marnie’s annoying little brother, and still looking for a girlfriend, after his disasters with Cindy in Halloweentown II: Kalabar’s Revenge and Natalie in Halloweentown High. This time, his desperation gets him and Marnie into trouble though as he allows the Sinister sisters to mess with his mind, which gives Marnie just something extra to deal with. Whatever happened to Dylan being smart, cynical, and distrusting?
Lucas Grabeel returned to his role as Ethan after Halloweentown High. He is well-known for his role as Ryan Evans in High School Musical. After his time on Disney Channel, he went on to be cast as Toby Kennish in Freeform’s series Switched at Birth (2011-17) and voiced Deputy Peck in the animated Disney Junior series Sheriff Callie’s Wild West (2014-17). Grabeel also voiced the title role in Netflix’s animated series Pinky Malinky (2019). Aneesa was played by Summer Bishil, who went on to have the lead role as Jasira Maroun in the movie Towelhead (2007) based on the Alicia Erian novel of the same name. She was later cast as Samira Rajpur in ABC’s Lucky 7 (2013) before landing a main role as Margo Hanson in Syfy’s The Magicians (2015-20). Joey Zimmerman, credited as J. Paul Zimmerman here, returned to his role as Dylan. Soon after Return to Halloweentown, Zimmerman moved away from acting and later co-created the company ZFO Entertainment.
Marnie also gets assistance from Professor Periwinkle, who initially just seems to be like any other teacher, albeit one who seems “flummoxed” and “discombobulated” according to Marnie and her friends. Marnie says Periwinkle reminds her of her grandmother Aggie, so she asks her for help in discovering her family history, since Aggie is unavailable at the time. Periwinkle turns out to be enormously helpful to Marnie, pushing her in the right direction without giving too much away about Splendora, despite clearly knowing that Splendora is Aggie Cromwell. Periwinkle is then revealed to be an agent working for the Anti-Dominion League, so with Marnie’s resistance to their plan for her to use The Gift, Marnie inadvertently helps Periwinkle with her own mission.
Professor Periwinkle was played by Millicent Martin. Early in her career, Martin was cast as Siddie in Alfie (1966), which starred Michael Caine in the lead role. She was also cast in various Broadway musicals, such as Madeleine in the 1978 musical King of Hearts, where she was nominated for a Tony Award for Best Performance by a Featured Actress, and as Dorothy Brock in the 1980s production of 42nd Street. In more recent years, Martin was cast in the recurring role of Gertrude Moon, Daphne’s mother, in Frasier (1993-2004) and as Joan-Margaret in Grace and Frankie (2015-22) on Netflix.
Marnie’s mother Gwen and Marnie’s grandmother Aggie also make a return, however, it is worth noting that Aggie barely appears in this movie at all, with her character only being in a couple of scenes: one at the start of the movie when Gwen is trying to contact her in a pot of soup, and then when she visits Marnie briefly at Witch University. Aggie is supposedly travelling with Marnie’s younger sister Sophie during the events of this film, and Sophie doesn’t return at all. With Sophie, as well as Marnie and Dylan, no longer at home, Gwen spends much of this film not knowing what to do with herself, attempting to be a real estate agent, using magic to try to convince her clients to buy, and trying to contact her kids. Eventually, Gwen actually gets to help Marnie at Witch University, as Marnie needs a third witch to help her destroy The Gift. Although Gwen is lonely at home, she sees that Marnie can handle herself, even with bad witches and warlocks around her, and allows her to stay at Witch University. Debbie Reynolds reprised her role as Aggie Cromwell for those two scenes, and Judith Hoag returned as Gwen Piper. After her time on the Halloweentown franchise, Hoag was cast in the recurring role of Cindy Dutton-Price in Big Love (2006-11). She was also cast as Tandy Hampton in Nashville (2012-18) and more recently as Stephanie Quinn in The Magicians (2015-20).
For the villains, firstly, we have the Sinister sisters, Scarlett, Sage, and Sapphire. These three are the “mean girls” at Witch University, who get to do whatever they want because their father is powerful and no doubt rich. They think they are amazing and get away with breaking the no magic rule time and time again. Scarlett is definitely the leader of the group, being the one to provoke Marnie with her magic and to manipulate Dylan for her father’s evil plans. Kristy Wu was cast as Scarlett, having previously been cast as Chao-Ahn in the final season of Buffy the Vampire Slayer (1997-2003). She had also appeared as Melissa Wu in the Discovery Kids series Flight 29 Down (2005-07). More recently, she voiced the character of P’Li in Avatar: The Legend of Korra (2012-14) for Nickelodeon, and the character Windblade in the first two seasons of Cartoon Network’s Transformers: Robots in Disguise (2015-17). Sage and Sapphire were played by Katie and Kellie Cockrell, who went on to make an appearance together in Camp Rock 2: The Final Jam (2010). Katie also had a cameo in High School Musical 3: Senior Year (2008) and Kellie was cast as Jocelyn in the DCOM Minutemen (2008).
Finally, for the members of the devious Dominion, there are two professors at the university, Dr. Goodwyn and Dr. Grogg, and the Sinister sisters’ father, Silas Sinister. Dr. Goodwyn and Dr. Grogg act quite differently towards Marnie on her arrival at Witch University. Dr. Goodwyn granted Marnie the scholarship there, supposedly for all Marnie’s good deeds over the years, and she is quite warm and welcoming to Marnie. Dr. Grogg, on the other hand, shows indifference at times and contempt at others toward Marnie, and doesn’t seem to have gotten the memo that Marnie doesn’t respond well to strict, uptight teachers. Either way, it doesn’t really matter, because although those two are the ones who have to get Marnie to do what is asked of her, Silas Sinister is really the one in charge of the Dominion, sending everyone, including his own daughters, to do the work for him, so that he can just lead Halloweentown once Marnie orders their rule over the town. As with all the villains that Marnie has faced, their evil plot comes to nothing as she outsmarts them, and the Dominion is disbanded, and the members punished for their crimes.
Dr. Goodwyn was played by Leslie Wing-Pomeroy who was also cast as Lucille Bolton, Troy’s mother, in the High School Musical movies. Dr. Grogg was played by Scott Stevenson, who also had a history with Disney Channel prior to Return to Halloweentown, having been cast as Principal Root in The Poof Point (2001) and Dr. Bower in Hounded (2001). Keone Young was cast as Silas Sinister, having previously appeared as Bo in the DCOM Rip Girls (2000). Young also has links to other Disney projects, including voicing Lord Qin in the direct-to-video Disney sequel Mulan II (2004); voicing additional characters in Disney Animation’s Wish (2023); voicing the character of Luong Lao Shi in Disney Channel’s animated series American Dragon: Jake Long (2005-07); and voicing characters in Disney XD’s Star Wars Rebels (2014-18).
MUSIC
Return to Halloweentown mostly focuses on its instrumental score, but like Halloweentown High, there are a couple of pieces of pop music used within this movie. Both are uncredited.
The most obvious of these is “Right Where You Want Me”, which is playing as Marnie and Ethan go on their date with Marnie flying them off campus on a broom. This song was written by Andy Dodd, Dory Lobel, Adam Watts, and Jesse McCartney, and was performed by Jesse McCartney. I can’t say I’m a big fan of this song and think numerous other songs could’ve fit this scene better. It doesn’t feel particularly magical. This song was on McCartney’s album of the same name, released in September 2006. “Right Where You Want Me” was first released as a single in August 2006.
Composer Peter Neff is also said to have written the song “Check Out” for this movie. Neff has written other music for Disney Channel, for example, composing additional music for Phil of the Future (2004-06) and A.N.T. Farm (2011-14). Given the title of this song, I’d like to assume that “Check Out” is the music playing during the scene of Gwen at the grocery store, but as this song is not available to listen to online, I cannot confirm that.
Kenneth Burgomaster returned to compose the score for Return to Halloweentown, having previously been the composer of the Halloweentown High score. Burgomaster went on to compose the music for a variety of Disney Channel series and movies over the years, including working on the music for Wizards of Waverly Place: The Movie (2009), as well as its 2013 TV special The Wizards Return: Alex Vs. Alex; Season 2 of the series Phil of the Future (2004-06), and the movie The Swap (2016).
The full score has been uploaded as a playlist on Burgomaster’s official YouTube Channel. From the score, the tracks I like the most are the opening track, “Silas’ Message”, where the prophecy is being read out, because it’s spooky and mysterious, and “The Library”, used when Marnie and Dylan go searching for information on Splendora Cromwell. “Amulet Destroyed” is the piece created for the big finale where Marnie tricks the Dominion and actually destroys The Gift, with some help from family and friends, and it’s another good one. “Amulet in the Book”, which is the ending track, takes the soundtrack full circle, as it ends with a little mystery, just as Return to Halloweentown began, as we wonder just what will happen to The Gift in the future, since Marnie didn’t actually destroy it. The piece “Dylan Speed Reads” appears to be used for the End Credits.
PRODUCTION
After what felt like a fitting ending to the Halloweentown trilogy with Halloweentown High, it may’ve been a little bit of a surprise for Disney Channel to proceed further with this franchise by having a fourth movie. At the time, most Disney Channel Original Movies either only got one sequel – if they got one at all – or two at the most. Return to Halloweentown was a first for the world of DCOMs because this was the first of their franchises to have a fourth film.
However, this fourth movie came with a lot of changes, specifically around the casting. For one thing, Emily Roeske, the actress who played Marnie’s little sister Sophie, an important character in the first two Halloweentown films, had retired from acting after Halloweentown High and therefore was not available for Return to Halloweentown. This meant that Sophie’s role in the film was diluted down to merely a mention; that Sophie Piper had gone travelling with grandmother Aggie Cromwell to work on her magic some more. So, if viewers hoped that Disney Channel were going to fix the injustice of Sophie’s lack of screen time in Halloweentown High in Return to Halloweentown, they were very much mistaken, although it does at least seem to have been Roeske’s decision not to return.
As for Debbie Reynolds, she did return to reprise her role as Aggie Cromwell in Return to Halloweentown, however, her role was reduced down to just two brief scenes. It is unclear whether this was always going to be the case, so that the story could focus more on Marnie as an independent witch, living her life at college, or whether this was down to the fact that initially Reynolds was meant to be recast due to scheduling conflicts. Millicent Martin was considered to take over the role of Aggie, but the scheduling conflict with Reynolds was later resolved and she did return, with Martin being given the part of Professor Periwinkle instead, who is a very similar character to Aggie Cromwell anyway.
But the most obvious, most debated, most controversial recast was the decision to replace Kimberly J. Brown in the role of Marnie Piper with Sara Paxton. Now, it is important to remember that recasting of roles happens all the time, both in movies and in TV series. Some of these have been necessary due to personal reasons and conflicts over personal terms, whereas others are decided from a business perspective.
Here are just a few examples. Johnny Depp took on the role of Gellert Grindelwald in the Fantastic Beasts movie franchise, however, due to ongoing legal disputes and abuse rumours between Depp and his ex-wife Amber Heard, the studio felt they had no choice but to distance themselves from Depp and replaced him. Mads Mikkelsen took over the role of Grindelwald in Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore (2022). Many fans of Depp were furious with the move and threatened to boycott the film. The Secrets of Dumbledore did underperform at the box-office, potentially as a result of this. Further movies were then cancelled. Another famous example is the recasting of the role of Victoria in The Twilight Saga film franchise. Rachelle Lefevre had played the part in the first Twilight movie in 2008 and reprised her role in The Twilight Saga: New Moon (2009), however, when it came to cast The Twilight Saga: Eclipse (2010), Lefevre found herself replaced with Bryce Dallas Howard, apparently for no reason as she had no scheduling conflicts at the time. Summit Entertainment, who produced the Twilight movies, said that Lefevre had been recast as she had not cleared the fact she was working on the film Barney’s Version (2010) and this showed a lack of “cooperative spirit”[1].
On the small screen, controversial recasts have also happened, such as the role of Aunt Viv in The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air (1990-96) moving from Janet Hubert to Daphne Maxell Reid from Season 4 onwards. This was allegedly due to creative differences and a contract dispute. There was also an odd recast over the role of Becky Conner in Roseanne (1988-97), which was apparently due to scheduling conflicts. Lecy Goranson played the part until Season 5, when she was replaced by Sarah Chalke who took over for Seasons 6 and 7. Goranson then returned for Season 8, when the character was played by both actresses on rotation. To deal with this, the sitcom made frequent in-show jokes about it.
There is also the classic recasting of the character of Doctor Who. This is a masterclass in recasting as regenerations have become a part of the Doctor Who storyline, so whenever an actor wants to leave the role, they can simply be replaced and a regeneration is written into the series[2]. I also know of two other British series that wrote recasting into their storylines. One was the children’s series The Worst Witch (1998-2001), where the character Ethel Hallow was first played by Felicity Jones, the same Felicity Jones who has gone on to be nominated for Academy Awards for her roles as Jane Wilde Hawking and Erzsébet Tóth in The Theory of Everything (2014) and The Brutalist (2024) respectively. After the first series had ended, Jones decided not to return to the show and was replaced by Katy Allen, with the series saying that Ethel had altered her appearance via a magical makeover. To make it slightly less clever though, Jones did return to play Ethel in the spin-off series Weirdsister College (2001) where she must’ve reversed her magical makeover. In the sitcom My Hero (2000-06), Ardal O’Hanlon was cast as the lead role of George, however, for the sixth series, which would be its last, James Dreyfus took over the role. It was written into the story that superhero George had lost his old body in a game of poker and received a new one with a new alias. This recasting was not popular with fans of the show.
The real reason why Kimberly J. Brown was recast as Marnie Piper is a mystery with conflicting statements being made about it, both by production staff and Brown herself. The official reason given by Disney was that there were scheduling conflicts as Brown was filming Big Bad Wolf (2006) at the time. But Brown debunked that as she stated that this conflict had been resolved and she had always intended to be in the fourth film. Needless to say, Brown was devastated with Disney’s decision to replace her, and that the truth was never really explained to her or the viewers. Sheri Singer, who produced the Halloweentown movies, has said before that they simply couldn’t come to a fair deal of terms with Brown for her to make her return as Marnie, so there was no option but to recast her. The director of Return to Halloweentown, David Jackson, gave a whole other reason, which was that they wanted a younger actress who fit the age of the character better. Sara Paxton was 18 when Return to Halloweentown came out, whereas Brown was 22, so this does make sense, as Marnie was 18 years old in this film. But it is also worth pointing out that many 20-somethings play teenagers on Disney Channel, and other children’s TV channels like Nickelodeon, and this isn’t normally noticeable; no doubt nobody would’ve suspected that Brown was just a little bit too old for the character at that point. Jackson further explained that it was also felt that those who had grown up watching Disney Channel at the time Halloweentown first premiered in 1998 were likely not watching the channel anymore, so they wanted a new actress to lead the fourth film. It was a rebrand of sorts for the Halloweentown franchise. This does make sense, but if they had wanted to “reboot” the series, they should have waited more than two years between a third and fourth film.
Sara Paxton was not aware of the issues surrounding the recast. She was simply happy to be offered the part, and as a fan of the Halloweentown films as a child, she felt she should take it. Paxton had just finished working on the film Aquamarine (2006) and had recently signed a record deal after singing in that film, so her star was on the rise, making Paxton’s casting an easy decision for Disney Channel. There were also rumours that Return to Halloweentown was going to be a musical, to rival High School Musical (2006), which could’ve also explained the recast, but that never happened[3]. Basically, I think Disney Channel were being a bit cutthroat here, deciding that they needed a new take on the Halloweentown movies for their fourth film and to do that they had to cast a more current name in the lead role to help boost viewership. Showbusiness is a cruel, cruel world. One good thing from all this is that Kimberly J. Brown has no ill feeling towards Sara Paxton, according to Paxton herself in an interview she did with fellow former Disney Channel star Christy Carlson Romano on Romano’s YouTube Channel back in 2021. Paxton and Brown have met a few times and there is no bitterness there. But Paxton did say she hates being on social media around Halloween because fans send her hate online every year just for being Marnie Piper in Return to Halloweentown[4]. Come on, people. Get a grip, it’s just a movie. If you didn’t like Paxton being Marnie, just don’t watch it. You don’t need to send her messages, telling her how much you hated it. It was Disney’s fault, not hers.
But let’s move on from that. Return to Halloweentown also had a change to its directing and writing teams once again, as had been the case for Halloweentown High. This time, David Jackson was chosen to direct this fourth Halloweentown film, having recently directed another Disney Channel Original Movie, Buffalo Dreams (2005) the year before. Jackson also had experience directing episodes of various television series, including 21 Jump Street (1987-91), The District (2000-04), and One Tree Hill (2003-12). David Jackson had no regrets recasting the role of Marnie, and enjoyed working with Paxton on this film.
Return to Halloweentown was written by Max Enscoe, Annie DeYoung, Juliet Giglio, and Keith Giglio. Juliet and Keith Giglio went on to write the screenplays for various television Christmas movies, including Dear Christmas (2020) and Christmas Reservations (2019), both starring Melissa Joan Hart, and Christmas in Tune (2021) with Reba McEntire. Enscoe and DeYoung co-wrote the screenplay for another DCOM Johnny Kapahala: Back on Board (2007), with DeYoung going on to write the not-quite-a-DCOM 16 Wishes (2010) and the Disney Channel movie Princess Protection Program (2009). DeYoung co-wrote both Girl vs. Monster (2012) and StarStruck (2010), also for Disney Channel.
It would seem that the original title of Return to Halloweentown was said to be Halloweentown 4: Witch U at one point. There were some elements of the movie that were filmed and later cut. For example, the trailer shows Dylan and Marnie having to show their IDs to a pumpkin-headed guy on a horse whilst at Witch University, and Paxton says a scene was filmed of her kissing Lucas Grabeel, however, both of these scenes did not make the final cut of Return to Halloweentown. Much like with Halloweentown High, Return to Halloweentown was also filmed in Salt Lake City, Utah, though specific filming locations are difficult to identify.
RECEPTION
Return to Halloweentown premiered on 20th October 2006 as part of Disney Channel’s Hauntober Fest, their programming block for the Halloween season which began in 2005, where the major movie premiere of the year was Twitches. This Halloween block has had different names over the years, including Wiz-Tober in 2008, and Monstober from 2012, when Girl vs. Monster came to the channel, until around 2017. As part of Hauntober Fest, and to lead up to the premiere of Return to Halloweentown, all three previous Halloweentown movies were re-run.
Obviously, the main problem with Return to Halloweentown amongst fans was the fact Kimberly J. Brown was not playing Marnie. There have been various comments online about how this recasting could’ve been dealt with better, such as Sara Paxton playing a relative of Marnie instead, perhaps a cousin, or even sister Sophie if the timeline had jumped and they had introduced a different love interest. This would’ve been an interesting take on the story, as Sophie did seem to have even stronger powers than Marnie, but the whole series had focused on Marnie, so no doubt it was feared that viewership would fall if Marnie was not the focus of the fourth film. Paxton’s take on Marnie was just felt to be too different to Brown’s so it made her less believable as Marnie, according to some. Audiences had simply decided that Kimberly J. Brown didn’t fit the mould of the Disney Channel “it girl” and that is why she was replaced, choosing to simply ignore this film and never watch it again. That’s the spirit – which is half sarcastic, and half not, because if you really hate a film, even if it’s part of a series, then you shouldn’t watch it to avoid bitterness building up inside you.
The romance between Marnie and Ethan did also feel weird or forced to some, including myself, as there had been no spark between the two characters in Halloweentown High. Viewers would’ve preferred Luke to have made a return after his key roles in the first two Halloweentown movies or for Marnie to have still been with her mortal boyfriend Cody from the third film, if Marnie had to have a love interest. I got used to Marnie and Ethan during the course of the film, but it was quite strange at the start, especially as Marnie seemed incredibly embarrassed or felt very awkward about seeing him at college, probably because he was a bit of a jerk in Halloweentown High! Some also felt that Gwen had had yet another personality change between the third and fourth movies, as Gwen started doing magic in full view of mortals, which is something she would never have done in the first two films, and she wasn’t even ridiculously free with her magic in the third.
But there were some viewers who leapt to the defence of Return to Halloweentown, stating that although the recast was pretty unnecessary in their view, the storyline was actually pretty good and was better than Halloweentown High, which had a bit of a convoluted plot, trying to fit too many elements into it. Despite being an unpopular opinion, some have said that this is their favourite Halloweentown movie in the franchise – as I have – with this being seen as a refresh take on the movies. There seems to be too much hate around Return to Halloweentown, purely because of the recast.
Even with the choice to replace Kimberly J. Brown with Sara Paxton, which was known to fans once the trailer for Return to Halloweentown was released prior to the movie’s premiere, the movie actually surpassed all three of the previous movies by some way in terms of viewership. Return to Halloweentown drew in 7.5 million total viewers on its debut, becoming the most-watched basic cable program of the day, this being just under 1.5 million more than those who watched the premieres of both Halloweentown High in 2004 and Halloweentown II: Kalabar’s Revenge in 2001, and just over four million more than those who watched Halloweentown’s premiere in 1998. Return to Halloweentown was the most-watched program among all networks that day for kids 6-11 and tweens 9-14, drawing in 3.2 million and 2.9 million in those respective demographics. Return to Halloweentown became the fourth most-watched Disney Channel Original Movie at the time, only behind The Cheetah Girls 2 with 7.82 million in 2006; High School Musical with 7.76 million also in 2006, and Cadet Kelly with 7.75 million in 2002. It has since dropped out of the Top 10 in recent years, although not by much, with Phineas and Ferb the Movie: Across the 2nd Dimension in 10th position with 7.6 million from its 2011 premiere. Return to Halloweentown was also Disney Channel’s most-watched original movie with adults aged 18-34 and 18-49 at the time, showing its wide-reaching appeal[5].
Surprisingly perhaps for a Disney Channel movie, Return to Halloweentown was nominated for a Primetime Creative Arts Emmy for Outstanding Art Direction for a Miniseries or Movie. It lost out to the 2006 television adaptation of Jane Eyre, with Ruth Wilson in the title role, which aired on PBS in the US. Return to Halloweentown was further nominated for its production design, with a nomination for Television Movie or Mini-Series at the ADG Excellence in Production Design Awards, and another for Best Production Design in a Motion Picture or Miniseries at the Online Film & Television Association.
LEGACY
After Return to Halloweentown, there were no more movies from Disney Channel to add to the franchise, despite the very high viewing figures.
There was, however, a junior novel published in July 2007, and written by Lucy Ruggles, titled Tales From Halloweentown: The Witch’s Amulet. The story seems to take place over summer break at Witch University, with Sophie returning to be a part of the University’s junior school. The plot revolves around The Gift being stolen by one of the professors, with Dylan, Sophie, and Marnie having to retrieve it and thwart another evil plan. Outside of that, there hasn’t been anything official from Disney Channel to continue the Halloweentown story, although it is remembered online on its anniversary dates.
Having said that, 15 years after Camp Rock 2: The Final Jam, in 2025, a Camp Rock 3 was announced, something that many fans probably thought would never happen, so it is entirely possible that a fifth Halloweentown film may one day come to be. Producer Sheri Singer once spoke of potential for a fifth film, which could be a musical or even a prequel[6].
Kimberly J. Brown has said on numerous occasions that she is constantly getting messages from fans online with suggestions on how to reboot the Halloweentown series. Brown has said she would be happy to come back for a fifth film, and with her marriage to Daniel Kountz, who played villain Kal in Halloweentown II: Kalabar’s Revenge, there seems to be an opportunity to bring Kal back. Brown has said it is possible that Marnie has since become Mayor of Halloweentown, and that there are many ways the story could go[7].
There are still a few problems that would need to be overcome though, such as the death of Debbie Reynolds meaning that a return for Aggie Cromwell would be difficult without a recast – and we all know how well that went last time! There is also the issue that many of the original cast don’t act anymore, and to have Brown return as Marnie would likely mean having to ignore the fourth movie ever happened. These aren’t particularly difficult barriers to overcome from a writing perspective, but it may mean that some of the original magic gets lost whilst trying to make a plot make sense with very few original characters. It has also been said that Sheri Singer has supposedly already pitched a fifth movie but that it was never moved forward with, for whatever reason. Maybe Disney just don’t feel the need for it with their newer established franchises like Descendants and ZOMBIES, which can lean into the Halloween spirit but are not limited to only being released at that time of year[8].
FINAL THOUGHTS
Return to Halloweentown may not have been the perfect movie for die-hard fans of Halloweentown. Disney got it very wrong when anticipating audience reaction to recasting a majorly popular character, and that is something they will never be able to live down.
However, for others, perhaps more so those viewers of Halloweentown who did not watch it from a young age, Return to Halloweentown was a different take on those previous three Halloweentown films, but one with a more mysterious story and one that felt slightly more mature than its predecessors. Some ignored Return to Halloweentown, whereas others welcomed it as part of the series.
It remains to be seen whether a fifth movie can come to Disney Channel or Disney+ one day. It would certainly be interesting to see. Regardless, whatever choice Disney make, they really ought to listen to the fans on this one, because from what I’ve learnt, Halloweentown fans are exceptionally loyal – and they know what they want.
REFERENCES
[1] Credit: Adam White, ‘‘I am devastated and furious’: 12 actors controversially recast in films’, Independent.co.uk, 27th August 2025.
[2] Credit: Rebecca Sargeant, ’10 Most Jarring TV Recasts Of All Time’, ScreenRant.com, 2nd June 2025.
[3] Credit: Jim Korkis, The Vault of Walt 9: Halloween Edition (2020), ‘The Halloweentown Saga (1998-2006)’, pp. 85-101.
[4] Credit: Christy Carlson Romano, ‘Sara Paxton Reacts to Return To Halloweentown’, Christy Carlson Romano YouTube Channel, 13th May 2021.
[5] Credit: Kimberly Nordyke, ‘‘Halloweentown’ draws big audience’, HollywoodReporter.com, 24th October 2006.
[6] Credit: Jim Korkis, The Vault of Walt 9: Halloween Edition (2020), ‘The Halloweentown Saga (1998-2006)’, pp. 85-101.
[7] Credit: Christi Carras, ’22 years ago, ’Halloweentown’ became a spooky classic. Its stars still feel the love’, LATimes.com, 30th October 2022.
[8] Credit: Kate Bove, ‘Why Disney Didn’t Make Halloweentown 5’, ScreenRant.com, 4th October 2023.
The Disney Purist 