12th Dec 202513th Dec 2025 by The Disney Purist

Full-Court Miracle (2003)

BACKGROUND

The humble sports movie, where we get to see the underdog triumphant over the usual victor. Predictable, yes, but still, very satisfying to watch. We all love an underdog, don’t we?

Disney Channel certainly holds a fair share of sports films in their catalogue, going as far back as the late 1990s. We saw kids and teens excel at activities like surfing, baseball, skateboarding, and of course, basketball. There were even some less commonly publicised sports at the heart of these stories, including motocross, drag racing, and inline skating.

Although not everyone will be familiar with every sport in every film, the basic premise of these types of movies is always the same: after much time spent practising and training for a big event, eventually it all comes down to that one moment, where we see if they will excel or falter, but know that regardless of the result, they tried their best.

Disney Channel has not made as many sports films in recent years, but there were a fair few of these back in the 2000s, and just one of these was Full-Court Miracle, released in 2003. This year also saw two other sports-themed DCOMs: Right on Track, which I have yet to see, and Eddie’s Million Dollar Cook-Off, one of my all-time favourite DCOMs.

Full-Court Miracle’s sport of choice was basketball, a common sport in many North American films, since basketball is one of the most popular sports over there. Yet in the UK, basketball doesn’t get much of a look-in on our sports channels, which are mostly dedicated to football, with certain times of the year seeing more focus on tennis, golf, darts, and cricket.

Basketball is not a sport I’ve ever been interested in. Because of this lack of interest or understanding of the rules of basketball, I did struggle to feel fully invested in Full-Court Miracle, although I always like seeing the end results of any sports movie, regardless of whether I like the sport or not. But Full-Court Miracle also had a very important element that distinguished it from other sports movies, and that is the fact it is set during the Jewish festival of Hanukkah, or Chanukah. This was considered to be quite progressive at the time, especially as there continues to be a lack of Hanukkah movies on television in the later part of the year because TV schedules are too filled up with Christmas films and specials.

I learnt quite a lot about Jewish culture from Full-Court Miracle, because I did not know very much at all before watching it. I have seen Hallmark’s Hanukkah on Rye (2022), which is one of the more well-received Hanukkah movies that have been released in recent years, and I learnt a little bit then, but Full-Court Miracle gave me some actual history.

PLOT

Full-Court Miracle begins with a teenage boy called Alex, also known as Schlots, because of his surname, Schlotsky, and his friend Julie talking about the misfortunes of Alex’s basketball team. They are about to play their biggest rivals, the Warriors, and both Alex and Julie can’t help but think his team, the Lions, is going to lose…badly.

Schlots then heads to school at Philadelphia Hebrew Academy and meets up with his friends and teammates, where Alex tries to convince them to stay motivated for the game, but they don’t seem that bothered about it. They go to their History class with Rabbi Lewis, where the story of Hanukkah is being taught, since Hanukkah is coming up. The story says that Judah led a group of warriors, the Maccabees, to a great victory over a huge army, after the Jewish people had been banned from practising Judaism. Judah and the Maccabees fought for their religious freedom. This inspires Schlots to believe that if his team can find their own Judah, then maybe the Lions can finally triumph over the Warriors.

At the game later against the Warriors, sure enough, the Lions lose. Schlots talks to his friends, Ben, Joker, Stick, and T.J., about the loss, but they’d rather talk about the presents they think they’ll be getting for Hanukkah. Schlots reiterates that if there’s going to be a time for their team to win, it’s now as the next tournament is taking place at their school gym, so home advantage. At home, Schlots tries to find comfort from his parents, but they don’t understand why he gets so upset about basketball, not seeing an NBA career in his future. His mother would rather he had a stable career, such as being a doctor, like her.

Back at school, Schlots asks Rabbi Lewis if they can find a real coach for their basketball team, as their current coach is the disinterested maths teacher. Rabbi Lewis suggests he discusses this with his mother, as Schlots’ mother is on the Board of Directors. He knows she won’t agree to that, so he drops it – for now. But whilst out playing basketball with his friends on the public court, he sees a man playing on his own, and he’s pretty good. Alex attempts to talk to this guy, but he isn’t interested in talking, and says he is just waiting to get a trial at the Philadelphia 76ers. He has no interest in coaching, and quickly leaves in his van. Luckily, Schlots caught his licence plate number and with the help of Stick, they find it is linked to Virginia Cavaliers Lamont Carr, a former player. They start to find all sorts of links between Lamont Carr and Judah Maccabee, like how his licence plate has the initials “JM”, and his basketball nickname was “The Hammer”, a nickname also given to Judah.

The next day, the group see Lamont playing on the court next to them again. Not wanting to lose the opportunity to get him to coach them, Schlots offers him $40 to coach them for one hour. Lamont is given the hard sell and agrees. However, Schlots comes home to find that his mother wants to sign him up to an after-school program at the hospital where he will shadow a doctor. Schlots doesn’t want to do that, but says he’ll think about it.

The team soon have their first coaching session with Lamont but all he does is make them run and do exercises. He says this is all necessary conditioning, but the others, apart from Schlots, are becoming demotivated. Lamont agrees to come back the next day for a further session, with Schlots asking his friends to chip in for the cost. On that day, Joker, not believing any of this stuff about Lamont being like Judah, attempts to prove to Schlots that Lamont Carr is not Judah Maccabee, however, they find out that Lamont had four brothers, like Judah; and his father is called Matthew, close to Judah’s father’s name, Matthias. After that session, the others don’t have any more cash to spare, so Schlots decides to sell a rare basketball card that was a Hanukkah present, to raise the funds.

Back at home, Schlots is told by his mother that he got a place in the after-school program. He is annoyed but doesn’t feel he has much choice but to do it. He complains about it to Julie, although she is less than sympathetic. She thinks the program would be a great opportunity, which gives Schlots an idea: she can go in his place so he can continue to play basketball; it’s the perfect plan! Except even perfect plans go awry. Schlots finds Lamont struggling to fix his van, and he says he can’t coach them anymore as he needs to focus on his basketball career and earn some proper money. Schlots says he’ll double his fee for coaching them and Lamont agrees to it. Schlots also tells Lamont to ease up with his intense exercise regime, as it is demotivating the others. Lamont does a shooting practice instead, which the others find much more fun. Lamont says the team have potential, but their biggest issue is that they don’t believe in themselves enough.

Later, Schlots and the Lions sell coffee on the street to raise money to keep Lamont as their coach. Their teacher from school, Mrs. Klein, pulls up by their cart and questions them. Schlots lies, and says it is a charity fundraiser. Mrs. Klein is still suspicious though and calls Schlots’ mother. On finding out about his lies, she is furious, and Mrs. Klein shuts down the coffee cart. Schlots tries to convince Rabbi Lewis of the importance of their new coach, but he says lying is never the answer. Rabbi Lewis decides Alex and his family should invite Lamont to dinner with Rabbi Lewis and his wife.

At this dinner, Lamont is slightly out of his comfort zone, as he is unfamiliar with Jewish customs. He soon picks up on them though and Rabbi Lewis warms to him. Schlots’ mother says that the parents are concerned – and rightly too – that this coaching has been taking place outside of school and by someone they don’t know. Rabbi Lewis suggests a perfect solution to this: to hire Lamont as the school’s basketball coach temporarily. Schlots’ mother is horrified as she knows this will only continue to take her son’s focus away from his studies, but the deal is done. Lamont will work at the school until his trial comes through.

On his first day at the school, Lamont doesn’t how to get the Lions to believe in themselves more, so Rabbi Lewis offers some words of encouragement, saying that the best way to defeat an enemy is to identify their weakness and target it. This gives Lamont the idea of implementing the full-court press, where their team will apply pressure to their opposition by aggressively defending against them throughout the entire length of the court. After practice, Schlots follows Lamont’s van on T.J.’s bike and discovers Lamont is living out of his van. Lamont tells Schlots about the family he has, and how this basketball trial needs to happen soon. He says sometimes to achieve a big dream you have to make sacrifices. Schlots can understand that. He promises not to tell anyone about Lamont’s living situation. On the first night of Hanukkah, Schlots gets the basketball card he sold as a gift from his parents; Julie had snitched on him about selling it to pay for Lamont’s coaching!

At school, Mrs. Klein needs Lamont’s address for his employment forms. Lamont makes up a fake address, but this only makes her suspicious and she complains to Rabbi Lewis about it. Not wanting Lamont to be fired, Rabbi Lewis warns Schlots that Mrs. Klein plans to follow Lamont home that evening to check his address. This gives Schlots enough time to come up with a plan. He asks his father if Lamont can stay in the apartment his father is unable to sell. His father agrees. Schlots then puts a note on Lamont’s car, telling him the plan and the address to drive to. At the apartment, the ruse is enough to persuade Mrs. Klein that Lamont has a home and she drives away. But Lamont doesn’t want any handouts, and promises Schlots’ father he will smarten up the apartment in exchange for letting him stay.

Schlots’ mother sees a failed test in Schlots’ backpack whilst this is happening and she goes into the school to discuss his studies. Lamont gives a pep talk to the Lions team before a match, saying that Schlots is off the team until his school work improves. Annoyed, he upsets his friend Julie by telling her she keeps harassing him, and even worse, he is unable to focus on anything other than basketball, so he has no idea how to pass his History test, which Rabbi Lewis is allowing him to re-do. His team come over to help him, using basketball to help him remember key facts. Schlots then takes his test. Meanwhile, the team are being told by Lamont how to act more like a team and what their key role will be.

After practice, Schlots is told that he has passed his test and is back on the team. However, the happiness is short-lived as Lamont soon reveals that he has got a temporary contract with the Philadelphia 76ers. Schlots is upset that Lamont is turning his back on the team, calling him selfish, but Lamont says he’s allowed to have a dream too. Schlots asks his mother if the school can hire a new coach but she says no, wanting him to focus on school. After a further lesson about the miracle oil in the lamp lit by Judah and the Maccabees which stayed alight for eight days instead of just one, Schlots asks Rabbi Lewis for some wisdom, and he tells him maybe they need to look for Judah in themselves.

It is then time for the tournament, where the Lions have to go on without Lamont. Schlots motivates the team, and they manage to win their first two games easily. As they are about to lose their third game, Schlots is fouled at the end of time, so the Lions are awarded two free throws. Schlots sinks both of them and they win, getting through to the Finals. After the match, Schlots sees his mother and tells her about the team’s success. She still doesn’t understand why Alex likes basketball so much, so he tries to explain it to her, saying he wants to have his dream, not spend time working for hers.

The day before the Finals, we see that Lamont is struggling with a previous knee injury and doesn’t seem to be loving playing basketball again. On the day of the final, there is a huge thunderstorm. Schlots and the Lions get pumped up, feeling ready to face the Warriors yet again. Schlots’ mother takes Julie to the game, but goes off to do something. She is actually at the stadium, looking for Lamont. She sees Lamont struggling with his van, saying he has to get to the airport. Schlots’ mother starts to wonder if there could be a miracle on this strangely stormy night and asks Lamont to try and start his van again – and it works. She convinces him to come to the game. During the game, eventually, the power goes completely. Outside, the teams try to work the backup generator, so they can finish the game. With the generator on limited time, the two teams come to an agreement that whatever the score is when the power runs out, that is the winner, regardless if there is time remaining. The Lions try to make up their 18-point deficit, and make a strong comeback. But a timeout is called by the math teacher, and their former coach, Mr. Simowitz, who says there is less than three minutes left on the generator. The Warriors overhear this and call their own timeout, wanting to waste those three minutes so they can win, as they still lead.

Lamont then arrives and tells them all to be more like Judah Maccabee and not admit defeat. Schlots goes back on the court ready to restart, when the generator runs out of oil. And yet, the generator restarts – and seems to want to stay on for the game’s final five minutes, mimicking the Hanukkah story. With five minutes left, the fight is back on. The Lions and the Warriors stay close in score, but with ten seconds to go, the Lions are left with one final chance to shoot and win. Schlots passes the ball to a teammate, who scores just as the timer finishes and the power goes off. The Lions win the Championship and the trophy! Schlots’ mother also arrived in time to see it, as did Lamont’s wife and child, reuniting him with his family. Lamont tells Schlots that he’s giving up basketball, wanting to be their permanent coach. Schlots’ mother is happy for the school to hire him permanently.

The film ends with Schlots and his family celebrating the final night of Hanukkah, before playing basketball together with Lamont’s family, whilst Rabbi Lewis gives a message about the celebration of light, in helping to illuminate dreams and bring hope to the world.

CHARACTERS & CAST

Schlots, or Alex, is the primary focus of the story of Full-Court Miracle. Schlots is motivated to find his basketball team, the Lions, the best coach possible, since their current coach, their school maths teacher, doesn’t seem to be particularly bothered about whether the team win or lose. Schlots comes up against indifference from members of his own team, who aren’t looking to have a future career in basketball unlike Schlots, as well as exasperation from his mother who would rather her son focused on having a stable profession. But luckily, because of Schlots’ determination, he finds the Lions a brilliant coach, a former player, and the team go on to have all the success that Schlots had dreamt of winning with them. Schlots is a great leader for the team, and a good motivator.

Alex “Schlots” Schlotsky was played by Alex D. Linz. Linz had previously starred as Alex Pruitt in Home Alone 3 (1997), and voiced Young Tarzan in Disney Animation’s Tarzan (1999). He was later cast in the title role of Disney’s live-action film Max Keeble’s Big Move (2001) and appeared as Pete Calcatera in the medical drama Providence (1999-2002).

Lamont Carr is the new coach that Schlots finds for his team. Lamont is very reluctant when Schlots comes to him, wanting him to be their new coach. Lamont has no interested in coaching, and is just trying to keep himself fit and ready for a potential trial with the Philadelphia 76ers team. Lamont even walks away from Schlots the first time, and is not pleased to have him hassle him again the very next day. Lamont does relent though when Schlots offers to pay him for his time, eventually growing to like coaching the Lions. When Schlots’ school gets involved, Lamont is able to coach them properly, and does well with them – except Lamont does get his trial and leaves the Lions just before their big tournament, upsetting Schlots in particular. Lamont struggles with his recurring knee injury during the trial and is coaxed back to coaching the Lions, as a way of having a stable career and being able to spend time with his family once again, as he had sacrificed his time and home life with them to live out of his van, chasing a dream.

Richard T. Jones was cast as Lamont Carr. Around the time of Full-Court Miracle, Jones was playing Bruce Calvin van Exel in the legal drama Judging Amy (1999-2005). He went on to be cast as Governor Sam Denning in Seasons 2 and 3 of Hawaii Five-0 (2010-20). Currently, Jones has a main role in ABC’s The Rookie (2018-present), as Wade Grey.

For the rest of the Lions team, we have the four main members of Schlots’ friendship group, Ben, also known as “Big Ben”, Joker, T.J., and Stick. Ben appears to be the least athletic of the group, struggling with some of Lamont’s intense training regimes, but he becomes an integral part of the team, helping them win the tournament nonetheless. Ben was played by Sean Marquette, who shortly after Full-Court Miracle played Young Matt in the romcom 13 Going on 30 (2004), which starred Mark Ruffalo and Jennifer Garner. Also around this time, Marquette voiced Mac in Cartoon Network’s Foster’s Home for Imaginary Friends (2004-09). More recently, Marquette was cast in the recurring role of Johnny Atkins in the ABC sitcom The Goldbergs (2013-23) and its spin-off Schooled (2019-20).

T.J. is a bit of a hothead, who has been booked by the referees in multiple matches for talking back to them when results don’t go his way. Lamont teaches T.J. to be calmer, by getting him to think about his crush whenever he’s close to lashing out! T.J. was played by Erik Knudsen. He went on to be cast as Lucas “Crash” Wilson in Scott Pilgrim vs. the World (2010), after his role as Daniel Matthews in the horror movie Saw II (2005). Knudsen also appeared as Robbie Mercer in Scream 4 (2011). He was later nominated twice at the Saturn Awards in the category of Best Television Supporting Actor for his role as Alec Sadler in Showcase’s sci-fi series Continuum (2012-15).

Joker is the most cynical one of the group, both about the origin of Hanukkah, which he calls a “fairy story”, and about Lamont being like Judah Maccabee. Eventually, Joker gets on side and is able to help the team to their big victory over the Warriors. David Sazant was cast as Joker. He later went on to have a minor role as the Marymount Captain at the Mathletes competition in Mean Girls (2004). For his role in Full-Court Miracle, Sazant was nominated for the Young Artist Award for Best Performance in a TV Movie, Miniseries or Special – Supporting Young Actor.

Stick is the smart, studious one on the team, who is also the biggest follower of his faith. Stick is even the one to put forward the theory about Lamont being “their” Judah, and finding lacks to prove his theory. Stick was played by Jase Blankfort, with his character in Full-Court Miracle being his most recent acting credit.

Outside of his teammates, Schlots’ other close friend is Julie. She has followed Schlots’ team, the Lions, through the years and is constantly talking to Schlots about their lack of success and the reasons why they can’t improve. This might occasionally annoy Schlots, but Julie is a loyal friend to go to so many of these games even though the likelihood is the Lions will lose! She later helps Schlots out by taking his place on the hospital program his mother got him a place on, so Schlots can keep playing basketball after school. Later, Julie and Schlots have a falling out after Schlots snaps at Julie for always “harassing him” about basketball. Schlots’ mother helps the two make up as she drives Julie to the final tournament match to go and see the Lions finally win a trophy.

Cassie Steele was cast as Julie. At the time of Full-Court Miracle, Steele was appearing as Manny Santos in Degrassi: The Next Generation (2001-15), being on the show from Season 1 until Season 9, which ended in 2010. Steele went on to voice various characters, including Tammy Gueterman and Tricia Lang, in the adult animated series Rick and Morty (2013-present). She is also singer, having released two albums, one in 2005, other in 2009. Apparently, Steele was set to voice Raya in Disney Animation’s Raya and the Last Dragon (2021) but the role actually went to Kelly Marie Tran. Steele was nominated for Young Artist Award for Best Performance in a TV Movie, Miniseries or Special – Leading Young Actress for her role as Julie in Full-Court Miracle.

Now for Schlots’ mother and father. Neither his father or his mother believe that Schlots is ever going to make it in the NBA, but his father is more inclined to let Schlots figure things out for himself instead of trying to push him towards something else. On the other hand, Schlots’ mother, a well-respected doctor, wants Schlots to follow in her footsteps and focus on becoming a doctor, or at least something a bit more stable, a profession he can rely on for years to come. His mother is quite forceful in her wishes for Schlots, because she gets him a place on a program he doesn’t want to be involved in, and gets him kicked off the basketball team for getting a bad grade on a History test. It isn’t until Schlots’ team gets to the Finals of the tournament and his mother asks him to explain why basketball is so important to him, that she finally understands that she needs to let her dream of her son being just like her go, so Schlots can have his own life, doing whatever makes him happy.

The actor who played Schlots’ mother may look familiar to Disney Channel Original Movie fans, as the actor, Linda Kash, played Samantha, Kelly’s mother, in Cadet Kelly (2002), which starred Hilary Duff. Kash also played Alma Hix in the made-for-television adaptation for ABC of The Music Man (2003), alongside Matthew Broderick as Harold Hill and Kristin Chenoweth as Marian around this time. Kash went on to play the recurring role of Nellie Hebert in the medical drama Doc (2001-04). Schlots’ father was played by Jason Blicker. He had previously been cast as Uncle Heschie on Fox Family and ABC Family’s series State of Grace (2001-02), just before his casting in Full-Court Miracle. More recently, Blicker was cast as Todd in the Canadian comedy series Jann (2019-21).

Then, we have Schlots’ teachers at Philadelphia Hebrew Academy. One of these is Rabbi Lewis, who is also their History teacher. Rabbi Lewis is constantly on hand to advise Schlots on his journey to finding a new coach for the Lions. When Rabbi Lewis discovers that Schlots has been lying to his mother so the team can have coaching sessions with Lamont Carr, he immediately resolves this problem by inviting Lamont to a family dinner and giving him a temporary role as the basketball coach at the school. Rabbi Lewis later gives Lamont advice on how to get the team in a winning position by saying that they need to use their opposition’s weakness to their advantage. This is all done via the analogy of comparing the Lions’ difficulties to that of Judah Maccabee in the Hanukkah story. Rabbi Lewis is basically the voice of reason in Full-Court Miracle. Rabbi Lewis was played by R. H. Thomson, who most recently played Matthew Cuthbert in the Canadian drama Anne with an E (2017-19) based on the Lucy Maud Montgomery novel Anne of Green Gables (1908).

Mrs. Klein is a strict teacher at the academy, always suspicious of Schlots and his basketball teammates. Mrs. Klein doesn’t like how these boys put too much emphasis on basketball and not enough on their studies, a feeling that is shared by Schlots’ mother. All Schlots’ lies unravel when Mrs. Klein sees Schlots and the others selling coffee, not as a charity fundraiser, but as a way of paying Lamont for his coaching sessions. But this ultimately leads to Lamont Carr being hired by the school, something Mrs. Klein is not too happy about, and this is made worse by the fact Lamont lies about his address, as he is living out of his van at that time. Mrs. Klein even resorts to following Lamont home in a bid to catch him out and get him fired, but this plan is foiled by Schlots’ quick thinking – and a tip-off by Rabbi Lewis! Ultimately, Mrs. Klein sees the importance of the school’s basketball team and cheers them on to victory in the final game.

Sheila McCarthy was cast as Mrs. Klein. McCarthy has had supporting roles in movies such as Die Hard 2 (1990), where she played Sam Coleman, and The Day After Tomorrow (2004), as Judith the librarian. She also has some history with the Walt Disney Company and their films. For example, she was cast as Mrs. Gerard in the Disney film Confessions of a Teenage Drama Queen (2004), which starred Lindsay Lohan. In the world of DCOMs, McCarthy was later cast as Angie, Addison’s grandmother, in ZOMBIES 3 (2022). She also played Fran Walker in Cow Belles (2006). Another actor from Full-Court Miracle, who also appears in Cow Belles is Ron Gabriel, who played Mr. Simowitz the former Lions coach here. He played Melvin the accountant in Cow Belles.

Since Full-Court Miracle is a basketball movie, it makes perfect sense that they would have a cameo appearance by a real basketball player. In this case, that player was Jerome Williams, who was active in the NBA from 1996 to 2005, playing for such teams as the Chicago Bulls and the New York Knicks. At the time of Full-Court Miracle, Williams was playing for the Toronto Raptors. He made two appearances during the movie, playing one-on-one with Lamont at one point in the film, and then speaking to Schlots’ mother outside the stadium as she is searching for Lamont to bring him to the Lions’ game.

MUSIC

Because Full-Court Miracle heavily focuses on its story, there are few songs that appear in it.

The most prominent song that appears in Full-Court Miracle is playing during the warm-up and final match between the Lions and the Warriors and that is “Spin ‘Ya Like A Dreidel”, written by Ray Cham and Rwaana Barnes. It was performed by SoL Survivor, a hip-hop song. It is a good backing track to the Lions’ fight against their arch rivals.

Two other songs are credited in this film, but I have little idea, if any, where they appear. One is “Team Theme”, written by Gary Mrowca and John Hiler, and performed by GBonafide and J-Hi. I think this could be the song that Lamont puts on when the Lions are having a practice session without Schlots. Lamont is telling each member of the team why they are important and how they fit into the game. This is then followed by Lamont leading the Lions in a new team song that is a hip-hop take on the typical camping or Scouts song “Everywhere We Go”, in a bid to further boost their commitment to the team.

The other song is “Monkey Thumbs”, written by Steve Bauman and Robert Willy Wood, performed by Stretch Nickel. I have no clue when this is used in Full-Court Miracle and I can’t find the song online anywhere to try and hear it to work it out myself, nor does anyone else seem to have worked out where it is.

For the score, composer Christopher Brady was chosen. Brady was a frequent collaborator with Disney Channel back in the 2000s, composing the music for other Disney Channel Original Movies like The Luck of the Irish (2001), Motocrossed (2001), The Poof Point (2001) and Mom’s Got a Date with a Vampire (2000). He later composed the music for Going to the Mat (2004), another DCOM, and for Season 1 of Phil of the Future (2004-06).

PRODUCTION

Full-Court Miracle came to Disney Channel at a time when Disney Channel Original Movies were starting to have an identity and beginning to attract loyal viewers, with more musicals and films that complemented their series, as well as those that showcased the channel’s biggest stars from their series.

Full-Court Miracle doesn’t fit into any of these categories, meaning that it is one of those DCOMs that has been overlooked, simply due to the fact it came out in 2003, before the Disney Channel boom of High School Musical (2006), and it is not a musical.

Still, Full-Court Miracle saw some previous Disney Channel collaborators involved in the project, trying to make all these movies at least feel similar in style, even if their stories were very different. The director of Full-Court Miracle was Stuart Gillard, who had directed The Scream Team (2002) prior to this, and went on to direct other DCOMs such as the sports movie Going to the Mat (2004) and comedy Hatching Pete (2009). Gillard also directed some episodes of non-Disney television series later in his career, including the reboot of 90210 (2008-13) and the crime drama Beauty and the Beast (2012-16).

The writers involved with this film were Joel Silverman, Joel Kauffmann and Donald C. Yost. Yost and Kaufmann had been the screenwriters on Disney Channel’s Miracle in Lane 2 (2000) prior to working on Full-Court Miracle.

The story of Full-Court Miracle is actually loosely based on a true story, about a real basketball player named Lamont Carr. At 6 foot 7 inches tall, he was recruited out of a Chicago junior college to play for the University of Virginia college team, the Virginia Cavaliers. He helped the team win their first ACC Championship title in 1976. After his basketball career had ended, he later became interested in darts and earnt a law degree, before moving to Florida and becoming a gym teacher and basketball coach, during which time he coached a championship-winning basketball team at a Jewish school, this being the premise for Full-Court Miracle. Carr sadly died in July 2017 at the age of 64[1].

Some changes were obviously made to this story with the most obvious being that the Jewish school in Full-Court Miracle is based in Philadelphia, which has a large Jewish community. Strangely enough, but not so strange when you think about how many movies are filmed there, Full-Court Miracle was filmed in Toronto, Canada, not Philadelphia, with only some of the opening shots actually showing the city itself.

The other part of the story that Full-Court Miracle is based around is the Jewish holiday Hanukkah, Judaism’s festival of lights. For anyone unfamiliar, Hanukkah takes place on eight consecutive nights, where people gather to light a new candle on their menorah. They sing songs, eat traditional foods, and exchange presents too. The dates of Hanukkah vary year-on-year, but they always occur within November or December[2].

Full-Court Miracle frequently references the origin of Hanukkah. A small group of Jewish fighters, the Maccabees, led by Judah, fought against Greek rule and the Hellenists, who had banned their religion and its rituals. In the three-year conflict, the Temple of Jerusalem was destroyed, but over time, it was cleaned and repaired. This long-standing battle is symbolised by the Lions and the Warriors going up against each other, and the Lions, the small, less equipped group, winning. To celebrate their victory, an oil lamp was lit by the Maccabees. They suspected there was only enough oil to burn the candle for one day. It stayed alight for eight days, so this is why a menorah has eight candles and why foods cooked in oil are traditionally eaten at this time of year in Jewish culture[3]. This miracle oil is referenced in Full-Court Miracle with the generator. The backup generator is about to run out of oil, but it miraculously stays on for just enough time for the basketball final to end.

After much annoyance over the lack of Hanukkah-themed movies around the holiday season, some Jewish viewers were very glad to see a positive representation of their Jewish identity in Full-Court Miracle. Full-Court Miracle actually followed another movie about Hanukkah, an animated comedy from Adam Sandler called Eight Crazy Nights (2002). Although it did not receive particularly good reviews, it was an attempt to showcase a culture that is underrepresented on television, and it was appreciated. Full-Court Miracle coming just a year later, and aimed at younger viewers, was a further step in the right direction[4].

RECEPTION

Full-Court Miracle debuted on Disney Channel on 21^st November 2003 in the US.

In 2003, Hanukkah began on 19^th December and ended on 27^th December, so this was a little bit early, but at least the film wasn’t late! No doubt it was re-run on the channel during the actual Hanukkah celebrations. At least, I hope those in Scheduling at Disney Channel had the foresight to do that.

I haven’t been able to find anywhere that specifically states the viewing figures for Full-Court Miracle on its premiere, but it is believed to have been a little below 4.5 million. For some context, the best film premiere of 2003 for Disney Channel was The Cheetah Girls, which gained over 6 million. So, not too bad in comparison, really.

Most DCOMs receive mixed reviews, due to their young casts, simple storylines, and lack of budget, which doesn’t necessarily make a film bad, but it does make them easier to critique. On the negative side here, some said Full-Court Miracle was weak compared to other Disney Channel movies of this era and beyond. Others said it was clichéd and predictable, with the ending of the Lions winning against all odds easily guessed from the outset of the film. There were also comments that the basketball playing in the film was not accurate either, annoying some fans of the sport. Since I am not one, I can’t say I noticed! It was also felt the metaphor of the Hanukkah origin story applying alongside Schlots’ bid for victory with his team and the oil continuing to fuel the generator was a little forced, and not appreciated to be applied to something as trivial as a school sports team.

On the lighter side, some enjoyed the cast, and felt it was an inspirational film for young people. It was appreciated for its representation of Jewish culture, being a good introduction for those unfamiliar with Judaism or Hanukkah itself in particular. Other said the movie was decent, but not amazing. I’m afraid that is the camp I sit in. But others absolutely love this film, and feel it was ahead of its time in terms of depicting Jewish culture.

Full-Court Miracle may not have been beloved by the masses, but it was still nominated for some awards. The movie’s writers were nominated at the Writers’ Guild of America Awards for Children’s Script, but lost to The Maldonado Miracle (2003), a TV movie that starred Salma Hayek. Full-Court Miracle was also nominated at the Humanitas Prize awards in the Children’s Live-Action Category. Disney Channel’s Going to the Mat (2004) was also nominated in this category, but both lost to Crown Heights (2004).

LEGACY

Full-Court Miracle followed a string of sports-themed Disney Channel movies, which went back to 1998 with their first of this kind, Brink!

It would make sense then, that Disney Channel would continue to add more films of this type to their catalogue, although not as many in recent years. Since Full-Court Miracle, we’ve seen figure skating in Go Figure (2005); Double Dutch skipping in Jump In! (2007), and snowboarding skills in Cloud 9 (2014), just to name a few.

The most important part of Full-Court Miracle’s legacy though is that it is one of few movies about Hanukkah, which has made it memorable in the minds of former Disney Channel viewers, particularly those who are Jewish themselves. It was also ranked at No. 11 on Vulture’s ranking of the 105 Disney Channel Original Movies released at the time. The reason for this ranking was that Full-Court Miracle is apparently one of the only movies in American cinema to depict a modern-day Jewish school. It was also a chance for Disney Channel to show that there are other holidays being celebrated around the world besides Christmas[5].

Being remembered for something notable like this is much better than just being remembered for being a popular Disney Channel franchise. Full-Court Miracle might be just one in a list of DCOMs, but for some, it might be the one that represented them the most.

FINAL THOUGHTS

Full-Court Miracle is labelled as a Hanukkah sports movie, showing that the two ideas were meant to blend seamlessly. The success of this can be debated.

Personally, I would say the balance does skew more towards the basketball, but I did also learn plenty about Hanukkah and Jewish culture. Since I’m not Jewish, I hadn’t given much thought to the lack of films on television that celebrate Hanukkah, with festive Christmas films, full of cookie baking and tree decorating, dominating the schedule.

It would seem Full-Court Miracle went some way in trying to accurately reflect the teenage Jewish experience and their family traditions. Although not a perfect representation, Full-Court Miracle was much appreciated by some young viewers for this very reason; it made them feel seen.

REFERENCES

[1] Credit: Virginia Magazine, ‘In Memoriam: 1970s’, UVAMagazine.org, Fall 2017.

[2] Credit: Giovanna Dell’Orto, ‘When is Hanukkah, and how is it celebrated around the world?’, PBS.org, 30^th November 2023.

[3] Credit: CBBC Newsround, ‘Hanukkah: What is it? How is it celebrated? What do you eat and why?’, BBC.co.uk, 6^th December 2023.

[4] Credit: Will Feinstein, ‘A great Hanukkah movie would take a miracle’, AVClub.com, 11^th December 2020.

[5] Credit: Rebecca Alter, ‘All 105 Disney Channel Original Movies, Ranked’, Vulture.com, 4^th May 2020.

5th Dec 202519th Dec 2025 by The Disney Purist

The Naughty Nine (2023)

BACKGROUND

The festive season is a time when we see a wide array of Christmas films coming to theatres and our television screens.

This movie selection covers a range of genres and age groups. Given the Hallmark and Hallmark-style movies I’ve already watched this year – and there have been plenty – we could also say the film options vastly differ in quality too.

It would seem that Christmas movies are being pumped out at break-neck speed when you think of the number that come out at this time of year, seemingly with very few story constraints and very little budget. Any idea will do; it just needs to be festive enough.

With all that in mind, you might think that Disney Channel would simply follow in the footsteps of other production companies and be able to throw out at least one new DCOM every year themed to Christmas. But that has not been the case, with there actually being very few Christmas-specific Disney Channel movies, only five in total over the years.

Only two have been released in the 2020s so far. One in this decade was Christmas…Again? (2021), a story very much inspired by Groundhog Day (1993) but a surprisingly touching one nonetheless. At least from my point of view. Not everyone agreed.

The other was released in 2023 and was technically labelled a Disney Original Movie. This film was The Naughty Nine, a holiday heist movie perfectly suited for children. It saw two kids lead a group of other naughty children, each with their own talents, to steal back their presents that Santa didn’t bring them because they are all on the Naughty List.

Sadly, I didn’t much care for The Naughty Nine. I’ve always liked heist films but this movie was obviously not aimed at me. I didn’t particularly enjoy the overall story, and it didn’t make me feel very festive. But that’s ok, because it is certainly not the worst Christmas movie I’ve watched this year and not the only one I won’t be rewatching!

PLOT

The Naughty Nine begins in the Principal’s Office of a typical school. It is the day before Winter Break and yet the principal is dealing with a student in trouble. This student is Andy who always seems to be in trouble. Deep down, the principal knows Andy is not a bad kid, and after he turns on the tears, saying he can change, he is sent back to class. However, Andy has no intention of heading back to class, and with his friend, Dulce, they have a mini-heist planned for the end of the school term. Andy has already stolen the keys for the Confiscation Bin, the place where all confiscated items are sent before being given to charity at the end of term. Dulce and Andy prepare for the heist to begin.

First, they tamper with the film that is showing to all the students in the hall, changing it to a recording of the principal, making it seem like she has told everyone to leave school early. Andy and Dulce use this distraction to bag up all the items from the bin and put them on a cart to get them out of the building. The principal catches the two of them leaving the school grounds with a big bag of stuff. She looks into the bag and finds…cookies. Andy says they were meant for all the staff. The principal thanks Andy for his kindness and takes them away. It is revealed that Andy swapped out the bags just before seeing the principal and hid their one in a bin. The janitor has since picked up the bin and taken it outside to the dumpsters, allowing Andy and Dulce to retrieve it. Outside, Andy and Dulce charge kids to get their confiscated items back. One, tech whizz Lewis, worries that this might cause him to go on the Naughty List. Another, Albert, manages to get his slingshot back for free by using a fake innocent look. Andy and Dulce try to tell them that returning confiscated items back to their rightful owners is actually a good thing. The two discuss their most wanted gifts for Christmas, with Andy wanting a games console, and Dulce wanting a bow and arrow. They hope that Santa will give them these gifts on Christmas Day.

Back at home, Andy’s sister Laurel tells their parents that Andy got sent to the principal’s office today, hoping for him to be punished. Andy says that he was actually helping the principal, and his parents say no more about it. Laurel hates the fact Andy never gets in trouble, despite obviously doing such bad things, and she warns Andy that one day, all his naughtiness will blow up in his face. Later that night, Andy overhears his parents talking about one of his father’s colleagues, a pilot, who allegedly hit a reindeer whilst on one of his routes. This reinforces to Andy that Santa is on his way.

On Christmas Day, Andy gets plenty of presents from his parents, but doesn’t get anything from Santa. Laurel, however, has a secret gift, an official tracksuit for her gymnastics, that seemingly was from Santa. Andy asks his friend Dulce if she got a gift from Santa, and she says she got nothing from him either. They go over to meet with their friend Lewis, to get information about Santa’s Naughty List, to see if they might be on it. Lewis has handily written an algorithm in order to find all the naughty list kids across the globe; there are apparently over a million of them. Andy is horrified that Santa has so much control over these naughty kids’ happiness and decides they must go to the North Pole and retrieve their gifts themselves. Lewis knows the exact location of Santa’s Village so now they just need to assemble the perfect team to help enact the plan.

Firstly, Lewis, Andy, and Dulce head to the park, where they recruit their getaway driver, a reckless go-karter, Ha-Yoon, who is on the naughty list for this reason, and animal whisperer Rose who will be useful in getting the reindeers at the North Pole on side. She is on the naughty list for illegally releasing captive animals. Next, they’ll need a gymnast for a very specific stunt. Andy goes to his sister’s gymnastics club and attempts to recruit the mean, snooty top gymnast Bethany, Laurel’s rival at the club. After some persuasion, and her desperation to get the top-of-the-range phone she wanted, she agrees to a meeting. They also find Jon Anthony, a young fashion designer who owns his own store selling his own original designs, who will create the elf disguises they’ll need to blend in at the North Pole. The fake innocent kid from earlier, Albert, is also added to the squad.

The group meet up at Andy’s house, in the basement, for a top-secret meeting to discuss the mission. A whole model of Santa’s village has been created to plan out the exact stages to the plan. At the location, Lewis will be tasked with shutting down the security cameras. The gymnast’s task is to flip over a large icy chasm to release the bridge from a centre platform to get over to the present vault. Bethany isn’t overly enthusiastic about joining a group of little kids, but she thinks the stunt will be simple enough. Laurel overhears this meeting taking place and tries to get her parents to catch Andy in the act of planning something naughty – but when they get down to the basement, Andy has already planned the perfect cover for this meeting: Recycling Club. His parents and Laurel leave. Andy then gives all the kids files with their alibis written inside. Each one will be at a different sleepover, with Dulce taking calls from the parents to make it seem these sleepovers are legitimate.

Now all they need is transportation to the North Pole. Andy goes with his father to work at the airport, where his father works as the cargo manager. Andy sneaks into the pilot’s lounge and finds Bruno, the pilot who saw a reindeer on one of his flights. Bruno is currently off duties for now, awaiting a psychiatric assessment. Andy tells him about their plan to steal from the North Pole and Bruno agrees to fly them all there, in the hopes of finding evidence that will prove to his colleagues that he is not crazy! But that’s not all because Bethany just dropped out of “The Naughty Nine” as her parents bought her the phone she wanted. Andy knows his best alternative is his goodie-goodie sister Laurel. Knowing she won’t agree to helping them because it is “bad”, he tells Laurel that Bethany doesn’t think she could’ve done the difficult stunt anyway, making Laurel join the group in an effort to prove she is just as good a gymnast as Bethany. Now they have a team.

On the day of the heist, the whole group board the plane with Bruno and they take off for the North Pole. En route, Jon Anthony has a crisis of confidence about his elf costumes as he admits he has never designed his own clothes before, instead just copying others and passing them off as his own – which is fraud, and the reason Jon Anthony is on the Naughty List. He is convinced to finish the costumes and the group actually really like his take on elf fashion. Bruno invites all the kids to look at the Northern Lights through the cockpit window, showing they are close to the North Pole, but an announcement comes over the radio saying they are flying into restricted airspace. Andy tells Bruno to lie about having a mechanical failure, but Bruno is a terrible liar and almost messes up the plan. Dulce grabs a part of the aeroplane and breaks it off, making them actually need an emergency landing at the North Pole! All the kids hide as officials board the plane and ask Bruno what he is doing here. Bruno shows them the broken piece and they say mechanics can fix this for him, telling Bruno to stay put. The kids then disembark the plane. They have two hours.

All eight children head off to Santa’s Village. Albert is told to go on alone to a security cabin and pretend to be lost. He is taken in by the security elf there. Lewis is sent to the control room to deal with the cameras, whilst Rose and Ha-Yoon head to the reindeer stables to make a getaway vehicle. The other four, Andy, Dulce, Laurel, and Jon Anthony, walk in the direction of Santa’s Workshop, coming across a party in full swing. After initially seeming suspicious of their strange outfits, Andy manages to blag their way into the party, and they are welcomed in by the elves. Andy quickly finds the door to Santa’s Workshop, but discovers that the other three are too distracted to notice. He is unable to get their attention when he is forced into dancing in a conga line!

Meanwhile, after some misunderstandings between Ha-Yoon and a reindeer, which Rose has to diffuse, the two manage to find a sleigh and have the reindeer lead it. Lewis has had some problems at the control tower as an elf interrupts his work and he must hide. The elf does not move, leaving Lewis trapped and unable to shut down the cameras.

Back at the party, Andy manages to grab the other three and they head through the door to Santa’s Workshop. After climbing what seems to be hundreds of stairs, they finally make their way to a rooftop – but they find that Lewis has not shut off the cameras! They start throwing snowballs to try and detach the camera. Dulce succeeds at doing this. They continue on to Santa’s Workshop. Inside, they see all their names on the official Naughty List and continue to the vault. They come across an icy tunnel and the huge chasm that Laurel must cross. Laurel initially prepares herself to do the huge stunt, however, she doesn’t think she can do it, and tearfully tells Andy she has failed his plan. Andy says they can always find another way in. As the others turn to go back to Santa’s Workshop, Laurel finds some inner motivation and proceeds to do the complicated trick. She succeeds and lands in the centre platform, releasing the bridge so the other three can cross over.

In the middle of this platform is some sort of coded lock. Dulce recognises the symbols on this lock as being birds. She starts to sing “The Twelve Days of Christmas” and one symbol lights up. It quickly turns off as the others discuss this. They think that if they sing the song in full, they’ll be able to enter the vault, so they do just that. After singing the whole song, the vault opens and the four go inside, taking their presents out of the vault. However, we see that Laurel has succumbed to the dark side and has taken Bethany’s phone that still sits in the vault. They then hear the security alarm going off. Ha-Yoon and Rose set off in their sleigh to pick up the others, and Lewis runs out of the control room. Albert leaves the security cabin too. As Andy, Laurel, Jon Anthony, and Dulce run through Santa’s Village, pursued by security, they are picked up by the girls in the sleigh. Lewis finds himself inside an inflatable ornament and runs through the village. Dulce uses her bow and arrow gift to deflate a large inflatable onto security, giving them some time, although they find themselves at a dead end. Lewis then rolls into the Santa statue at the village, which collapses onto the security guards. The others pick up Lewis and Albert at this point and head back to the plane. On the way, Andy sees that Laurel picked up Bethany’s phone as a “reward” and starts to wonder if what they’ve just done was right at all.

They see the plane heading down the runway without them. Bruno’s plane was fixed quicker than expected and the officials told him to leave immediately so he was unable to wait. Bruno opens up the cargo door and Ha-Yoon speeds up the sleigh so they can all jump into the cargo hold from the sleigh. Each one does this, until it gets down to Ha-Yoon and Andy. Andy takes over the driving of the sleigh, and tells her to jump in. He then stops the sleigh and allows himself to be caught with the gifts as the plane takes off.

On board, the others feel like Andy has betrayed them, but Dulce says that is not the case, and that as her best friend, she cannot leave him behind. Andy is taken to Santa, who shows Andy that he and his seven friends are all on the Naughty List still. Andy pleads with Santa to put all the blame on him as it was his idea. Santa agrees to take some names off the list, but he leaves Andy and Laurel’s names there, due to the fact Laurel stole the phone that wasn’t even meant for her. Andy says he can get the phone back, so Laurel’s name can be removed from the Naughty List. The others, who came back for Andy, are then brought in to see Santa as well. Andy apologises to Laurel for turning her bad like him. Laurel apologises to Santa and returns the phone. Santa then gives them all a message: that they must earn the right to be on the Good List, and that if they can promise they will try and be good from now on, then he will remove their names from the Naughty List. They agree to do this. Bruno, being an adult, was never in danger of being on the Naughty List as it does not apply to him, but came back to help Andy with the others anyway. He asks Santa for a selfie as evidence that he wasn’t going crazy when he saw that reindeer!

They all return to their homes, where Dulce is surprised to find that her large family actually noticed she was gone. Andy comes clean to his parents about everything he did, but they don’t believe him. Him and Laurel decide to get along from now on too.

One year later, we are back at school with Andy and Dulce on the day before Winter Break again, where they appear to have turned a corner and are no longer “naughty”. However, Andy is called into the Principal’s Office yet again. He tries to say he hasn’t done anything wrong, when he discovers it is actually Santa in the principal’s chair. Santa says he needs Andy’s help urgently with a problem.

CHARACTERS & CAST

Andy is the ringleader of the Naughty Nine, and the one with all the plans. He doesn’t like that fact that Santa has taken away gifts from him and his friends, and wants to settle the score by stealing back his much-longed for games console, enlisting the help of seven other children – and one adult – to do this. Eventually, after their getaway goes wrong and he sees his sister acting naughty like him, by stealing that phone, Andy realises the error of his ways and admits what he planned to Santa, so he can protect his friends and his sister. Santa knows that sometimes kids make mistakes and won’t always make the right choices, with Andy promising that he will try and be good from that point on, so this doesn’t happen again. Winslow Fegley was cast as Andy in The Naughty Nine. For Disney, he has previously been cast as Timmy Failure in the Disney+ film Timmy Failure: Mistakes Were Made (2020) and appeared as Mel in the Disney Channel series Fast Layne (2019). Outside of that, Fegley played Young Jake Doyle in the HBO Max movie 8-Bit Christmas (2021) before starring as Josh Primm in Lyle, Lyle Crocodile (2022) with Javier Bardem.

Dulce is Andy’s best friend and second-in-command, so she is always willing to join Andy on his crazy schemes. She is very loyal to her friend, and even convinces the others that they have to go back to rescue Andy after he gives himself in to the North Pole security, because he was actually trying to protect them. Dulce is from a large family, and feels ignored most of the time, so that is probably why she has such a close friendship with Andy, because they are always there for each other. Dulce was played by Camilla Rodriguez. She played Angela del Toro in Daredevil: Born Again (2025-present).

Following on from that, we have Lewis, the IT expert in the group. Lewis actually kicks off this heist plan by showing Andy and Dulce his algorithm for finding those on the Naughty List and for discovering the exact location of Santa’s Village. His algorithm and data gathered from that is later used to find contenders to join The Naughty Nine team. Lewis’ task at the North Pole is to turn off the security cameras, something he does not succeed in doing. Being useful for one half of the plan isn’t bad, I suppose! Anthony Joo was cast as Lewis. He played Hudson Frickley on The Really Loud House (2022-24).

Jon Anthony is recruited to The Naughty Nine for his costume-making skills, as Jon Anthony is believed to be a fashion designer. His costumes are required so that they can be dressed as elves and blend in at the North Pole. It later turns out that Jon Anthony is on the Naughty List for fraudulently copying and then selling other designers’ work to the public, meaning he has no confidence in his own designing abilities. Once he sees the reaction to his elf costumes from the others though, he starts to believe he might actually be a great designer one day. Jon Anthony’s gift from Santa was meant to be a fancy sewing machine, which he retrieves from the vault. Jon Anthony was played by Deric McCabe, who had previously been cast as Charles Wallace Murry in Disney’s A Wrinkle in Time (2018). McCabe went on to play Wesley Witherspoon in Apple TV’s Home Before Dark (2020-21).

Albert is the youngest of the group and he uses his angelic face to get away with things, like getting his slingshot back from the confiscated items for free, and distracting the elf at the North Pole. He doesn’t actually have to do much in the heist, other than eat cookies and sit by the fire in the elf cabin, occasionally telling the elf not to call security, which must’ve been much less stressful than what the others were going through. Ayden Elijah was cast as Albert. He voiced AJ in Nickelodeon’s Blaze and the Monster Machines (2014-25).

Then we have the two members of the getaway team. Rose can communicate with animals, making her the ideal person to be able to convince a reindeer to lead their getaway sleigh. Rose is on the Naughty List for freeing animals in captivity, which doesn’t sound so bad in the grand scheme of things; she’s trying to do good after all, just not necessarily in the right way. Clare Stack was cast as Rose. Stack is currently appearing as Lilly Bainbridge in the HBO horror series, and a prequel to IT (2017), IT: Welcome to Derry (2025-present).

Ha-Yoon is in The Naughty Nine taskforce because of her insane racing abilities. They need someone who will drive fast and recklessly for when they have to get out of the North Pole fast. Luckily, Ha-Yoon doesn’t let them down by making some risky manoeuvres and outsmarting security. Ha-Yoon was played by Imogen Cohen, who played Zina Zacarias in the Paramount+ live-action series The Fairy OddParents: Fairly Odder (2022).

Finally, for the kids, we have the two gymnasts. Andy’s initial pick for his team is Bethany, Laurel’s rival in gymnastics, due to the fact she is already on the Naughty List for her conceited behaviour, and would want to join The Naughty Nine just to get the gift she wanted, which was a new phone. She later decides against joining the heist as her parents got her the phone she wanted. Talk about selfish! Liyou Abere was cast as Bethany, having previously appeared as Jamie in the Netflix series Locke & Key (2020-22) and as Janine in Amazon Prime’s The Boys (2019-present). Abere currently voices Lyla in the PBS Kids’ series Lyla in the Loop (2024-present).

Instead, Andy turns to his sister, Laurel, who is not someone who would normally break the rules. She only agrees to go along so she can beat Bethany at something, but she actually ends up liking the thrill of the heist, and in a moment of madness, takes Bethany’s phone from the vault, apparently as some sort of reward. She eventually comes to her senses after Andy is caught by the elves and taken to Santa, apologising for what came over her. Andy and Laurel end the movie with a much better brother-sister relationship than they had at the start of the film, where Laurel is trying to get her parents to see how much of a bad kid Andy is – kind of like how Candace is with Phineas and Ferb in the series Phineas and Ferb (2007-15, 2025-present). Madilyn Kellam was cast as Laurel. Prior to The Naughty Nine, Kellam had played Cindy in the Netflix sequel Full Out 2: You Got This! (2020).

For the adults, firstly, we have the only adult member of The Naughty Nine, Bruno. He is just the pilot who flies them all to the North Pole because apparently there were no kid pilots available – or Disney didn’t feel it was appropriate to show kids illegally flying planes. Since Bruno can’t be on the Naughty List as an adult, his motivation for joining is to prove that Santa is real after being mocked for apparently seeing a reindeer in the sky on one of his flights, with his job even being at risk for it. Bruno gets his proof though, by getting a selfie with Santa at the end of the film, just before they head home. Bruno was played by Derek Theler, best known for starring as Danny Wheeler in the Freeform series Baby Daddy (2012-17), alongside former Disney Channel stars Tahj Mowry, Jean-Luc Bilodeau and Chelsea Kane. More recently, Theler was cast as Blue Granite in the Disney Channel series The Villains of Valley View (2022-23).

Now, most Christmas films need a Santa Claus, at least those that take place at the North Pole. So, for The Naughty Nine, they got quite a surprise casting, by having Danny Glover play Santa. But Glover’s Santa is not the jolly, happy Santa we’d normally see. Here, Santa is very disappointed in The Naughty Nine, or eight since adults don’t come under his judgement, and he guilt trips the kids into trying to be good, by threatening them with the Naughty List. He seems quite strict, or just annoyed that he is having to waste his downtime disciplining more kids who seem to think getting on the Good List is some sort of right. Kids are just so entitled these days! Anyway, Santa ends up needing Andy’s deviousness by the end of the film, going to him for help with a problem we don’t know about.

Danny Glover is well-known for his role as Sergeant Robert Murtaugh in the Lethal Weapon film franchise. He was later cast as Justice Thurgood Marshall in HBO’s Muhammad Ali’s Greatest Fright (2013). More recently, Glover was part of the all-star cast, including names like Joan Cusack and Dermot Mulroney, who were cast in the Hallmark movie The Christmas Train (2017); Glover played Max Powers. This shows that The Naughty Nine was not his first television Christmas movie. This was also not the first time he had starred in a movie aimed at children either, as he voiced Jethro in DreamWorks Animation’s The Prince of Egypt (1998). Glover also played Milo Walker in Jumanji: The Next Level (2019), where Danny DeVito was also a new character for this sequel.

There is one other member of the cast that I’d like to mention, despite not being a main role, just because they looked familiar and now I know why. The Security Guard Elf in the cabin, who helps Albert by letting him stay in their cabin until they can find his parents, not realising this was actually just a distraction so The Naughty Nine could rob Santa, was played by Ci Hang Ma. Ci Hang Ma played Quinn, one of the marching band spirits, from Season 2 of the Paramount+ series School Spirits (2023-present).

PRODUCTION

The Naughty Nine was first confirmed to be in the works by Disney in February 2022.

At the same time, a sequel to Under Wraps, the 2021 remake of the first official Disney Channel Original Movie from 1997, was also announced. Under Wraps 2 came to Disney Channel in September 2022.

When discussing more details about the movie, The Naughty Nine was labelled a holiday heist movie, where Disney called it Ocean’s 11 at the North Pole. In this press release, a brief plot description was given, along with the name of the director and writers[1].

The director for The Naughty Nine was Alberto Belli. Before The Naughty Nine, Belli had directed the horror-comedy film Gatlopp (2022), which starred Emmy Raver-Lampman from Netflix’s The Umbrella Academy (2019-24) and Jon Bass from the anthology series Miracle Workers (2019-23). Belli has since directed Dora and the Search for Sol Dorado (2025), a live-action movie based on Dora the Explorer, for Paramount+ and Nickelodeon.

The writers of The Naughty Nine were Jed Elinoff and Scott Thomas, who already had some experience of working for Disney, Disney Channel specifically. Together, the duo developed, and wrote several episodes of, Raven’s Home (2017-23) for the channel, this being a spin-off of the very popular series That’s So Raven (2003-07). They also created the series Best Friends Whenever (2015-16) prior to that, and have more recently developed the sequel series to Wizards of Waverly Place (2007-12), titled Wizards Beyond Waverly Place (2024-present). This duo were therefore well-placed to write this Disney movie.

The Naughty Nine was filmed in Quebec, Canada, more exactly in and around the city of Montreal. The movie is said to have filmed some of its scenes in the Pointe-Claire area of Montreal. Many other Disney Channel movies have been filmed in Canada, including some films within their successful musical franchises Descendants, Camp Rock, and ZOMBIES. Shooting took around three months, going from February to April 2022. After the shoot was over and production had left the area, there were some complaints from the local residents of Pointe-Claire about the mess they’d made from all their productions vehicles. An area of green space was covered with gravel to use as a parking lot during filming and residents were not happy that this gravel was seemingly going to be left. The production company, Poutine, said they would repair the area during the spring. It made these residents very hesitant to allow any more filming to take place here in the future[2].

Despite filming taking place so early in 2022, a 2022 release date was not possible due to the amount of post-production required. As they had filmed The Naughty Nine whilst some of the world was still dealing with the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic, there had been a significant delay with the FX team involved, with their requirement necessary for this film. Since The Naughty Nine is Christmas-themed, this meant the release date of the movie had to wait until the next festive season rolled around in 2023.

Despite the need for some special effects, such as the CGI reindeer and the background at the North Pole, proven by the fact the getaway sleigh sequence was actually filmed in a studio in front of a blue screen – it couldn’t be a green screen as the cast’s costumes were green, the director Belli has stressed in interviews that around 70% of the film uses practical effects and real sets[3]. The Santa’s Village set, for example, was viewed as being very impressive by many audience members, due to its vast size and detail. The ice cavern with the vault entrance was also a real set that was built. The team working on The Naughty Nine enjoyed designing their own version of the North Pole for this film[4].

It was said to be extremely cold at the time the cast and crew were shooting, with this being made worse by the number of nighttime shoots there were. Still, the cast of mostly kids kept their spirits up during this time, by building snow forts in the snow, and Winslow Fegley building his own igloo, which later became an icy slide for the cast as it started melting. They also spent time together in the lobby of their hotel playing games and cards during their downtime, where they grew close as a group[5].

The costumes on The Naughty Nine were designed by Julia Caston, who had previously worked on such screen projects as A Bad Moms Christmas (2017) and the ABC sitcom The Middle (2009-18). Just a year after The Naughty Nine came out, Caston was the costume designer for another Disney Channel movie, Descendants: The Rise of Red (2024). Caston enjoyed designing the elf costumes for the kids. They had to be quite stereotypical, as this was what the children all believed elves to look like, so the costumes are primarily red and green, but they also had to suit each character’s specific skill. For example, Ha-Yoon’s costume looks similar to a racing suit, Andy is wearing a hoodie to suit his casual, no-fuss leadership style, and Laurel has a gymnastics leotard on underneath a thick fit and flare coat. Caston then had the opportunity to reinvent the typical elf look that we see all the time, to contrast the costumes that the children are wearing. These real elves of the North Pole wear a variety of colours and although their outfits are uniform in style, they are embellished with accessories. Santa also had to have a slightly different look for The Naughty Nine, because the events take place after Christmas, so during Santa’s vacation. In this case, they kept the classic red coat and hat, but you can see he is wearing loose fighting trousers and a white jumper, instead of the buttoned-up coat and matching red trousers[6].

MUSIC

The composer on The Naughty Nine was Kenny Wood, who has collaborated with director Belli on some of his other projects, by working on the music for Gatlopp and Dora and the Search for Sol Dorado. Wood has also worked as a musical arranger on films like F9 (2021) and Despicable Me 3 (2017), as well as on the CBS series Magnum P.I. (2018-22, 2023-24).

When asked about his inspiration for the music on The Naughty Nine, Wood said he was inspired by magical family Christmas movies like Home Alone (1990) and The Polar Express (2004), whilst also mixing in spy/heist music to complement the film’s genre[7]. You can hear this blend of themes in the opening and end titles of The Naughty Nine and during the scene where the children see Santa’s Village at the North Pole for the first time. Kenny Wood was nominated for The David Raskin Award for Emerging Talent at the Society of Composers and Lyricists Award in 2024 for his work on The Naughty Nine. The award was actually won by Catherine Joy and her work on the documentary Home is a Hotel (2023).

Alongside the score are a selection of songs that also feature within the music of The Naughty Nine. In movie order, whilst Andy and Laurel are opening their presents on Christmas morning, a jazzy version of “Jingle Bells” is playing. “Jingle Bells” was originally written by James Lord Pierpoint, but this rendition seems to have been performed by The Whispering Pines Holiday Orchestra. Following that, in Jon Anthony’s store, just before he gets recruited into The Naughty Nine, there is a song playing as background music. It is “Christmas Every Day” by the group Sweet Sundays.

At the North Pole in Santa’s Village, there is more music. At the security elf’s cabin, a piece of music is playing on the gramophone but we only hear it briefly, all I can say is that it seems to be some sort of take on “Jingle Bells”. Later, we return to this cabin and another song is playing. I didn’t know what this song was, but it seems to be “Hej tomtegubbar”, a traditional Swedish song that children sing at Christmastime. It is also used as a drinking song nowadays. Another song is also playing in this cabin later on and it is a version of “Silent Night”, but I’m unsure what language it is. According to the website I found much of this soundtrack information on, What-Song.com, it seems to be French.

At the elf party, there is even more music. As Andy, Dulce, Laurel, and Jon Anthony step into this party, the song “Holla for the Holidays” performed by Wizardz of Oz is playing – until the elves abruptly halt the party to check who these intruders are. This song was actually used in a routine that appeared on the Season 3 Christmas episode of Dance Moms (2011-19), performed by Abby Lee Dance Company’s biggest rivals, the Candy Apples. The party soon restarts and the song playing seems to be “Christmas Time of Year”, written by Dave Feldstein. A third song is heard at this party and it is “Share My Christmas with You”, from SATV Music, written by John Ross and Natalie Williams. There is also a Spanish song that Dulce sings with some other elves, but I do not know what this song is. A fourth party song also plays briefly, I also don’t know what that is, before the conga begins. This “Conga” was written and performed by Kenny Wood and is the only credited song here. I think this song is also used in the End Credits.

You can also hear “The Twelve Days of Christmas”, sung by the cast, within this film, as this is the way they open the vault, by singing this song in its entirety – but don’t worry, we don’t have to hear all of it; that song is way too long! “The Twelve Days of Christmas” was written by English composer Frederic Austin[8]. There is one other song playing towards the end of the film, as we move forward one year and Andy is called to the Principal’s Office again. This song is “Are You Ready for Christmas?”, by Karl Karlsson and Krissie Karlsson.

RECEPTION

The Naughty Nine first came to screens in November 2023.

After the teaser trailer was released on 28^th September 2023, Disney Branded Television announced the release dates for The Naughty Nine, as it would air on Disney Channel in the US and later come to Disney+ for international audiences to enjoy. It was decided that it would premiere on Wednesday 22^nd November 2023 on Disney Channel, before coming to Disney+ on 23^rd November 2023, which happened to be Thanksgiving Day that year[9]. The official trailer seems to have been released on 27^th October 2023.

Now that Disney Channel doesn’t exist in most countries, as they were shut down, with the majority of the content being available on their global streaming platform, Disney+, this is the way most Disney Channel Original Movies are being released, although in some cases, the gap between the Disney Channel and Disney+ premieres have been much larger.

The Naughty Nine received mixed reviews, as many Disney Channel-type movies tend to have. On the positive side, The Naughty Nine was compared to lots of different films, such as the children’s action movie franchise Spy Kids, and theOcean’s franchise. This film also reminded me of The Polar Express at times, specifically when the kids are secretly trying to get through Santa’s Workshop because there is a similar sequence in The Polar Express. The sets and costume design were also considered to be impressive, especially for a smaller, television movie, and many felt it was entertaining. Some preferred it to the other recent Disney Channel Christmas movie Christmas…Again?!, although I did not. The Naughty Nine was seen to be a fun, family-friendly film to watch over the festive season.

But this opinion was not shared by all viewers. Many felt The Naughty Nine showed a lack of real consequences for the children, despite their bad behaviour, and due to the number of characters in this film, many of which would be counted as main characters, there wasn’t much opportunity to give the characters their own backstories or any real depth, which led to some being boring and others being underused. Others also said The Naughty Nine didn’t feel particularly Christmassy, which I can agree with, although that doesn’t necessarily make it bad. Sometimes the standard Christmas movie events, like decorating, baking cookies, and family feuds can feel very overdone, so at least The Naughty Nine did not have that. There were comments that Danny Glover’s Santa was not kind enough to be Santa Claus. I can only assume the filmmakers wanted to take Santa in a different direction, and by making him strict and authoritative that might be the only way for The Naughty Nine to understand that what they were doing – trespassing and stealing – was very wrong. If the children had been younger, this type of Santa probably wouldn’t have worked, but these kids were older and could take the criticism.

There was one other very specific criticism of The Naughty Nine that irked some viewers, mostly parents, that I did read in various reviews online. This was around some “flirtatious” language used by the character of Jon Anthony. When we are first introduced to the character, Jon Anthony calls a slightly older male buyer a “hottie”. This upset some more conservative audience members, who felt this was an inappropriate comment to be coming from a child. Others didn’t feel this comment was so bad, likening it to teenagers having crushes on older celebrities. This all comes down to personal preference and what we individually consider to be appropriate in a family-aimed film. I personally didn’t even notice this line, only hearing Jon Anthony later call Andy “cute”, but that didn’t bother me. It was also a very minor line that didn’t add anything to the plot, or add much to the character, so you could argue for and against it; that it was a throwaway comment that didn’t need to be considered, or that because it wasn’t needed, the line could’ve been removed from the film[10].

Viewing figures for The Naughty Nine have not been made available from its Disney+ release, nor has Disney Channel confirmed its data from the premiere night, so it is unclear how well the film did from that aspect. But The Naughty Nine went on to be nominated for four Children’s and Family Emmy Awards, along with a large number of other Disney content. These nominations were in the categories of Outstanding Fiction Special; Outstanding Music Direction and Composition for a Live Action Program; and Visual and Special Effects. In the first category, it lost out to Apple TV+’s The Velveteen Rabbit (2023) and for the other two, it lost to the Disney+ series Percy Jackson and the Olympians (2023-present). The Naughty Nine was also nominated for Best Sound Editing – Movies For Television & Mini-Series at the Directors Guild of Canada Awards, but the winner was the Showtime miniseries Fellow Travelers (2023) and its episode “White Nights”.

LEGACY

Disney Channel don’t have much of a reputation for making Christmas or festive-themed movies each year, and The Naughty Nine did nothing to change that.

Despite the fact Christmas…Again?! in 2021 was followed by The Naughty Nine in 2023 and seemed to be suggesting that Disney Channel were perhaps going to be producing more of these types of movies in the years to come, especially given the ease that new content can be released via Disney+, there have been no more Disney Original Movies announced for the holiday season in the last couple of years. In fact, the only movies they’ve confirmed so far are sequels to already established Disney Channel musical franchises.

However, The Naughty Nine ends on a cliff hanger, with Santa asking Andy for his help, and the matter seems to be quite urgent. No sequel to The Naughty Nine has been confirmed, despite the fact this ending was clearly meant to be building up to one. This annoyed some fans who said there is no point in setting up a sequel if there is no confirmation that one is going to happen. This is the same critique that was levelled at Secret Society of Second-Born Royals (2020), another Disney+ movie that had a cliff hanger ending leading up to a sequel that has not come to fruition.

The director of The Naughty Nine stated that he would like to make a sequel, shortly after The Naughty Nine was released, but Disney don’t seem to be making any moves to greenlight a sequel[11]. I think something would’ve been announced by now if they had plans to. It would seem that The Naughty Nine did not do as well as expected.

FINAL THOUGHTS

The Naughty Nine was a different kind of Christmas film for Disney, although with other festive heist movies coming out in recent years, like Netflix’s The Princess Switch 3: Romancing the Star (2021) and Jingle Bell Heist (2025), maybe it wasn’t so different after all.

Still, the intent was there to try something new. Sadly, it doesn’t seem to have worked out that well for The Naughty Nine and that possible sequel that they teased at the end of the film does not seem to be coming.

So, where does this leave Disney Channel and their festive content now? I can only assume there will be another Christmas film from them someday, but who knows when!

REFERENCES

[1] Credit: Alexandra Del Rosario, ‘Disney Orders ‘Under Wraps’ Sequel & ‘The Naughty Nine’ Original Movies For Disney+, Disney Channel’, Deadline.com, 7^th February 2022.

[2] Credit: John Meagher, ‘Disney movie shoot leaves Pointe-Claire neighbourhood stoney’, MontrealGazette.com, 20^th March 2022.

[3] Credit: Disney Channel, ‘Behind the Scenes of Disney’s The Naughty Nine I NEW Disney Christmas Movie’, Disney Channel YouTube Channel, 24^th November 2023.

[4] Credit: Roger Palmer, ‘Behind Disney+’s “The Naughty Nine” Newest Christmas Heist Movie With Director and Composer I Exclusive Interview’, WhatsOnDisneyPlus.com, 21^st December 2023.

[5] Credit: Just Jared Jr, ‘‘The Naughty Nine’ Cast Dish On What Went On Behind-the-Scenes While Filming the New Disney Holiday Movie (Exclusive)’, JustJaredJr.com, 22^nd November 2023.

[6] Credit: Spencer Williams, ‘Unwrapping ‘The Naughty Nine’: Behind the Costumes with Julia Caston’, TheArtOfCostume.com, 2023.

[7] Credit: Roger Palmer, ‘Behind Disney+’s “The Naughty Nine” Newest Christmas Heist Movie With Director and Composer I Exclusive Interview’, WhatsOnDisneyPlus.com, 21^st December 2023.

[8] Credit: What Song, ‘The Naughty Nine Soundtrack’, What-Song.com, no date.

[9] Credit: Disney, ‘Disney Original Movie ‘The Naughty Nine’ To Premiere Wednesday, Nov. 22, On Disney Channel And Thursday, Nov. 23 – Thanksgiving Day – On Disney+’, DetPress,com, 28^th September 2023.

[10] Credit: Zach Gass, ‘Disney Accused of “Sexualising Kids” in ‘The Naughty Nine’’, InsidetheMagic.net, 23^rd December 2023.

[11] Credit: Roger Palmer, ‘Behind Disney+’s, “The Naughty Nine” Newest Christmas Heist Movie With Director and Composer I Exclusive Interview’, WhatsOnDisneyPlus.com, 21^st December 2023.

30th Oct 20252nd Nov 2025 by The Disney Purist

Return to Halloweentown (2006)

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 1,000^th 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 42^nd 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 20^th 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 2^nd Dimension in 10^th 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, 27^th August 2025.

[2] Credit: Rebecca Sargeant, ’10 Most Jarring TV Recasts Of All Time’, ScreenRant.com, 2^nd 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, 13^th May 2021.

[5] Credit: Kimberly Nordyke, ‘‘Halloweentown’ draws big audience’, HollywoodReporter.com, 24^th 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, 30^th October 2022.

[8] Credit: Kate Bove, ‘Why Disney Didn’t Make Halloweentown 5’, ScreenRant.com, 4^th October 2023.

24th Oct 202530th Oct 2025 by The Disney Purist

Halloweentown High (2004)

BACKGROUND

It is very hard for me to pinpoint exactly when I first started watching Disney Channel, as they re-ran many of their series and movies years after the show or movie first premiered. But I would’ve been watching Disney Channel sometime around 2003 probably.

That means that I was not watching Disney Channel when Halloweentown and Halloweentown II: Kalabar’s Revenge first premiered, in 1998 and 2001, respectively, but that I was watching when the third movie in the series came out, with this being Halloweentown High in 2004. Did I watch it then, though? No, I did not.

I remember seeing the odd advert for it over the years, along with the fourth and final film in the franchise. I would’ve instantly seen the word “Halloween” and gone “No, thanks!”, despite the fact Halloweentown High was the first of the Halloweentown movies to feel like a Disney Channel Original Movie that I would’ve been used to. Something simple, normally set in school, and featuring just a bit of a twist on teenage life. Some people join bands, others play sport. In the Halloweentown movies, teenagers just so happen to fight dark magic.

It would seem that around 2003 or 2004, Disney Channel had figured out how to make great DCOMs more frequently, with some, like The Cheetah Girls (2003), The Even Stevens (2003), and, of course, Halloweentown High still being talked about and fondly remembered by those who watched them. Others, of course, are only fondly remembered by a select few, because, although Disney weren’t releasing as many Disney Channel Original Movies each year, there were still around six or seven at this time. And obviously by 2006, thanks to High School Musical, DCOMs became something else altogether.

But this is 2004 and the Piper family and Aggie Cromwell are back for a third Halloweentown story. This time, though, nobody goes to Halloweentown. Bit odd considering the series was built on this fictional town, especially as the chosen setting for Halloweentown High is, you guessed it, a high school, and a mortal one at that. Marnie has decided that Halloweentown’s teenage residents should be able to live in the mortal world if they wish, now that the portal between the two worlds is permanently open, thanks to Marnie and her family’s spell in Halloweentown II: Kalabar’s Revenge. Fantastical creatures mixing with moody human teenagers. Power-hungry Halloweentown Council members telling tales about scary knights. What could possibly go wrong?

PLOT

Halloweentown High begins with a further background to the divide between the mortal and magical worlds, through a poetic introduction. For a thousand years, the worlds were divided, with magical creatures being driven away by the human Knights of the Iron Dagger. Now the portal is once again open, there are concerns these knights may have returned…

In present day, Marnie has been summoned to the Halloweentown Council after opening the portal between Halloweentown and the mortal world for ever. The council wish to discuss Marnie’s plan about sending roughly a dozen Halloweentown teenagers to mortal high school, since, with the portal open permanently, Marnie thinks the two worlds should be able to co-exist. At this meeting, although she is thanked for saving Halloweentown, the council are not at all sure about her idea of bringing Halloweentown residents to live in the mortal world, with the council members warning Marnie of the Knights of the Iron Dagger. Marnie pleads her case, saying humans are more tolerant now, and without thinking, Marnie bets the Cromwell magic, her family’s magic, that her plan will work. Council member Edgar Dalloway gladly accepts this bet, saying Marnie has until midnight on Halloween to prove that her plan has worked. With that, the meeting is adjourned and Marnie is returned home.

Back home, Aggie is furious with Marnie for betting their magic, and Aggie begins to blame Gwen for this, due to Marnie’s late witch training. Marnie thinks maybe it would be best if they just cancelled it all now, but Aggie says it is too important to the future of both worlds, so they must continue. Marnie asks about the Knights of the Iron Dagger. Gwen brushes away her concern, saying those knights, meant to pursue magical creatures, are just a story that Halloweentown parents came up with, like the humans’ Bogeyman.

The next day, the Pipers are preparing their house to welcome these Halloweentown “exchange students”. Marnie attempts to increase the size of the house, by adding an additional set of rooms, however, her magic is not strong enough for the spell and she ends up shrinking the house, in full view of a couple running. Gwen comes in to cast the spell instead. Aggie then calls on her “witch’s glass”, and says she is loading up the students from Halloweentown and she’ll meet them at school. Gwen, Marnie, and brother Dylan then wonder if Aggie is silly enough to take the Halloweentown students to the mortal world on the Halloweentown flying bus… They rush to school!

Luckily, Aggie arrives with the others in a regular car, and wearing normal “mortal” clothes. Here, the Pipers are introduced to the exchange students they’ll be looking after, like witch Cassie, who is very excited to meet humans, troll Natalie, and warlock Ethan, son of council member Edgar Dalloway. Marnie tells the students to blend in, saying that their cover story is that they are all from Canada. Marnie begins to show them to their classes, however, on the way, she meets Cody, a new human student.

Meanwhile, Aggie has gone to meet with Principal Phil Flanagan, however, she struggles to hide her magic, especially since she has a magical bag that follows her around. Aggie is tasked with substitute teaching at the high school, so she can keep an eye on the new intake. She begins with teaching science, the same class as Marnie. Marnie arrives late and sits next to Cody. Aggie starts the lesson, but accidentally uses magic and makes a bird appear from a chemical reaction. Marnie goes over to her to try and get her to be careful. At the same time, Aggie passes a Marnie a locker combination, saying there’ll be a “meet up” there later. As Marnie returns to her seat, Cody curiously looks at the combination. At the locker, Marnie enters the combination and sees an empty locker. Suddenly, she is magically sucked in to it, where she finds a lounge area for the Halloweentown creatures, a place where they have shed their human disguises and can just be themselves. On returning home, Marnie is optimistic for their plan. Aggie gets a call from council member Dalloway who asks if they have sensed any danger to the students. Aggie says there hasn’t been any problems and that everything looks fine here, although the creatures are concerned about the knights. Marnie and her family try to put them at ease.

The next day at school, Marnie sees Cody and leaves the Halloweentown students to go about their day. However, her longed-for conversation with Cody is cut short as Aggie signals that her and Marnie need to talk urgently. Aggie shows Marnie a chalk drawing of an iron dagger that has been added to the pavement outside. She says it seems to be a call to other knights, which also concerns Marnie. Aggie starts to become suspicious of Cody, but Marnie says it can’t be him. Besides, they were told the knights weren’t even real. As Principal Flanagan enters the room, Aggie begins a rainstorm to wash away the dagger drawing. The principal has heard about issues in the science lessons, so he has reassigned Aggie to teach history instead. Once again, Marnie is in the same history class and as Aggie begins her lesson, Marnie gets a note from Cody, asking her out on a date that Saturday. Marnie gladly accepts. Her attention is then required in the lesson because Aggie is telling the students too much about her long life, so Marnie uses magic to end the class early!

At lunch, Marnie wonders where the Halloweentown creatures are. She eventually finds Cassie, who is studying the eating habits of teenage boys – gross. Marnie asks Cassie where the others are, and she says they are in the “special room”. Not liking how isolated the new students are becoming, Marnie encourages them to join some clubs that might interest them. Werewolf Pete decides to try out for the football team, whilst Ethan joins the drama department. Cassie has an idea for them all to do a booth at the school’s upcoming Halloween Carnival, liking the idea of a haunted house. They decide to go for it.

On Saturday, Marnie ushers everyone into Aggie’s car so they can all go to the mall; however, Cody shows up, expecting Marnie to be ready for their date. Marnie assumed their date would be that night, and asks Cody to come back then. He agrees to. At the mall, Marnie tries to explain the intricacies of human interactions there, but the others have already gone off exploring. Dylan and Natalie become competitive on an arcade game, most of the girls go shopping, and the boys play some mini golf. Marnie and Aggie then notice that both Cody and Principal Flanagan are at the mall too. They go off with their respective dates.

The Halloweentown beings later walk past a Halloween store. They see the costumes and items in there as exaggerated and highly offensive to them. Ethan then hears a group of guys walking past calling Halloween “a freak show”. He calls them out on it, starting a fight. The creatures defend Ethan but end up reverting to their normal selves, scaring the humans at the mall. Marnie hears a scream and rushes over, leaving Cody at the food court. She sees people running from a cloud of purple smoke. Aggie clears the smoke, and the two see all the Halloweentown students in their normal forms. Here, Dylan rejects Natalie for her troll looks, having not seen that side of her before. They are then alerted to a knight’s dagger, plunged into a pumpkin nearby. Everyone is told to get to the car.

They all get home safe, but the mall incident has spooked some of them. The news has also reached not only the mortal world but also the Halloweentown Council who once again summon Marnie to an urgent meeting. They are furious that these threats were not reported to them. The council members want the exchange programme ending immediately and the portal between the two worlds permanently closed. They agree to leave the Cromwell magic alone though. This would seem like a sensible time to cut your losses, but Marnie wants to see her plan through, believing she has time for this to work. The council members end the meeting, knowing her bet still stands, and not thinking she will succeed. Gwen attempts to cheer Marnie up that evening, as Aggie is annoyed at Marnie for continuing to put their magic at risk. Marnie asks if any of the students want to return to Halloweentown. Ethan thinks it would be best, but everyone else wants to stay, so they agree to stick together and get through this difficult time.

The next day, Aggie is still not talking to Marnie, and has been moved from history to teaching gym now. Meanwhile, Marnie has been called to a problem by Cassie. They both go to the locker, where Marnie sees it has been broken open. Marnie realises it must’ve been a Knight of the Iron Dagger. She tells Cassie to stay there, believing her to be safe inside the secret room in the locker, whilst Marnie goes to Aggie for help. Aggie is leading a basketball lesson – badly – when Marnie arrives. Marnie blames Aggie for her constant magic drawing the knights to them, but Aggie blames Marnie, thinking it is Cody who is the knight at this school. Cody demands Marnie explains what is going on, saying he knows about the locker, leading Marnie to think he could be a knight after all, although she isn’t certain. Marnie hears a scream. On returning to the locker, she sees Cassie has been taken.

At home, Marnie thinks everyone has to return to Halloweentown now, but Aggie and Gwen have investigated the locker situation. They say that the spell stopping humans from entering the locker remains unbroken, so only someone from Halloweentown has done this. Their first priority is to get help and save Cassie. As a witch’s glass is the only thing strong enough to hold a witch, this is the first thing to be inspected. Ethan is told to get his, but on looking into it, he sees Cassie inside, and hides it from Aggie. Aggie later watches Ethan as he runs down the street. The Pipers remain on high alert, with Gwen putting a spell on Cody who had arrived with flowers for Marnie. Gwen apologises, thinking he was a knight, and says he should regain consciousness soon. Marnie decides to take him home on her broom. Partway through the journey, he wakes up and Marnie tells him she is a witch. He thinks it’s all a dream. Later, Gwen, Aggie, and Marnie discuss their plan for dealing with these threats. Gwen goes inside Aggie’s witch’s glass to search for Cassie.

At school that night, Ethan has met up with his father, Edgar, and Principal Flanagan. Ethan demands to know if Edgar trapped Cassie in the witch’s glass and he confirms he did. Principal Flanagan is then revealed to be the last in a long line of Knights of the Iron Dagger, and is someone who hates magic, so he has been helping Edgar with his plan to make this experiment of Marnie’s fail. We learn that Ethan left the dagger at the mall, as ordered by his father. His father wants the portal closed forever and to gain the Cromwell powers.

The next day, the Halloweentown students start to put up their haunted house for the Halloween Carnival, with some magical assistance from Marnie. This is witnessed by Cody who came to talk to her about his “dream”. He realises it was all true. The principal is surprised to see them here, believing that all the students had returned home. Back in his office, Aggie’s magical bag goes to attack him, and discovers his knight ring. The bag keeps the ring and returns to Aggie, who opens up the bag and discovers it, proving that Principal Flanagan was the knight who was threatening them. Aggie then confronts Principal Flanagan with this ring. She turns the ring into a snake, scaring Principal Flanagan, and walks away. As Dylan tells everyone of his plan to make their haunted house super scary, the Halloweentown creatures decide to make it non-scary, to get the humans to like them.

As the carnival begins, the human students find Halloweentown’s haunted house to be incredibly boring, even though the creatures have tried to make it informative and realistic to their lives. However, Edgar Dalloway soon arrives through the portal to the mortal world to liven things up, by making the haunted house and the creatures scary and terrifying, horrifying the humans. Seeing all the terrible magic going on, Marnie and Aggie attempt to undo it, but their spells actually make it worse, making them look like the instigators of the attack. Cody begins to be suspicious of Marnie’s magic at this point, asking for confirmation that her magic is actually good. Aggie and Marnie see that Edgar is the one ruining everything, and Aggie makes him disappear, reversing all of his magic at the carnival. However, this does not erase what just happened in the minds of the human students. Principal Flanagan orders everyone to force the creatures out of this world, saying they were trying to destroy all humans, leading a mob to chase them into the haunted house. Marnie and Aggie’s protests of innocence fall on deaf ears.

On entering the haunted house, Marnie and Aggie confront Edgar, where they also discover that Ethan was helping him to mess up Marnie’s plans. Edgar says her plan has failed and now he is going to take their magic. Marnie and Aggie become weak after losing their powers, which makes Principal Flanagan regret what he has done by helping Edgar. Ethan also refuses to leave with his father, wanting to stay and fix what has happened. Edgar leaves through the portal and closes it behind him – forever.

The humans continue to harass the Halloweentown residents, but Cody sticks up for Marnie. The Halloweentown creatures then decide to show their true selves to the humans. Although surprising, the humans actually think they are quite cool and decide to accept them, showing that humans have changed, just like Marnie said. Suddenly, the portal is blasted open and Edgar returns, closely followed by Cassie and Gwen, having successfully found her. Marnie says that Gwen has shown the Halloweentown Council everything that happened this evening and they reclaim their magic from Edgar. The council say that Edgar deliberately misled them, and that the portal should remain open. Edgar is forced to resign from the council and is trapped in a witch’s glass as punishment for his crimes.

The Halloween Carnival continues, and more residents of Halloweentown come through the portal to enjoy it, side-by-side with humans. Dylan and Natalie have a heart-to-heart, where Dylan says he doesn’t care what she looks like. But as they lean in to kiss each other, they decide it is too gross and pull away, agreeing to just be friends! Aggie reconciles with Principal Flanagan, who wants Aggie to stay at the school. She wants to make a few magical changes to the curriculum first! To end the movie, we see that Marnie and Cody are on a romantic broom flight together, and they finally kiss.

CHARACTERS & CAST

Marnie Piper is now a much more confident witch than she was in the previous two movies. She has decided that she needs to get the mortal and magical worlds to live in harmony together again, since the portal between the two worlds is forever open. The problem is Marnie always has big plans and grand ambitions, but these are met with criticism by most. In this case, although mother Gwen and grandmother Aggie are on her side, wanting the inhabitants from both worlds to get along, even they are concerned when their magic is on the line, after a silly bet is made with the Halloweentown Council. However, they stick by Marnie, with Aggie choosing to teach at the high school to keep an eye on things. Gwen is also actually using her magic for a change, and seems to have undergone a bit of a change of heart since the first two movies where she hated magic. I guess her daughter’s love of it must’ve rubbed off on her. Without them, Marnie most certainly would’ve failed in her plan with the exchange students as she finds herself distracted by a new boy at school. Aggie also becomes taken by a new man in her life, and sadly for Aggie, her man turns out to be the bad one this time, not Marnie’s – although we can’t say Marnie is a great judge of character after what happened with Kal in Halloweentown II: Kalabar’s Revenge, so it’s quite fair of Aggie to assume it was Marnie’s boyfriend and not her own causing the problems!

Kimberly J. Brown returned to her role as Marnie Piper after the first two films in the series. After Halloweentown High, Brown appeared in the recurring role of Chloe Jennings in the soap opera General Hospital (1963-present) in 2021. She was recently cast as Luna in the Hallmark movie Haul Out the Halloween (2025). Debbie Reynolds also reprises her role as Aggie Cromwell. After her role in the first Halloweentown film, Reynolds went on to voice the character of Lulu Pickles in the Rugrats (1991-2004) and Rugrats in Paris: The Movie (2000). She also voiced the part of Nana Possible in the Disney Channel series Kim Possible (2002-07) and was cast in the recurring role of Bobbi Adler in Will & Grace (1998-2006). She starred alongside Michael Douglas as Frances Liberace in Behind the Candelabra (2013). Judith Hoag reprised her role as Gwen Piper. Emily Roeske as Marnie’s sister Sophie is also back for Halloweentown High, but she only appears for a short time.

With “exchange students” from Halloweentown coming to the mortal world, this allowed for many new characters to be added to the story. Because around nine of them arrive, being creatures ranging from ogres and werewolves to fairies, I’m only going to concentrate on the ones who had more of a role in the movie’s storyline. One of these was witch Cassie. Cassie is the first to meet the Pipers on that first day of school and she is very enthusiastic about the opportunity she has in learning alongside humans. Cassie also seems to trust the Pipers with her safety during her stay in the mortal realm, which comes back to haunt her, as she is kidnapped from the supposed safety of their magical locker lounge. Cassie is later saved by Gwen, having been taken as part of Edgar Dalloway’s plans to close the portal for good and take the Cromwell magic. Cassie was played by Eliana Reyes.

There is also Natalie the pink, fuzzy troll. She is incredibly intelligent and gets along with Dylan as they have their intellect in common. They are also equally competitive as they play on an arcade game at the mall, with Dylan pointing out that he has the high score. There is an initial attraction between them, however, when Natalie’s true troll form is revealed to him, Dylan rejects her, saying he doesn’t like how she looks. Eventually, Dylan comes round to the fact that he shouldn’t judge Natalie on her looks, but it doesn’t matter anyway, because they both decide to just stay friends. Olesya Rulin was cast as Natalie. Rulin will be familiar to Disney Channel fans for her role as Kelsi Nielsen in the High School Musical trilogy. She had also previously had minor roles in the 2001 DCOMs Hounded and The Poof Point. After her time with Disney Channel, Rulin went on to be cast in the recurring role of Abby in the ABC Family series Greek (2009-11) and starred as Calista Secor in the PlayStation Network series Powers (2015-16). Joey Zimmerman returned to his role as Dylan Piper from the previous two Halloweentown films.

Ethan Dalloway is a warlock, and son of Halloweentown Council member Edgar Dalloway. Ethan initially seems to be adapting fairly well to life at mortal high school, by joining the drama club for example and being interested in that. However, it later becomes clear that Ethan has been working with his father to make sure Marnie’s plan of humans accepting Halloweentown residents does not come to fruition. Ethan secretly leaves a dagger at the mall to make it look like the creatures are being threatened by knights and hides the fact he knows that Cassie has been trapped in his witch’s glass. Ethan is not a bad guy, this being proven by the fact he won’t help his father do any more damage towards the end of the film, but seems to have acted out of fear or a sense of duty to his father. Edgar is devious and intent on making sure the mortal and magical worlds stay separated forever, with the added bonus of gaining the Cromwell powers should he succeed in getting Marnie’s plan to fail. Luckily, Edgar is found out and banished from the council, along with being trapped in a witch’s glass for an undisclosed amount of time.

Lucas Grabeel was cast as Ethan, making this another familiar actor to the world of DCOMs, as Grabeel is well-known for his role as Ryan Evans in the High School Musical trilogy. Grabeel was also cast as Scooter in the Disney movie College Road Trip (2008), alongside Raven-Symoné and Brenda Song, and appeared as Danny Nicoletta in the Oscar-nominated movie Milk (2008), which starred Sean Penn as Harvey Milk. Edgar Dalloway was played by Michael Flynn. Flynn was cast as James Hart in the first two seasons of Everwood (2002-06). He went on to be reunited with his on-screen son Lucas Grabeel in the 2018 modern retelling of Little Women – not the 2019 Greta Gerwig film – with Grabeel playing Laurie and Flynn cast as Mr. Laurence, Laurie’s grandfather.

Finally, we have Marnie and Aggie’s love interests. We are kept guessing throughout the events of the film as to which is a Knight of the Iron Dagger. Initially, we suspect Cody, Marnie’s crush, because he seems very interested in both the new exchange students and the locker where Marnie meets up with them. But it turns out Cody was just curious and actually wanted to spend time with Marnie without her being distracted by these exchange students, who seem to take up a lot of her time. Cody is not the knight and is trusted enough by Marnie to be told that Marnie is a witch, taking the news very well. Cody was played by Finn Wittrock. Wittrock went on to be cast as Damon Miller in the soap opera All My Children (1970-2013) from 2009 to 2011, before starring as Dandy Mott in American Horror Story: Freak Show (2014-15). He has since returned to the anthology series to make further appearances in other stories. Wittrock was also cast as Edmund Tolleson in the Netflix series Ratched (2020). In movies, Wittrock appeared as Greg in La La Land (2016) and as Mickey Deans in Judy (2019). He is set to star as Milton S. Hershey in the biopic Hershey, following the history of The Hershey Company.

Then we have Aggie’s crush, Principal Flanagan. Although he seems a little bit suspicious of Aggie, Principal Flanagan seems to be mostly ignoring Aggie’s magic and not noticing much, even when being told about what is going on her classes. Instead of firing her, the principal simply moves Aggie to different subjects. This would make it seem that Principal Flanagan is just as interested in Aggie as she is in him, but we learn that actually Principal Flanagan is the knight. Aggie confronts him and tells him that the knights have and always will have vile views, which she cannot agree with. Principal Flanagan then leads a mob against Aggie and the others, but when he sees that Aggie has been weakened by her magic being taken, he changes his mind about magic and about Aggie, even asking her to stay on as a teacher at the school. Principal Flanagan was played by Clifton Davis. Davis had previously appeared in the ABC sitcom That’s My Mama (1974-75) as Clifton Curtis, and then in the NBC sitcom Amen (1986-91) as Reverend Reuben Gregory. More recently, Davis was cast as Ephraim Ware from Season 2 of Madam Secretary (2014-19) and stars as Vernon Dupree in the soap opera Beyond the Gates (2025-present).

MUSIC

Mark Mothersbaugh had composed the scores for both Halloweentown and Halloweentown II: Kalabar’s Revenge, with his Halloweentown theme being particularly memorable amongst those who have seen the films.

The much-loved Halloweentown theme is not heard at all in Halloweentown High and that is because Mothersbaugh did not return to work on the music for Halloweentown High. Instead, Kenneth Burgomaster was chosen to be the composer. Burgomaster went on to compose the music for a variety of Disney Channel series and movies. His musical credits include composing 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 Disney Channel movie The Swap (2016).

There are only two songs feature within Halloweentown High and only one is credited. This credited song is “Strange World”, which was written by Andy Dodd and Adam Watts, and was performed by singer Jessie Payo. It is used for the opening shots of the school’s Halloween Carnival, and features again in the End Credits.

The other song is “Let’s Get Together”, originally written by legendary Disney composers Robert and Richard Sherman for Disney’s live-action movie The Parent Trap (1961). It was first performed by Hayley Mills; however, I am uncertain who performs this song for Halloweentown High as it was not included in the End Credits. The band The Go-Go’s performed a rock version of “Let’s Get Together” for the album Disneymania 5, released in 2007, but the two songs sound quite different, so unless they slowed down the song significantly for Halloweentown High, I don’t think The Go-Go’s performed it here. The Sherman Brothers had previously written various pieces of music for Disney movies and Disney theme parks, including songs for The Jungle Book (1967); Mary Poppins (1961); and The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh (1977), as well as the popular tunes “It’s a Small World (After All)” from the Disney attraction of the same name and “There’s a Great Big Beautiful Tomorrow” from the Carousel of Progress.

No official soundtrack was released for Halloweentown High, containing either the score or the songs within the movie.

PRODUCTION

Now that Disney Channel Original Movies were becoming real events in the calendars of kids and tweens, it is quite clear to see just how much more effort – and budget – was going in to these movies as confidence in them grew.

Halloweentown High did actually see a major change to its writing team, as Jon Cooksey and Ali Matheson, who co-wrote both the first film, with Paul Bernbaum, and the second movie, did not return for the third. In place of them, screenwriter Dan Berendsen was hired. Prior to Halloweentown High, Berendsen had written some episodes of Sabrina the Teenage Witch (1996-2003), as well as two of its movies, Sabrina Goes to Rome (1998) and Sabrina Down Under (1999), so if any elements of Halloweentown High – like the witch with the mortal boyfriend – sound like something from Sabrina the Teenage Witch, this is perhaps why! It did mean that Berendsen had some experience writing stories about magic though. He went on to write further DCOMs including Twitches (2005), Twitches Too (2007), and Wizards of Waverly Place: The Movie (2009), just to name a few. Apparently, Kimberly J. Brown was asked for some input into the writing of Halloweentown High, in order to help with continuity between the movies.

The director also changed, although both of the first two Halloweentown movies were directed by different people. Halloweentown High was directed by Mark A. Z. Dippé, who is both a director and visual effect supervisor. His directorial debut came with the superhero film Spawn (1997). For Disney Channel, Dippé also directed Pixel Perfect (2004), which premiered in January 2004. He went on to co-direct the animated movie The Boxcar Children (2014), which was based on the children’s book series by Gertrude Chandler Warner, and its 2018 sequel, as well as the Netflix movie Marmaduke (2022).

Adding to these changes, Halloweentown High was not filmed in either Oregon, where the first movie was filmed, or Vancouver, Canada, where the second one was filmed. Filming moved to Utah for this movie, which isn’t uncommon for Disney Channel, as many other DCOMs were also filmed in Utah, such as Cloud 9 (2014), Go Figure (2005), Good Luck Charlie, It’s Christmas (2011), Minutemen (2008), and the High School Musical movies.

In fact, one of the specific filming locations, Juan Diego High School, used for the school scenes here, had also been used for a DCOM before, this being The Luck of the Irish (2001). Juan Diego Catholic High School was established in 1999 in Draper, a suburb of Salt Lake City, and is a private school affiliated with the Catholic Diocese of Salt Lake City[1]. Cottonwood Mall in Holladay, Utah, around 30 minutes from Salt Lake City, was the mall location that Marnie, Aggie, Dylan, and the Halloweentown students visited[2]. Cottonwood Mall has since been demolished, with the land being redeveloped.

There were also a variety of new characters introduced in Halloweentown High, all with different magical backgrounds. Two of the more complicated characters to create from a hair and makeup perspective were Pete the werewolf and Natalie the troll. Pete the werewolf was played by Todd Michael Schwartzman who had to have hair glued to his face and wear prosthetic fangs for the scenes where Pete is in his normal form. Olesya Rulin, who played Natalie, had to endure being painted pink for her role as a troll, needing a huge, fuzzy wig, as well as prosthetic ears attached too. The process took around two hours to complete[3].

There is also an interesting link between the costuming of Halloweentown High and High School Musical (2006). Lucas Grabeel commented at the FanExpo San Francisco in 2024 that the same wardrobe designer, Tom McKinley, worked on both Halloweentown High and High School Musical. McKinley has also worked on other DCOMs like Den Brother (2010) and Read It and Weep (2006). This meant that Grabeel first met McKinley on the set of Halloweentown High. McKinley said that Grabeel looked good in hats so kept putting them on him for this movie, such as a red beret, a red fedora, and a black Stetson to match Ethan’s cowboy outfit for the carnival. This love of hats was then carried over into High School Musical, where we see Ryan wears even more hats than Ethan, in practically every scene, showing that Ryan’s whole hat thing actually began with Halloweentown High[4].

Kimberly J. Brown stated that filming on Halloweentown High was very enjoyable, as she not only got to be reunited with the actors who played the other Pipers, who were feeling like a real family by this point, but that new cast members were added to the mix. Brown said Debbie Reynolds thought Finn Wittrock was going to go far after Halloweentown High – and she was right – and Reynolds and the other returning cast were very welcoming to the new cast members, who might’ve felt a little intimidated coming into such a well-bonded cast. One cast member who did not return was Luke the goblin, who had helped Marnie in both Halloweentown and Halloweentown II: Kalabar’s Revenge. Brown was unsure why Luke was not included in this movie, other than Luke didn’t show any desire to live in the mortal world in either of the two previous movies so it probably didn’t make sense for his character to decide to study at mortal high school[5].

RECEPTION

After another three-year gap between movies, Halloweentown High premiered on Disney Channel in the US on 8^th October 2004, in perfect time for the “spooky season”. The previous two movies had been released at a similar time of year.

Just as Halloweentown II: Kalabar’s Revenge was not the first official DCOM sequel, thanks to the release of Zenon: The Zequel just a few months before, Halloweentown High could also not be named the first official DCOM “threequel”, because Zenon: Z3 came to Disney Channel in June 2004, a mere three months before Halloweentown High.

But Halloweentown High reportedly had the highest viewing figures of any DCOM released in 2004. In a year where the likes of Going to the Mat, Stuck in the Suburbs, and Pixel Perfect premiered on the channel, Halloweentown High brought in around 6.1 million viewers, basically the same figure as its predecessor[6]. The other DCOMs released in 2004 had on average around 4 million viewers, so this once again showed the lasting effect that Halloweentown had had on Disney Channel viewers over those six years. It would appear that the most-watched DCOM premiere up to that point was 2002’s Cadet Kelly, followed by 2003’s The Cheetah Girls, with 7.8 million and 6.5 million respectively.

In terms of reviews, Halloweentown High had a mixture of comments. Some say that Halloweentown High is the best in the Halloweentown series. This might have something to do with the fact that two main members of the High School Musical cast are in this movie – Lucas Grabeel and Olesya Rulin. It was also felt to be more fun and lighter in tone than the second film, and seemed to conclude this trilogy, with the portal to both worlds open and humans and magical beings able to co-exist in harmony.

However, others disliked the fact Halloweentown High didn’t feature Halloweentown at all, this being the only movie in the franchise that does not. This was disappointing for some. It was also pointed out that this film seemed to show Disney Channel clearly moving away from their horror-like DCOMs of the 1990s and early 2000s, such as Don’t Look Under the Bed (1999) and The Scream Team (2002), as Halloweentown High was not as scary as the second movie, with the first sequel being praised by some viewers for this very reason. Halloweentown High was said to lack the charm of the previous movies and doesn’t feel part of the same series as the first two films.

Plot holes have been discussed throughout the Halloweentown franchise, with some elements not making sense, or lacking continuity between the films. In this case, some viewers commented on the fact Sophie’s role was reduced to just a couple of scenes, despite the fact she had an innate ability to sense danger and bad things happening, which came in very useful in the original movie and the sequel. In Halloweentown High, Sophie wasn’t given much to do at all. Also, Dylan’s powers are ignored in this film. Sure, he was never a big fan of magic, but he was shown to have magic in the final scenes of both Halloweentown and Halloweentown II: Kalabar’s Revenge. It’s probably just that Dylan has no desire to use his powers whilst in the mortal world, although he surely could’ve gotten himself down from the ceiling when Marnie stuck him to it for making a joke about her. Seemingly where Dylan’s magic was missing, it was decided that Gwen’s magic should replace it, because Gwen is using magic all over the place in Halloweentown High, even though she had a definite dislike, almost a hatred, of magic in the previous two movies. It’s like Gwen had a complete change of personality, using magic for simple tasks like pouring hot chocolate and we aren’t told why she had this change of heart[7].

Plot holes don’t really affect my enjoyment of movies and I tend to just dismiss them if I notice them at all, so most of these specific points on the Pipers’ magic didn’t bother me much, although it was quite strange to see Gwen be a completely different person in Halloweentown High. But all that magic being used around her by Aggie and Marnie probably made her think something like: “If you can’t beat them, join them”. I did also like the overall story of Halloweentown High, however, it felt to me like the story could’ve been used with any characters, not necessarily the ones from the Halloweentown franchise, as the storyline of accepting those who are different to you without judgement does fit the generic Disney Channel Original Movie storyline. And though I don’t like scary movies, I did like them leaning into that aspect in the second movie. It did not continue in the third and it was just a typical DCOM set in a school with the typical sort of messaging being put across to viewers of inclusion and acceptance. I’m not even a fan of Halloweentown as a franchise but Halloweentown High did feel very different, and I still don’t really know how I feel about it, only knowing that I enjoyed the first two movies more than this one.

LEGACY

Despite Halloweentown High doing a pretty good job in wrapping up the story of Marnie Piper and her family’s magical ways, Disney Channel felt that they needed to further the story with just one more movie. This movie turned out to be Return to Halloweentown (2006), but if audiences were expecting a delightful reunion with the Pipers and a return to the Halloweentown that they loved and grew up with, that is not at all what they got.

For a start, Return to Halloweentown didn’t see the return of Emily Roeske as Sophie Piper, due to the fact Roeske retired from acting after appearing in Halloweentown High. Although Debbie Reynolds did return as Aggie Cromwell, her role was seriously reduced in this fourth film. The worst of all was that Kimberly J. Brown was actually recast in this fourth film, making Halloweentown High her last outing in the Halloweentown franchise. At least for now; we all know how much Disney love reboots and remakes!

Because of this, Halloweentown High has a special place in the history of the Halloweentown franchise. Looking back on it now, viewers have come to say that they like Halloweentown High the most, partly because it was the last time the whole original cast would be together, even if the story perhaps wasn’t what was expected from this third film.

Halloweentown High remains part of a beloved Disney Channel and Halloween movie franchise, so it is rewatched by dedicated fans every year for the Halloween season.

FINAL THOUGHTS

Halloweentown High went some way in exploring the worlds of Halloweentown and the mortal world and their interactions with each other, this being brought about as a direct action of Marnie, Aggie, and her siblings opening up the portal between the two worlds permanently during the events of Halloweentown II: Kalabar’s Revenge.

However, Halloweentown High has its fair share of critics and fans. It would seem that this new story and new feel to the Halloweentown series did not go down well with everyone, who disliked the lack of Halloweentown and its lesser story, although some have said it is the best in the series for them.

Either way, everyone can admit that Halloweentown High was the end of an era, something the viewers weren’t to know until the fourth film arrived with some major changes.

REFERENCES

[1] Credit: Utah Film Commission, ‘On Location: Utah Schools’, Film.Utah.gov, 13^th August 2025.

[2] Credit: Jim Korkis, The Vault of Walt 9: Halloween Edition (2020), ‘The Halloweentown Saga (1998-2006)’, pp. 85-101.

[3] Credit: Disney Channel, ‘Disney Channel Original Movie Extra: Halloweentown High ‘Special Effects Makeup’ Promo (2004)’, 88Rarities YouTube Channel, 19^th March 2023.

[4] Credit: Marisa Williams, ‘Ever Wondered Why Lucas Grabeel Wore So Many Hats Between ‘High School Musical’ and ‘Halloweentown High’?’, Collider.com, 2^nd December 2024.

[5] Credit: Stacey Grant, ‘Kimberly J. Brown Reflects on the Magic of Halloweentown High, 15 Years Later’, Seventeen.com, 8^th October 2019.

[6] Credit: Denise Martin, ‘Disney bewitches young aud’, Variety.com, 23^rd October 2006.

[7] Credit: Lindsay Press, ’10 Things That Make No Sense About The Halloweentown Franchise’, ScreenRant.com, 10^th October 2022.

17th Oct 202514th Nov 2025 by The Disney Purist

Halloweentown II: Kalabar’s Revenge (2001)

BACKGROUND

After getting off to a good start with their Disney Channel Original Movies in the late 1990s, Disney Channel was ready to keep churning out new movies for its viewers.

To be honest, I think they released too many in the first two years of the 2000s, with many of these not being remembered by the majority of Disney Channel watchers. But in amongst this massive list, there have been a few movies that have stood the test of time.

One is Zenon: The Zequel (2001), the first official DCOM sequel, coming out in January 2001, after its original movie Zenon: Girl of the 21st Century premiered in 1999. Another is the first sequel to Halloweentown, Halloweentown II: Kalabar’s Revenge, also premiering in 2001, but in October, for the spooky season. Since the original Halloweentown was successful and memorable, featuring legendary actress Debbie Reynolds in one of the leading roles, it made sense for Disney Channel to make a second movie.

Halloween has become even more of a holiday now. Events run at theme parks and the like for weeks on end, sometimes beginning in August; people decorate their house for the season, with merchandise and candy heavily promoted in supermarkets throughout the month of October; and movies themed to Halloween or just horror are frequently airing on TV or in movie theatres all around this time. It’s not easy to get away from Halloween. Plus, it’s a time that seems to specifically interest children, so it makes even more sense for Disney Channel to ride that Halloween band wagon all the way.

That doesn’t mean that I didn’t like Halloweentown II: Kalabar’s Revenge though. I felt that more had to come from the Halloweentown series, with the Piper children only just discovering their powers on that one Halloween night. There had to be more chances for Aggie to help train Marnie, and there had to be more to come from the town of Halloweentown itself. In the case of this sequel, once again, evil threatens Halloweentown, but evil is also coming to the mortal world, with a surprising new villain joining the mix.

It was a sequel that did what all good sequels should do: build on the characters and setting of the original movie, upping the stakes, and making everything just that bit more tense and scary. However, not everyone agrees with me on this. Although some felt the sequel was very good, bettering the original in some ways, there were more mixed reviews and negative comments for Halloweentown II: Kalabar’s Revenge than I’d expected.

PLOT

At the start of Halloweentown II: Kalabar’s Revenge, Marnie Piper, the teenage witch that isn’t Sabrina, gives us a recap of her and her family’s confrontation with Kalabar, the former Mayor of Halloweentown, and his eventual defeat, after attempting to convince the residents of Halloweentown to conquer the mortal world once and for all. She reveals that all happened two years ago, and now she, her sister Sophie, her brother Dylan, their mother Gwen, and grandmother Aggie Cromwell, a former resident of Halloweentown, all live together in the human world in harmony. Well, sort of.

As a Halloween party goes on downstairs, Marnie stays upstairs trying to avoid getting in the middle of an argument between her mother and grandmother. Gwen, although deciding that she wanted to train Marnie as a witch at the end of Halloweentown, continues in her crusade against magic and Aggie’s supposed corruption of her children, not allowing Aggie to use any magic even to impress the children at this party. Marnie eventually decides she’d best join the party, but not before she has a feeling that someone is watching her…

After a further disagreement with her daughter, Aggie goes off to her room, which is full of magical artefacts and her much-treasured spell book, to look into her crystal ball and check up on how Halloweentown is doing. Sophie comes in to check on Aggie and the two talk about the town, with Sophie saying if Aggie misses it so much, she should go visit that night, since the portal between the human world and Halloweentown is only open on Halloween. Aggie says it would be harder to go to Halloweentown for just one night and then have to leave again. Besides, her and Marnie are planning on living in Halloweentown for a full year next year, right after Marnie finishes high school. Sophie and Aggie return to the party, as Sophie senses someone strange is coming. They head back, disguising Aggie’s bedroom door so no human or stranger can find it.

Meanwhile, Gwen and Marnie have been arguing, as Gwen believes the kids are turning against her. Marnie says they aren’t but that she is a witch and deserves to have proper training. Gwen warns Marnie that there will come a time when she will have to choose once and for all whether she lives as a witch in Halloweentown or remains in the mortal world; she can’t have it both ways forever. Dylan has been attempting to interact with girl from school, even asking one, Cindy, to the Halloween dance at the school that night, but his uptight, nerdy ways seem to be off-putting to her.

Randomly, a teenage boy and his father just wander into the Pipers’ kitchen with snacks. They have just moved in down the street and saw there was a party going on, so wanted to turn up and introduce themselves. Um, that’s pretty rude to show up somewhere without an invitation, especially without even knocking on the front door! But the family don’t seem to mind and welcome teenager Kal and his father Alex. Marnie takes Kal on a tour of the house after he flirts with her a bit. She shows him her room, which Kal thinks is boring and doesn’t match up to her personality at all. Not wanting to look boring, Marnie decides to show Kal her grandmother’s room. Inside, Kal shows off his knowledge of witchcraft and the two discuss magic together. But when Kal takes an interest in Aggie’s spellbook, Marnie thinks they’d best get back to the party, as she doesn’t want to reveal that she is a witch and that the spellbook is very much real. As Marnie turns away, Kal simply shrinks the spellbook and takes it away with him without Marnie seeing, proving that Kal is a warlock.

Downstairs, Kal quickly makes his excuses and leaves, giving Marnie a rose as a parting gift and asks if she’ll be his date for the dance. She gladly accepts. Kal goes outside, and we see him at the bus stop, where the Halloweentown bus would normally run from on Halloween night. Instead of getting the bus, Kal opens a portal and walks through it.

Back at the party, Aggie sees that her magic bag isn’t working. Believing something is wrong, she wants to return to Halloweentown to check it out. Marnie says she’ll go with Aggie, and Sophie wants to go too. They tell Gwen that they are off to Halloweentown, with Gwen being distracted by Alex, who did not leave the party with his son. Weirdo. But she’s not too distracted because she tells Sophie she’ll have to stay at home with her. Marnie can go though. Just before leaving, Aggie hands a headphone, a walkie-talkie that looks like a skull, to Dylan, saying this is how they can communicate between the worlds. Gwen is then asked to go to the Halloween party by Alex. She says she will. Alex bumps into Dylan on his way out and Dylan hears a small “ribbit” like a frog, seeing an actual frog on the carpet as Alex leaves. See, this guy really is weird.

At the bus stop, Aggie and Marnie don’t see any sign of the Halloweentown bus coming and even when Marnie tries to magically summon the bus, it doesn’t come. So, they call up the portal themselves, seeing it is four hours until midnight, so they must return to the mortal world by then, or else the portal between the two worlds will be closed until next year.

Back in Halloweentown, Aggie and Marnie see that Halloweentown has changed considerably. There is no pumpkin in the square, and everywhere is devoid of colour. Even the residents are starting to turn grey, and as they do, they become boring and ordinary. A teenager rudely bumps into them both, with Marnie recognising the boy as goblin Luke who she met two years ago in Halloweentown. She confronts him but gets no answers. Aggie sees that everyone here is turning human, at least, the Halloweentown definition of human, whereby everyone is boring and ordinary. No offence taken, I guess. Aggie says she has a similar spell in her spellbook so they can just look up how to reverse it. Aggie calls Dylan on the headphone and asks him to get the book from her room. Dylan and Sophie both go up there, but they say her spellbook has gone. This leads Marnie to admit that she went to Aggie’s room with Kal – but that he was with her all the time so couldn’t have stolen it. Sophie says he must’ve been the stranger she felt coming earlier on.

Marnie and Aggie try to reopen the portal to the human world so they can confront Kal, however, it won’t open. They are trapped in Halloweentown, realising that the issue with her bag was a ruse to get them here. Kal then talks to them through the stone block that has replaced the Halloweentown pumpkin. He proudly admits casting the spell, and playing with Marnie’s feelings, although their date still stands. Now Marnie realises that because he gave her a rose, Kal is actually Kalabar’s son, a secret son that no-one knew about. Kal has cast this spell in order to finish Kalabar’s plan to punish humans and defeat the Cromwells. Kal asks Marnie to join him in his quest and be all powerful. She refuses.

With that bombshell, Marnie and Aggie head over to Aggie’s house, signalling for Benny the cab driver. However, this spell has affected Benny. Instead of being a skeleton like he was in Halloweentown, he is now human, and a very slow driver too. Marnie brings Luke along. They wonder how far Kal will go, since he has already broken the Code of Merlin by stealing spells, because he mentioned a big finale in the mortal world. At Aggie’s house, they see the “Grey Spell” has affected it, making the house ordinary. They start searching for Aggie’s second spellbook but, no luck. Aggie starts to lose hope. Marnie begs her to stay positive. During her ramble, they randomly see that the spell on Luke has been reversed – but Marnie has no idea what she did or said to reverse it. But they have more pressing issues and at least Luke isn’t just standing around, saying “whatever” any more. Aggie decides her spellbook must be lost, which means it has to be at Gort the junkman’s house because that’s where everything lost goes. They get back in Benny’s cab to go there.

At the Pipers’ house, Gwen won’t listen to Dylan and Sophie’s concerns about Alex. Alex returns to the house in a frog costume and he gives Gwen a horrifying mask to wear to the party as her costume. Gwen suddenly realises she can’t go to the party because Sophie has to stay home. Dylan volunteers to babysit so Gwen can still go.

In Halloweentown, the three get to Gort’s and see the Grey Spell has affected him, making him much calmer than his normal miserable self. They start searching for the book, but Gort says he sold most of his junk at a yard sale recently. The spell then turns Aggie grey. Needing to find this junk, they try to quickly leave, but find they’ve been locked in by Kal. He appears in the fireplace and confirms that Aggie’s powers are draining and they have no hope left, although he tells Marnie their date still stands. She ignores him. Aggie says she remembers a spell that turns humans into monsters. She wonders if this is the spell that Kal plans to enact in the mortal world. They have to hurry.

Meanwhile, Sophie has been researching magic and she believes that Alex is a golem, having been created by Kal purely as a distraction and a henchman for him, who will do whatever is asked without question. She goes further to suggest Alex is a golem made up of frogs, which would explain Dylan’s interaction with him. Sophie convinces Dylan to go to the party to warn their mother, and they hop on a broom to get there.

At Gort’s and still stuck, Marnie wants to find a different way of reversing the spell other than saying the spell backwards, since they don’t know what it was. Knowing that Marnie, Luke, and Aggie are trapped, Marnie thinks that a loophole would be to time travel. Aggie writes the time travel spell down for Marnie before fully turning grey, and joins Gort in pairing together mismatched socks – like boring humans do, apparently!

Luckily, Marnie recites the time travel spell and they go back in time – by five minutes. So, she tries again – and they go back to prehistoric times! On her next attempt, she finds herself alone in the house. Kal appears and says it’s just them, having put everyone else in limbo. He threatens Marnie’s mum and leaves. She says the spell again and finds herself in Gort’s house with all his junk, Luke, and Gort back to his angry self. They are told to leave, but Marnie warns Gort that he’ll end up with a neat house if they aren’t allowed to look around. This is enough for Gort to let them stay!

After searching the whole place, they don’t find the book. Gort eventually pipes up and says he sold the spellbook to Kalabar years ago. It becomes clear that Kal stole the other spellbook so they’d be unable to reverse the spell, making their search here a complete waste of time. Luke tries to move their focus back to how his Grey Spell was reversed. They write down what Marnie can remember of what she said just before, but nothing sounds like a spell. Luke sees that she said “trap a” at one point and asks if a spell can be just one word. Marnie doesn’t see any harm in trying, so she says “trapa” at Gort, and the spell reverses! But they only have 15 minutes to get back to Aggie and get back to the mortal world to stop Kal. Marnie searches for the piece of paper she wrote her time travel spell on, but it’s gone. Gort says if something gets lost here, it is gone forever. After many attempts at remembering the spell, which does all sorts of weird things to Gort, he says he has a wizard’s time line right here. They get on Marnie’s broom which she summons and ride down the time line.

Back in the mortal world, at the Halloween party, Dylan and Sophie attempt to tell Gwen that her date is a golem made of frogs and that Kal is actually Kalabar’s son, so Alex isn’t his dad but she doesn’t listen. Sophie conjures up a fly to prove this. The fly interests Alex and he quickly eats it, grossing Gwen out and showing that her kids were right. She puts her mask back on as a disguise and tries to search for Kal. Kal is actually up by the ceiling and ready to cast the Creature Spell, to turn all humans into the monsters they’ve dressed up as. He fuses Gwen’s mask to her face, making her a target for the spell.

In the time line, Marnie and Luke make slow progress so she takes a detour into a black hole. Luckily, it doesn’t destroy them and takes them back to Aggie and Gort in present day. Marnie uses her “trapa” spell to turn Aggie back to normal. Knowing there isn’t much time left, they quickly open the portal to the mortal world and see the Halloween party, and all the students about to finish their countdown to midnight – which lasted a full minute, for some reason. What’s wrong with counting down from ten? The portal closes right at that moment, leaving Marnie trapped in Halloweentown with no way home. Aggie tries to tell Marnie that they can figure something out, but that isn’t good enough; what state will home be in by the time a whole year rolls around? It’ll feel even longer in Halloweentown!

Back at the party, as expected, humans have turned into creatures, including Dylan’s crush Cindy who is a real vampire now! Sophie tries to call Marnie but can’t get through. Marnie then calls her; saying they need to change the portal rules. Marnie tells Sophie they have to try and open the portal themselves, even though Halloween has passed. The portal didn’t always exist so it must be able to be reopened. There isn’t a spell to do this, so they’ll have to make it up themselves. With enough magic and belief, Marnie, Luke, and Aggie on one side in Halloweentown, and Dylan and Sophie in the mortal world, recite the spell together, eventually leading to the portal between the two worlds reopening. Marnie, Luke, and Aggie step through and confront Kal. She demands Aggie’s spellbooks back. Kal offers them up, covering them in electrified vines. Marnie believes that her good magic is stronger than Kal’s evil and manages to retrieve the books. Kal’s magic vines consume him and make him disappear in an electrified flash. Luke warns he’ll likely be back.

Aggie then finds the Creature Spell in her book and recites it backwards to reverse it. Luckily, the humans don’t remember anything of what just happened, thinking it was all some sort of prank for Halloween! Gwen is finally able to remove her mask and is reunited with her children. Marnie says now they can open portals between worlds whenever they want, she won’t have to choose between the two anymore. Aggie takes Marnie, Sophie, Dylan, and Luke back to Halloweentown with her, to finally reverse the grey spell. Even Dylan gets a go, returning Benny to his skeleton form. After the spell in Halloweentown has been reversed, the residents celebrate. Aggie then asks Marnie if the World Wide Web has anything to do with spiders. Marnie jokingly says maybe it’s time Aggie’s training started!

CHARACTERS & CAST

Unlike Halloweentown, where all the main cast work together in their fight against Kalabar, in Halloweentown II: Kalabar’s Revenge, the family is mostly split into two groups, kept apart by the new villain, Kal, with one side remaining in the mortal world, and the other team trapped in Halloweentown, trying to figure out how to stop Kal.

Marnie, now 15 years old, has clearly begun to mature as a witch, wanting to spend more time with her grandmother Aggie in Halloweentown so she can continue her training. Aggie, although liking spending more time with her grandchildren by living with them in the mortal world, still misses Halloweentown, and can’t wait to return there. The plan is for the two of them to live in Halloweentown for a whole year soon so Marnie’s training can be completed. However, as fate would have it, and thanks to Marnie’s instant trust in a boy just because she has a crush on him, the two end up in Halloweentown earlier than they expected. On learning that Kal has used a “Grey Spell” on Halloweentown and its residents, turning everything dull and boring, Marnie and Aggie have to figure out how to stop Kal enacting the Creature Spell over in the mortal world, halting his plans to turn all humans into horrifying creatures. They believe they have a plan, but when they start searching for Aggie’s spellbook, in the home of junkman Gort, Aggie loses her powers and also turns grey, leaving Marnie to work out how to stop Kal basically on her own.

Luckily, and to avoid Marnie having to talk to herself for most of the movie, she does have goblin Luke to help her. Luke and Marnie first met at Halloweentown two years before, where Luke aided both Kalabar and then Marnie. Here, Luke is first under the Grey Spell, which Marnie manages to, accidentally, reverse. After that, Luke assists Marnie in her time travelling and search for the spellbook. When they realise there is no hope of getting the spellbook in Halloweentown, he encourages Marnie to shift her focus to reversing the Grey Spell, being instrumental in figuring out the word that reverses it, with Marnie sceptical that “apart” can even be a spell. He also helps Marnie and Aggie open the portal, with his belief that Marnie and Aggie’s powers can do so being his role, since Luke doesn’t have magic. Marnie then uses her strength and good magic to overcome Kal’s evil.

Kimberly J. Brown, Debbie Reynolds, and Phillip Van Dyke returned to reprise their roles as Marnie Piper, Aggie Cromwell, and Luke respectively for this sequel.

Meanwhile, in the mortal world, Marnie’s siblings Dylan and Sophie have to deal with their mother Gwen and her cynicism about magic. Despite Gwen seemingly accepting magic in her children’s lives at the end of Halloweentown, two years later, Gwen is back to hating magic and not being able to get on with her mother Aggie. She thinks that Aggie is turning her children, particularly Marnie and Sophie, against her, with plans to take Marnie away to Halloweentown forever, meaning a life as a mortal is no longer an option for her. Gwen finds herself distracted in Halloweentown II: Kalabar’s Revenge by a man coming in to her life. She is quite taken with Alex, believed to be Kal’s father, and even when Dylan and Sophie work out that he is a creature called a golem, who will follow the orders of its master, in this case Kal, Gwen refuses to believe them – right up until Sophie tricks Alex into revealing his true identity by eating a fly. Then, and only then, does Gwen believe her children: that something very bad is going to happen if they don’t stop Kal. After Gwen gets turned into a monster by Kal’s spell, Dylan and Sophie are on their own. Until Marnie calls them via Aggie’s headphones, and convinces them to help her reopen the portal to the mortal world, despite Halloween technically being over and the portal closed. Thanks to Sophie’s strong magic, and Dylan’s eventual belief, this works. The two end their time in Halloweentown II: Kalabar’s Revenge by helping Marnie and Aggie reverse the Grey Spell in Halloweentown.

Judith Hoag, Joey Zimmerman, and Emily Roeske all reprised their roles from the first movie here, as Gwen Piper, Dylan Piper, and Sophie Piper respectively.

Alongside the main cast, there were some new additions to the cast for this sequel. The most important of which is Kal. At the start of this movie, we are meant to believe that Kal is just an ordinary teenage boy who has moved into the same street as Marnie. But things are never that simple, and it is quickly revealed that Kal is a warlock, after he steals Aggie’s spellbook and opens a portal to Halloweentown. After trapping Marnie and Aggie in Halloweentown, he slowly reveals his plans to them, by appearing randomly, like in a concrete block and in Gort’s fireplace. Marnie quickly figures out that Kal tricked her into thinking he was just an ordinary boy who liked her, and works out that Kal is Kalabar’s son, a secret son that apparently nobody knew about. What did Kalabar do then, keep him in a basement or something? To be honest, that would explain a lot about Kal’s mental state… Anyway, Kal wants to enact revenge on the humans, for leaving all the residents of Halloweentown in exile, something that his father tried to do in the first Halloweentown. It’s unclear what he gains by turning the residents of Halloweentown human though, other than stopping Marnie from getting much help, I suppose… But as with most villains, his evil is thwarted by the good of the heroine, in this case, Marnie. She manages to reverse all his spells and retrieve both of Aggie’s spellbooks, causing Kal to be taken up by his evil magic and he vanishes, although we are led to believe Kal may one day return.

Kal was played by Daniel Kountz, who had previously been cast as Ray Wood in the Lifetime movie Fifteen and Pregnant (1998), starring alongside Kirsten Dunst, before his role in Halloweentown II: Kalabar’s Revenge. He later had guest roles in numerous television series in the early 2000s including Crossing Jordan (2001-07) and 3^rd Rock from the Sun (1996-2001). Kountz now works as a realtor, doing acting projects from time to time as well. Apparently, some fans have commented on his listings before, saying things like “Don’t trust him. He’ll turn your house grey” [1]. This sounds quite funny if you’re a fan of this film, but is perhaps more irritating than amusing when it’s your career being commented on!

Kal’s “dad” in this movie is supposedly called Alex. Alex is just a cover for Kal, pretending to be a father and son who have recently moved house. Whilst Kal goes about casting his dark magic, Alex’s task is to distract Gwen Piper for as long as possible, because Kal knows, with Marnie and Aggie trapped in Halloweentown, Gwen is the only witch strong enough to defeat him in the mortal world. Had Sophie and Dylan not been so observant, and Sophie not had that whole “sixth sense” about sensing danger, this might’ve just worked, since Gwen is so against magic that she can’t even consider that magic may’ve come into her perfect mortal life. To be honest, Alex doesn’t even do a good job of pretending to be human; he’s so weird, I can’t see how Gwen didn’t see it. For example, Alex is overly focused on Gwen, something that is just stalker-like and not cute; he appears in a frog costume for Halloween – what adult man does that?; and he seems to leak frogs. This is because Sophie works out that Alex is a golem made of frogs, a golem being basically a slave, unable to think for itself and following commands. I guess Kal underestimated just how smart Marnie’s little sister is.

Peter Wingfield was cast as Alex, having appeared as Methos in Highlander: The Series (1992-98) from Season 2 onwards prior to his role here. He went on to appear as Dr. Ivan Slavicky in Catwoman (2004), and later was cast as Dan Clifford in the long-running British medical drama Holby City (1999-2022) from 2006 until 2009. After this role, Wingfield decided to transition from acting into the medical profession[2].

Another new character in this sequel, who is important to the plot, but not overly helpful to Marnie, is Gort. Gort lives in a very messy house in Halloweentown, surrounded by the town’s lost items. Unfortunately, his grumpy demeanour, and junk-filled life, are switched out when Gort comes under the Grey Spell. Instead, he is nice and has sold all the junk cluttering up his house. This isn’t helpful to Marnie and Aggie, who need to search his junk for the spellbook. Gort is more fixated on matching up socks, something that Aggie helps him with when she is hit by the Grey Spell too. Marnie then has to time travel back to an earlier time, where Gort hadn’t sold everything. But when they arrive at Gort’s house in the past, he does not want trespassers there, and orders Marnie and Luke to leave. He only allows them to stay when he hears that in the future, he will become clean and organised, something that Gort does not want to ever happen to him! Gort is a fun addition to the cast, especially as he hinders the mission to defeat Kal without even knowing it or even trying. He just wants to live alone with his junk. Is that so much to ask?

Gort was played by Blu Mankuma, who has had a career in voice acting, voicing characters in animated series like Spider-Man Unlimited (1999-2001) and Sonic Underground (1999), as well as voicing the character Bubba in Firehouse Tales (2005-06) for Cartoon Network. A random cast credit which especially interests me as a big fan of Disney’s The Santa Clause movies is that Mankuma appears as John Pierce, one of the teachers at the faculty Christmas party who receives the game Toss Across in the Secret Santa, in The Santa Clause 2 (2002).

Finally, Benny the cab driver makes a return for Halloweentown II: Kalabar’s Revenge. However, he is not a skeleton anymore, and therefore not an animatronic robot as he was in Halloweentown, because Benny has been turned human by the Grey Spell. He is also no longer full of jokes and laughs, instead being a very slow cab driver with nothing very interesting to say. Richard Side was cast as Benny. Side went on to create, write, and produce the Canadian radio comedy show The Debaters (2006).

MUSIC

Unlike Halloweentown, which relied solely on its musical score as its soundtrack, Halloweentown II: Kalabar’s Revenge incorporates some pop music for use in its party sequences, as well as a song for its End Credits. This is the case for the majority of other Disney Channel Original Movies, where pop music is playing as background noise for some scenes and sequences. However, most DCOMs, especially not more recent ones, do not credit most of the songs used in their films, whereas Halloweentown II: Kalabar’s Revenge has credited them, despite not ever releasing an official soundtrack for the film.

This list of songs should have made it easier for me to work out what song is playing when, however, that has not been the case, as much of the party music is not audible, and many of the songs are unavailable to listen to online and away from the movie, so I’ve been unable to match most of them to a scene.

But I have worked out a couple. The most obvious song used is “Witches Brew”, written by Scott Urguhart, and performed by Casper, because this is the End Credits song that plays right at the end of Halloweentown II: Kalabar’s Revenge. It’s a pretty decent song, and sounds like something you’d hear in a DCOM. And I mean that in a good way.

When Dylan and Sophie first arrive at the school Halloween party, the song “Radio Rainbow” is playing. This song was written by Melissa Lefton, Scott Spock, Graham Edwards, and Lauren Christy. It was performed by Melissa Lefton. This track should have appeared on Lefton’s album Melicious, due for release in August 2001, but the album was cancelled and never officially released. Two other tracks from the album, “My Hit Song” and “I Love Life” did appear in the movies On the Line (2001) and The Princess Diaries (2001) respectively, and were included on those movies’ soundtracks.

Outside of that, four other songs are credited, which must either be playing during the Pipers’ Halloween party at their house at the start of the movie, or at the school Halloween party. However, as these songs are not particularly audible, or have no real obvious lyrics matching them to the song titles listed in the credits, and they are not available online to listen to, I don’t know which one appears in which scene. But for anyone interested, the song, “The Lesson”, written and performed by Albert Fox, is credited. Musician and composer Fox has gone on to work alongside Mark Mothersbaugh, composer of the score for Halloweentown II: Kalabar’s Revenge, on the music for TV series like Summer Camp Island (2018-23) for Cartoon Network, What We Do in the Shadows (2019-24) and Time Bandits (2024) for Apple TV+.

Two further songs were written by Stanley A. Smith for the movie, and these are titled “All The Way” and “Let’s Party”. Smith also co-wrote the other credited song “Girlfriend” with J. A. Manges, with this song being performed by The Sha-Shees. Stanley A. Smith continued to write and produce music for other DCOMs including The Luck of the Irish (2001), with J. A. Manges; Double Teamed (2002); and Tru Confessions (2002). He also composed the music for the TV series The Bernie Mac Show (2001-06) and the sitcom Are We There Yet? (2010-13). The Sha-Shees are credited as performing songs for other DCOMs as well, such as “Back N’ Forth” for Get a Clue (2002), and “You Can Do It” from The Other Me (2000).

Returning to compose the score for Halloweentown II: Kalabar’s Revenge after his work on Halloweentown was Mark Mothersbaugh. Mothersbaugh went on to write the music for various films, including animated movies like Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs (2009) and its 2013 sequel; all four of the Hotel Transylvania films; and some of the LEGO film franchise, like The LEGO Movie (2014) and its 2019 sequel. He also wrote the music for comedy movies like Happy Gilmore (1996), The Royal Tenenbaums (2001), 21 Jump Street (2012) and 22 Jump Street (2014), amongst many other credits.

Although the score for Halloweentown II: Kalabar’s Revenge was not publicly released, with the Halloweentown score only being made available in 2023 for the film’s 25^th anniversary, there is one track from the Halloweentown soundtrack that actually only appears in the sequel. This track is “Benny’s Cab”, which plays as Benny the cab driver is called to take Marnie, Aggie, and Luke over to Aggie’s house so they can search for her spellbook and reverse Kal’s Grey Spell. You can also hear the well-known Halloweentown theme tune right at the start of Halloweentown II: Kalabar’s Revenge, as Marnie recounts the events of the first movie and catches viewers up on the two years in between.

PRODUCTION

With the success of Halloweentown, and a myriad of possibilities for a new story, it was likely that a sequel would shortly come to Disney Channel. Well, it took three years, so it wasn’t turned around as quickly as other Disney Channel DCOM sequels, but it wasn’t a long wait.

Jon Cooksey and Ali Matheson, co-writers of Halloweentown, returned to work on Halloweentown II: Kalabar’s Revenge, making the story darker with a very determined villain to go up against Marnie. Cooksey and Matheson had previously worked on the original Rugrats (1991-2004) before co-writing Halloweentown, and went on to create the Canadian supernatural drama series The Collector (2004-06) together.

To go alongside this new story, complete with scary monsters and riskier conditions, like being trapped in Halloweentown forever, a new director was brought in for Halloweentown II: Kalabar’s Revenge. This director was Mary Lambert, who directed the horror movie Pet Sematary (1989), based on the 1983 Stephen King novel, and its 1992 sequel. It would seem that Disney Channel wanted a director who wasn’t afraid to make this Disney Channel movie a little bit edgier, and Lambert succeeded in that. I would say it is the scariest of the four movies. Outside of that, Lambert had also directed various music videos such as Madonna’s “Like a Virgin” and “Like a Prayer” and Janet Jackson’s “Nasty” and “Control” in the 1980s prior to working on Halloweentown II: Kalabar’s Revenge. More recently, Lambert has directed the Netflix Christmas films A Castle for Christmas (2021) and Best. Christmas. Ever! (2023).

Another change of direction for the sequel was that filming did not take place in St. Helens, Oregon again, despite this being the setting for Halloweentown itself, somewhere that the characters return to in Halloweentown II: Kalabar’s Revenge. It would seem that Fantasy Gardens, in Richmond, British Columbia, in Canada was chosen as the new location of Halloweentown for this second film. It does feature a lot of red-brick buildings which transport the area to a different time, like Halloweentown is supposed to make you feel, however, only a tiny area was used for filming and it lacked all the colour and whimsy of St. Helens, making it only too obvious that the filming locations between the two movies were quite different. The rest of the movie was filmed in other areas of British Columbia, Canada. It is not known why filming was moved to Canada, though I would assume it had something to do with budgets or tax. There are plenty of Disney Channel movies filmed in Canada nowadays, so had Halloweentown not been such an iconic location, this may’ve gone unnoticed by viewers, but it was noticed and criticised by some.

Most sequels like to inject some more energy by adding new characters, and Halloweentown II: Kalabar’s Revenge is no different. Although it would perhaps have seemed like Kalabar was returning, given the title, it was in fact his son Kal who would be enacting the revenge. Speaking of the title, I noticed in the credits of Halloweentown that Kalabar was spelt “Calabar”. For the sequel, I had assumed that an official spelling of this character name was confirmed as “Kalabar” given the title, but no, you’ll still see “Calabar” in the End Credits. Weird…

Anyway, back to Kal. Obviously, Daniel Kountz was cast as Kal, however, there was a chance that Jared Padalecki, who was cast as Dean Forester in Gilmore Girls (2000-07) around this time, could’ve been hired instead, as Kountz remembered seeing Padalecki at the Disney building when he went for his final audition. But not being cast as Kal didn’t slow Padalecki’s career down, as he went on to appear as Trey in the Mary-Kate and Ashley film New York Minute (2004) and be cast as Sam Winchester in the series Supernatural (2005-20). He also starred as Cordell Walker in the crime drama series Walker (2021-24) for The CW. Kimberly J. Brown couldn’t comment on this casting, as she stated she did not screen test with either Padalecki or Kountz, only meeting Kountz just before filming commenced.

Kountz enjoyed his time working on Halloweentown II: Kalabar’s Revenge and remembered a specific time with Debbie Reynolds during a night shoot. Kountz said it was around 1am and the cast were all so tired, so Reynolds decided she’d be the one to bring up the energy in the room with her spirit and joy. Kountz said she always had so much energy on set, dancing, singing, and telling jokes. Everyone loved working with her, and the whole cast still reflect on how special it was to have worked with a true legend in the industry[3].

Another moment Kountz remembered from the set was that although the Creature Spell was scripted, the spell where Kal opens the portal to Halloweentown after stealing Aggie’s spellbook from the Piper house was not. Kountz initially read in the script that Kal would say a spell at this point, but he believed it would be written for him by the time of the shoot. However, it was not, and director Mary Lambert asked if he was ready with his spell just before shooting the scene. Not wanting to look unprofessional, Kountz had to improvise something, and used a German song from his choir days as inspiration[4].

RECEPTION

Following in the Disney Channel tradition of releasing lots of new, vaguely spooky content for Halloween, Halloweentown II: Kalabar’s Revenge premiered on the channel in the US on 12^th October 2001, three years after Halloweentown first debuted on Disney Channel.

On its premiere date, Halloweentown II: Kalabar’s Revenge drew in 6.1 million viewers, this being almost double that of Halloweentown which reached 3.4 million[5]. Although many viewing figures are not available for most of the DCOMs released in the late 1990s and early 2000s, it would appear that Halloweentown II: Kalabar’s Revenge was the most-viewed DCOM premiere at this time. This is likely due to the fact that Halloweentown was so loved on its release that many fans of the first movie were eager to see a sequel, as well as Disney Channel improving their original movie content within those three years.

Although both Halloweentown and its sequel received many positive comments, Halloweentown II: Kalabar’s Revenge does seem to have more negative reviews than Halloweentown has. For example, fans of Halloweentown were quick to notice the filming location for Halloweentown in the sequel was not the same, with the area being much smaller and not looking anything like Halloweentown in the first movie, even after the Grey Spell was removed. It was small and didn’t look as whimsical or special, taking away some of that enjoyment and magic that viewers felt watching the ornately decorated town in Halloweentown. There were also fewer interesting settings in Halloweentown II: Kalabar’s Revenge compared to the first, as most of the action takes place in the Pipers’ house, Aggie’s house, Gort’s house, and the school gymnasium. This probably has a lot to do with the location being moved from the picturesque town of St. Helen’s in Oregon to Canada. The story was criticised for some obvious plot holes as well, such as if time travel was such a big part of the story, then why such a race to get back in time for the portal. Others also said that in Halloweentown, we are told that time works differently between the two realms, with time moving slower in Halloweentown, and yet it would appear time is moving at the same pace in the sequel. I didn’t really pay attention to that and just assumed they were using Marnie’s watch to keep track of the time. Maybe they had been in Halloweentown for longer than just those four hours. But I don’t like to think about plot holes too much to be honest.

Another point to mention is that by 2001, more young viewers had been able to read the first Harry Potter novel and this meant there were more comparisons between the two. Obviously now most people have seen or read all the Harry Potter movies or books so there would be comparisons, but it is important to remember that the film Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone did not come to theatres until November 2001, so after Halloweentown II: Kalabar’s Revenge premiered, meaning that Harry Potter had not reached a wide audience so Disney Channel wouldn’t have stolen any story ideas by this point, though of course, viewers could still see Halloweentown as lesser than Harry Potter.

Moving on to the positive comments. Many enjoyed returning to these characters and felt that it was a decent sequel, if not a great one. The story was said to be more mysterious and spookier than Halloweentown’s, which I agree with. I felt that Halloweentown II: Kalabar’s Revenge had a lot more at stake than Halloweentown, with the villain going some way to enacting his plan, whereas Kalabar didn’t have much chance to do anything at all. Halloweentown seemed to be introducing a world to viewers, whereas with the sequel, they could explore the battle between light and dark magic more. Fans of the Halloweentown series like to look back on these films with nostalgia, saying that Disney Channel don’t make movies like this anymore, however, no doubt if you were watching Disney Channel in the late 2000s and during the High School Musical era, you’d think that time was the best, like I do.

Much like Halloweentown, despite not receiving awards for the movie itself, Halloweentown II: Kalabar’s Revenge saw two of its young stars nominated for their performances, both at the Young Artist Awards. Kimberly J. Brown was nominated once again for Best Performance in a TV Movie (Comedy or Drama): Leading Young Actress for her role as Marnie, with Joey Zimmerman, who played Dylan, being nominated in the Supporting Young Actor category.

LEGACY

Following on from Halloweentown II: Kalabar’s Revenge was a further sequel, and the third film in the franchise, Halloweentown High, which was released in 2004. However, I don’t think it is unfair to say that Halloweentown and Halloweentown II: Kalabar’s Revenge feel like a complete series, with some cast members not returning for the third film, or their roles being lessened. Therefore, it makes perfect sense that the first two movies were released as a double-feature on DVD. The two also frequently air on the channel Freeform over the Halloween season during Freeform’s 31 Nights of Halloween event, along with numerous other Disney and other family-friendly Halloween movies. These are the only two in the Halloweentown series to make the 2025 schedule.

Potentially the most exciting pop culture moment to come from Halloweentown II: Kalabar’s Revenge though is that Kimberly J. Brown, who played Marnie, and Daniel Kountz, who played Kal, have since gotten married. This has been a very exciting moment for fans, especially since Marnie and Kal are enemies in the sequel movie. The two have appeared at events and conventions together, with other members of the cast, where they talk about their experience working on the Halloweentown movies, as well as their relationship’s effect on Halloweentown fans.

Brown and Kountz love seeing how much these movies have meant to people and are proud to have been even a small part of these people’s childhoods. They have also both poked fun at how strange their relationship may look to those who have watched Halloweentown II: Kalabar’s Revenge, with Brown posting a video showing herself watching her character Marnie say “I’m in control of my future and it doesn’t include you” to Kal from the film. Brown then comments “Well, this is awkward” as Daniel Kountz walks in to the room behind her, which obviously references the fact that Brown’s future clearly does involve Kountz since they were engaged at this point in 2022[6]. The pair reconnected after meeting up in 2016 for a spoof video for Brown’s YouTube Channel where a reporter catches up with Kal as he waits to be released from a rehab facility for evil witches and warlocks[7]. Brown and Kountz married in 2024 and a year later, the two acted together in Haul Out the Halloween (2025), a new addition to the Haul Out the Holly movie series for Hallmark, starring Lacey Chabert and Wes Brown. The film premiered on 11^th October 2025. I would’ve liked to have seen it but the UK don’t have the Hallmark Channel, and I don’t trust VPNs, so I guess I’ll have to see if it pops up somewhere here next year.

FINAL THOUGHTS

Personally, I think Halloweentown II: Kalabar’s Revenge is marginally better than Halloweentown, because of its stronger and more engaging story, with a devious villain who gets quite close to achieving his evil plans.

The sequel had almost double the viewers who tuned into the premiere of its predecessor, showing that, although there was a three-year gap between the two films, the appetite and interest for Halloweentown stories was still there, making a third film seem obvious and extremely likely.

Watching both Halloweentown and Halloweentown II: Kalabar’s Revenge, sometimes back-to-back, over the Halloween season has become a tradition of many. With this tradition, these two movies will be viewed by current and future generations for years to come.

REFERENCES

[1] Credit: Christi Carras, ’22 years ago, ‘Halloweentown’ became a spooky classic. Its stars still feel the love’, LATimes.com, 30^th October 2020.

[2] Credit: Jake Penkethman, ‘REAL LIFE: I starred on Holby City for three years, now I’m practising medicine for real reveals former star’, TheSun.co.uk, 15^th June 2023.

[3] Credit: Kelly Martinez and Alexia Fernández, ‘Kimberly J. Brown Admits She and Daniel Kountz ‘Never Sat and Watched’ the ‘Halloweentown’ Movies (Exclusive)’, People.com, 17^th September 2023.

[4] Credit: Stacey Grant, ’23 Surprising DCOM Secrets Even Die-Hard Fans Didn’t Know’, Seventeen.com, 25^th October 2017.

[5] Credit: Denise Martin, ‘Disney bewitches young aud’, Variety.com, 23^rd October 2006.

[6] Credit: Tamantha Gunn, ‘Kimberly J. Brown and Daniel Kountz Poking Fun at “Awkward” Halloweentown II Scene Is Pure Magic’, EOnline.com, 27^th September 2022.

[7] Credit: Kimberly J. Brown, ‘“Realm Are They Now?” Following Up w/Kal from Halloweentown’, Kimberly J. Brown Official YouTube Channel, 29^th September 2016.

10th Oct 202517th Oct 2025 by The Disney Purist

Halloweentown (1998)

BACKGROUND

I was a bit too young to have heard of Halloweentown when it first came to Disney Channel in 1998. I wasn’t watching Disney Channel at that time, but don’t worry, because when I did start watching the channel, Halloweentown was everywhere. Well, around Halloween.

The trailers for re-runs of the original two movies, perhaps the first three, were all over Disney Channel when I first became a regular viewer in the early 2000s. But they never once interested me. I scare easily, I don’t like monsters, and that was most definitely the case back when I was a kid and a tween as well.

Basically, I reject Halloween and everything it stands for. I don’t decorate my house, I don’t like trick or treating and never went as a child, and I don’t watch scary movies. But it’s fine if you like Halloween. It’s becoming as big an occasion in the UK as it is in the US, so I get it; people like Halloween. I just choose not to.

And yet, with the arrival of Disney+, I found it impossible to escape the constant promotion of their Halloween movies on the streaming platform, even putting them all into a nice, handy collection to peruse at your leisure. In 2020, or maybe 2021, my curiosity got the better of me and I had a look. I was trying to get into the idea of watching some family-friendly, non-scary Halloween movies every year, to add to Tim Burton’s Corpse Bride, a film I began watching at Halloween from the age of 18 or 19. I know, how brave of me!

There, in the Halloween section of Disney+, I found… Disney Channel’s ZOMBIES movies. They were not at all scary and musical DCOMs, so I instantly liked them. But still, I was not looking to watch Halloweentown, and simply ignored all four film suggestions.

However, shortly after this, I was reading the Halloween edition of the Vault of Walt, a book series written by Disney historian Jim Korkis, who sadly passed away in 2023. These books are brilliant for Disney history lovers like myself, and it was here that I first read about the Halloweentown series of films. I decided that as I’d read about them now, and they didn’t sound scary, that it was about time I tried to understand the popularity around this franchise. So, in 2021, that is what I did. I watched all four films, and I actually kind of liked them – though my favourite might be a surprise.

The films are cheesy and feel very much of their time, but I enjoyed them. They were only slightly spooky, with some mild threats but little fear factor. I watched all four films at Halloween once more but not since. 2025 was the year to go back and do it all over again.

PLOT

On a typical suburban street in the US, on Halloween night, trick or treaters are walking around in their costumes. However, one house on this street is not decorated and doesn’t seem to be getting into the Halloween spirit.

This house is home to the Pipers, mother Gwen, and her three children, Marnie, Dylan, and Sophie. Marnie is begging her mother to let her go to a Halloween party with her friends, but Gwen refuses, saying she has never let the children go out on Halloween before and that is no different today. Marnie says it’s not fair that she can’t go out, even though she is 13. Marnie is surprised her mother is so against Halloween anyway, seeing as she met their father on Halloween night; their father has since died. Marnie also reiterates to her mother that she loves Halloween and all the creatures associated it, but there is no changing Gwen’s mind on the matter. She has to stay home. Sophie just wants a cookie but she’s told that she isn’t allowed to have a cookie before dinner. Gwen sees this cookie levitating as Sophie sulks, and quickly eats it before Sophie can notice. Strange…

Suddenly, a flying bus arrives on the street, and a woman wearing a red velvet cloak exits the bus. This woman shows up at the Pipers’ house. It turns out she is Aggie Cromwell, the children’s grandmother and Gwen’s mother, although she and Gwen have a bit of a tense relationship. This only increases when Aggie gives the children Halloween costumes to wear and decorations to put up around the house. Aggie tells Gwen that today is Marnie’s 13th Halloween, but Gwen tells her to drop it. What could that mean?

After dinner, the children are told to get ready for bed. They beg their mother to let Aggie tell them a bedtime story. Gwen relents and says they’ll come up in a bit. Meanwhile, Gwen and Aggie talk. Aggie says she still wants Gwen and the kids to live with her, but Gwen just wants them to have a normal life, whatever that means. She warns Aggie not to talk about “home” to Marnie, Dylan, and Sophie.

But what kind of grandmother would Aggie be if she listened to her daughter? As part of Aggie’s bedtime story, she shows the children a book all about a place called Halloweentown, where all kinds of monsters and mystical creatures live. Marnie is fascinated by this place, only wishing it were actually real. They then spot an image of what seems to be Marnie flying on a broomstick over the town in the storybook. Aggie says Marnie must have a secret life. Gwen then comes into the room and says that Aggie has to get going home now, and they leave the children upstairs.

In the kitchen, the two argue. Aggie is angry that Gwen is letting Marnie forget all about her powers, saying she ought to have been a fully trained witch by her 13^th Halloween, but that she has had no training at all. If her training doesn’t start that night, Marnie’s powers will cease to exist forever. Gwen thinks that would be best for everyone, so they can have a mortal life like anyone else. Although Aggie does not agree, knowing they should be a part of the Cromwell dynasty of witches, she tells Gwen she has a more pressing issue. Something bad is happening in Halloweentown. People are changing and going missing. Aggie fears the dark times are returning and needs Gwen’s help. Gwen says she doesn’t want to get involved and Aggie leaves the house.

As it happens, Marnie overhead this whole conversation and excitedly tells her brother Dylan that she is a witch and wants to go with their grandmother back to Halloweentown to start her training. Dylan won’t let Marnie go alone, so they both follow Aggie as she walks to the bus stop and gets on a bus. Dylan and Marnie get on too, and are shocked by the look of their fellow travellers who are all strange creatures.

After some time on this weird flying bus, the bus stops and Marnie and Dylan disembark to find that Halloweentown is a real place. Dylan thinks he’s just dreaming but Marnie knows this is real and she loves it. But as the two were too busy looking at their new surroundings, they find they’ve already lost their grandmother. As they try to find her, they see their sister Sophie stood in the middle of Halloweentown. It turns out she followed them onto the bus. The three are soon greeted by the Mayor of Halloweentown, Kalabar, who is confused by these new visitors to his town. They explain they are Aggie’s grandchildren, which interests Kalabar who knew their mother Gwen, even seeming to have had a crush on her. He hopefully asks if Gwen is with them, but she is not. Kalabar then signals for Benny the cab driver to take the children to Aggie’s house in his taxi.

During the drive, Benny warns the children about a kid in Halloweentown called Luke, who has suddenly become a bully after apparently having some work done on his face, making him look like a normal mortal teenager. They soon arrive at Aggie’s house and Benny drops them off. The kids see that there is a lock on the gate, and Marnie attempts to do a spell to open it…. but it doesn’t work. As Marnie and Dylan discuss how to get in, Sophie pushes the gate and it opens. She actually wished for the lock to turn into a frog, allowing it to open. The three walk up to Aggie’s front door and she welcomes them into her home, although she knows that their mother will be furious to know they are here! Aggie thinks it would be best if she took them home. Marnie says she wants to begin training so Aggie says they can stay, but that they will have to get home by midnight. The kids think that will only give them a couple of hours in Halloweentown, but Aggie tells them that time works differently between Halloweentown and the mortal world, so a couple hours in the mortal realm is a lot longer in Halloweentown. That makes them feel happier.

Aggie tells the children that she has seen that something bad is coming to Halloweentown and she must try to stop it. Aggie has a talisman from the great wizard Merlin, which should end the threat of the Dark Ages returning. Filling it with witch’s brew, and casting a spell, Aggie hopes to light up the talisman. The talisman does not light up. Aggie thought she would need another witch’s magic to help anyway. Plus, she also thinks she perhaps shouldn’t have used instant witch’s brew. She decides they’ll have to make it from scratch, needing specific ingredients for it, so they’ll have to go searching for them.

The group take a tour of Halloweentown, where Aggie tells the children that mortal children have simply taken traditions from Halloweentown as their own, such as choosing to dress up as the residents of the town for Halloween. Aggie tells them that their mother met their father at a mortal Halloween party all that time ago. She also says that, after the Dark Ages, where magical beings and mortals fought for years, the magical creatures made their own world, away from the mortal realm, meaning that they can now only visit the mortal world on Halloween. Aggie then bumps into a neighbour called Harriet, who has suddenly turned nasty, both in looks and personality. Aggie tells Kalabar the Mayor about her worries, knowing that Harriet will disappear by tomorrow. He tells Aggie to give him a couple of days to sort it, warning her not to do anything about it in the meantime. Aggie ignores that.

Marnie sees a shop selling brooms nearby and asks Aggie if she can have one. Aggie says of course she can. However, as they shop, Luke comes by and starts harassing them. Marnie basically tells him to back off and he angrily leaves. The shop owner reiterates what Benny the taxi driver said; that Luke has changed a lot over the last few days. Marnie finds a broom she likes and her and Aggie take a ride over Halloweentown. When they come back to land, Marnie discovers that her mother is here, having seen that the children were not in bed and knowing they were likely in Halloweentown with Aggie. Gwen tells the children they are getting the bus back right now.

However, at the bus stop, they discover that the bus is delayed so they cannot get home. Dylan says maybe they should talk to the mayor. Gwen thinks that is a great idea and they go over to City Hall. Gwen is surprised to find that Kalabar is the mayor, but he is just happy to see her, even giving her a dead rose, using magic to make it alive again. How…sweet? He asks Gwen out on a date, but she says they need to get back home. Kalabar has to head off to deal with an emergency but says he’ll help them when he returns.

Meanwhile, Aggie is being bothered by Luke again, who says “he” knows she has the talisman and she must give it up to him. Aggie wants to face this evil once and for all and asks Luke to take her to him. As Marnie and Gwen argue about the fact Gwen has kept her and Sophie’s magic a secret all these years, and that Marnie wants to stay in Halloweentown and be trained by her grandmother, Sophie sees Aggie going somewhere with Luke. Marnie rushes off to help, with the others having to follow her to stop her getting in trouble.

They come to the town’s abandoned movie theatre. Here, Aggie sees residents of the town. Luke tells her they have been frozen by a spell, so they can come back to life later. A dark figure appears in the movie screen. He demands Aggie gives him the talisman but she refuses and is attacked. The others arrive and the evil figure continues to attack them. Gwen is then frozen as she attempts to save Aggie, with Aggie being frozen as she tries to protect the children. Luke leaves after witnessing the attack, saying this wasn’t what he’d agreed to.

The children are told to run by Aggie, just as she is frozen, and they rush out of the theatre. Marnie noticed that the figure hated the light, so they need to make the proper witch’s brew to make Merlin’s talisman light up. They search for ingredients around town, getting hair from the werewolf hairdresser; sweat from a ghost in a sauna; and a vampire fang from the dentist. As they come up with their next steps, Benny arrives in his cab, saying he’ll take them to Aggie’s house. However, Sophie senses something isn’t right with him, especially after he attacks Dylan, and unleashes a dog which pursues Benny.

The three make their way to Aggie’s house, where they mix up the witch’s brew and refill the talisman. Marnie now has to recite the spell – but she can’t remember it. Luckily, Sophie said the spell sounded pretty so she made it into a song to remember it. The two say it together. But it still doesn’t light up. They then try again, with some added positive belief and it finally lights up. Marnie puts on Aggie’s cloak and they head back to the theatre to try and wake Gwen and Aggie, but they do not. Marnie tries to figure out what they need to do with the talisman, remembering Aggie saying something about it needing to be installed somewhere. Marnie then remembers what Aggie said, about mortals copying what is done in Halloweentown; they have to install the talisman in the town’s jack-o’-lantern.

As they head over to the town square to do this, Luke warns Marnie that this is a trap, and the figure will come for her. Suddenly, the sky darkens and the figure appears again on the roof of City Hall. It is revealed that the evil figure is in fact Kalabar the mayor. He wants to return the citizens of Halloweentown to their glory days and take over the mortal realm. He doesn’t want them to live in exile anymore and wants the residents to come together with him. Kalabar warns the town that a half-human will try to stop them. Right on cue, he notices Aggie’s cloak and attacks, believing this to be Marnie. It is actually Luke who is wearing the cloak as a distraction. But it wasn’t a good enough distraction as Kalabar spots Marnie at the jack-o’-lantern, ready to install the talisman. He freezes her and she passes out. In her partially unconscious state, she hears the voices of her mother, Aggie, and others, motivating her. She briefly wakes up and drops the talisman, believing it will do what has to be done. The talisman drops into the perfect position and the light from it awakens anyone who was frozen, including Aggie and Gwen.

They all reunite, believing they have defeated Kalabar. However, Kalabar is still very much alive and takes back the talisman. He tells Gwen she should’ve stayed in Halloweentown with him, because she could’ve had all this power too. Gwen and Aggie begin an incantation aimed at him, but it doesn’t work. Marnie sees that Dylan has powers too and thinks they will be more powerful if they all say the spell together. As they do, the talisman lights up, destroying Kalabar. Marnie and Gwen make up after their fight, and Marnie catches up to Luke. She sees that Luke has returned to his normal goblin state, and he apologises for causing all this trouble. He says he wished he could’ve won Marnie round and taken her on a date. She kisses him on the cheek and thanks him for his help. Luke tells Marnie to look him up if she’s ever back in Halloweentown.

The Pipers are about to head back to the mortal world on the bus, when Gwen says Aggie will have to come and live with them, so she can spend more time with the kids and so they can both train Marnie to be a fully fledged witch. Aggie is delighted, and the family get on the bus together.

CHARACTERS & CAST

Marnie Piper is thirteen years old during the events of Halloweentown, and loves everything related to magic and Halloween. She can’t understand why her mother is so against Halloween, especially as she met their father on Halloween night, and it is something that Marnie clearly loves. This causes tension between the two, so it is no wonder that Marnie is close to her grandmother, who shares her love of Halloween, despite the fact they only see her once a year, on Halloween. When Marnie finds out she is actually a witch, and must start using her powers that night to keep them, she finally understands herself and why she likes the things she does. She is determined to become a witch, and is confident in her abilities, despite having had no training whatsoever. In Halloweentown, Marnie feels at home there, and loves learning about magic from her grandmother. Even when Marnie is left with only her two siblings and very little advice to deal with a great evil in Halloweentown, she tackles the challenge with optimism and belief, knowing that she is part of a great dynasty of Cromwell witches. For Marnie, anything is possible.

Marnie was played by Kimberly J. Brown. Prior to her casting in Halloweentown, Brown had been in some Broadway shows, such as Les Misérables and the 1994 revival of Show Boat. She had also been cast as Marah Lewis in the soap opera Guiding Light (1952-2009) from 1993 to 1998. Also on screen, she had a small role as Nicole in the Mary-Kate and Ashley series Two of a Kind (1998-99) and was cast in the lead role of Jamie Grover in another Disney Channel Original Movie, Quints (2000), shortly after Halloweentown. Brown later appeared as Sarah Sanderson in the comedy film Bringing Down the House (2003), which starred Steve Martin and Queen Latifah.

Joining Marnie in Halloweentown are her two siblings, Dylan and Sophie. 12-year-old Dylan is a non-believer in magic, not even believing Halloweentown exists when he’s actually there. Dylan is incredibly intelligent, so he’d rather explain things using science. It doesn’t compute in his mind that magic might actually exist. At the end of the film, as the family stand up to Kalabar, Dylan is seen to have magic as well, showing it is not only the women in the family who have powers, but even then, it takes some coaxing from Marnie to get him to believe in his ability, giving them extra help in defeating Kalabar. But as they get on the bus to get back home, and he sees Aggie’s magical bag that follows her around and stores items much too big for it, like Mary Poppins’ bag, Dylan just wants to figure out how it works! Sophie is only seven during the movie, but she seems to be just as strong a witch as Marnie, if not stronger. Sophie’s magic seems to make strange things happen, even without her knowing, like making a cookie levitate when she’s angry. She also can sense when bad things are going to happen, which helps the kids a few times during their time in Halloweentown, like Sophie seeing Aggie walking into the movie theatre with Luke, and knowing that Benny the cab driver has been taken over by evil. Sophie also remembers the spell for the talisman which Marnie does not, and opens the gates to Aggie’s house. So, although the movie is mostly about Marnie, Sophie is a pretty strong witch too.

Joey Zimmerman was cast as Dylan Piper, having previously been cast as Ulysses Adair in the science-fiction series Earth 2 (1994-95) and as Eric Kipper in the CBS children’s sitcom Bailey Kipper’s P.O.V. (1996) prior to his role in Halloweentown. Emily Roeske was cast as Sophie Piper. Roeske is most known for her role as Sophie in this series of films.

Aggie Cromwell is the grandmother of Marnie, Dylan, and Sophie, and the mother of Gwen. She is an experienced witch, and is very proud of the Cromwell legacy, believing that the Cromwell witch dynasty must continue with her grandchildren seeing as her daughter has rejected magic ever since she married a mortal. Aggie can’t understand why Gwen would want her children to be normal and actually seems quite happy when the three travel to Halloweentown, on their own, just to spend time with her. Aggie is also very excited to find that Marnie wants to train to be a witch, and does everything she can to help her, although their main quest to defeat the evil taking over Halloweentown, as well as her being frozen by that evil force, means that they don’t get to spend as much time training as they’d like to! But luckily, Aggie told Marnie just enough to get her to succeed in re-awakening her and Gwen, starting the process of defeating Kalabar once and for all. At the end of Halloweentown, Gwen asks Aggie to move to the mortal world with them so they can teach the children about magic and the town together, showing a thawing in the frostiness between them.

The legendary Debbie Reynolds was cast in the role of Aggie Cromwell, in what may seem a surprising career choice for her. The production team wanted a big name involved in the movie, so they were very excited to see that Reynolds was interested. She apparently wanted to become more involved in television, and took the role so that her granddaughter Billie Lourd could actually see something with her in it that she’d actually enjoy. Reynolds is well-known for her role as Kathy Selden in the movie musical Singin’ in the Rain (1952) being cast alongside Gene Kelly. She was later cast in The Unsinkable Molly Brown (1964) in the title role, even being nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actress for her performance. She also voiced the role of Charlotte in the 1973 animated adaptation of E.B. White’s book Charlotte’s Web. On stage, Reynolds received a Tony Award nomination for Best Actress in the 1973 Broadway revival of the musical Irene. Sadly, Reynolds passed away on 28^th December 2016, at the age of 84, just one day after the death of her daughter Carrie Fisher, who played Princess Leia in the Star Wars franchise.

Gwen Piper has chosen to ignore her former magical life, having chosen to settle in the mortal world with her mortal husband, and raise her children as mortals too. Gwen seemingly can’t wait for her kids’ 13^th Halloweens to have come and gone, so that they can lose their witch powers forever and never have to think about magic. However, Aggie doesn’t want to let that happen so this has created ongoing tension between the two. It is quite selfish for Gwen not to allow her children even the option to train as witches, with Aggie being quite happy to take on the job of training them if Gwen does not want to do it. Gwen can still live in the mortal world if she chooses to, but I can understand that Gwen thought she was doing the right thing, finding that a life as a mortal is safer than a life as a witch, which turns out to be accurate given what happened in Halloweentown with Kalabar! Gwen means well, but when she sees just how much magic and becoming a witch means to Marnie, and just how good she is at it, having found a way to defeat Kalabar mostly on her own, she admits that it has been unfair to not allow Marnie to train as a witch, and even decides that she will take responsibility for training, despite her misgivings about magic.

Judith Hoag was cast as Gwen Piper. Prior to her role in Halloweentown, she appeared as Melissa Shaw Elliott in the CBS crime drama Wolf (1989-90) and was cast as April O’Neil in the 1990 film Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (1990), this being the first movie based on the comic book characters. Joey Zimmerman was a huge fan of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, but waited until filming was over to tell Hoag so he could remain professional throughout filming[1].

Kalabar is the initially friendly Mayor of Halloweentown. He welcomes Marnie, Dylan, and Sophie, even doing silly magic tricks to impress Sophie, like making a huge lollipop appear. He seems kind and the biggest concern we have when we first see Kalabar is whether he’s planning on dating their mother Gwen, as he seems to still hold a torch for her after their time growing up together in Halloweentown. However, it all becomes clear that actually Kalabar wants to take over the mortal world, and he wants everyone in Halloweentown to help him do so. So determined is Kalabar, that he is willing to attack children to prevent them from stopping his plan. But he clearly underestimated the Piper children as they manage to defeat him anyway, hopefully forever, so Halloweentown and the mortal world are able to continue co-existing. Strangely, Kalabar’s name appears in the opening credits spelt as “Calabar”, however, most people spell the name with a “K” when referencing the movie and that is also how his name is spelt in the title of the first sequel.

Kalabar was played by Robin Thomas. He had previously been cast as Mark Singleton from 1983 to 1985 in the soap opera Another World (1964-99) and went on to be cast as Paul Kellogg in Season 1 of the NBC series The Mommies (1993-95). More recently, Thomas appeared as Marco Serrano in the series Crazy Ex-Girlfriend (2015-19) and has starred as Graham Winslow in the Mystery 101 Hallmark series of films.

Finally, there are a couple of Halloweentown residents to mention. One is Luke, who the Piper children are warned about early on in the film. Although most residents are becoming mean and horrible and then disappearing, Luke has actually become more handsome, with his warts being removed and his nose being made smaller. But with this new look, Luke’s personality has also changed, and he has started to act egotistical and arrogant. He is in fact an accomplice to Kalabar’s plot, however, when he sees Kalabar attack Aggie, something that he was not told about and does not want to be a part of, he rejects Kalabar and realises he was on the wrong side. From then on, Luke actively helps Marnie to defeat him; by using himself as a distraction so Marnie has time to install the talisman. At the end of the film, we see that with Kalabar gone, Luke’s face has returned to normal, and he has regrets over helping him. He apologises to Marnie and hopes they can be friends in the future, showing that Luke is not a bad guy; he just made some bad choices.

Luke was played by Phillip Van Dyke, who had previously been cast as Ellis Solomon in NBC’s The Home Court (1995-96) prior to his role in Halloweentown. Van Dyke has also done some voice work, such as voicing Young Martin in the direct-to-video sequel The Secret of NIMH 2: Timmy to the Rescue (1998) and Ivan Romanov in Bartok the Magnificent (1999). He was also the voice of Arnold Shortman in Seasons 2 and 3 of the Nickelodeon show Hey Arnold! (1996-2004). He went on to star as Noah Beznick in Nickelodeon’s Noah Knows Best (2000) after Halloweentown.

Then there is Benny the cab driver. Benny is a skeleton who happens to drive a taxi, not strange at all. He is chatty and clearly knows all the goings-on in Halloweentown, such as Luke’s sudden transformation. He makes a lot of jokes which the Piper children don’t always understand. Although Benny is generally a nice guy, he attacks Dylan after coming under the influence of Kalabar, leading to Sophie setting a dog on him to leave them alone. Benny returns at the end of the film, back to normal now Kalabar has gone. Benny’s voice was provided by Rino Romano. Romano has voiced Spider-Man in various video games and the series Spider-Man Unlimited (1999-2001). He also voiced Batman in the series The Batman (2004-08) and was the narrator of the Curious George animated series (2006-22).

MUSIC

Presumably to fit in with the fantastical setting, Halloweentown does not feature any generic pop songs within the movie, unlike many other Disney Channel movies, where these sorts of songs are used for montages, parties, and general background music.

Halloweentown simply relies on its score, composed by Mark Mothersbaugh. Mothersbaugh returned to Disney Channel to compose the music for the first Halloweentown sequel, Halloweentown II: Kalabar’s Revenge (2001), but also worked on the score for the DCOMs Can of Worms (1999) and The Even Stevens Movie (2003). Outside of this, Mothersbaugh has composed music for the Rugrats franchise, including for the original series, and its three theatrically-released movies The Rugrats Movie (1998), Rugrats in Paris: The Movie (2000), and Rugrats Go Wild (2003). He has also worked with Pixar previously, on the music for their series Cars Toons (2008-14) and is set to compose the score for their new movie Hoppers (2026).

The official score for Halloweentown was released digitally for the first time in September 2023, for the movie’s 25^th anniversary. This is quite uncommon for Disney Channel to do. If you’re lucky enough to find your favourite DCOM has an official soundtrack, it may only contain one track that is an excerpt of the movie’s score, if any portion of the score appears at all. This shows the popularity and recognisability of Halloweentown’s score

The soundtrack consists of 24 separate tracks, with the most recognisable track being the main Halloweentown theme. After a relatively mysterious opening, the track morphs into a jolly, upbeat tune to match the whimsical nature of Halloweentown. This music is repeated often throughout the movie, including in “Farewell” and “The Town Story”, and the End Credits. I also like “Aggie’s Bus Flies In”, which is another happy tune to match the excitement that Aggie feels visiting her grandchildren on Halloween night. This motif is repeated on the track “Bus Ride”, for when Marnie and Dylan follow Aggie onto the bus back to Halloweentown. The “Halloweentown Book Pt. 1” and “Halloweentown Book Pt. 2” tracks are quite relaxing too, used for when Aggie is telling her grandchildren a “bedtime story”, which is actually a book all about Halloweentown. “Cromwell’s Victory”, when the family overpower Kalabar using their collective powers, is another nice piece of music here. There are some spookier and more fearful inclusions in the score as well, to match the danger that is facing Halloweentown, such as “Cauldron”, and “Dark Theater”.

PRODUCTION

Halloweentown began life as a simple question asked by the stepdaughter of producer Sheri Singer. This question was: where do all the creatures from Halloween go after Halloween night is over? This gave Singer and her husband Steve White the concept for a new movie.

Initially, the two pitched the idea to NBC. NBC liked the original concept. Screenwriter Paul Bernbaum was then brought in to write the movie. Prior to Halloweentown, Bernbaum had created the science-fiction series Deadly Games (1995-96), and written the comedy movies Rent-a-Kid (1995), which starred Leslie Nielsen and Christopher Lloyd, and its sequel Family Plan (1997), which saw Leslie Nielsen return to the lead role. He had also written some episodes in the earlier seasons of the crime drama series 21 Jump Street (1987-91). After seeing the full script, NBC decided that Halloweentown was too young to fit their target audience, despite Bernbaum claiming that parts of it were quite scary. So, the idea was taken to Disney, who also passed on it. At least to begin with. After their first official Disney Channel Original Movie, Under Wraps, a kid-friendly Halloween movie, did well on its premiere in October 1997, Disney decided to move forward with Halloweentown.

Now the film was at Disney, two screenwriters, Jon Cooksey and Ali Matheson, came in to rewrite some parts of the original screenplay to ensure it fit with the younger audience that Disney would be aiming this new movie at. Jon Cooksey and Ali Matheson had previously worked on the original Rugrats (1991-2004) before co-writing Halloweentown, and went on to create the Canadian supernatural drama series The Collector (2004-06) together. There have been some comments over how much of the story was taken from Harry Potter in particular, since both stories are about a teenager finding they are a part of a magical dynasty, and needing training to fulfil their magical potential. They even both have a dark wizard who needs to be stopped by this young witch or wizard. The first Harry Potter novel, Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone, was published in June 1997 in the UK, however, it did not reach the US until September 1998, under the title Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, so it is unlikely that elements of Harry Potter were “stolen” by Disney; it is likely just a coincidence that these similarities exist, being found after Harry Potter became a success[2].

There was going to be a different ending to Halloweentown. Instead of Marnie putting the talisman into the town’s jack-o’-lantern, she was going to have to place the talisman in the middle of the forest where she would age with every step she took. Perhaps this ending was a bit too dark so that is why it was changed, but work had begun on this ending, with moulds of Kimberly J. Brown’s head being taken for the aging process. These were obviously not used, so Brown ending up taken one of her heads as a memento from set!

Duwayne Dunham was brought in to be the director of Halloweentown. Brink! (1998) was the first Disney Channel Original Movie to go into production, and Dunham had expected to be offered that, but was instead tasked with making Halloweentown. Halloweentown was the second DCOM to go into production, even though it became the fourth DCOM ever released. Dunham went on to direct numerous other Disney Channel movies, including The Thirteenth Year (1999), Double Teamed (2002), Tiger Cruise (2004), and Now You See It…. (2005). He also directed and edited some episodes of the original Twin Peaks (1990-91) as well as directing episodes of Twin Peaks: The Return (2017). Dunham won a Primetime Emmy award for Outstanding Single-Camera Picture Editing for a Drama Series for his work on the original Twin Peaks.

The budget for Halloweentown was reportedly cut from around $20-30 million to just $4 million, meaning that tough decisions had to be made to keep within budget. Remember, Disney Channel Original Movies back in the late 1990s and early 2000s were not the same movies that we have been watching since High School Musical and beyond. For example, special effects had to be used sparely, which isn’t easy when the film is all about magic, and the shoot only lasted around 24 days, and was filmed during a particularly hot summer in Oregon in July 1998. It was said that the extras were passing out from the heat in their hot monster costumes, and Debbie Reynolds apparently struggled in her thick velvet robe! The most expensive part of filming Halloweentown was Benny the cab driver because he was a real animatronic, with Rino Romano dubbing in Benny’s lines after filming.

A couple of other movie facts are that Kimberly J. Brown was actually holding a hair dryer with real flames coming out of it during the scene in the hairdressers, where they need hair from the werewolf, and that the Halloweentown story book that Aggie reads to the children early on in the movie was created for real as a fully finished and illustrated book, although only a few copies were made, solely for the shoot[3].

Although you might associate somewhere like Salem with being a filming location for a movie all about witches, like Disney’s Hocus Pocus (1993), production actually chose the site of St. Helens in Oregon, partly because it was mostly a ghost town after the Mount St. Helens volcano eruption in 1980. The crew felt it would be fun to create the town of Halloweentown right there, and the locals were said to be very happy to have them there[4]. Some specific locations include Plaza Square, home to the Halloweentown square and the huge jack-o’-lantern, and the Halloweentown movie theatre is on South 1^st Street[5]. The town of Scappoose, Oregon was the location of the suburban area where the Piper family live.

RECEPTION

Halloweentown first premiered on the US Disney Channel on 17^th October 1998. It brought in around 3.4 million viewers on its premiere, which doesn’t sound like much, but this was at the start of the Disney Channel Original Movie, with many premieres not even having any viewership information. DCOMs were just getting started[6].

It has been watched and loved by Disney Channel viewers throughout the 2000s though, and is a classic DCOM to watch over the Halloween season. It has many loyal fans, and much more positive reviews than negative ones, with many enjoying the characters and the casting choices, particularly that of Debbie Reynolds.

However, Halloweentown has not avoided all criticism. Some say the film is too silly and cheesy for most older children to enjoy and that it looks a bit cheap. I feel that it does look quite low-budget but that’s because it was. DCOMs back then aren’t what they are now. Others said the plot was basically just taking portions of other stories, such as Harry Potter, The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993) and Hocus Pocus. There are also comments about the story lacking much content or excitement, although it is admitted that this first movie was probably laying a foundation for further potential movies. Many of the negative comments also seem to be from people who found Halloweentown much later in life, and much later than its release date, with some of those thinking that you need the childhood nostalgia to really enjoy them, which I can agree with.

There is also a potential plot hole that if Marnie is already 13, then this would’ve been her 14^th Halloween, not her 13^th, but others have come back by saying that Marnie might be 12, but soon to be 13, so she is just saying she’s 13, because she basically is. I can’t say I noticed that, but I guess it makes sense! Another question is around Gwen and her husband’s first meeting, with many wondering if Gwen had to reunite with him the following Halloween, since the portal between Halloweentown and the mortal world is only open on Halloween, or did she stay in the mortal world from that night on[7]? I would’ve liked to have seen more about this, but it’s just a lack of a backstory and doesn’t change the film’s plot.

Halloweentown was not nominated for any major awards, however, two of its young cast were nominated for their performances. Kimberly J. Brown was nominated in the category of Best Performance in a TV Movie/Pilot/Mini-Series, or Series: Leading Young Actress at the Young Artist Awards, and Phillip Van Dyke was nominated for a YoungStar Award for Best Young Actor in a Mini-Series/Made for TV Film.

LEGACY

As most viewers of Halloweentown know, this was just the first in a series of four movies. The first sequel Halloweentown II: Kalabar’s Revenge came to Disney Channel in 2001.

Outside of that, Halloweentown has been remembered in a celebration held in the town of St. Helens over the Halloween season. This event is called Spirit of Halloweentown, and usually runs from the last weekend in September to 31^st October.

Spirit of Halloweentown pays homage to the 1998 DCOM, with decorations filling up the town, taking around two weeks to set up, including a fiberglass jack-o’-lantern taking pride of place in the Plaza Square, just like the one in the movie. The event includes a haunted house, a hay maze, and a train ride taking riders on a tour of filming locations.

The first Spirit of Halloweentown parade was organised in 1998 to celebrate the movie’s release, and was later revived a few years later, eventually morphing into the event it has become today. Many special guests come for the event, with Phillip Van Dyke, who played Luke, coming to St. Helens for the first weekend in October in 2025, and Kimberly J. Brown, Emily Roeske, and Joey Zimmerman, who played Marnie, Sophie, and Dylan, came the weekend before. Kimberly J. Brown was also joined by husband Daniel Kountz who appears in Halloweentown II: Kalabar’s Revenge[8].

The Spirit of Halloweentown event first came to the attention of the general public when Kimberly J. Brown made an appearance there back in 2015. She returned again in 2016, and for 2017, she was joined by the rest of the cast that make up the Piper family in order to dedicate a monument to honour Debbie Reynolds after her death[9].

Halloweentown celebrated its 25^th anniversary in 2023 and in the town of St. Helens, that did not go unnoticed during the Halloween season, with the whole weekend of 21^st to 22^nd October 2023 at Spirit of Halloweentown being dedicated to the movie. The teen vampire romance film Twilight (2008) was also partially filmed at St Helens. 2023 happened to be the 15^th anniversary of that movie, so Twilight was also celebrated over one weekend[10].

Alongside that, the “official Disney fan club” D23 released a 25^th anniversary pin for Halloweentown in 2023, of the Halloweentown pumpkin, exclusively for D23 Gold members. D23 also set up a special screening of Halloweentown at St. Helens on 21^st October 2023. This was a ticketed event, including all-day access to the Spirit of Halloweentown event.

The short-form Disney animated series Chibi Tiny Tales (2020-present),which features Disney characters animated in the Japanese “chibi” animation style, released an episode called Halloweentown: As Told by Chibi in 2020 whereby the events of the Halloweentown movie were condensed into a roughly one-minute animated short. There were two other Chibi short episodes released involving Halloweentown. One was called Halloweentown: Haircut, also released in October 2020, which saw Marnie going around Halloweentown with Aggie to get her hair cut. Aggie tries to convince Marnie to let the werewolf hairdresser, who appears in the original film, cut her hair. Finally, Halloweentown: First Date Fright, also from October 2020, sees Marnie go on a date with Luke, presumably after the events of Halloweentown since Luke is back to his normal goblin self, where Marnie finds herself unable to eat the strange delicacies of Halloweentown.

FINAL THOUGHTS

Halloweentown will always be watched over the Halloween season, being a family-friendly Halloween movie that can be enjoyed by the majority of people.

It is also one of the first Disney Channel Original Movies ever released, at a time where the channel was trying to figure out just where its original programming was going, so it has an important place in Disney Channel history too.

Although I am not a fan of Halloween, I do still find Halloweentown enjoyable, even if I do not need to watch it and the full series every Halloween. I simply do not have that childhood love for it, or that obsession with Halloween, that would allow me to do that. But the die-hard fans clearly do, and that is why Halloweentown has continued to be praised and remembered years after it first premiered.

REFERENCES

[1] Credit: Jim Korkis, The Vault of Walt 9: Halloween Edition (2020), ‘The Halloweentown Saga (1998-2006)’, pp. 85-101.

[2] Credit: Jim Korkis, The Vault of Walt 9: Halloween Edition (2020), ‘The Halloweentown Saga (1998-2006)’, pp. 85-101.

[3] Credit: Emily Leschhorn, ’20 Wild Details Behind The Making Of Halloweentown’, ScreenRant.com, 14^th November 2022.

[4] Credit: Tierney Bricker, ‘These 15 Secrets About Halloweentown Are Not Vastly Overrated’, EOnline.com, 12^th October 2019.

[5] Credit: Kate Bove, ‘Where Is Halloweentown In Oregon?’, ScreenRant.com, 29^th September 2023.

[6] Credit: Denise Martin, ‘Disney bewitches young aud’, Variety.com, 23^rd October 2006.

[7] Credit: Lindsay Press, ’10 Things That Make No Sense About The Halloweentown Franchise’, ScreenRant.com, 10^th October 2022.

[8] Credit: Samantha Swindler, ‘How this small Oregon town transforms into ‘Halloweentown’ each fall’, OregonLive.com, 20^th September 2025.

[9] Credit: Kristi Turnquist, ‘‘Halloweentown’: 9 reasons why the TV movie is still magical’, OregonLive.com, 29^th September 2017.

[10] Credit: St Helens, ‘Spirit of Halloweentown Celebrates 25^th Filming Anniversary’, StHelensOregon.gov, 21^st August 2023.

26th Sep 202523rd Oct 2025 by The Disney Purist

How to Build a Better Boy (2014)

BACKGROUND

In the early 2010s, my favourite Disney Channel series and movies were all ending, like Sonny with a Chance (2009-11), Camp Rock, and Wizards of Waverly Place (2007-12). Disney Channel was moving away from the stars I’d grown up with, so I decided it was time I moved on from Disney Channel too.

For the most part, that was true, although Descendants and Liv and Maddie (2013-17) occasionally brought me back. But every time I watched trailers or adverts on Disney Channel at that time for new shows or DCOMs, I felt like the whole channel was changing and it was becoming something very different from what I’d known as a tween or teen.

If you talk to anyone who has watched Disney Channel, they will tell you that whatever was on when they were watching was the best, therefore, their era of Disney Channel was superior to any other. So, the 2010s are not “my era”, and they never will be. I will always prefer what was on in the 2000s to anything from the 2010s onwards. My stars were Selena Gomez, Miley Cyrus, and Demi Lovato.

But those watching in the 2010s had their own stars, many of whom became household names, like Zendaya, Dove Cameron, and China Anne McClain. The 2010s hold their breakout moments, thanks to a mixture of leading roles in series and star performances in Disney Channel Original Movies. Just one of these was 2014’s How to Build a Better Boy.

As we all know, Disney Channel like to put well-known Disney names front and centre of their movies. It’s good for viewership and good for business. In this case, they took China Anne McClain from A.N.T Farm (2011-14) and teamed her up with Kelli Berglund from Lab Rats (2012-16) for this film.

I had not seen How to Build a Better Boy before, apart from perhaps seeing a few clips. I also hadn’t seen Kelli Berglund in anything previously, although I did know McClain from various Disney and non-Disney projects beforehand. I’ve always liked her. That definitely helped me like this movie more than perhaps I would have had the two leads both been completely unknown to me.

How to Build a Better Boy was not the best DCOM I’ve ever seen, but it wasn’t the worst either. I found it was fairly entertaining and watchable, mostly because the premise was not unique to me, whereas this seems to have irritated others, who called it a “rip off”, as it is quite similar to a certain 1980s John Hughes comedy.

PLOT

How to Build a Better Boy begins with the US Army and Department of Defense pursuing two fugitives who have stolen a $3 billion weapon from the government. The fugitives are trapped and told by a general that they will be tried for treason and should show themselves to stop things getting worse. Another man says they definitely should – or they won’t be able to attend Homecoming… Um, what? It is revealed these fugitives are two teenage girls.

The story really begins two days earlier. At school, these two girls, Mae and Gabby, are sophomores but they are excelling in their academics, going to classes with the Seniors. They are seen as “nerds” who don’t fit in with the rest of their class. Mae spends time tutoring too, with one of those she tutors being Jaden, a jock who needs help in Math. Mae has a huge crush on Jaden, but Gabby continuously tells her that Jaden is not and will never be interested in someone like her, but Mae clings on to some hope that perhaps he does. Mae gets a text from Jaden, saying to meet him after football practice, which makes Mae wonder if he’s going to ask her to the Homecoming Dance. After all, he told her in tutoring that she ought to go to the dance… Gabby tells her that is not going to happen.

Popular girl Nevaeh approaches the two as they wait to see what Jaden wants to talk to Mae about. Nevaeh tells Mae that she will be going to Homecoming with Jaden because they’ve been going out for a whole 17 days! Jaden comes up to them after practice and says he was actually going to ask Mae for some extra help with his Math. Embarrassed, Mae tells them all that she already has a hot boyfriend, called Albert. He’s a genius, and sporty, and charitable, and just amazing. Nevaeh calls Mae’s bluff and says she wants to meet him. Mae and Gabby are picked up from school by Mae’s brother Bart. He says he saw Mae’s conversation with Nevaeh on the school’s website, humiliating Mae further.

That evening, Mae and Gabby discuss the fake boyfriend problem. Mae admits she’ll probably just have to tell the truth and say Albert was completely made-up. Gabby comes up with a better idea though: they’ll make Gabby a fake virtual boyfriend, using Mae’s father’s software from his video game company. It’s not like he works for the government.

Except it turns out Mae’s father actually does work for the US government, with the video game company being a cover. Mae’s father, Dr. James Hartley, has been working on the creation of a covert robotic operative, basically the perfect spy. He has just been given clearance to make this robot a reality.

Back at home, Gabby starts hacking into the software, known as X-17, causing all the technology at both Dr. Hartley’s laboratory and home office to switch on. Gabby gets Mae to answer the question prompts to build the boyfriend’s look and personality, covering areas like political allegiance, capabilities, personality, and even commander name. Once those have been answered, Gabby and Mae get their first look at “Albert”. A spark shocks them both from Gabby’s laptop screen, and the whole laboratory goes into overload as the “X-17” begins fabrication. Gabby says she can smell smoke, and thinks they may have fried some circuits. Going downstairs, the girls discover the mess is so much worse than that as all of Dr. Hartley’s home office equipment has been completely destroyed – and he’s on his way home! Gabby asks Mae’s brother Bart to stall him and keep him away from the office. Bart says he’ll only do that if Gabby agrees to be his date to the Homecoming dance. Under pressure, she says she will and goes about fixing the servers and equipment. When Bart and Mae’s father comes home, Bart distracts him with tea and jazz music, causing Dr. Hartley to fall asleep almost instantly. That buys them some time.

In the morning, Bart is left to continue fixing the equipment as Mae and Gabby head off to school. Dr. Hartley gets an urgent call from the lab and rushes over to work. At school, Nevaeh amusingly says that Mae’s boyfriend Albert added their classmates on social media last night, with Nevaeh obviously believing it was just Mae, having created a fake online profile for her fake boyfriend. As Mae is about to explain, Albert arrives to school in a bright orange Lamborghini, drawing everyone’s attention. Mae and Gabby are as shocked as everyone else at seeing that Albert is actually a real person!

At the lab, General McFee alerts Dr. Hartley to the fact this is a national emergency, as their robotic operative has gone. McFee thinks this was a hacking and a theft, and that they must find the X-17 and whoever took him. Unfortunately, the X-17 was built to be a covert spy, so no CCTV picks the robot up, neither leaving the room nor the building. The only piece of information they have is from a dogwalker who saw an attractive man leaving the building the night before – which isn’t much to go on.

Back at school, Albert is charming Mae and her classmates with his sensitivity, talent, and attractiveness. All except Gabby, who is annoyed that Mae is now spending all her time with Albert and ignoring her, as well as being very confused about why Albert is real. She believes he is an actor sent by the video game company to impersonate their virtual character and be a form of advertising, but Albert says he is very real – although his ability to read at lightning-fast speed would seem to suggest he is not exactly human, confusing Gabby further. Albert says he will kiss Mae at Homecoming, this being his mission. Bart calls Gabby to ask what is going on, since he’s seen pictures of Albert online and doesn’t like the idea of his little sister having an actual boyfriend.

Later, Albert is told to try out for football by the school’s coach who is impressed by his strength, endearing him to even more of the girls at school. Jaden is starting to feel a bit jealous of him though, especially as Mae forgets all about their tutoring session that afternoon to go to the park with Albert. Gabby also shows up at the park, not enjoying how nature is affecting her allergies, but she is soon told to leave Mae and Albert alone to talk. Fine, Gabby will just go and sneeze in a corner by herself then, yeah? Albert asks Mae to the Homecoming dance. She isn’t sure how to answer that and goes to talk to Gabby. Gabby tells Mae this wasn’t part of the plan, which was for them to graduate from school early and go to Harvard together, before becoming President and Vice President of the United States. Mae tells Gabby that wasn’t her plan, and says she likes Albert and having a boyfriend. Their conversation – or argument – is interrupted by Albert singing to Mae, drawing a crowd. They finish the song together, and Mae says she’ll go to Homecoming with Albert. Bart calls Gabby to say they need to get home now, because there is something very wrong with this situation. Gabby goes alone.

Meanwhile, at the lab, the government fear that the arms dealer group Black Sigma are behind the theft of the X-17 robot. They ask Dr. Hartley if the lab contains the only copy of the software. He tells them that actually there is a copy at his home office.

At the house, Black Sigma are scouting out the area, ready to go in. They are annoyed someone stole the X-17 before they could, so now they’ll have to find it. Also at the house, Gabby is told by Bart that, after fixing the computer, he learnt that Gabby has hacked into the Pentagon and tells her that his father works for the Department of Defense. Gabby is surprised that she managed to hack the Pentagon. On the computer, they find the manual for the X-17 robotic operative and this is where they learn that Albert is the X-17. At that moment, Black Sigma break into the office, so Bart and Gabby hide. Black Sigma take the X-17 files and destroy the servers. Government officials then arrive at the house and question Bart and Gabby. They pretend that they didn’t see anything and quickly make their excuses to leave the house. Black Sigma follow Bart and Gabby, hoping to be led to the X-17.

Gabby rushes to Mae and tells her she is the mission commander of Albert so is the only one who can shut Albert down. Mae refuses to do this, as she is now happy and popular, with her little group of fans wanting Gabby’s help with finding a perfect boyfriend too. Gabby tells Mae Albert is just a robot, but Mae ignores her, saying she loves him. At a loss what to do next, Gabby tells Bart that Mae wouldn’t let her explain the full story.

Albert has been tracked down by Black Sigma to the school and one of the men tries to attack Albert, but Albert fights him off and knocks him out. The other members of the group later find their guy in the storage room. They decide they need an electromagnetic pulse device to disable Albert.

Albert is put into the football game as the team are losing. He helps the team make a comeback with his insane speed and strength, simply running through opponents who cling on to Albert in the hopes of bringing him down. It doesn’t work. At the same time, the General is reporting the burglary at Dr. Hartley’s home to the police when one of them shows the General a video of the football game. The General sees that it is the X-17 playing. They go to the school.

As the game ends, Black Sigma use their device, and the Department of Defense arrive too to retrieve Albert. Albert is momentarily stunned by the pulse but makes an escape. The army’s arrival at the school causes everyone to scatter, with Gabby finally telling Mae everything she knows about Albert and what they’ve done. They go and hide. Nevaeh happens to overhear all this new information about Albert.

The government catch Black Sigma, but the X-17 is nowhere to be found, so they go after who stole him. The girls are tracked down, as per the opening scene. They are taken back to Dr. Hartley’s lab and are warned that what they’ve done could have had severe consequences for the world. However, they are told they are free to go as the General knows their intentions were nothing harmful. Mae asks where Albert is. The General says his system was temporarily taken down because of the electromagnetic pulse, but that he rebooted back to his default soldier mode, and is being tracked doing good all over the world. Mae is devastated that Albert won’t be with her anymore, but she believes he will come back for her, which frustrates Gabby who cannot get through to Mae.

At the Homecoming dance, Gabby arrives with Bart, and Jaden arrives with Nevaeh. He tries to talk to Mae, who arrives alone, but Nevaeh pulls him away. Suddenly, Mae sees a car pull up and who should come out of it but Albert. Dr. Hartley, who dropped Mae off at the dance, is also shocked but happy Mae gets to keep her date for Homecoming. But the General and the army arrive at the dance, knowing that this is where he would be. They plan to take the X-17 by force, but Dr. Hartley says if they let Albert finish his mission, which is to kiss Mae at the dance, then Albert will come peacefully. The General doesn’t want to do this, but when Dr. Hartley threatens to quit, the General reconsiders and orders everyone to prepare for “Operation Pucker Up”.

Inside, everyone is surprised to see Albert and Mae arrive together. Gabby tells Albert there is no way that he and Mae will ever be together, but he ignores her. Nevaeh and Jaden argue about how self-obsessed she is, and the two break up. As Homecoming Queen is announced, Mae is shocked to discover she was voted Homecoming Queen, which also horrifies Nevaeh who was sure it would be her. Dr. Hartley is so proud of his daughter – until he’s told by the General that they stuffed the ballot box to ensure she won! Nevaeh interrupts Mae’s Homecoming Queen speech and attempts to reveal Albert’s true identity. Instead, Jaden and others make out that Nevaeh is merely complimenting him, by calling him “dangerous” and a “machine”. She is ignored and the dance continues.

Jaden tells Bart and Gabby that he has spent too much time worrying about what people think. He admits he wanted to ask Mae to the dance but never had the guts to do so, and now she is with Albert. Gabby is annoyed at herself for always telling Mae that Jaden never liked her, when actually he did. She goes to find her and apologises for what she said about Jaden, saying she hasn’t been a very good friend to Mae recently, feeling like she’s been holding Mae back. The two reconcile.

Mae and Albert are given a slow dance together in front of everyone, which has been carefully manufactured with lights, rose petals, and a sparkly moon by the General to make sure this kiss happens. However, as Albert leans in, Mae pulls back, saying this isn’t how she wanted her first kiss to be because it is all too perfect and doesn’t feel real. Mae then sees that the army are all around them. Albert says he already knew but he had to make this the best night of Mae’s life. Now that it is over, he asks Mae to say the words. Mae tells him to initiate self-destruct. He says goodbye and his self-destruction begins, ripping a hole in the roof as he flies up and into the sky. To cover up the true reason for this, Bart tells everyone to appreciate the special effect display that the school put on for the dance!

The dance continues. Jaden talks to Mae and tells her that the line of smoke Albert left behind is a perfect logarithmic curve. He says he was never bad at Math and actually just liked spending time with his tutor. Jaden asks Mae to dance, but she says no, choosing to talk to Gabby instead. Mae tells Gabby she shouldn’t have let anything or anyone get in the way of their friendship, not even boys. Gabby then admits that she actually likes Mae’s brother. Mae takes this information quite well! The two dance the night away together.

CHARACTERS & CAST

Mae Hartley has spent much of her school life fully focused on academics, with the aim of graduating early and moving on to bigger and better opportunities. She is joined, or perhaps coaxed, into this journey by her best friend Gabby. However, Mae has started to think that they’ve missed out on the other social elements of high school, like having a large group of friends, and, of course, having boyfriends. Mae has a crush on football player Jaden, and really believes she has a chance with him. Since everyone, including her best friend, laughs at Mae for believing this, she makes up a whole fake boyfriend to cover her embarrassment, but when he miraculously comes to life, Mae turns out to be the one laughing. Albert, her new boyfriend, is as perfect as anyone can be. Although Mae likes Albert, and the newfound popularity his presence brings her, by the end of How to Build a Better Boy, Mae has realised that she’d much rather stick with her friend Gabby and actually try to find a boyfriend who may not be perfect but is at least real. That may’ve ended up being Jaden, but for now, Mae is trying to work out who she is and what she wants from life.

Kelli Berglund was cast as Mae, also starring as Bree Davenport in the Disney XD series Lab Rats (2012-16) at the time of filming How to Build a Better Boy. After her time on Disney, Berglund went on to appear as Madison in the movie Cherry (2021), starring Tom Holland, and appeared as Ren in Seasons 7 and 9 of the sitcom The Goldbergs (2013-23). She was also cast as Crystal Tyler in the Starz series Heels (2021-23) and more recently was cast as Nell Stewart in Queen of the Ring (2024).

Albert Banks is a robotic operative, officially known as X-17. Albert was meant to be a soldier, completing operations around the globe on behalf of the US government, however, when Mae and Gabby hack into the software, which they believe is just for a computer game company and would create them a virtual boyfriend, the X-17 comes to life as Albert, Mae’s perfect boyfriend. Albert is tall, blond, and athletic. He is sensitive, caring, and always knows the right thing to say. All the girls at school are jealous of Mae for having such a perfect boyfriend and they all want to find someone just like that. Albert also makes all the guys at school jealous, because they want to be as skilled a football player as him. Albert is devoted to Mae, and not embarrassed about showing his feelings one bit. Because of this, Mae instantly becomes attached to Albert, to the point she won’t listen to reason: that he is basically a robot spy and only cares about whatever he is programmed to care about; he doesn’t like Mae for her. But Mae was right to think he did actually like her, because Albert returns to school just to take her to Homecoming and to kiss her, which would complete his “mission”, despite the fact he knows the army are there to capture him. Albert even understands when Mae can’t go through with their kiss, and tells Mae to initiate his self-destruct so they can move on, showing Albert is the perfect boyfriend even in a break-up!

Marshall Williams was cast as Albert, going on to be cast in the recurring role of Spencer Porter in the final series of Glee (2009-15). Williams later appeared as Sam Tremblay in the first two seasons of the drama When Hope Calls (2019-present).

Gabby is Mae’s best friend; however, Gabby and Mae have differing opinions on one thing in particular: boys. Gabby doesn’t have time for boys. She just wants to graduate high school, go to Harvard, and then become the first female President of the United States, all with Mae by her side throughout, potentially even being her Vice President. Wow, how kind of you, Gabby! Gabby doesn’t think Mae should be thinking about boys like Jaden, but not wanting her friend to be embarrassed, and probably wanting to prove she can hack an IT system, Gabby helps Mae create her virtual boyfriend. Gabby never expected Albert to turn up as a real person though, nor did she expect Mae to become so obsessed with Albert that she ignores Gabby. Gabby discovers from Mae’s brother, Bart, that she accidentally hacked the Pentagon, not realising that they were building a robotic boyfriend, not a virtual one. But when Gabby tries to tell Mae the truth about this, Mae doesn’t listen, creating a major divide between the two. Eventually, this rift is healed at Homecoming as they both apologise for their behaviour, Gabby for not caring about Mae’s feelings for Jaden, and Mae for not listening to Gabby. It all works out in the end, and Gabby even starts to realise that boys aren’t so bad, after she starts dating Mae’s brother! The dynamic between Gabby and Mae reminded me a lot of Ben and Mandy’s friendship in Disney’s Prom Pact (2023), where the bossier friend, in this case Gabby, believes that their friend, in this case Mae, is happy with things being just the way they are, when in actual fact, they want something different.

Gabby Harrison was played by China Anne McClain. McClain’s acting career began at a young age when she chose to star as Jazmine Payne in Tyler Perry’s House of Payne (2007-present), a role which she returned to in 2020. McClain also starred alongside Cameron Boyce in the Adam Sandler films Grown Ups (2010) and Grown Ups 2 (2013). For Disney, McClain first appeared on the channel in the recurring role of Kiara in Jonas (2009-10), before securing a major role as Chyna Parks in the series A.N.T. Farm (2011-14), where she won the NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Performance in a Youth/Children’s Program. McClain was later cast as Freddie, daughter of Dr. Facilier, in the animated series Descendants: Wicked World (2015-17). When McClain was cast as Uma in Descendants 2 (2017), returning for the films that followed, her sister, Lauryn, took over this voice role. More recently, McClain was cast as Chantal Taylor in Adam Sandler’s Hubie Halloween (2020), and as Jennifer Pierce/Lightning in the superhero series Black Lightning (2018-21) on The CW. She also starred as Morgan Brewster in Brewster’s Millions: Christmas (2024), a Christmas-themed sequel to the 1985 comedy film Brewster’s Millions.

Mae’s brother Bart is immediately seen to be interested in Gabby, his sister’s best friend, although we are not sure how or why his feelings have evolved in this way. Bart shows Gabby that he likes her by basically blackmailing her to go to Homecoming with him; he says he’ll distract his father whilst Gabby and Mae attempt to fix all the technology in Dr. Hartley’s home office after they destroy it. Bart and Gabby do end up going to Homecoming, but not before they become united in their determination to stop Mae and Albert being together after learning he is an important weapon to the US government. Bart is actually quite panicky when he learns this fact, whereas Gabby takes this new information in her stride and is mostly just annoyed that Mae won’t listen to her, whereas Bart is clearly concerned about the consequences they’ll face when they are discovered to be the hackers… Well, Bart is just an accomplice to hacking, I guess, but I’m sure that’s still a criminal offence.

Matt Shively was cast as Bart Hartley, having previously starred as Ryan Laserbeam in the Nickelodeon series True Jackson, VP (2008-11) and voiced the character of Sky in the animated series Winx Club (2011-19) and its 2012 and 2013 movies. After Nickelodeon, and Disney, Shively later appeared as Damo in Power Rangers (2017); Larry in Father of the Year (2018); and Alex in The Wedding Year (2019). More recently, Shively starred as Quinten Mark Van Bryan in the sitcom Lopez vs Lopez (2022-25).

As with any teen comedy, although the “nerdy ones” might be the leads, there has to be some popular people to create conflict. In this case, we have the popular girl who is set to be Homecoming Queen, Nevaeh, whose name, as Albert points out, is “heaven” spelt backwards – although what the significance is of that, I don’t know; it’s not like she acts like an angel. Nevaeh is the one to alert the whole school to the fact that Mae has a crush on Jaden, something that would never be reciprocated, as everyone continues to tell Mae. Nevaeh calls Mae out on her fake boyfriend Albert, thinking Mae has just created an online profile, so she is very surprised when Albert turns out to be real – and she doesn’t like how much more popular Albert is than her own boyfriend, Jaden, or how much more popular Mae becomes by being with him. This makes Nevaeh jealous and wanting ammunition against Mae – and she finds it, because she overhears Gabby explaining who Albert is to Mae when the army gatecrash their football game. Nevaeh is then made even more angry when she loses out on Homecoming Queen to Mae so she attempts to warn everyone about the fact Albert is a robot, who could be dangerous. But nobody actually listens, as her speech is interrupted by Jaden. Jaden is the jock that Mae has been tutoring, but he is scared about what people would think if he dated a smart girl, so he keeps his mouth shut about his feelings and lets Nevaeh push him around. Eventually, Jaden stands up to Nevaeh and breaks up with her at Homecoming and then lets Mae know that he does like her, and actually only wanted to be tutored by her so he could spend time with her. Although Mae is clearly touched by this, she won’t let Jaden win her that easily. He’ll just have to try harder.

Nevaeh was played by Ashley Argota, who also played a character in Nickelodeon’s True Jackson, VP (2008-11), Lulu, before joining Kelli Berglund in Lab Rats (2012-16) with her role as Taylor. Argota was later cast as Lou Chan in the sitcom The Fosters (2013-18). Noah Centineo was cast as Jaden Stark, and his career has sky-rocketed since How to Build a Better Boy and his recurring role as Dallas on Disney’s Austin & Ally (2011-16). After this, Centineo went on to replace Jake T. Austin as Jesus Adams Foster in The Fosters (2013-18) from Season 3. He was then cast in a selection of Netflix romantic comedies, such as the To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before trilogy where he played Peter; Swiped (2018) being cast as Lance; and The Perfect Date (2019), starring as Brooks. He starred as Owen Hendricks in the Netflix series The Recruit (2022-25) and is set to play Ken Masters in Street Fighter, the 2026 movie adaptation of the video game series of the same name.

Alongside this main plot taking place at the school, the side plot involves Dr. Hartley and General McFee trying to work out who hacked into Dr. Hartley’s laboratory and stole the X-17 robotic operative. Obviously, this is important to the security of the US, and the General initially fears it is the arms dealer group Black Sigma who has done this. They are after the X-17 but they were not the culprits. Dr. Hartley and the General couldn’t have been more surprised that it was two silly teenage girls who did this, with one of them being Dr. Hartley’s daughter. General McFee is clearly mostly interested in getting the X-17 back in the hands of the US government, which is exactly what he should be doing, but Dr. Hartley is concerned about his daughter’s feelings after X-17, known to Mae and the others as Albert, is swiftly taken away from her. He doesn’t want Mae to be upset about this, which is why, when Albert does return to take Mae to Homecoming, he convinces the General to let Albert finish his mission, and then Albert will peacefully go with the army. So, the General sets about making this the most romantic Homecoming dance ever, except Albert tricks him and actually self-destructs on Mae’s order, leaving the General with nothing and Dr. Hartley with a feeling of pride that his daughter got one over on them! Dr. Hartley can always make another robot.

Ron Lea was cast as General McFee. Lea had previously been cast as Brian Malony in the Canadian legal drama Street Legal (1987-1994) and as Dr. Oliver Crane in the medical drama Doc (2001-04) which starred Billy Ray Cyrus. Around the time of How to Build a Better Boy, Lea was appearing as Gavin Hardcastle in the sci-fi thriller Orphan Black (2013-17). Dr. James Hartley was played by stage and screen actor Roger Bart. On stage, Bart won a Tony for his role as Snoopy in the 1999 production of You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown, before starring as both Carmen Ghia and Leo Bloom in various productions of The Producers in the 2000s. Recently, Bart originated the role of Dr. Emmett Brown in Back to the Future: The Musical, starring on the West End in London from 2021 to 2023, before moving over to Broadway from 2023 to 2025. On screen, Bart reprised his role as Carmen Ghia in the 2005 movie version of The Producers (2005) and appeared in the recurring role of George Williams in Desperate Housewives (2004-12). He was also cast as Mason Treadwell in Revenge (2011-15), and more recently, as Judge Wilson in Good Trouble (2019-24). Bart also provided the singing voice of Hercules in Disney Animation’s Hercules (1997) and played the role of Hades in the Off-Broadway 2019 stage production of the film at the Delacorte Theater in Central Park.

MUSIC

The soundtrack for How to Build a Better Boy contains a mixture of songs made famous by Disney Channel’s own singers and actors, as well as a selection of pop music.

From the Disney category, we have “Stand Out” performed by pop princess Sabrina Carpenter. At the time, Carpenter was starring on the channel in their series Girl Meets World (2014-17) as Maya Hart, alongside releasing music for Disney’s label Hollywood Records. She has since had various No. 1 singles like “Espresso”, “Please Please Please”, and “Nonsense”. Her song “Stand Out” is used for both the Opening and End Credits in How to Build a Better Boy. It was written by Carpenter, Rune Westberg, and Stevie Scott.

Following that we have a cover of Selena Gomez & the Scene’s 2011 song “Love You Like a Love Song” from their third and final album When the Sun Goes Down. In 2014, Gomez was no longer a fixture on Disney Channel screens, and she was releasing music as a solo artist. But the use of this song in How to Build a Better Boy shows how popular her music still was, especially amongst Disney Channel viewers. In the movie, “Love You Like a Love Song” is performed by Marshall Williams and Kelli Berglund, as Albert and Mae, during the sequence of them in the park after school. Albert begins singing alone with only a ukulele as accompaniment and is then joined by Mae to make it a duet. “Love You Like a Love Song” was written by Antonina Armato, Tim James, and Adam Schmalholz.

The final song used in How to Build a Better Boy to feature a Disney Channel star is “Something Real”. This is used for the final scene at Homecoming, and is performed by China Anne McClain and Kelli Berglund. It was written by Antonina Armato, Tim James, IN-Q, and Thomas Sturges. The song details Gabby and Mae’s journey throughout the movie, however, it is only used as background music, so they do not perform it in the film as their characters.

Outside of this, when Albert first arrives at school, much to the surprise of everyone, “Is That All You Got” by BossHouse is used. After that, we have the song that plays during the montage sequence of Mae and Albert at school together, where he plans a lunch date for her on the football field and frees the frogs that were meant to be used in Biology class. This song is “Higher”, by Scott Stallone, Steven Stern, Cristi Vaughan, Matt Todd Naylor, and David Wade. During the football game, the song playing as Albert outruns everyone on the field was not a song that I managed to find.

For Mae and Albert’s slow dance at Homecoming, the song “Your Ways / I Love Your Ways” by Chuckie Perez is used. There were a few others at the dance that were more difficult to figure out. I believe one song briefly playing during this dance is “Come On Now” by Miss Amani. This is closely followed by “Today’s the Day”, performed by Michelle Lewis, as Mae is voted Homecoming Queen. The other two songs used at Homecoming I have not been able to work out, despite some lyrics being more audible than most background music.

The score for How to Build a Better Boy was composed by Kenneth Burgomaster, who has composed the score for numerous DCOMs, including Wizards of Waverly Place: The Movie (2009) and The Swap (2016). He also composed music for Disney Channel series like Dog with a Blog (2012-15) and A.N.T. Farm (2011-14). The full score has been uploaded as a playlist on Burgomaster’s official YouTube Channel.

PRODUCTION

Production on How to Build a Better Boy was announced in the summer of 2013, with filming completed between July and August of that year. Much of the cast was announced, alongside a brief plot, and a potential premiere date of 2014.

This new movie was seen to be a part of the Disney Channel’s changing of direction as some beloved shows like Shake It Up (2010-13) and Good Luck Charlie (2010-14) were coming to end, and new series like Girl Meets World (2014-17), I Didn’t Do It (2014-15), and Liv and Maddie (2013-17) were coming in, bringing in a new cast of Disney Channel stars[1].

The director was confirmed to be Paul Hoen, who has directed numerous Disney Channel Original Movies during his career, both musical and non-musical. In the non-musical category, some of his credits include directing Read It and Weep (2006), Eddie’s Million Dollar Cook-Off (2003), and The Luck of the Irish (2001). In the world of musicals, he directed Camp Rock 2: The Final Jam (2010), The Cheetah Girls: One World (2008), and the entire ZOMBIES movie franchise. Jason Mayland was the screenwriter for How to Build a Better Boy, having previously worked on the animated movie Space Chimps (2008) as well as writing episodes of the animated Disney Junior series Eureka! (2022-23).

How to Build a Better Boy was filmed in Toronto, Canada, with one specific location being the Ron Joyce football stadium at McMaster University campus, obviously used for the football game in the film. Filming took place at this location in early August 2013 for a few days. Production liked the McMaster name and their eagle logo so much that they sought permission to use it, and rewrote their script to make the movie’s school the fictional McMaster High School[2]. North Toronto Collegiate Institute was used for the high school.

There are elements of stunts in How to Build a Better Boy, to match Albert’s spy capabilities. Director Hoen worked together with stunt coordinator Branko Racki, who had previously worked on Pacific Rim (2013), Disney’s The Pacifier (2005), and Pompeii (2014) just to name a few, to work out some of these sequences. One of these includes a fight scene between Albert and a member of Black Sigma. To suit the teen movie genre, instead of this being an action-packed scene with lots of kicks and punches, it was lessened to include mostly blocking motions and no hits to the face.

Another difficult stunt sequence was the football game, which required Albert to run down the pitch at speed. Marshall Williams, who was cast as Albert, first read for the part of Jaden, but Hoen suggested he read for Albert instead, as they were struggling to find someone who fit the character. Williams had the physicality, was a football player, and a model. Hoen and Racki said Williams was a good athlete and very capable with his stunts, although stunt doubles were also used. The shot of Albert having four or five players clinging on to him was not actually done as it appears, with some “movie magic” achieving this. Players actually ran at a padded vehicle as it moved down the field, with camera trickery, CGI, and editing producing the final shot[3].

RECEPTION

How to Build a Better Boy premiered in the US on Disney Channel on 15^th August 2014, with the movie being promoted on the channel throughout Summer 2014.

This movie followed Cloud 9, which premiered in January 2014 and starred Dove Cameron from Liv and Maddie (2013-17), and Zapped, which was led by Zendaya and premiered in June 2014, bridging the gap between her role as Rocky in Shake It Up (2010-13) and her leading role as K.C. Cooper in K.C. Undercover (2015-18).

How to Build a Better Boy attracted an average of 4.6 million viewers on its premiere date, this being the most-watched program of the day for kids 2-11, and tweens 9-14. It also generated over 1 million views over seven days on the WATCH Disney Channel app. The overall viewing figures for How to Build a Better Boy were lower than those of either Cloud 9 or Zapped, however, only marginally. Cloud 9 had an average of 5 million on its premiere, and Zapped had 5.7 million. Anything from 4 to 6 million was standard for Disney Channel in the 2010s. With their three DCOMs of 2014, Disney Channel aired three of the year’s six most-watched original television movies[4].

Some viewers enjoyed How to Build a Better Boy for its message about self-acceptance and not conforming. High schoolers find it particularly difficult to stand out from the crowd and not give in to peer pressure, so to see Gabby be comfortable with her intellect, and Mae happy to wait for the right guy to come in to her life, was seen as a positive move from Disney. Many also praised the performances by China Anne McClain and Kelli Berglund; I enjoyed watching their friendship evolve and change during the movie.

However, there were some comments around the unrealistic elements of the movie, such as the US government not punishing the girls for as serious an offence as hacking is. Although How to Build a Better Boy perhaps doesn’t comment enough on the severity of hacking, in a time where we have an increased number of cyber-attacks happening in the world, sometimes from teenagers, I’d say the whole concept of this movie is pretty unrealistic and leans towards science-fiction so it’s not really fair to comment on its realism! Others felt that the battle between nerdy and popular girls was also an overused theme in teen movies.

But the complaint that came up the most was that many have said How to Build a Better Boy is basically a gender-swapped version of the 1980s John Hughes teen comedy Weird Science (1985), so they claim Disney Channel ripped off this film. The overall storyline is very similar; that two teenage boys who are outcasts at school create what they think will be a virtual perfect woman but she accidentally comes to life after they hack into a government computer system. Weird Science is less “family-friendly” than How to Build a Better Boy and Disney’s version is about teenage girls, because it’s much more acceptable in this day and age to have two teenage girls make themselves a perfect boyfriend, instead of two teenage boys making their dream woman. Hypocritical or not, you decide.

For me, since I haven’t seen Weird Science, How to Build a Better Boy was very similar to an episode of Sabrina, the Teenage Witch (1996-2003), the Season 1 episode “Dream Date”, where Sabrina’s aunts make her a date to her school dance out of “Man Dough”. Chad Corey Dylan is made to be a great dancer, a daredevil, a musician, and seriously enthusiastic, although one of his arms is shorter than the other. But his perfection can’t match up to Sabrina’s true love for Harvey Kinkle. This is like Mae accepting that, although Albert is great, she’d be happier with someone more real.

How to Build a Better Boy might not have been the most original concept, but it was seen to be enjoyable, although not amazing, by the general Disney Channel viewership. Plus, it was still nominated for a couple of awards. One was at the NAACP Image Awards, where China Anne McClain was nominated for her role as Gabby in the category of Outstanding Performance by a Youth in a Youth/Children’s Program, but lost out to the voice of Dora the Explorer, Fatima Ptacek, in Nickelodeon’s Dora and Friends: Into the City! (2014-17). Paul Hoen was also nominated at the Directors Guild of America Awards for his directing of How to Build a Better Boy but he lost out to Jonathan Judge, the director of the pilot episode of Nickelodeon’s 100 Things to Do Before High School (2014-16).

LEGACY

There was no sequel to How to Build a Better Boy, although China Anne McClain and Kelli Berglund did continue to appear in Disney series and movies after its air date.

You could consider Bad Hair Day (2015) as following in the footsteps of How to Build a Better Boy, by having two main story points. One is about high school life, so for How to Build a Better Boy it’s about boyfriends as well as Homecoming, and for Bad Hair Day it’s about prom, and a second storyline where the leads are being chased for unknowingly contributing to criminal activity. For How to Build a Better Boy, the army and the government want their X-17 back in their possession and away from groups like Black Sigma, and in Bad Hair Day, the two leads try to stop diamond thief Pierce from escaping the authorities. From my point of view though, How to Build a Better Boy balanced these two differing movie themes the best; Bad Hair Day felt very random at times as it switched between the two.

Disney Channel Original Movies explored numerous different genres across the 2000s and 2010s, so How to Build a Better Boy continued in that experimental nature. However, it has to be said that DCOMs are now reverting back to their favoured slate of sequels and musicals once again. More unique films don’t seem to be getting a look-in at the moment, as we have a fifth Descendants film, a third Camp Rock film, and potentially a fifth ZOMBIES film listed as the channel’s upcoming movies.

FINAL THOUGHTS

How to Build a Better Boy did what Disney Channel tend to do with its movies. They made a tween and teen-friendly flick featuring two of the channel’s stars, one from one series, and one from a different series. Combined, they brought in their own fans.

The 2010s on Disney Channel were made for a different generation to my generation of watchers from the 2000s, but the series and movies of the 2010s proved that Disney were still very capable of making television movies, even if they were zanier than the DCOMs of the 2000s. How to Build a Better Boy was a different type of film compared to High School Musical, Camp Rock, and The Cheetah Girls, for example.

But those who grew up around that time probably like How to Build a Better Boy for that reason. How to Build a Better Boy may not have been particularly original, but it had humour, it tackled high school anxieties, and once again, Disney Channel showed they could make stars, showcasing the talented actors they’ve become well-known for casting.

REFERENCES

[1] Credit: Philiana Ng, ‘‘A.N.T. Farm’, ‘Lab Rats’ Stars to Topline Disney Channel TV Movie’, HollywoodReporter.com, 31^st July 2013.

[2] Credit: Jemma Wolfe, ‘Disney Channel filming teen movie on Mac campus’, TheSil.ca, 8^th August 2013.

[3] Credit: LA 411 Blog, ‘“How To Build A Better Boy” – Creating Stunts with Director Paul Hoen and Stunt Coordinator Branko Racki’, LA411.com, 15^th August 2014.

[4] Credit: Rick Kissell, ‘‘How to Build a Better Boy’ Draws 4.6 Million for Disney Channel on Friday Night’, Variety.com, 18^th August 2014.

19th Sep 202529th Sep 2025 by The Disney Purist

Wendy Wu: Homecoming Warrior (2006)

BACKGROUND

In January 2006, Disney Channel Original Movies began their revival. This was all down to one film, a musical called High School Musical. You might’ve heard of it.

Disney Channel hadn’t made bad or unpopular films before then, but High School Musical really got viewers to focus on what the channel were doing with their television movies, which had, in some cases, been low-budget and lacking ambition, and in other cases, were mostly remembered for their franchise potential, like Zenon, The Cheetah Girls, Halloweentown, and Twitches. It’s kind of hard to forget films with sequels.

High School Musical wasn’t the only DCOM released in 2006 though. Disney Channel were averaging around five or six a year by this point. So, what else was coming?

Well, there was Cow Belles, a funny movie about two spoilt rich girls working at a dairy factory, led by sisters Aly and AJ Michalka. There was Read It and Weep, based on a young adult novel of a girl accidentally publishing her private diary, and then the second and fourth instalments of the popular The Cheetah Girls and Halloweentown franchises.

Oh, and there was just one other: Wendy Wu: Homecoming Warrior, starring Brenda Song, the first time she was leading her own DCOM, despite working with Disney Channel since 2000. Song got her real breakout role as ditzy hotel heiress London Tipton in The Suite Life of Zack & Cody (2005-08).

Now was Song’s chance to take advantage of a leading opportunity in a new movie. And this wasn’t going to be a shallow movie all about high school or being popular, although, don’t worry, that storyline still makes it in. There was a deeper element to this film, with a story about the importance of heritage, putting the Chinese American culture at the forefront. Sure, Wendy Wu: Homecoming Warrior isn’t perfect in its depictions of this culture; however, this was an early example of Disney Channel going some way to meeting now-commonplace diversity and equality standards.

I remember watching Wendy Wu: Homecoming Warrior when it debuted on Disney Channel, probably because I liked Brenda Song in The Suite Life of Zack & Cody. To be honest, it’s not a DCOM I love, but that’s due to its frequent use of martial arts fight scenes. I just don’t like those sorts of films. I have come to realise though that many people within the average Disney Channel viewership seem to have forgotten about Wendy Wu: Homecoming Warrior, so it’s about time it got some love.

PLOT

Wendy Wu: Homecoming Warrior begins with an image of a warrior before taking us to a group of monks practising martial arts together. One monk, Shen, is told “It is time”, as the evil spirit Yan-Lo is on his way. He is given four animal totems and told to find “her”. He is shown an image of a teenage girl and told she is in California. Shen leaves on his mission.

It turns out this girl is called Wendy Wu, and she is living in California with her Chinese American family. Wendy is finding herself very distracted at school by her dream of becoming Homecoming Queen, struggling in her World History in class in particular and her teacher Mr. Medina is not impressed. Outside of class, Wendy tries to comfort her friend Lisa about her recent break-up, only to be told that she is so lucky for being perfect and popular, and having a perfect, popular boyfriend, Austin. Lisa and Tory, Wendy’s other friend, are convinced Wendy is going to be Homecoming Queen – until they see Wendy’s rival since second grade, Jessica, handing out cookies to their classmates, asking them to vote for her for Homecoming Queen instead. Wendy sees her brother Peter take one of those, and throws her lipstick at the cookie, breaking it in half. She tells him not to eat that, because it is disloyal, only for Peter to point out Austin has a cookie too. Wendy goes up to Jessica and they both fake-wish each other luck in their campaigning.

After school, Wendy complains to her mother Nina about how unfair the situation is, but Nina is too busy working on a new exhibit at the history museum all about ancient Chinese artefacts, complete with eight terracotta warriors. Wendy almost breaks a precious vase, kicking a box into the perfect position to stop it falling to the ground. Wendy’s mother tells her to focus on things that are actually important, like her responsibilities at home. Wendy’s mother mentions feeding her dog Cupcake more often, which gives Wendy an idea: she’ll make cupcakes, to outdo Jessica’s cookies!

We then see Shen is attempting to hitchhike to California but is ignored by those driving by. So, Shen does the rational thing – and decides to ride on top of a car instead!

Back at home, Wendy is struggling to bake all these cupcakes with her father, Kenny, whilst her grandmother watches Chinese soap operas on television. Nina comes home and asks her mother to talk to her about Chinese folklore to give her some context about the items in this museum exhibit. Wendy is told to clean up her mess in the kitchen. Then, there is a knock at the door. Wendy answers it, to find Shen stood there. He tells her that she is a warrior born in the Wei dynasty, sworn to defeat evil. Wendy doesn’t have a clue what he is talking about and tries to shut the door on him, but Shen gets in the house. Wendy fights him with a broom, manging to push him out the door.

At the museum, the security guard takes delivery of a strange box and places it with the other exhibit items. He returns to his desk at the entrance to the museum, but begins to see a weird green glow. The guard goes to investigate and sees the glow coming from this box. Looking inside, he sees an orb, but then is consumed by this green glow, which is an evil spirit: the spirit of Yan-Lo. The guard sees a photo of Wendy and Peter, obviously left by their mother at the museum. The guard is distracted by a pizza delivery, being delivered by none other than Wendy’s brother Peter. He shows Peter the image, and he says that is his sister, obviously confused about why the security guard would care. The spirit is then transferred into Peter and he heads home.

At home, Wendy is on the phone to her friend, being told that Jessica is the guest weather reporter on the news today, promoting her campaign to be Homecoming Queen. Wendy is furious – but manages to fall asleep on the sofa! Peter, still possessed, comes home and sees Wendy. He tries to use the orb from the strange box on Wendy, but Shen, who was keep watching outside the Wu household, gets into the house through an open upstairs window and stops Peter. They engage in a fight, quietly, so Wendy does not wake up. Peter is eventually overpowered, after Shen uses a powerful medallion on him, and the spirit transfers into the family’s dog, Cupcake.

The next morning, Wendy wakes up to find herself wearing that medallion, though she thinks it is just an ugly necklace, and blames Peter for putting it on her; she takes it off. Wendy’s mother tells the rest of the family what she has discovered about terracotta warriors, that supposedly every 90 years they come under the spell of the evil Yan-Lo. Wendy sees Shen in a photograph of monks that Wendy’s mother is looking at, and is confused why he is bald in that image. Wendy’s mother tells her all monks shave their heads, which makes Wendy suspicious of Shen. Shen goes into the house to retrieve the medallion and is confronted by Wendy’s grandmother, who asks if her granddaughter is a warrior. He says she is and vows to protect her. As Wendy heads off to school, catching a ride with her friends, Shen chases after her, telling her to put on the medallion. She refuses and tells her friends to ignore him. Shen tries to follow them, by holding the back of the car whilst on a scooter, but he is shaken off eventually.

In soccer class, Wendy sees Jessica being praised by their coach for outmanoeuvring her in the class. Coach also congratulates Jessica on her weather report last night. In anger, Wendy kicks the ball with an extreme amount of force at Jessica who is the goalkeeper, winding her and scoring a goal, but this doesn’t dent Jessica’s popularity.

Wendy’s dog Cupcake arrives at the school and the spirit moves on to Wendy’s principal. Wendy is then met by Shen again, who tells her to wear the medallion. She refuses, and tries to get away from him. She tells Shen she knows he is not a monk because he has a ponytail. Shen says he was allowed to grow a ponytail so he’d fit in with the contemporary culture here, forgetting the fact he is still wearing his robes! Shen says he saw Wendy’s kick in the soccer class, and says that is her power showing. Wendy asks for further explanation. Shen says he has been reincarnated numerous times to help the descendant of the Yin warrior to defeat Yan-Lo. He shows her an image of the Yin warrior and Wendy admits it does look like her. Shen demands they begin their Kung Fu training now, but Wendy doesn’t want anything to do with it and goes to the mall with her friends. She tells them Shen is her cousin from China and they should keep him a secret – except Jessica already knows about him. Shen comes to Wendy’s house and tells her to wear the medallion – again – but she says he needs to find another warrior because it can’t be her.

The next day, Wendy wakes up to find the medallion on her. Except this time, her grandmother placed it on her, but of course, Wendy blames Shen. As Wendy arrives at school, the principal tries to approach her, but Shen stops him. Mr. Medina asks if the principal is alright, and the spirit goes into him. Wendy complains that Shen is ruining her chances of being Homecoming Queen by following her around, and now showing up at her school. But Shen won’t go away. Wendy then finds out, from Jessica, that she is about to be dropped from the soccer team for failing World History – and won’t be able to compete for Homecoming Queen either. She tells Shen about her problems, with her midterm on China not far off. Shen says he knows all about China and will tutor her, if she agrees to start Kung Fu training and wear the medallion. She agrees, and they have their first lesson in the park that day, except she doesn’t take it seriously at first, talking on her phone and dancing throughout her lesson. At the end of her “training”, Shen says the history of China is already within her, telling her to meditate to unlock the information. We also see the spirit transfer from Mr. Medina to the school janitor.

Wendy spends time focusing on meditation and this allows her to pass her midterm so she can still run for Homecoming Queen. Shen recommends they continue their training, but Wendy is only thinking about Homecoming Queen, saying she needs to get flyers done. She says she’ll get back to training after Homecoming is over.

As Wendy and her grandma set the table for dinner that night, Wendy asks her grandma about her life in China. She recounts a story about a young girl who battled evil, and that every 90 years a descendant must take responsibility and be a Yin warrior. Her grandma tells Wendy she wholeheartedly believes this story. Wendy realises Shen and her grandma must’ve talked already, but Grandma already knew as her mother was a warrior. Shen is seen by Wendy’s mother and he joins the family for dinner, under the guise of being Grandma’s great nephew. Shen starts talking about Wendy’s mother’s exhibit and says he can help her with the research. Peter asks Shen to teach him some martial arts moves to help with his football training. It is also discovered that Shen has made mooncakes for the family, something that seems to upset Wendy’s father, who leaves the table.

Wendy talks to her friends on the phone, who say they are concerned about her chances of being Homecoming Queen with Shen around. She decides to take him to the mall and give him a makeover, so he can blend in more easily. Meanwhile, at home, Wendy’s parents talk about their heritage, with Wendy’s father regretting turning his back on his ancestry. He wants to change that now.

Back at school, Wendy’s boyfriend Austin shows off his new highlights, and tells Wendy that people are talking about Shen and this could ruin their chances of winning Homecoming King and Queen. Shen is tasked with handing out flyers, and his new look makes him popular with her classmates. The two talk later. Shen says Wendy’s great-grandmother almost failed to defeat Yan-Lo, as Yan-Lo has gotten stronger over the years, saying Wendy must train even harder and unlock the spirit within. He also says it is his destiny to die in battle, as he will sacrifice himself to save her.

The next day, Wendy takes Shen to a real teenage party and finds herself getting jealous of Shen dancing with another girl. She also breaks up with Austin, after they argue over the fact Wendy isn’t wearing an outfit that matches his. As Wendy sees the girl kiss Shen, she takes off her medallion and sits alone outside. Here, we notice that her friend Tory has been possessed by the spirit and goes to attack Wendy. Shen stops her and she falls in the pool, along with the orb. Jessica takes a photo of Tory in the pool to embarrass her, and the spirit transfers to her. Wendy understands why her training is important now.

During training, Shen shows Wendy four animal statues, which are all her teachers: tiger for aggression, snake for flexibility, leopard for speed, and crane for balance. There is a fifth teacher, the dragon for invincibility, but that comes from within. As Shen brings the statues to life, they appear as monks. Wendy doesn’t want to be seen hitting old men in the park, obviously, so Shen tries a different tactic. He possesses Wendy’s teachers to be these four teachers, including her soccer coach and Mr. Medina. They also try different methods to keep Wendy motivated in training, such as placing her phone at the top of a lamppost and using soccer as a training tool. The final lesson sees all four teachers battling her with wooden canes. She manages to defeat them all. Her training is complete.

Wendy takes Shen to get coffee. On their return, she gets a call saying she won Homecoming Queen. But Wendy finds out that the battle with Yan-Lo is going to happen on the exact same night as Homecoming. Wendy is angry with Shen for not telling her and refuses to go to the battle. On Homecoming night, she gets all dressed up, ignoring her grandmother’s request for her to battle and wear her great-grandmother’s ancient robes, and is about to leave when her teachers appear at her door, still possessed by the martial arts teachers. They tell her Shen has gone to the museum to fight Yan-Lo alone, and she must go and help him. Fearing for his life, Wendy goes to the museum.

Still in her dress and heels, Wendy sees that Yan-Lo is in the body of Jessica, meaning she must now fight Jessica, and that the terracotta warriors have been awakened. Shen looks beaten, but Wendy and her four teachers begin to fight Yan-Lo/Jessica. Eventually, the terracotta warriors are destroyed, breaking into shards, leaving only Yan-Lo. Wendy’s grandmother arrives with the robes and tells Wendy to wear them. After a quick costume change, where I’m assuming the others cover her, or Yan-Lo agrees to a brief pause, the battle resumes. Wendy shoots a ball of fire using her powers at Jessica and Yan-Lo’s spirit leaves her body and appears to be defeated. Wendy tells Jessica to go and claim the Homecoming Queen crown. But the fight is not over, as Yan-Lo rebuilds himself as a huge warrior. Shen says this is the first time the spirit has ever fought in person. Wendy is beaten back and Shen is about to sacrifice himself, when Wendy hits Yan-Lo with her powers again. She catches Shen as he falls, and uses her powers to revive him, changing destiny. The two resume the fight together, beating Yan-Lo seemingly once and for all, as Yan-Lo shatters into pieces and disappears.

The teachers congratulate Wendy on her achievement, saying the battle is over forever. They tell Shen this will be his last life and should live it well. He chooses to stay with Wendy and her family. The martial arts teachers’ spirits leave the bodies of Wendy’s teachers, who are confused why they are in the museum. Wendy’s grandmother says they were heading to hers to get mooncakes and leads them away. Shen says he actually doesn’t like mooncakes so he and Wendy go for cappuccinos instead!

CHARACTERS & CAST

At the start of this film, the most important thing to Wendy Wu is winning Homecoming Queen. She isn’t bothered about schoolwork, nor is she too bothered about family life; everything is about winning that crown. So, when Wendy is approached by Buddhist monk Shen and told her destiny as the descendant of the Yin warrior is to defeat the evil spirit Yan-Lo, well, that throws all her plans for Homecoming out the window. Wendy is a bit ditzy and just the tiniest bit self-absorbed. She didn’t ask to fight evil, so why should she have to spend hours training for this battle she doesn’t want to attend? But evil waits for no-one, forcing Wendy to miss out on Homecoming in order to save her new friend Shen from certain death, which is honourable. It’s just a shame it takes Shen, Wendy’s grandmother, near-death experiences with her best friend and brother, and her four possessed teachers to get her to that point! If only Wendy had accepted her destiny from the start.

Wendy Wu was played by former Disney Channel star, Brenda Song. Song has actually appeared in five Disney Channel Original Movies: The Ultimate Christmas Present (2000) as Samantha; Get a Clue (2002) as Jennifer; Stuck in the Suburbs (2004) as Natasha; Wendy Wu in Wendy Wu: Homecoming Warrior (2006), and as London Tipton in The Suite Life Movie (2011), reprising her role from both The Suite Life of Zack & Cody (2005-08) and The Suite Life on Deck (2008-11). She guest starred in the Disney Channel series That’s So Raven (2003-07) as Amber and was cast in the recurring role of Tia in Phil of the Future (2004-06). Song broke out of Disney with her casting as Christy in The Social Network (2010). In recent years, Song has been the voice of Princess Akemi in Blue Eye Samurai (2023-present) and was cast as Mary-Anne in The Last Showgirl (2024). In 2025, Song was also cast as Ali Lee in the Netflix series Running Point (2025-present) and will voice a character in Disney’s Zootopia 2 (2025), alongside partner Macaulay Culkin.

Shen is a Buddhist monk, so naturally, he is very disciplined and committed to his cause, namely to ensure Wendy Wu accepts her role as the warrior who must defeat Yan-Lo. Shen has an insane amount of patience to deal with Wendy and her blunt refusals to take part in Kung Fu training, or even to wear the medallion which will protect her from Yan-Lo’s spirit. Eventually, Wendy is convinced that she does need to train and Shen is by her side to ensure she focuses on the task at hand. He sticks by her during the final battle with Yan-Lo, helping Wendy to defeat him once and for all. At the end of this battle, Shen is told he will no longer be reincarnated to train another descendant of the Yin warrior so he should enjoy his “last life”. He chooses to stay with Wendy and her family in California, so he can eat chocolate and drink cappuccinos for a long, long time!

Shin Koyamada was cast as Shen, and he already had an impressive background in martial artistry prior to his role in Wendy Wu: Homecoming Warrior, with expertise in three different martial arts disciplines. On screen, he had been cast as Nobutada Katsumoto in The Last Samurai (2003) before his casting in this DCOM. He went on to narrate and co-produce the documentary Wine Road of the Samurai (2006), and co-produced the miniseries The Yokai King (2013), starring as Ippei.

Shen and Wendy’s adversary is Yan-Lo, an evil spirit who reawakens every 90 years to battle a descendant of the Yin warrior. He does not generally appear in human form, but mostly as a spirit, in the form of green smoke, which possesses humans to carry out the task of defeating the Yin warrior. Yan-Lo possesses multiple people in Wendy’s life, including her brother, her school principal, her history teacher, and, randomly, her dog. Eventually, Yan-Lo comes to possess Wendy’s school nemesis, Jessica Dawson, a popular, snooty girl who has always tried to outdo Wendy in everything she does. In this case, it is competing against Wendy to become Homecoming Queen. Wendy seems quite happy to fight Jessica in the final battle with Yan-Lo, but when his spirit leaves her, Wendy has a change of heart and tells Jessica to accept the title of Homecoming Queen in place of her. After Yan-Lo re-created himself to become a huge armoured figure with more strength than Jessica, it took all Wendy’s strength to defeat him, seemingly forever, making the world safe again and avoiding the need for any further Yin warriors.

Yan-Lo was voiced by Hadley Hudson. Jessica Dawson was played by Ellen Woglom. Woglom went on to be cast as Mereta Stockman in the NBC legal drama Outlaw (2010) and as Louise in the ABC Marvel series Inhumans (2017).

The majority of Wendy’s family do not realise the task Wendy is taking on throughout the events of this movie, except for her grandma. Wendy’s grandmother is aware of the legend and family history linking them to Yan-Lo and the Yin warrior because her mother was the Yin warrior, the last one prior to Wendy to take on Yan-Lo, almost failing to defeat him. Wendy’s grandmother fears for Wendy’s safety but knows the importance of her role and appreciates Shen’s help in preparing and protecting her granddaughter. Wendy’s grandma tries to encourage Wendy herself, by placing the medallion around her neck whilst Wendy is sleeping one night, and giving Wendy her great-grandmother’s robes to wear during the final battle. Because every great battle needs a costume change.

Grandma Wu was played by Tsai Chin, who has had roles in various well-known movies. For example, she was cast as Auntie in Memoirs of a Geisha (2005) and as Madam Wu in the James Bond film Casino Royale (2006). After Wendy Wu: Homecoming Warrior, Chin appeared as Bu Bu in Now You See Me 2 (2016) and voiced the character of Nai Nai in the DreamWorks’ animated movie Abominable (2019). She also starred as Lindo Jong in the 1993 film The Joy Luck Club.

To round out the rest of Wendy’s immediate family, we have Wendy’s brother, Peter, who doesn’t seem to take anything particularly seriously, not caring about Wendy’s bid for Homecoming Queen, and teasing Shen for his hairstyle and robes – until he realises Shen can teach him some martial arts moves, which Peter turns out not to be very good at! Peter is possessed by Yan-Lo early on in the movie and attempts to attack Wendy but he is stopped by Shen. The spirit leaves Peter and he seems unfazed by it! Then there are Wendy’s parents, Nina and Kenny. Nina is busy researching ancient Chinese artefacts for her job at the museum during the course of this film, asking her mother and Shen for help with some of it. Sadly, much of the exhibit, including the loaned terracotta warriors, are destroyed in the battle with Yan-Lo, as it takes place at the museum. I hope Nina didn’t get in trouble for that; we never find out what happens there. After meeting Shen, Kenny starts to realise he has neglected his heritage for too long and vows to ensure the Wu family are more in tune with their Chinese culture from now on.

Justin Chon was cast as Peter Wu. Chon went on to be cast as Eric, one of Bella’s school friends, in The Twilight Saga film series soon after his role in Wendy Wu: Homecoming Warrior, having also played Tony Lee in the Nickelodeon series Just Jordan (2007-08). He also appeared as Jeff Chang in the film 21 & Over (2013) and as Sid Park in Seoul Searching (2016). More recently, he had a recurring role as Jae in the ABC comedy series Dr. Ken (2015-17), which was co-created by and starred Ken Jeong. Chon also recently wrote and directed the film Blue Bayou (2021), playing the character Antonio LeBlanc, opposite Alicia Vikander. Nina was played by Susan Chuang, who played Frannie Ching in the police crime drama Cold Case (2003-10). Chuang had a recurring role as Mrs. Lee in Nickelodeon’s Victorious (2010-13). Kenny was played by Michael David Cheng, who has guest starred in numerous series, including How I Met Your Mother (2005-14) and The Bold and the Beautiful (1987-present).

Wendy’s friendship group consists of her friends Tory and Lisa, who are very loyal to her and fill her in on all the gossip surrounding Jessica and her Homecoming Queen campaign, as well as the school’s opinion of Shen, to ensure Wendy gets her dream of winning the crown. They aren’t convinced by Wendy’s “cousin” Shen, fearing he may damage her popularity but they soon come round to him and find he is just as popular as Wendy with their classmates – after Wendy gives him his makeover. Tory does get possessed by Yan-Lo at one point and tries to destroy Wendy at a party, but that’s just a minor issue in their friendship; I’m sure Wendy forgave her! There is also Wendy’s self-obsessed boyfriend, Austin, who seems determined to show the school that he and Wendy make the perfect couple so he can be Homecoming King to her Homecoming Queen. After becoming closer to Shen, Wendy realises she doesn’t love, or even like, Austin and the two break up after Austin has an argument with Wendy over the outfit she is wearing because it doesn’t match his…

Andy Fischer-Price played Austin. He played Kirk MacKenzie in the Nickelodeon series Unfabulous (2004-07) and was cast as Brody in the Lifetime sitcom Rita Rocks (2008-09). He also played Greg Nickels in the TV movie Betrayed at 17 (2011). Sally Martin was cast as Tory. She had previously been cast as Tori Hanson, the Blue Wind Ranger in the series Power Rangers Ninja Storm (2003) and Power Rangers Dino Thunder (2004). She went on to be cast as Nicole Miller in the New Zealand soap opera Shortland Street (1992-present) from 2009 until 2025. Lisa was played by Anna Hutchinson, who was also in Shortland Street, as Delphi Greenlaw from 2002 to 2004. She was in the Power Rangers series Jungle Fury (2008) after her role in Wendy Wu: Homecoming Warrior, being cast as Lily Chilman, the Jungle Fury Yellow Ranger. Hutchinson later appeared as Sasha in the sitcom Anger Management (2012-14), and as Amy Smart in the New Zealand comedy-drama series Go Girls (2009-13).

Strangely enough, it is not only Anna Hutchinson and Sally Martin who appear in both Wendy Wu: Homecoming Warrior and some sort of Power Rangers series. Geoff Dolan, who played the security guard here, voiced Koragg in Power Rangers Mystic Force (2006) and Dai Shi in Power Rangers Jungle Fury, amongst other voice roles in other Power Rangers series. James Gaylyn, who was cast as Mr. Medina, also played characters in the Power Rangers franchise, including Mr. Watkins in Power Rangers Dino Charge (2015-16) and Zeltrax in Power Rangers Dino Thunder. Gaylyn also appeared in two other DCOMs before Wendy Wu: Homecoming Warrior: the mayor in You Wish! (2003) and Longo in Eddie’s Million Dollar Cook-Off (2003), who I believe is the assistant coach of the baseball team.

MUSIC

Not being a musical, Wendy Wu: Homecoming Warrior does not feature many songs. There are actually only three that are easily identifiable.

One takes place during the training montage in the park, Wendy’s first training session with Shen, where she’s not really taking anything seriously and doesn’t understand the battle she is set to face. This song is “Hero” by Jupiter Rising. Jupiter Rising were an American pop duo formed in 2005. They released music until around 2010.

After that, we have the song “Will It Go ‘Round in Circles”, performed by Orlando Brown. It is a cover of the 1973 song of the same name performed by soul musician Billy Preston, and written by Preston and Bruce Fisher. Orlando Brown was best known on Disney Channel at this time for his role as Eddie Thomas in That’s So Raven (2003-07). This song plays during the sequence of Wendy shopping with Shen to give him a makeover so he can fit in with Wendy’s classmates.

Shortly after this moment, Wendy and Shen attend a party together. The second song here, as Shen is dancing with another girl, is “Go”, also performed by Jupiter Rising. This song was later used in the 2007 DCOM Jump In! I haven’t been able to work out the first song playing at this party, which is annoying because a lot of the lyrics are audible.

Brenda Song apparently recorded a song for this movie, titled “I’m Not That Girl” – not the song from Wicked – which was written by Eddie Galan, however, it did not appear in the movie and is not available to listen to online for some reason. It was said to have aired on Radio Disney, but I can’t find any evidence of its existence.

Other songs in the film that I cannot figure out include the song playing on the radio as Wendy gets a ride to school with her friends, and the background music as Wendy is on the phone to her friends, just before she takes Shen to the mall for new clothes. If only Disney Channel credited all songs used in their DCOMs in their End Credits, then it might be simpler to work out the music in them.

Nathan Wang is credited as the composer for the score of Wendy Wu: Homecoming Warrior. Wang composed the music for other DCOMs including Hatching Pete (2009); Geek Charming (2011), and Christmas…Again? (2021), amongst many other non-Disney projects.

PRODUCTION

Disney Channel like to cover a wide range of topics in their television movies, so as to relate to the kids, tweens, and teens that watch them.

Many involve stories about life at school and struggles with friendship groups or family. Others look at typical sports and achieving your dreams. In the case of Wendy Wu: Homecoming Warrior, the channel actually went in a slightly different direction: by having a story all about martial arts, Chinese history, and the importance of heritage and destiny. It’s quite a deep story, albeit diluted to fit the target audience.

The story and screenplay for Wendy Wu: Homecoming Warrior were written by Vince Cheung, Ben Montanio, B. Mark Seabrooks, and Lydia Cook. Cheung and Montanio went on to write episodes of and produce the Disney Channel series Wizards of Waverly Place (2007-12). They also co-wrote the television special The Wizards Return: Alex vs. Alex with Dan Berendsen, which aired in March 2013. Cheung and Montanio had previously written for other series, including The Steve Harvey Show (1996-2002) and the short-lived sitcom Greetings from Tucson (2002-03). B. Mark Seabrooks had also worked on The Steve Harvey Show as a writer. Lydia Look is mostly known as an actress, such as her role as Selina Wu on General Hospital (1963-present) from 2015, but did also write the episode “Surf and Turf” on Disney Channel’s animated series The Proud Family (2001-05). Look voiced the Chang Triplets in this series, and returned as one of the triplets in the reboot The Proud Family: Louder and Prouder (2002-present).

Wendy Wu: Homecoming Warrior features so many martial arts stunts and fight sequences that this particular DCOM was rated TV-PG in the US. There weren’t all that many before Wendy Wu: Homecoming Warrior with this same rating. Others that were mostly included the scarier Halloween-themed films like Halloweentown II: Kalabar’s Revenge (2001) and Twitches (2005). Gary Marsh, then-President and Chief Creative Officer for Disney Branded Television, called this movie “Buffy the Vampire Slayer meets Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon“. Marsh joined Disney Channel in 1988 and stepped down from his role in 2021, moving on to create his own production company, which still develops content for Disney.

This means many stunts were expected. Much of Wendy Wu: Homecoming Warrior was filmed in Auckland, New Zealand, apparently in order to accommodate the crew who would work on this movie, such as the film’s action director Koichi Sakamoto. Sakamoto was the stunt coordinator on Mighty Morphin Power Rangers (1993-95), before working on other Power Rangers series, including directing episodes of Power Rangers in Space (1998) and Power Rangers Ninja Storm (2006). Sakamoto has also worked on adaptations of the Kamen Rider Japanese superhero franchise.

It would seem that many Power Rangers series were being filmed in New Zealand in the 2000s so the location makes sense, although other Disney Channel Original Movies have also been filmed in New Zealand, for example, Eddie’s Million Dollar Cook-Off (2003); Johnny Kapahala: Back on Board (2007); and even ZOMBIES 4: Dawn of the Vampires (2025). One location that appears to have been used for filming in Auckland, New Zealand is Long Bay College, the setting of Wendy Wu’s school. The mall used is said to have been the shopping centre Westfield St Lukes. It would seem that the exterior of the Auckland War Memorial Museum may’ve been used for the movie’s Fair Springs Museum, and that the park Auckland Domain might’ve been the location of Wendy’s training sequences. It has a very similar looking bandstand to the one Wendy has to balance on in one scene anyway.

The director of this film, John Laing, is also from New Zealand and has links to Power Rangers series, directing episodes of series like Power Rangers S.P.D. (2005); Power Rangers Mystic Force (2006); and Power Rangers Megaforce (2013-14). Laing later directed episodes of the New Zealand comedy-drama Go Girls (2009-13), from Season 3 onwards.

Due to the nature of some of the martial arts sequences, obviously stunt doubles were used in some scenes, however, the two leads of Brenda Song and Shin Koyamada already had martial arts experience prior to filming Wendy Wu: Homecoming Warrior. Koyamada has two black belts, in Tae Kwon Do and Karate, and was a six-time US national champion in Kung Fu prior to his casting here, making him an expert in three different martial arts disciplines. Song knows Tae Kwon Do, starting classes at the age of 9. She had actually wanted to learn ballet, but her younger brother wanted to do martial arts. Song joked in a behind-the-scenes interview that her mum didn’t want to take them to two separate places so Song was “forced” to take martial arts! But it all worked out because Song actually stuck at it longer than her brother, gaining a black belt in the discipline[1].

However, both Song and Koyamada still had extensive training with experts in self-defence for roughly three months before filming began, and had numerous rehearsals with the stunt co-ordinators, both in and out of costume, to ensure all their stunts were safe, as well as impressive. They also had to learn new punches, kicks, and wire flying to practise some of the bigger aerial stunt scenes. Koyamada and Song worked well together and the crew, including Koichi Sakamoto, were especially impressed with Song’s skills, strength, and resilience. Other cast members like Justin Chon and Ellen Woglom also had some stunt training of their own for their respective scenes with Koyamada and Song[2].

In more recent years, there has been some controversy linked to some of these stunt sequences, as a TikTok video allegedly showed a scene where Mr. Medina’s skin tone changes. James Gaylyn who played Mr. Medina was replaced with stunt professional Nooroa Poa in this action-packed scene. It was later claimed by Disney that all that was being seen was Poa’s light-coloured body pad which was underneath his costume for safety. Poa spoke out to say that his head and hands had been painted darker to match the complexion of actor Gaylyn. Although embarrassing for Disney and offensive to some, it is not always easy to match body or stunt doubles to an actor’s exact characteristics, as the correct skill level from the stunt double is the most important for the scene. It would seem that this was a blink-and-you’ll-miss-it moment that was not visible to most viewers. I have not seen it and the TikTok video does not appear to exist anymore, so I cannot view it[3].

RECEPTION

Wendy Wu: Homecoming Warrior premiered on the US Disney Channel on 16^th June 2006, before reaching international Disney Channels in the following months.

The premiere was said to have been watched by 5.7 million viewers. This was similar to the two DCOMs that came before and after Wendy Wu: Homecoming Warrior. Cow Belles, released in March that year, gained 5.8 million viewers, and Read It and Weep, which premiered in July 2006, reached 5.6 million viewers. However, the other three DCOMs released in 2006 gained over 7.5 million viewers, but these were High School Musical, a phenomenon from the start; Return to Halloweentown; and The Cheetah Girls 2, two continuations of much-loved Disney Channel franchises, so I’d say Wendy Wu: Homecoming Warrior did reasonably well with its viewing figures. It is also said to have had a very strong positive response with its premiere on Disney Channel Japan, but specific figures do not seem to be available to prove this.

However, as with many Disney Channel movies, reviews were mixed. On the plus side, some felt Wendy Wu: Homecoming Warrior was a good concept with its action-packed martial arts scenes, something that is not typical within the usual DCOM. It was also seen to be entertaining and showcased a Chinese American family, which was not generally being featured on the Disney Channel at the time. The message about the importance of appreciating family heritage and culture came across clearly as well.

But many criticise Wendy Wu: Homecoming Warrior for various reasons. Some say it is stereotypical, almost making its characters caricatures, and that the acting is particularly flat here. The reaction to Brenda Song in her first leading role for the channel was also mixed, as some liked her in this movie, and others felt Wendy was incredibly annoying and was too close to London Tipton in terms of her behaviour and characteristics, such as being ditzy and obsessed with popularity. I can see that, but I didn’t find the character of Wendy Wu particularly irritating. Others also commented on the presentation of the Chinese culture in Wendy Wu: Homecoming Warrior, feeling that it was not sufficient and inaccurate. Disney Animation’s Mulan (1998) is said to have been better at doing this.

LEGACY

As promotion for the movie, Disney Channel aired some behind-the-scenes looks at Wendy Wu: Homecoming Warrior, through their DCOM Extras series. After Wendy Wu: Homecoming Warrior’s debut on the Disney Channel, a DVD with featurettes on the making of the film was released.

Brenda Song also appeared in the Walt Disney World Christmas Day Parade TV special in 2006, advertising Disney’s travel company Adventures by Disney with a family trip to Costa Rica, however, strangely enough, she was only introduced as Brenda Song from The Suite Life of Zack & Cody, and Wendy Wu: Homecoming Warrior was not mentioned, even though it was released in that same year.

It was also reported, allegedly by Variety, in October 2007 that Wendy Wu: Homecoming Warrior would be getting a sequel, with both Song and Shin Koyamada signed on to return, with filming set to begin in early 2008[4]. Obviously, this sequel never happened. The final cut of the movie ends with the audience believing Yan-Lo was defeated, so there were no signs of a sequel. However, in an alternate ending, Wendy and Shen are brought home by Wendy’s grandmother and Wendy pets her dog – only for its eyes to glow green when she turns her back, showing that perhaps Yan-Lo was not fully defeated and that there was a case for a sequel at one stage during the production process, but this cliffhanger was later edited out for whatever reason[5].

There are other spin-offs from the film that have been mentioned online, such as Wendy Wu dolls being released in some Asian countries, like Malaysia and Japan, and a video game called Wendy Wu: Homecoming Warrior Kick-In Challenge, but I’ve seen no evidence, like images or gameplay, to show that either of these actually did exist.

FINAL THOUGHTS

More important than material things and sequels though is the reaction to Wendy Wu: Homecoming Warrior and how it is remembered by others.

Brenda Song stated in an interview with Vanity Fair in February 2025 that she has had people come up to her and talk about Wendy Wu: Homecoming Warrior in recent years, showing that it did affect some people quite deeply. Song also said that she appreciated how Disney gave opportunities to kids of all ages, sizes, and ethnic backgrounds, saying that the channel was ahead of the curve in terms of representing more diversity on screen[6].

Disney Channel Original Movies are not always widely acknowledged by the general or casual Disney Channel viewer. The ones that have done exceptionally well are films that people all around the world, of all ages, have at least heard of, even if they haven’t seen it.

Wendy Wu: Homecoming Warrior might not be remembered in the same way as movies like the Disney Channel musicals, but big or small, popular or not, every DCOM has its place and the right to be remembered, especially when it attempted to break down barriers and do something a little bit different.

REFERENCES

[1] Credit: Disney Channel, ‘Disney Channel Original Movie’, Gilgerfox YouTube Channel, 30^th October 2008.

[2] Credit: Disney Channel, ‘Wendy Wu – Homecoming Warrior: Kickin’ Edition 2006 DVD Overview’, Diamond Boy’s Disney DVD Overviews YouTube Channel, 5^th January 2024.

[3] Credit: Newsweek, ‘Disney’s Painting of Polynesian Stuntman in Wendy Wu Movie Sparks Controversy’, Newsweek.com, 24^th February 2021.

[4] Credit: B. Alan Orange, ‘Shin Koyamada Joins the Cast of Wendy Wu: Homecoming Warrior 2’, MovieWeb.com, 15^th October 2007.

[5] Credit: Disney, ‘Wendy Wu – Homecoming Warrior: Kickin’ Edition 2006 DVD Overview’, Diamond Boy’s Disney DVD Overviews YouTube Channel, 5^th January 2024.

[6] Credit: Savannah Walsh, ‘Brenda Song Reintroduces Herself: On Running Point, Child Stardom, and Life With Macaulay Culkin’, VanityFair.com, 27^th February 2025.

5th Sep 202516th Oct 2025 by The Disney Purist

Camp Rock 2: The Final Jam (2010)

BACKGROUND

Despite Camp Rock not ending on a cliffhanger that instantly set up a sequel, we all knew a Camp Rock 2 was coming pretty much as soon as the credits rolled on Camp Rock. It’s just what Disney Channel do.

After the success of both Camp Rock and its soundtrack within the Disney Channel audience, the sequel had to be bigger and better in every way, especially considering the fact that High School Musical 2 had been even more successful than the original High School Musical. The Camp Rock fanbase was built up at this stage, so surely Camp Rock 2: The Final Jam would do better than Camp Rock – wouldn’t it?

Well, the jury is out on that one. For some, Camp Rock 2: The Final Jam was better than the original. For others, it didn’t match up at all, either in terms of music or story. In the midst of that, there were viewers who felt Camp Rock and Camp Rock 2 were both terrible!

If you want to look at viewership, Camp Rock 2 did not equal or beat that of Camp Rock, surprisingly, despite heavy promotion over the summer on Disney Channel as well as the soundtrack being released early and even a Jonas Brothers tour being used to market the movie. For some reason, Camp Rock 2 didn’t match High School Musical 2’s journey.

But that didn’t matter to me because I was one of those that did like Camp Rock 2: The Final Jam more than Camp Rock. I liked the fact it had more of a plot, with Camp Rock competing against a rival camp, and the feeling that the characters had grown up in the two years between the film, being more bothered about the fate of Camp Rock and the need to stand up for themselves instead of just being focused on romance and being popular. The music was better for me too, and the ending even makes me cry, every single time.

The possible slight decline in the popularity of the Camp Rock franchise, and the mixed reception to the movie might’ve seemed like the biggest problems with Camp Rock 2: The Final Jam, for Disney executives at least, however, there were other troubles going on behind-the-scenes, both around the time the movie was being filmed and its premiere date.

It is no secret now that the show business industry is not an easy industry to grow up in, with numerous child and teen stars having voiced their difficulties adapting to it. In recent years, some stars of Camp Rock 2: The Final Jam have since come forward to say that their experience on this film and at Disney was not a wholesome as it was made out to be. Demi Lovato’s personal experience is perhaps the most documented.

At the time of the premiere, I simply thought that Camp Rock 2: The Final Jam felt different because of the new cast members, the bigger performances, and the changed-up hairstyles. But now, I think it went deeper than that.

PLOT

Camp Rock 2: The Final Jam begins as camp employees prepare the camp for summer, and a very excited Mitchie is travelling there with her mother, Connie, who is returning as the camp’s catering manager. Connie is concerned that Mitchie is putting too much emphasis on seeing Shane again, the member of Connect 3 who attended Camp Rock last year, after they briefly showed some sign of romance. Connie reminds Mitchie that she actually hasn’t seen Shane in a year and that she ought to concentrate on music and friends this summer. Mitchie tells her mother not to worry as that already is her focus – until she gets distracted by the sight of a seemingly rival camp just across the lake from Camp Rock.

When Mitchie arrives at Camp Rock, she is immediately welcomed by her friend Caitlyn, and they both question why camp doesn’t seem so busy this year. But there’s no time to talk about that because Caitlyn and Mitchie are soon met by Ella, Peggy, and Tess in the girls’ cabin. They waste no time in catching each other up on their lives, with Tess seeming much nicer than she was last summer. For example, instead of being jealous, Tess is genuinely interested to know what is happening between Mitchie and Shane.

Speaking of Shane, Shane is trying to get to Camp Rock before Mitchie so he can surprise her, since she believes he may be too busy touring to come to camp this summer. The trouble is Shane is driving to Camp Rock in his tour bus with his bandmates, Jason and Nate, and the bus has a flat tyre. Despite Shane’s attempt to change it, one bolt was missing from the tyre – which Jason kept in his pocket and didn’t mention – causing the tyre to pop off and the entire tour bus to fall into the lake below…Hmm. Now how will they get to camp?

Back at Camp Rock, Mitchie is asked if she has a song prepared for Opening Jam. She says she has worked out parts of it, but not all of it, so she gets her fellow campers to help her finish the song and it’s a big hit. After the performance, Brown Cesario, director of Camp Rock, begins to welcome all the campers back to Camp Rock, when Connect 3 arrive at camp on a farmer’s truck with hay and chickens. Brown introduces Connect 3, saying that they will be joining them for the whole summer, under the illusion that they want to spend more time with Brown, their uncle, though many suspect it is so Shane can spend more time with Mitchie. Mitchie is very happy to see Shane here and is looking forward to the summer.

But there is just one other thing. Brown mentions that there is a new camp across the lake called Camp Star, which just so happens to be owned by one of Brown’s former bandmates who still bears a grudge for being kicked out of that band. As this is explained, speedboats come out onto the lake and start shooting things at Camp Rock. These packages contain ingredients for s’mores and an invite to come to Camp Star for a bonfire. Brown isn’t sure they should go, but everyone else wants to, so they head over there that evening on canoes. On arriving at Camp Star, the campers see that Camp Star is more like a resort than a camp, with huge buildings and an enormous outdoor amphitheatre.

Once everyone has settled into their seats at this amphitheatre, Axel Turner, director of Camp Star, comes onto the stage to welcome all the Camp Rock campers and asks for volunteers to perform first. In the extended edition of the film, after a short pause, Mitchie raises her hand and says she will perform, alongside Caitlyn, Ella, and Peggy as her backup singers – despite the fact I thought none of them wanted to be backup singers. At least, they didn’t a year ago… Axel then introduces his own group of Camp Star campers to perform a high-energy routine which makes Mitchie’s slow ballad pale in comparison. In the regular version of the film, the Camp Star group launch straight into their performance after nobody from Camp Rock volunteers to sing. During this performance, a girl that Nate saw earlier in the evening is shown to be a piano/keyboard player in the group and towards the end of the song, her bracelet flies off her hand and right into Nate’s eye. Talk about fate.

After this, Axel invites any Camp Rock staff members to come over to Camp Star, promising to increase their salaries. He also asks if any Camp Rock campers would like to join Camp Star instead. Brown is furious at this and orders everyone from Camp Rock to leave Camp Star now. Mitchie starts to round up the Camp Rock campers, who have become distracted by Camp Star’s recording studios and state-of-the-art equipment. Here, she learns that Tess is switching to Camp Star, wanting to be front and centre just like Camp Star’s current frontman, Luke Williams. Shane, Jason, and Nate round up campers too, and Nate returns the bracelet to the girl, who it turns out is called Dana and is Axel Turner’s daughter. Ah, that’s not great… All remaining Camp Rock campers and staff leave.

Back at Camp Rock, Brown calls everyone to a meeting the next morning. He states that although he is happy to see that not many campers left to go to Camp Star, many of his staff did defect to Camp Star, leaving the camp short of counsellors and unable to continue to run this summer. Brown says Camp Rock is closed. Not wanting this to happen, Mitchie rallies the older Camp Rock members to help with classes etc. Brown is pleased with their dedication and agrees to let them help out and keep Camp Rock open. There are initially some teething problems, with the counsellors not getting to the right classes, Mitchie’s scheduling not quite working, and Connie receiving tons of beach balls instead of black beans in her food delivery, but eventually, it is all organised. Peggy helps with the junior singers; Ella does fashion classes; Caitlyn works with dancers; and Nate teaches the drummers. Jason gets the worst job of all though and is stuck with the junior rockers, who walk all over him! Jason resorts to building a birdhouse whilst hiding from the kids – something that he wanted Shane to build for him at Camp Rock last summer – until he reaches the end of his tether and demands some respect from the kids, saying if they listen to him, he can help them be rock stars. That gets their attention.

Meanwhile, Nate is casually stalking Dana, looking at her across the lake with binoculars as she practises piano. He keeps getting caught doing this, first by Shane, and then by Barron and Sander on the lake as they lead the wakeboarding activity! He eventually canoes over to Camp Star to try and talk to Dana, but their conversation is cut short by the arrival of Axel, who doesn’t want Dana talking to anyone from Camp Rock. Shane is also not doing so well on the romantic front, because Mitchie is so busy running camp. They were meant to be getting to know each other this summer but haven’t been able to spend any time together so far. That night, at a bonfire, Axel, Tess, and Luke come to spy on Camp Rock, with Axel and Luke laughing at how “basic” they are, having fun chasing fireflies. Tess says she remembers doing that when she was little and that it was fun, but she’s quickly reminded that she is part of Camp Star now. Mitchie and her friends start discussing how much they want to show Camp Star up with a performance that hasn’t been secretly practised for weeks beforehand. This gives Mitchie an idea…

The next day, the campers from Camp Rock interrupt Camp Star’s rehearsal and challenge them to a showdown, camp vs. camp. Axel Turner overhears this and wants to up the stakes, by making this is a televised competition, with the public voting for the winner. Mitchie starts to think that maybe that is taking things a step too far, but not wanting to back down, she agrees to this “Final Jam”. She plans to rewrite a duet she previously wrote to include everyone at Camp Rock in the performance, and there are lots of ideas of how to make this the best performance ever. However, Mitchie accidentally overhears Brown and Connie having a conversation about this competition, with Brown furious at Mitchie for agreeing to this. Connie thinks it would be good exposure for Camp Rock, but Brown is spooked by some of the promotional material for the competition, which has been dubbed “Camp Wars” and threatens that only one camp can survive, with Brown believing it won’t be Camp Rock that survives. Mitchie is hurt by this and reschedules all camp activities to make everything about winning the competition, so there are to be no distractions whatsoever.

As the days go on, Mitchie becomes increasingly irritated by her fellow campers, who she doesn’t believe are working hard enough and are having too much fun. She tries to get across how serious the situation is, but nobody will listen to her, not even Shane, who is annoyed that they now have even less time to spend together. Mitchie just wants to save Camp Rock and can’t think about anything else right now. Brown soon sees that people at Camp Rock aren’t happy and instructs Shane to inject some joy back into Camp Rock.

At yet another one of Mitchie’s group meetings about the competition, Shane interrupts with the junior rockers and they start a water fight. Everyone seems to be having a laugh – except for Mitchie, who walks away upset. She then spends the rest of the day alone, working out musical arrangements for the performance. Shane tries to convince her to take the evening off to have a moonlight picnic with him, but she refuses, telling him that the water fight was completely unnecessary. Shane walks away angry, although both he and Mitchie know that although they might argue, they don’t want to argue with anyone else.

The next morning, Mitchie wakes up to find camp incredibly quiet and nobody around. She eventually finds everyone by the beach working on the song. Caitlyn says that Shane got everyone up early to start working, reminding them of how important this performance is, and wanting Mitchie to have a break from doing everything. Mitchie also learns she needs to calm down! That same day, Dana shows up at Camp Rock to talk to Nate, except he can’t think of anything to say to her, which upsets Dana. She likes him, but doesn’t know anything about him, and will never know anything if he doesn’t talk to her. She walks away, not believing Nate to be the person she hoped he’d be. But Shane and Mitchie are finding time together and everything is going well for them.

Nate complains to Shane and Jason about how much of a struggle it is to talk to Dana, not understanding what he’s meant to do. They tell him that if he can’t say anything about himself, maybe he should sing it. So, naturally, Nate goes over to Camp Star and sings to Dana, telling her lots of random things about himself, like how he likes to use the word “dude” a lot and thinks cheese smells like feet. Wow, Nate is so deep. But the song works, although Axel leads Dana away for rehearsal, clearly unhappy with the two talking.

That same night, Jason, unable to sleep after hearing scary stories the kids told him, takes the junior rockers over to Camp Star to spy on their rehearsal. In the extended edition of the film, this Camp Star rehearsal is shown in full, with Axel debating whether to use this song or a different one in the competition, however, in the regular cut of the film, only brief clips are shown before Jason and the children run back to Camp Rock. Back at camp, they fill everyone in on Camp Star’s performance, revealing that it is just Luke and Tess doing a duet with only backup dancers and musicians on stage. This leads the campers to believe that Shane and Mitchie should go back to just doing a duet together as their chemistry and singing ability are far above those of Luke and Tess. This upsets some of the junior rockers, who were promised a part in the show, although they really just want Camp Rock to stay open so they can come back next year, as they had a great summer. They show Mitchie video clips that one of the rockers, Trevor, recorded over the summer of their antics at Camp Rock. This gives Mitchie another idea…

Then it is time for the competition. Camp Wars is indeed being televised and has a host, Georgina, who is a friend of Axel’s, which instantly makes Brown concerned about the partiality of the contest. Georgina reminds viewers that their votes will be deciding the winner, before introducing Camp Star’s performance. Sure enough, their song is full of dance breaks, special effects, and is just generally flawless. Mitchie and the others congratulate Tess and Luke on their performance. Tess wishes them luck, just after Luke states he wished he’d been able to do a solo, showing that Tess and Luke don’t get along at all. As Camp Rock prepare to take the stage, Brown talks to Georgina, telling her not to count them out just yet. She tells him that it would be a miracle if Camp Star don’t win, as Axel has paid to text and tweet every cell phone user in the Western Hemisphere to vote for Camp Star. The Camp Rock campers get this text too.

Shane and Mitchie then go up on stage to sing for Camp Rock. Others later appear on the stage as dancers, and Trevor’s video plays on screens in the background, showing all the fun of Camp Rock. The junior rockers even get their own spot in the performance to do a little guitar solo. It might not be as perfect as Camp Star’s performance, but Camp Rock show that they put fun and friendship over fame. After their show, Caitlyn reminds the others to vote for Camp Rock, which shouldn’t really be allowed but ok! After voting is over, Camp Rock and Camp Star gather on stage for the results. In a slow-motion, silent reveal, we see that Camp Rock did not win the competition, as the Camp Rock campers’ faces drop and Camp Star celebrate wildly. Close to tears, Mitchie is comforted by Shane, as the others walk off the stage. Tess briefly consoles Mitchie.

That evening, by the campfire, everyone at Camp Rock is upset, believing that this was their last summer here as they lost the competition. Mitchie and Shane have a moment too, where she says they all still need to keep singing. She also apologises for not spending enough time with him that summer and the two kiss. As Mitchie leads everyone in what could be one final campfire sing-along, they see canoes from Camp Star arriving at Camp Rock. This group is being led by Dana and Tess who wanted to join the campfire, as they don’t get to do anything like that over at Camp Star. Brown welcomes everyone to his camp. Tess asks Brown is she can come back to Camp Rock next year, as do many other Camp Star campers. Connie then comes out to say that the phones are going crazy with enquiries and she needs some help dealing with them all. Well, it looks like Camp Rock is staying open.

CHARACTERS & CAST

Mitchie Torres returns to Camp Rock this summer, excited and hoping to spend some proper time with Shane who has been busy on tour with Connect 3, leaving them to only communicate via text and email. However, Mitchie’s usual positivity and optimism doesn’t last long as she gets drawn into a fight between Camp Rock and a new camp across the lake, Camp Star. Mitchie is desperate for Camp Rock to prove to Camp Star that they are just as good as them, but this leads to a competition between the two. Mitchie starts to take this too seriously and sucks all the fun out of Camp Rock, ignoring Shane and being rude to her friends in the process as she sees them not taking the competition as seriously as she is. Mitchie has to be reminded of what Camp Rock really means; that it is not about winning, but about being with friends, having fun and making music. Thankfully, those friends she almost pushed away come to her rescue here and camp ends on a high note.

Between Camp Rock and Camp Rock 2: The Final Jam, Demi Lovato had been very successful with Disney, acting, singing, and touring, although the pressure and intense schedule was clearly overwhelming her and it led to Lovato stepping away from Disney not long after Camp Rock 2. From here, Lovato became a judge and mentor on Seasons 2 and 3 of the US The X Factor (2011-13), alongside recording new albums and releasing top singles like “Skyscraper” and “Sorry Not Sorry”. She also recorded a version of “Let It Go” for the end credits of Disney Animation’s Frozen (2013). Other acting roles for her included the recurring role of Jenny in the Will & Grace reboot (2017-20), as well as the part of Katiana Lindsdóttir in Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga (2020) for Netflix. Over the years, Lovato has opened up about her personal life and her struggles in documentaries such as Demi Lovato: Dancing with the Devil (2021) and Child Star (2024). Ever since her Disney days, Lovato has remained popular, winning numerous Teen, People, and Kids’ Choice Awards for both her singing and acting, and has become an advocate for mental health. Her loyal fan base continues to support her in all her endeavours.

Returning to Camp Rock along with Mitchie is Shane Gray, but this time he has also brought Jason and Nate along with him, the other two members of Connect 3 who only came to Camp Rock last time for one performance and to judge Final Jam. Shane is only at Camp Rock this summer because he wants to spend time with Mitchie. Even when the competition with Camp Star starts to ramp up, he still just wants to spend time with her and isn’t bothered by the contest. He can’t understand why Mitchie is getting so stressed out by everything and when he tries to remind her what fun is, by starting that water fight, all he does is make things worse between them. So, to get back into her good books, he decides to get everyone involved in working on the performance, which reminds Mitchie that she needs to be a bit calmer about things and the two are able to get their relationship back on track. Nate also has his own girl trouble, as he likes Dana from Camp Star, which is a forbidden romance. He struggles to find time to talk to her away from her father, but even when he does, he can’t figure out how to talk to her for some reason. Eventually, after thinking Dana is not interested in him anymore because he won’t talk to her, Nate finally finds the courage to open up about himself, and they choose their romance over the camp rivalry. Jason doesn’t have romance on his brain because he is too focused being the camp counsellor for the junior rockers who require a lot of time and energy. Things start off badly between Jason and the rockers, probably because he dropped Trevor’s camera in the lake at the Camp Star bonfire, but in the end, the kids respect him and Jason comes to like them, even fighting for their own piece of the performance in the Final Jam.

The Jonas Brothers were cast as Connect 3, having been involved with projects for Disney since around 2007. Shane was played by Joe; Nate by Nick; and Jason by Kevin. The Jonas Brothers later went on hiatus in 2011, before splitting in 2013. The band eventually reunited in 2019, releasing their single “Sucker” and releasing their comeback album Happiness Begins that same year. They are still releasing new music and touring together. However, the brothers have also worked on their own solo projects. For example, Joe Jonas released his solo album Fast Times in 2011, and formed the band DNCE, becoming its lead singer, who were best known for their hit song “Cake by the Ocean”. In terms of acting work, Joe made a cameo appearance in Zoolander 2 (2016) and voiced the Kraken in Hotel Transylvania 3: Summer Vacation (2018). Nick starred as Marius Pontmercy in the musical Les Misérables on the West End in 2010, later becoming part of the musical’s 25^th anniversary concert that same year. He also played Link Larkin in the 2011 Hollywood Bowl performance of Hairspray. After that, Nick was cast as Jefferson “Seaplane” McDonough in Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle (2017) and Jumanji: The Next Level (2019), and appeared alongside his wife Priyanka Chopra Jonas, as Joel, in Love Again (2023). Nick made a cameo appearance as Pastor Luther in You’re Cordially Invited (2025) for Amazon.

Kevin starred in the reality series Married to Jonas (2012-13), which was about his life with wife Danielle, for two seasons, and was later a contestant on Season 14 of The Apprentice (2004-17). He currently co-hosts Claim to Fame (2022-present), a reality competition series for ABC, with his brother Frankie Jonas. Frankie appeared in Camp Rock 2: The Final Jam as Trevor, a junior rocker. This was another reunion for the brothers who had all appeared together in the Disney Channel series Jonas (2009-10), with Frankie even winning the Teen Choice Award for Choice TV: Breakout Star Male for his role on the show. Frankie has recently launched his own music career as a singer-songwriter.

For the new characters of Camp Rock 2: The Final Jam, all of them come from Camp Star. The first is Luke Williams, who is the big star of Camp Star, being their lead singer, before having to share the stage with Tess when she comes over to Camp Star. He is quite arrogant and believes himself to be a big star already. He doesn’t get on with Tess, probably because there isn’t a big enough stage for both of their egos. Luke is very talented though and has some great stage presence. Luke was played by Matthew “Mdot” Finley, who has continued with his music career, releasing a string of singles in 2024.

Then there is Dana Turner, who doesn’t have an ego at all, nor does she care about the rivalry between Camp Rock and Camp Star, despite the fact her father Axel Turner is the owner of Camp Star. Dana is loyal to her father to a point, in that she performs on stage as the pianist or keyboard player, and she attends all his rehearsals, but she doesn’t agree with the competitive element of this summer camp, and doesn’t avoid talking to people from Camp Rock, like Nate. She doesn’t let her father control who she talks to. Dana was played by Chloe Bridges, who had been cast as Ashley in the direct-to-video sequel Legally Blondes (2009) before working on Camp Rock 2: The Final Jam, but she had also appeared as Zoey Moreno in the sitcom Freddie (2005-06) with Freddie Prinze Jr. earlier in her career. Bridges went on to be cast in the recurring role of Sydney Driscoll in Pretty Little Liars (2010-17) and as Donna in The Carrie Diaries (2013-14) on The CW. More recently, she was cast as Jessie in the Hulu sitcom Maggie (2022).

Axel Turner was a former member of the same band as Brown. Brown thinks he still holds a grudge after being kicked out of the band, and he clearly still does, by running a rival summer camp, but Axel remembers things differently, saying he left the band. Axel tries to lure Brown into a false sense of security by inviting Camp Rock to an opening night campfire, but it soon becomes clear that his intentions were simply to poach staff and campers from Camp Rock to force them to close. He is desperate for Camp Rock to fail, so tries as many things as possible to make that happen, even setting up this major competition and manipulating the voting to ensure Camp Star win, regardless of whether anybody watched the performances or not. However, he ends up losing campers to Camp Rock as his summer camp is missing out on any element of fun, which even disappoints his own daughter, who would rather not spend all of camp working to become famous. Axel Turner was played by Daniel Kash. He played Lorenzo Cosoleto in Season 2 of the Canadian crime drama Bad Blood (2017-18) and Sergeant Dan Lavery in Netflix’s Tiny Pretty Things (2020).

I will also briefly mention Georgina Farlow, the host of the Camp Wars competition show, who is clearly a friend of Axel’s which makes this competition seem even more dodgy and fixed! Arisa Cox was cast in this role, having previously co-hosted the programme E! Canada from 2007 to 2009. She went on to host Big Brother Canada (2013-24).

Outside of that, there are many returning characters and cast members for Camp Rock 2: The Final Jam. Many of the Camp Rock campers returned, except for Lola who did not. Mostly, the other campers, like Caitlyn, Ella, Sander, Barron, and Peggy spend much of Camp Rock 2: The Final Jam helping out with classes around Camp Rock and trying to avoid Mitchie’s wrath. They also help put together a stand-out performance at the competition thanks to their classes. These returning cast members include Alyson Stoner as Caitlyn; Anna Maria Perez de Tagle as Ella; Jasmine Richards as Peggy; Roshon Fegan as Sander; and Jordan Francis as Barron.

Meaghan Jette Martin also returned to play Tess, however, although Tess ended Camp Rock apologising to everyone and seemingly turning a corner from being her over-confident, egotistical self to someone who actually notices others around her, all that is quickly tossed aside during the events of Camp Rock 2: The Final Jam. This is because Tess joins Camp Star so she can be centre stage again, albeit sharing that stage with Luke, but it’s better than being in the background behind Mitchie, I suppose, like she was in the Opening Jam. Tess has some brief moments where it looks like she regrets her decision to leave Camp Rock, and then comes to Brown at the very end of the film to ask to come back to Camp Rock next summer, but it all seems a little unfair. We didn’t need Tess to be the mean girl again, because Luke is meant to be the bad boy now, leaving Tess with very little to do in Camp Rock 2. I think it was a strange direction to take her character in, but I’ve always liked Tess’s performances and I still liked them at Camp Star.

Finally, we have Connie Torres and Brown Cesario, played by Maria Canals-Barrera and Daniel Fathers, who also return to Camp Rock 2: The Final Jam. Here, Brown is much less chilled out than he was in Camp Rock, as he feels like his livelihood is under threat thanks to a former bandmate. He is very thankful to the other campers for stepping in and helping with the staffing, and when he sees that the campers aren’t having fun like they should be, he encourages Shane to start that water fight. Brown has worries, and he tells Connie about those, but when he sees those worries are affecting the campers, he reins them in to avoid it ruining the summer camp experience; he wants Camp Rock to be a place of fun, not stress. Connie isn’t seen as much in Camp Rock 2: The Final Jam as she was in Camp Rock, probably because Mitchie is not spending time helping her in the kitchens this time round. It is also possible that Connie had to work in some new roles due to the staffing shortage, as we see at the end of the movie when she seems to be manning the phones in the office. It’s a bit of shame we don’t see more of Connie and Mitchie together because I liked the mother-daughter dynamic, and I feel like Connie needed to tell Mitchie to not take things so seriously earlier on in the film than Shane did.

MUSIC

Unlike the music in Camp Rock which is very much based around performances, the music of Camp Rock 2: The Final Jam is more story-driven, although there are still plenty of on-stage performances to enjoy.

The soundtrack for Camp Rock 2: The Final Jam was released on 10^th August 2010, to coincide with the Jonas Brothers tour, where some of the Camp Rock 2 cast joined them to perform songs from the movie. The soundtrack consists of fifteen songs.

In movie order, the film begins with “Brand New Day”, which is a song that Mitchie has begun writing and the Camp Rockers want to use for the Opening Jam. Mitchie hasn’t quite worked out all the music so she enlists the help of the other campers to finish the song, which she then performs on stage with Tess, Ella, Peggy, and Caitlyn. It’s an upbeat song, detailing the excitement of a new summer at Camp Rock. It was written by Kara DioGuardi and Mitch Allan, and was performed by Demi Lovato on lead vocals. It’s quite a catchy song that can get stuck in your head, and it’s nice for the film to open with a group number.

Following that are the performances at Camp Star’s “bonfire”, actually just an opportunity to show off their high spec camp. In the extended edition, you’ll hear Mitchie perform “Different Summers” on the guitar with Caitlyn, Ella, and Peggy as back-up. It’s quite a calm, relaxed tune, with some country music elements to it. “Different Summers” was predominately performed by Lovato as the lead singer again, and was written by Jamie Houston. This song is also available on the soundtrack, but for those who have not seen the extended edition, “Different Summers” was cut from the film, and instead, it skips right to Camp Star’s Luke performing “Fire”. This is a contrast to Mitchie’s song as Camp Star throw everything at this performance, like matching costumes, backing dancers, a live band, and pyrotechnics. It’s a stylish, professional performance, and I love it. “Fire” was written by Dapo Torimiro and Lyrica Anderson. It was performed by Matthew “Mdot” Finley as Luke.

After that, back at Camp Rock, Mitchie tries to encourage the other more senior campers to help keep Camp Rock open by working as camp counsellors this summer, to cover the staff shortage that they are facing. This is Mitchie’s rallying cry, calling everyone to come together. “Can’t Back Down” was written Antonina Armato, Tim James, and Thomas Sturges. Demi Lovato, Alyson Stoner, and Anna Maria Perez de Tagle are credited as performers on this song.

Next up is the fan-favourite song “It’s On”, which I liked when I first watched Camp Rock 2: The Final Jam, but now I find this whole “battle song” a bit awkward to watch. I think it’s some of the choreography and just how serious the group are taking it, when really, it’s just challenging Camp Star to a sing-off at a summer camp; it’s not a life-or-death situation! “It’s On” was written by Toby Gad, Lyrica Anderson, and Kovasciar Myvette. It was performed by Lovato, Finley, Meaghan Jette Martin as Tess, Jordan Francis as Barron, Roshon Fegan and Sander, and Alyson Stoner as Caitlyn.

Then, we get the Mitchie and Shane song that everyone was expecting after their amazing Final Jam performance in the first Camp Rock, “Wouldn’t Change a Thing”. However, this time, this romantic song actually comes after the two have a fight, with Shane not understanding why Mitchie is working herself so hard for this competition, and Mitchie not understanding why Shane doesn’t get it. Although this song doesn’t culminate in them both making up, it shows that even though they are different people, they still love each other. It’s a sweet song, and Joe Jonas and Demi Lovato show once again how well their voices work together. “Wouldn’t Change a Thing” was written by Adam Anders, Nikki Hassman, and Peer Åström.

We also get another Jonas Brothers song, as the band Connect 3, like we did in Camp Rock. This time, the song is “Heart and Soul”, written by Antonina Armato, Tim James, Aaron Dudley and Steve Rushton. Much like “Play My Music” from Camp Rock, I don’t like “Heart and Soul” here. It’s starting to sound like I have a problem with the Jonas Brothers, and I actually don’t. Maybe it’s just I prefer typical pop tunes to more rock-like ones.

After that, we get another Mitchie and Shane duet. This time, the song is played as a montage of scenes of the two going on dates around the camp are shown, so they don’t perform it within the film. “You’re My Favorite Song” is another cute, romantic song. This song was written by Jeannie Lurie, Aris Archontis and Chen Neeman.

To match Mitchie and Shane’s romance, Nate gets his own love story with Dana from Camp Star. But there isn’t a romantic duet for the two of them, or even a sweet ballad from Nate. No, Nate sings “Introducing Me” which is really just a list of all the things Nate does and doesn’t like. Some of those things are kind of silly, but the song is actually well-written, by Jamie Houston, and performed well, by Nick Jonas. If you just read the lyrics and didn’t listen to the song, you’d probably think “Introducing Me” was the most ridiculous song you’d ever heard, so really, to get the best from it, you have to hear it in the context of the film.

There is also another song that only appears in the extended edition of Camp Rock 2: The Final Jam, and the official soundtrack. This is another Camp Star performance, although it is a late-night rehearsal. This is “Walkin’ in My Shoes”, which is actually my favourite song from both films. Despite only being a rehearsal, Camp Star never look rusty and “Walkin’ in My Shoes” is no different. It has smoke machines, high-energy dance moves, full lighting, and of course, the backing dancers, with Luke and Tess singing lead together. In the movie, this song is either shown as brief clips with no music, in the original cut of the film, or the full performance in the extended edition. It was performed by Finley and Martin as Luke and Tess, and written by Lyrica Anderson, Niclas Molinder, Joacim Persson, Johan Alkenäs and Pam Sheyne.

It is then time for the Final Jam competition, and Camp Star start off with “Tear It Down”, which also sees Luke and Tess up front, in another highly stylised performance, and I also love this song. I think had this been a real competition, I would’ve voted for Camp Star. I don’t know what it is but I really like all the Camp Star songs, and I likely would’ve followed Tess in being a traitor and moving from Camp Rock to Camp Star. Please, don’t hate me. “Tear It Down” was written by Toby Gad, Lyrica Anderson and Kovasciar Myvette.

Camp Rock’s Final Jam song is a very close second to “Tear It Down” though, especially as it is touching to see it as a group number, highlighting the fun element of Camp Rock that Camp Star is obviously missing, with the clips from the summer playing on screens behind Mitchie and Shane as they sing their duet. I think it also shows Jason being given a guitar-shaped birdhouse by the junior rockers; good, because he’d been going on about getting a birdhouse since the first film! The junior rockers get their solo bit as well in this performance, like Jason was promised. It’s also nice to see those beach balls that accidentally got delivered to Connie in the camp’s food budget being put to some use, by being thrown into the crowd! Their song is “What We Came Here For”, and it was written by Jamie Houston. Lovato and Joe Jonas sing the duet.

However, Camp Rock do not win and they are left to contemplate the potential end of Camp Rock forever with a final bonfire. But Mitchie, back to her usually positive self, and Shane encourage everyone in a sing-along. This song is “This Is Our Song”, and was written by Adam Watts and Andy Dodd. Demi Lovato, Joe Jonas, Nick Jonas, and Alyson Stoner perform this song. It shows that they are taking their defeat well, but during the song, we also see that many kids want to come to Camp Rock, with even Tess wanting to come back, making it seem like Camp Rock will survive – at least until next year! It’s a lovely song to end the movie on; it’s really great, and tear-jerking, if you’re that kind of person, like me.

Outside of that, there are two other songs that appear on the official Camp Rock 2: The Final Jam soundtrack. One of these is performed by Demi Lovato as Mitchie in a deleted scene that doesn’t even make it into the extended edition of the film. This song is “It’s Not Too Late” and should’ve taken place just after Mitchie overhears her mother and Brown talking about how the Camp Wars competition may be the end of Camp Rock. This song was written by Adam Watts and Andy Dodd.

The other song is “Rock Hard or Go Home”, which is not performed by any of the Camp Rock 2: The Final Jam cast members, and only appears as background music for the epic water fight scene. This song was written by Stacy Wilde and David Bellochio, and performed by Iron Weasel, the fictional rock band in the Disney XD series I’m in the Band (2009-11). “Rock Hard or Go Home” featured in the Season 1 episode “What Happened?” and in the Season 2 episode “Iron Weasel: The Video Game”.

There are also two songs that appear in Camp Rock 2: The Final Jam that are uncredited. One is the Camp Rock song “Play My Music” which plays briefly as Connect 3 arrive to Camp Rock on that hay truck, instead of in their fancy tour bus. The other is a song that is played during the scenes of the campers trying to work out their new schedule, after they take over the running of some classes. Sadly, the Internet doesn’t seem to have heard of this song, which is a shame, because the lyrics are clearly audible within the scene and it’s actually a pretty good song.

Much like with the Camp Rock soundtrack, international artists performed their own versions of the Camp Rock 2: The Final Jam songs for other countries’ soundtracks. Some examples are Portuguese singer Mia Rose and Italian band Finley singing “Wouldn’t Change a Thing”; and Spanish singer Lucia Gil performing “You’re My Favorite Song”.

The Camp Rock original soundtrack went platinum in the US and eight other countries, and gold in a dozen others[1]. It peaked at No. 3 on the US Billboard 200 chart in July 2008, staying in the Top 10 for ten consecutive weeks and topped the US Billboard Top Soundtracks chart, with four of the movie’s songs charting in the US Billboard Hot 100. Internationally, the soundtrack charted at No. 1 in Argentina, and No. 2 in countries like Canada, Mexico, Spain, and UK. So, how does the Camp Rock 2: The Final Jam soundtrack compare? Well, it debuted at No. 3 on US Billboard 200 chart as well, in August 2010, but dropped out of the Top 10 after one week. But the soundtrack did top the US Billboard Top Soundtracks chart, along with the UK Soundtrack Albums chart. It stayed in the Top 10 in the UK for 22 weeks. The soundtrack also charted within the Top 5 in other countries, including Italy, Canada, Spain, and Poland. The songs released as promotional singles were “Wouldn’t Change a Thing”, “Can’t Back Down”, “It’s On”, and “Fire”.

The composer on Camp Rock 2: The Final Jam was Christopher Lennertz. After Camp Rock 2, Lennertz worked with Disney Channel again, on the music for Lemonade Mouth (2011). He has also composed the music for many other movies, including the family-friendly films Alvin and the Chipmunks (2007) and Hop (2011), and the comedy movies Horrible Bosses (2011) and its 2014 sequel, and Pitch Perfect 3 (2017).

PRODUCTION

It was pretty much a given that Camp Rock 2 would happen after the success of Camp Rock, in order to launch a new Disney musical franchise. Production on Camp Rock 2 was announced in July 2009, around a year after Camp Rock premiered in the US.

At this time, it was known that the movie’s full title would be Camp Rock 2: The Final Jam; that there would be a rival camp called Camp Star; and that there would be a Romeo and Juliet-style romance in amongst the story. Dana Bridges and Matthew “Mdot” Finley were confirmed as new cast members, and a new director, Paul Hoen, was confirmed too, alongside the return of Demi Lovato, the Jonas Brothers, and others[2].

Filming for the sequel returned to Canada in Autumn 2009, although some new locations were used. One of these was the Rockwood Conservation Area in Ontario, Canada, as well as Fall Street in Rockwood. Cabins were built in the area to represent Camp Rock’s buildings, and there was much excitement in the area at the sight of seeing the Jonas Brothers and Demi Lovato filming around there, so much so that officials had to close down half of the park to the public due to the numbers of fans around[3].

It would seem that the buildings for Camp Star were from the Kingbridge Conference Centre and Institute near Toronto, as well as the French River Visitor Centre. French River Provincial Park was said to be a filming location as well. The Earl Bales Amphitheatre in Toronto seems to have been used as the outdoor theatre at Camp Star[4]. It would appear that Kilcoo Camp in Minden, Ontario was once again used for some shots in Camp Rock 2: The Final Jam, although it is unclear if the cast and crew returned to YMCA Camp Wanakita in Haliburton, Ontario too. But some areas, like the Mess Hall, were actually built as new sets in studios, so it is not certain how much of Camp Rock 2: The Final Jam was filmed at these summer camps, compared to the first film.

Other information on filming includes the fact that the weather was incredibly mixed during the cast’s time filming Camp Rock 2 in Canada over the autumn, with them seeing sun, snow, and rain. Demi Lovato, for example, stated that when they filmed “Brand New Day” which was a long shoot anyway, filmed over multiple locations, she was wearing a sundress, yet could see snow falling. The Connect 3 tour bus falling into the lake was also looked at in behind-the-scenes footage. The crew stated that the bus weighed around 22,000 lbs, even though the bus was just a shell with its engine etc. pulled out. The bus was attached to a crane and tipped over to allow it to fall in a controlled way down the hill into the lake below. The new cast members, Chloe Bridges, and Matthew Finley felt very welcomed by the original cast, and Bridges stated that Dana was initially meant to be a violin player, but as she auditioned with her classical piano skills and got the part, Dana was changed to be a classical pianist. It was also shown that the set of Camp Rock 2: The Final Jam tried to be as environmentally friendly as possible, encouraging cast and crew to use refillable water containers, and only putting food into containers made of corn starch, not plastic. It was stated that their set buildings were going to be donated to charity after use.

Camp Rock 2: The Final Jam also saw a change in some production staff. This included a new choreographer, Rosero McCoy, who has worked with the likes of Beyoncé. The cast enjoyed working with him, as they felt McCoy was supportive and encouraging. Their dance rehearsals were strenuous and it is obvious from watching the movie that the dancing in Camp Rock 2 is a step up from the dancing in Camp Rock. The cast had two weeks of dance rehearsals before filming[5].

A major staff change was that Camp Rock director Matthew Diamond did not return to work on the sequel. Instead, Paul Hoen, who already had a history of working on Disney Channel Original Movies, came on to direct Camp Rock 2: The Final Jam. Hoen’s credits include the non-musicals Read It and Weep (2006), Eddie’s Million Dollar Cook-Off (2003), and The Luck of the Irish (2001). Prior to Camp Rock 2, Hoen had also directed the Disney musical The Cheetah Girls: One World (2008) before going on to direct all four of the ZOMBIES movies.

The screenplay did see the return of Karin Gist and Regina Hicks from the first movie, who had also both co-written the screenplay for Disney Channel’s Jump In! (2007) alongside Doreen Spicer-Danelly prior to working on Camp Rock. Dan Berendsen was a co-writer of Camp Rock 2: The Final Jam. Berendsen had previously had a long history of writing for Disney Channel, having credits that included writing for Twitches (2005) and its 2007 sequel; The Cheetah Girls: One World (2008); Hannah Montana: The Movie (2009); and the channel’s smash hit Wizards of Waverly Place: The Movie (2009).

As well as promoting Camp Rock 2: The Final Jam with songs, sneak peeks, and behind-the-scenes moments on Disney Channel itself, it was decided that for the sequel, Disney would have some of the cast of Camp Rock 2 go on tour to promote the movie and the soundtrack, which came out prior to the film’s premiere date. This tour was known as The Jonas Brothers: Live in Concert tour, which began on 7^th August 2010 in Illinois, and went all across North and South America before ending on 18^th November 2010 in Abu Dhabi. Demi Lovato, Alyson Stoner, Jordan Francis, Matthew “Mdot” Finley, and Anna Maria Perez de Tagle joined the Jonas Brothers on this tour, singing some of the hits from Camp Rock 2: The Final Jam. Stoner said in an interview whilst on tour that they were having a great time, but that it was a hectic schedule and that there had been a lot of doctor visits to check on the wellbeing on the cast, although they did also get tips on how to deal with the pressures of touring from the Jonas Brothers and Lovato who were used to it by this point[6].

But it soon became clear that not enough was being done to help these young Disney stars get through this tour, because it was later known to the press around November 2010, that Demi Lovato had had a physical altercation with a dancer whilst on tour and had been removed for the remainder of the dates. Lovato was said to have enter a rehab facility in order to deal with her personal issues[7]. Rumours started to gain traction that the split between Joe Jonas and Demi Lovato, and the fact that Joe was beginning a new relationship, had led to the altercation. Anyone who has heard Lovato’s story will know that those rumours were false and that she had been struggling for months, even years, prior.

Demi Lovato’s newfound fame from Camp Rock came like a whirlwind. Because of her star quality, Disney continued to find opportunities for her, however, in just the space of three years or so, Lovato was already overworked and finding herself pushing through, turning to other methods to try and escape the pain and pressure she was feeling. Her work schedule went something like this, according to her own account in the Child Star documentary: filming Camp Rock, to first album, to tour, to filming Sonny with a Chance Season 1, to filming Princess Protection Program, to new album, to another tour, to filming Camp Rock 2: The Final Jam, to filming Sonny with a Chance Season 2, to the Camp Rock 2 tour with the Jonas Brothers. It had been non-stop since she’d come to Disney and neither she, nor her family, knew how to ask executives for a break. Lovato has also said that she doesn’t remember some of her career, like filming on Camp Rock 2 or some of Sonny with a Chance Season 2, saying that she has “disassociated” from it. In a reunion with Raven-Symoné who guest starred on Sonny with a Chance, Lovato said she didn’t really remember Raven being on the show, with Raven stating that she could see that Lovato was struggling, knowing all too well herself what it was like to be young and in the show business industry.

The dynamics on the set of Camp Rock 2: The Final Jam changed as well between Lovato and some of her co-stars, as they had to acknowledge just how much Lovato’s life had changed in those two short years, and had to come to terms with her new star status. Alyson Stoner has said that they found it difficult to interact with Lovato on set, finding that they and the rest of the cast were walking on eggshells around her, for fear of causing an argument should they say the wrong thing. This behaviour continued throughout their time on the tour as well. Demi Lovato said that she feels terrible, knowing that she treated people poorly at this time, and has apologised to those she upset. Alyson Stoner has talked about some of their struggles as a child star, including their time on the set of Camp Rock and Camp Rock 2: The Final Jam, in their memoir Semi-Well-Adjusted Despite Literally Everything, published in 2025.

After the altercation on the tour, Lovato probably knew she had to make some changes to her life, and did not return to acting on Disney Channel, leaving Sonny with a Chance (2009-11) after two seasons, leading to Disney Channel attempting to rebrand the show as a comedy sketch show called So Random! (2011-12), based on the in-show sketch show that Sonny and the cast act on. It only lasted one season before being cancelled. Lovato instead focused on her music, and after leaving Disney, has been an advocate for mental health and addiction struggles, as well as wanting to change the conversation around just what being a child star means and entails to help future generations[8].

Lovato and Stoner were not the only two who did not have a great experience filming Camp Rock 2: The Final Jam. Meaghan Jette Martin, who played Tess, felt that her character had been poorly written for the sequel, especially after having such a positive ending at the end of Camp Rock. Martin also stated that she was very ill with glandular fever, also known as “mono”, throughout her time filming Camp Rock 2: The Final Jam and that this was only made worse by having to do many night shoots during the cold weather in Canada that autumn, and all whilst wearing summery clothes. In behind-the-scenes footage, Martin did not sound well. Martin went on to say she felt she was being berated, bullied, and manipulated whilst filming[9]. Martin was invited to attend the tour with the other cast members of Camp Rock 2 and the Jonas Brothers, but she decided not to go, choosing instead to film the movie Mean Girls 2 (2011), where she played Jo and said she had an amazing time filming the movie, despite the film being panned by critics. Martin has since moved on from her life as a child star and found fulfilment in her career and life[10].

RECEPTION

The red-carpet premiere for Camp Rock 2: The Final Jam was held at Lincoln Center in New York City on 18^th August 2010, presumably a date found in amongst a very busy tour schedule. The movie did not premiere on Disney Channel US until 3^rd September 2010, making its way to international channels within that same month for the most part.

Just under 8 million viewers watched the Camp Rock 2 premiere on 3^rd September, with further showings over the Labor Day Weekend in 2010, including sing-along and dance-along editions[11]. This figure was around 1 million less than the audience that watched Camp Rock on its premiere date in 2008, however, Camp Rock 2: The Final Jam was still the most-watched Disney Channel Original Movie of 2010, by quite some margin. Only StarStruck (2010), which just so happened to star Demi Lovato’s handsome co-star from Sonny with a Chance, Sterling Knight, came close, reaching 6 million viewers. The other two DCOMs of 2010, Den Brother and Avalon High, each reached a little under 4 million viewers. Camp Rock 2: The Final Jam’s viewership would not be beaten until 2013 with the release of Teen Beach Movie. It sits at No. 7 on the Top 10 most-watched DCOM premieres list.

The reviews for Camp Rock 2: The Final Jam were not as good as those of Camp Rock either, although some did enjoy the bigger and better musical performances, as well as the greater character development for some of the characters. I can only assume that this comment was referencing the fact that both Nick and Kevin Jonas got significantly more screen time than they did in Camp Rock, because quite a lot of other characters, like Caitlyn and Peggy, had much less time on screen in this sequel, which I personally found to be a bit disappointing, given that Caitlyn was Mitchie’s best friend in Camp Rock, and Peggy had that big performance at Final Jam in the first movie where she showed herself to be a truly talented singer and soloist. They both faded into the background along with many of the other campers from the first film here, but I guess screenwriters are constantly struggling with finding compromises. Others liked the plot twist, which must be referring to the fact that Camp Rock did not win the competition against Camp Star, although some viewers were annoyed and even angry at that. I personally liked this realistic ending, and felt it was similar to Eddie’s Million Dollar Cook-Off, where Eddie did not win his cooking competition. In the case of Camp Rock 2: The Final Jam, Camp Rock were battling against an aggressive marketing campaign that was in favour of Camp Star, so it would’ve been strange to have them win when Axel Turner was manipulating the voting system.

On the other hand, some viewers felt that the story for Camp Rock 2: The Final Jam was just a rehash of the first film and that the story was not good enough for a sequel. Many disappointed viewers felt that a sequel wasn’t even needed. These comments go alongside the usual reviews for DCOMs were people stated the film was “cheesy” and “cringey”.

Despite those comments, Camp Rock 2: The Final Jam went on to win the People’s Choice Award for Favorite Family TV Movie, up against competition like Disney’s StarStruck and Nickelodeon’s iCarly: iPsycho (2010). Paul Hoen was also nominated at the Directors Guild of America for Children’s Programs, but lost to Eric Bross, who directed the Nickelodeon movie The Boy Who Cried Werewolf (2010).

LEGACY

After Camp Rock 2: The Final Jam premiered, fans were eagerly awaiting news of a third movie. After all, both High School Musical and The Cheetah Girls had reached three movies, so it was believable that Camp Rock would do the same.

As the months went by, it was becoming clearer, as both Demi Lovato and the Jonas Brothers drifted away from Disney to jump-start their careers outside of the Disney Channel, that a Camp Rock 3 was looking unlikely to ever happen. But don’t worry, randomly, Disney decided to release a Nintendo DS game based on Camp Rock 2: The Final Jam shortly after the movie’s release date, so that was about as good as a sequel, right?

There was a small reference to Camp Rock 2: The Final Jam and the first film at the Disney Parks though. At Disney’s Hollywood Studios at Walt Disney World, from October 2010 to 2013, there was a short stage show performed called Disney Channel Rocks, which was similar to the High School Musical pep rallies that had been seen at this park as promotion for the trilogy of films. Disney Channel Rocks showcased music from many Disney Channel musicals including The Cheetah Girls, StarStruck, Jump In!, and of course, High School Musical. From Camp Rock 2: The Final Jam, the songs “It’s On”, “Heart and Soul”, and “This is Our Song” were performed.

A slightly altered version of this show later appeared at the special event Disney Channel Nite at Disneyland After Hours in March 2024. It contained music from The Cheetah Girls, Camp Rock and its sequel, with the additions of “Brand New Day” and “Can’t Back Down”, and High School Musical still, but not some of the lesser-known Disney Channel musicals. Also at Disney Channel Nite, guests could have their photograph taken in front of a Camp Rock backdrop, and sing-along to hits from the movies at Camp Rock Karaoke.

Many of Camp Rock’s cast have mentioned the movie on social media, especially around a milestone anniversary, despite there being little hope of Camp Rock being revived as the years went on. For example, in 2018, Joe Jonas tweeted that he was still bitter that Camp Rock lost to Camp Star in celebration of the 10^th anniversary of Camp Rock. Kevin Jonas commented on the dodgy haircut he had in Camp Rock, but this was sorted out for the sequel, along with Joe’s hair which I think was equally dodgy! It was also around this time that the Jonas Brothers were asked in interviews about a Camp Rock 3. They talked about potentially wanting to be involved in an R-rated sequel, something that they could relate to as adults and that original viewers who were also adults themselves would enjoy[12].

But 2025, the year of Camp Rock 2: The Final Jam’s 15^th anniversary, seems to have had the most Camp Rock news in a decade. Firstly, there was a Bop to the Top Summer Tour at House of Blues locations across the US over the summer of 2025, where songs from many Disney Channel movies and series, like Hannah Montana, High School Musical, Lemonade Mouth, and of course, Camp Rock were played to attendees. It would also seem that Matthew “Mdot” Finley and Roshon Fegan, who played Luke and Sander in the movies, attended some of these events as special guests.

In August 2025, rumours really started swirling about a Camp Rock 3 and that is all from a Hot Ones Versus video filmed with the Jonas Brothers that was released on 12^th August. In this video, Joe was tasked with reading the most recent entry on his phone’s Notes app and it said “Read Camp Rock 3”[13]. This might not have seemed like much on its own, but this video followed a surprise appearance by Demi Lovato at MetLife Stadium with the Jonas Brothers as part of their Greetings From Your Hometown tour. Here, Lovato performed “This Is Me”, following on from Joe’s performance of “Gotta Find You”. They then finished up with their duet “Wouldn’t Change a Thing” from Camp Rock 2: The Final Jam. Fans were ecstatic to see Demi Lovato reunited with the Jonas Brothers, and this has fuelled the rumours of a Camp Rock 3[14].

An official confirmation of Camp Rock 3 was later announced on 17^th September 2025, with filming beginning in Canada that same week. The story is going to revolve around Connect 3 looking for campers to be their new opening act for a major reunion tour. It was confirmed that the Jonas Brothers would be returning as the members of Connect 3, Shane, Nate, and Jason, and that Maria Canals-Barrera will be the only other original cast member returning for this third movie, as Connie Torres, Mitchie’s mother. Demi Lovato was only listed as an executive producer, alongside the Jonas Brothers, although she could end up having a small cameo in the film, I suppose. A list of new cast members was also announced for Camp Rock 3, including Malachi Barton, who starred as Victor in ZOMBIES 4: Dawn of the Vampires (2025) and Liamani Segura, who appeared as Emmy in High School Musical: The Musical: The Series (2019-23) and is set to play Pink, Red’s sister, in the fifth Descendants film Descendants: Wicked Wonderland (2026)[15]. To be honest, I’m not sure how I feel about Camp Rock 3. I’m bored of reboots, even of things I like.

FINAL THOUGHTS

Once again, it is disappointing to hear that some of the stars of Camp Rock 2: The Final Jam did not have an enjoyable experience on this film. It baffles me just how Disney Channel could’ve ignored these young people’s struggles for so long without doing something about it, only increasing the pressure on them due to the potential status of Camp Rock as a musical franchise for the company.

Thanks to a more encouraging environment where we allow people to discuss mental health and other personal struggles, these former child stars have been able to open up about their experiences, and although it may make the nostalgia for these films and TV shows bittersweet afterwards, it’s an important step to allow them to move on from a troubling, even traumatic, time in their lives. I can only hope that entertainment companies are listening and making changes. I’m not sure if Disney Channel themselves have learnt from their past, as fairly recent stars from the franchises of Descendants and ZOMBIES, for example, have not publicly shared difficult stories around filming their respective movies, or whether their time will come to do this. I hope it is the former and not the latter.

With the potential for Camp Rock 3, and the recent reunion of Demi Lovato and the Jonas Brothers, perhaps the time has come for the former cast to revisit this franchise, either directly or indirectly, to finally gain some closure from it, to put it behind them.

REFERENCES

[1] Credit: Paul Bond, ‘New Crew For ‘Camp Rock 2’’, Billboard.com, 8^th July 2009.

[2] Credit: Helen O’Hara, ‘Camp Rock 2 Starts Production’, EmpireOnline.com, 8^th July 2009.

[3] Credit: Advertiser Staff, ‘Jonas brothers a big hit in Rockwood’, WellingtonAdvertiser.com, date unknown.

[4] Credit: Richard Ouzounian, ‘Behind the scenes of Jonas Brothers’ Camp Rock 2’, TheStar.com, 1^st September 2010.

[5] Credit: Disney, ‘Road to Camp Rock 2: The Final Jam’, Disney Channel Official YouTube Channel, July 2010.

[6] Credit: Jessica Norton, ‘All About Camp Rock 2!’, Seventeen.com, 31^st August 2010.

[7] Credit: ABC News, ‘Demi Lovato Leaves Jonas Bros. Tour to Get Treatment for ‘Emotional and Physical Issues’, ABCNews.com, 3^rd November 2010.

[8] Credit: Demi Lovato and Nicola B. Marsh, Child Star (2024), Disney+.

[9] Credit: Isobel Lewis, ‘Disney Channel star Meaghan Martin says she was ‘berated, bullied, and manipulated’ while filming Camp Rock 2’, Independent.co.uk, 28^th August 2022.

[10] Credit: Roisin O’Connor, ‘The mice that roared: How Disney’s former child stars are fighting to change the entertainment industry’, Independent.co.uk, 19^th July 2021.

[11] Credit: Just Jared Jr., ‘Camp Rock 2 The Final Jam: 8 Million Viewers Strong’, JustJaredJr.com, 4^th September 2010.

[12] Credit: Zoë Weiner, ‘“Camp Rock” Stars Are Getting Nostalgic on Twitter About the Film’s 10^th Anniversary’, TeenVogue.com, 20^th June 2018.

[13] Credit: Samantha Olson, ‘Is ‘Camp Rock 3’ Happening? Joe Jonas May Have Just Confirmed It’, Cosmopolitan.com, 13^th August 2025.

[14] Credit: Larisha Paul, ‘Jonas Brothers Reunite With Demi Lovato For ‘Camp Rock’ Classics At Stadium Tour Opener’, RollingStone.com, 11^th August 2025.

[15] Credit: Disney, ‘‘Camp Rock 3’ Officially Greenlit for Disney+ and Disney Channel’, TheWaltDisneyCompany.com, 17^th September 2025.

29th Aug 202529th Sep 2025 by The Disney Purist

Camp Rock (2008)

BACKGROUND

It can’t be said enough just how much High School Musical changed the Disney Channel Original Movie landscape.

After High School Musical, Disney Channel movies, also known as DCOMs, became big events, something for young viewers to plan their lives around, something to look forward to after a long week at school. These Friday night movie premieres were even more important when the movie was a musical – and its arrival signalled the start of the summer break.

Camp Rock was just one of these movies. It featured a storyline all about summer camp, a typical summer activity for some, alongside a Disneyfied musical soundtrack, full of catchy pop tunes. Camp Rock was supposed to be the next High School Musical.

And it seemed like it would be, for a while. Camp Rock was globally popular, and although it wasn’t quite the same as High School Musical, it felt similar and had its own success. I personally don’t even like High School Musical, the first movie, all that much, and remember liking Camp Rock more when I first watched it, and that’s still the case.

I was very excited to watch the premiere of Camp Rock back in 2008, even if we didn’t get it in the UK until school had already started up again after the summer holidays. I really liked it at the time, just not as much as High School Musical 2, but it had everything I was looking for in a Disney Channel musical.

It was also showcasing the talent of young stars I hadn’t heard of before. The Jonas Brothers weren’t a band I knew before they appeared on Disney Channel. Camp Rock made them overnight stars within the channel’s viewership. And then we had Demi Lovato, who was making her Disney Channel movie debut, and it launched her career at Disney into the stratosphere. She became a regular on the channel after that, for both music and acting.

Camp Rock was the perfect marketing exercise for Disney Channel, showing just how successful they were at making the next teen stars, with many of them later becoming household names outside of Disney.

PLOT

Camp Rock doesn’t begin at Camp Rock, but on the last day of school before summer for teenager Mitchie Torres. Mitchie wakes up feeling very optimistic, hoping that one of those leaflets for Camp Rock that she’s been leaving around the house might just have inspired her mother to let her go there over the summer break. As the two sit down to breakfast, whilst watching a news report on the latest from teen rock star / bad boy Shane Gray, whose behaviour has led to the Connect 3 tour, his band’s tour, being cancelled, Connie, Mitchie’s mother, tells Mitchie she knows she’d like to go to camp, but that the family can’t afford it.

At school, Mitchie tells her friend Sierra that camp is not going to happen for her, and that she is so disappointed and unexcited for the summer ahead. Mitchie later returns home, having worked a shift at a burger shop to find her parents in a good mood, but Mitchie isn’t sure why. She is about to go to her room, when Connie tells her the good news: Connie is doing the catering at Camp Rock, so Mitchie can go at a discounted rate! Mitchie is super excited, and doesn’t even mind that she’ll have to help her mother in the kitchen whilst there.

Later, Connie and Mitchie arrive at Camp Rock, and Mitchie can’t wait to get started – although she is slightly distracted by a limo passing right by her mother’s catering van. It looks like a girl with money goes to Camp Rock… Mitchie and Connie head to their cabin, and the camp director, Brown Cesario, comes to greet Connie. Connie is about to introduce her daughter to him, but Mitchie has already gone exploring!

Mitchie has found where the other campers are, congregating outside. Mitchie bumps into the girl she saw in the limo, but is ignored. Another camper, Caitlyn, tells Mitchie that girl is Tess Tyler, daughter of famous singer T.J. Tyler. Mitchie is impressed. Caitlyn and Mitchie get talking, and Caitlyn says she’s planning to be a music producer, even playing her one of her demos. Their chat is interrupted by the arrival of the camp’s musical director Dee La Duke, who welcomes everyone to Camp Rock. The campers are also told that for the first time in Camp Rock history, they will have a celebrity instructor here to teach them.

It turns out this celebrity instructor is Connect 3’s Shane Gray. His other bandmates, Nate and Jason, are making Shane attend Camp Rock to help with his reputation and to give him some positive PR. Shane is told he’ll be recording a duet with the winner of Camp Rock’s Final Jam competition. Shane doesn’t want to waste his summer at Camp Rock, but Nate and Jason hold firm. Besides, it’ll be good for Shane to get back to his musical roots, because the three attended Camp Rock, and their uncle is Brown, the camp director.

Mitchie is helping her mother in the kitchen, preparing burgers for the Open Mic Night, a chance for the campers to get to know each other and show off their musical abilities. Mitchie tells Connie she is too nervous to sing at Open Mic Night and her nerves only get worse when she overhears Tess and her friends rehearsing in their cabin. Mitchie starts to set up the Mess Hall for dinner and plays one of her own songs on the piano, singing to herself. Shane Gray, who’s recently been dropped off at Camp Rock, gets mobbed by fans and hides underneath the window of the Mess Hall. He overhears the singing.

Back at her cabin, Mitchie worries about what to wear to Open Mic Night, feeling that she’s not good enough to be here. At the Open Mic, Mitchie meets up with Caitlyn. She introduces her to Lola, who it turns out is another very talented performer and she has no anxiety about performing in front of everyone. Caitlyn tells Mitchie that Lola’s mother has been on Broadway, but that only money and fame really matter here. Tess then comes over to Caitlyn, just to be snooty, and Mitchie introduces herself. Tess’s friend Peggy asks if Mitchie’s father is a famous composer, since they share a surname. Mitchie says her father runs a hardware store. Bored, Tess and her friends go to walk away, when Mitchie says that her mother is President of Hot Tunes TV – in China. This does impress Tess, and she asks Mitchie to move into their cabin. Mitchie grabs her stuff and moves, telling her mother that she’ll still get up early and help in the kitchen. Connie is just glad Mitchie is making friends.

At Tess’s cabin, which Tess shares with Peggy and Ella, we see that Peggy likes to play the guitar, but Tess soon tells her to stop playing so she can talk on the phone, except her mum has no time to talk to her, yet again. Mitchie arrives and starts unpacking her stuff. They see Mitchie’s song book and convince her to sing one of her original songs to them. Peggy and Ella like Mitchie’s song a lot, although Tess is slightly less enthusiastic about it.

The next morning, Mitchie gets up early to help in the kitchen, but tries to hide this fact by arriving at the Mess Hall with the other campers and dodging Tess’s questions about where she goes in the mornings. Mitchie tries to sit with Caitlyn and the others, but Tess orders her over to her table. Caitlyn warns Mitchie to hide her singing talents if she wants to stay friends with Tess. Very ominous. Mitchie isn’t the only one having a bad morning. It turns out Shane has been avoiding teaching his classes, and Brown won’t have it anymore. He tips water over him to wake him up before heading off to his own class.

Brown’s first class is a singing class with Mitchie, Tess, Caitlyn and the others. He asks for volunteers to sing in front of the class. Pretty much everyone puts their hand up, but Mitchie doesn’t, so naturally Brown makes her sing first! After some encouragement, Mitchie performs well and Brown compliments her on her original song, something that doesn’t go unnoticed by Tess. After class, Tess asks Mitchie about her plans for Final Jam. Mitchie says she’ll sing a solo for it, despite her nerves. Tess tells her that’s a really brave thing to do on her first Final Jam, but no doubt Mitchie has already performed in front of a large audience before. Mitchie says that actually she hasn’t, which puts doubts in her head. Mitchie then decides that actually she’d like to join Tess’s group and sing backup for her instead.

Mitchie goes to the kitchens to help Connie. She apologises for being late and is given some tasks to do. But then Shane Gray comes in. Embarrassed and not wanting to be seen here, this being a dead giveaway that she’s lying about who her mother is, Mitchie covers her face in flour before talking to Shane. Shane moans that his allergies are not being catered for at camp. Mitchie responds to say that Shane is being incredibly rude and needs to learn how to talk to people. Shane is taken aback by that and says he’ll have his agent send his allergy list over to them again, before leaving.

The next day, Brown escorts Shane over to his first class of the day, since Shane seems unable to go to class by himself. Brown is shocked by this attitude that Shane has suddenly got after “becoming a star” and warns him to get himself together. Shane then takes his first class, a dance class with Mitchie and the others. They are ordered to grab a hat and a microphone and simply follow Shane’s direction. He doesn’t seem in the mood to be doing this, so everyone just does as they’re told. However, soon, one of the campers, a drummer, falls over, spoiling the routine. Tess makes a comment and laughs at him. It initially looks like Shane is going to have a go at him too, but he doesn’t. He knows this guy has rhythm as a drummer and says he’ll help him get that rhythm to move from his hands to his feet. Mitchie sees that Shane can be a good guy after all.

The following day at breakfast, Connie tries to talk to Mitchie, Tess, and the others. Mitchie talks to Connie casually, not letting on that Connie is her mother, but Tess is simply rude to Connie, not knowing why the “kitchen help” would be talking to her or Mitchie. Mitchie says that Connie is a celebrity chef who has cooked for everyone.

Later that day, Brown asks Shane if he is coming to the Campfire Jam that night. Shane tells Brown he wants to work on his music, having started writing a new song, thanks in part to the girl he heard singing in the cafeteria on that first day, still not knowing who she is. At the Campfire Jam, Tess performs a song with Peggy, Ella, and Mitchie singing backup. Shane does make his way down there and enjoys the performance. Mitchie, however, did not enjoy it, something that Caitlyn picks up on.

In the morning, by the lake, Mitchie sees Shane playing on his guitar and interrupts him, just to say she likes his new sound. Shane complains that the label doesn’t let him or Connect 3 perform music like this because they don’t think it would sell. Mitchie says she’d buy that song, encouraging Shane to continue.

At lunch, Caitlyn and Tess’s animosity towards each other increases as Caitlyn deliberately trips Tess with her foot. Tess then tips spaghetti onto Caitlyn as payback. Caitlyn is furious and grabs a handful of spaghetti, throwing it at Tess. This turns into a food fight between the two of them. Mitchie attempts to stop them but to no avail. Brown comes over and takes all three of them to his office. Tess and Caitlyn talk over each other to try and get their version of the story across, but Brown isn’t interested; he simply wants to know who threw the food first. Tess says it was Caitlyn – and technically, that was the case, so Caitlyn cannot argue. Brown tells Caitlyn as punishment she’ll be helping in the kitchens from now on. Mitchie tries to protest, but can’t. She knows her secret will come out sooner or later.

Later, Shane sees Mitchie again and asks if he can play his new song for her. She agrees and listens to it. She tells him she really likes the song. Shane says he was inspired by hearing a girl sing around camp earlier. Shane likes the fact Mitchie is different from the other campers around here. She isn’t so sure about that.

Back at the kitchen, Mitchie comes in to find Caitlyn there. Caitlyn tries to introduce herself, not knowing that Connie had a daughter helping her here. Mitchie tries to hide and run away, but she gets caught in a mop bucket and falls over, water and the tortilla chips she was carrying spilling all over her. Caitlyn comes over to help and finds that Connie’s daughter is Mitchie. She demands to know why she lied about her family. Mitchie says she was just trying to fit in. She accuses Caitlyn of hiding her true self as well, with Caitlyn’s whole act of pretending not to care what people think. Mitchie tells Caitlyn she might as well just tell everyone at camp she’s a liar now. Caitlyn says she just might do that when Connie comes in. Shocked at the mess, she tells Mitchie to get herself cleaned up.

That night, it is the Pajama Jam and Tess has ensured her backup singers are dressed the same, but Peggy, Ella, and Mitchie are surprised to find Tess in a different outfit from them. She reminds them that she is the lead singer and can dress how she wants. Before they can perform, it is Caitlyn’s turn. Caitlyn’s performance is praised by the crowd, and Tess sees Shane watching in the corner of the room, clearly enjoying it too. Not liking the attention being on someone else, Tess screams that she’s seen a snake in the room. It is soon discovered that there is no snake, and that what Tess was pointing at was just a power cord. Caitlyn accuses Tess of ruining her set on purpose. Tess responds with hand gestures that spell out the term “Whatever Major Loser”. Mitchie rightly points out to Tess that those gestures are so uncool, sticking up for Caitlyn in a small way, but it does not go unnoticed.

The next day, Caitlyn and Mitchie are sat in the kitchens together, helping with decorations for the next musical event. Mitchie starts to talk to Caitlyn about Final Jam, but Caitlyn is confused why the two are even talking since they aren’t meant to be friends with each other. Mitchie then bursts a balloon by Caitlyn, saying she was just setting her up for a prank. The two then talk properly. Caitlyn says she was once friends with Tess too, but when she started to show she had talent beyond being Tess’s backing singer, she was pushed out of Tess’s group. Caitlyn reminds Mitchie that Tess’s popularity might make her seem fun at first, but there’s more to life than just being popular.

Shane gets a call from Nate and Jason, asking how camp is going. He tells them he is working on new music, and that he’ll be happy to record a duet with the winner of Final Jam but what he’d really like to do is find the voice he heard on his first day at camp. Shane then tells the drummer from his dance class about this search, which leads to all the girls at camp randomly auditioning for Shane, trying to figure out if they are the voice he heard. The search gets nowhere and all it does is make Shane a victim of some casual stalking. Mitchie later sees Shane and he asks if she’d like to go for a canoe ride with him. The two sit and talk in the middle of the lake, and Shane says how difficult it is to figure out if people are being fake around you and just want a taste of your fame. Shane says Mitchie must know all about that because of her mother being President of Hot Tunes TV in China. She doesn’t say much to that, but feels bad that Shane knows about this lie now too.

Back at camp, Tess sees Mitchie and Caitlyn with Connie at the kitchens and figures out that Connie is actually Mitchie’s mother and that she isn’t famous at all. All three head over to the Beach Jam where Connect 3 perform a surprise song for everyone. The band say they should go and record the song as a demo right away, but Shane wants to stick around because he hasn’t found that girl yet. After the show, Tess calls Mitchie out in front of everyone, asking for more details about her mother. Caitlyn initially tries to cover for Mitchie, but it doesn’t work and, embarrassed, Mitchie has to reveal the truth – that her mother works in the kitchen. Many of the campers shun Mitchie but worst of all, Shane is angry with her for lying to him as well. Mitchie tries to explain but he doesn’t want to hear it.

To make things worse, Tess hears Shane talking to Brown about his “mystery girl” and he sings part of the song he heard. Tess believes she’s heard that before and looks in Mitchie’s song book. Sure enough, it is Mitchie’s song. Tess devises a plan to ensure Shane never realises Mitchie is that voice.

At class that day, Shane gives everyone advice for Final Jam, namely to be yourself and be authentic, this being a deliberate shot at Mitchie who is feeling very isolated at Camp Rock right now. Way to be a real jerk, Shane. Connie tries to talk to Mitchie, who can’t understand why Mitchie wouldn’t want to be herself. Mitchie tells her mother that she only has one friend at school, and she isn’t popular. She just wanted to fit in and feel popular for once in her life. She didn’t want to feel the way she does at home. Connie tells Mitchie that she is an amazing person and she should be herself from now on.

In the cafeteria, Mitchie manages to make amends with Caitlyn and her friends. Tess comes over just to be mean, asking Mitchie to tell her mum that the chicken was dry today. This time, Mitchie has had enough of Tess and tells Tess to stop making everyone feel bad just to make herself feel better. Mitchie is officially kicked out of Tess’s group so she teams up with Caitlyn for Final Jam. Preparations begin for Final Jam right away.

The day before Final Jam though, as Caitlyn and Mitchie work in the kitchens, Tess comes in with Brown and accuses them of stealing her charm bracelet. They have no idea what she’s talking about but Brown sees the bracelet in a stack of their books. Caitlyn and Mitchie say they don’t know how that got there, and know Tess has set them up. Brown can’t take their word for it and feels he has no choice but to ban them from all camp activities until the end of Final Jam. Tess walks away, happy that Mitchie won’t be performing anymore. Mitchie and Caitlyn talk about how unfair Brown has been to them, and how they can’t believe he’s actually banned them until the end of Final Jam. This gives Mitchie an idea; they’ll just have to perform after the end of Final Jam!

At Final Jam, Connect 3 are back as judges of the competition. Backstage, Tess manages to annoy Ella and Peggy right before going on stage, and the two quit, making their own plans. Two campers, and rappers, Barron and Sander launch into the first performance, which Ella joins in on. Tess then performs her song and is thrilled to see her mum has shown up to watch her. However, partway through the song, Tess sees her mum is on the phone, not even watching her. Distracted, Tess forgets her routine and almost falls off stage. That gets her mother’s attention! But it’s too late; the song is ruined and Tess is humiliated.

Following that, Dee and Brown announce a late entry. But no, it’s not Mitchie and Caitlyn. It’s actually Peggy, performing a solo under her actual name, Margaret. She does extremely well and Tess even apologises to her for not realising how good she was. The judges then leave to deliberate. At this point, Caitlyn and Mitchie ask Brown if they can perform now that is the end of Final Jam. Brown is thrilled to see that they understood what he meant, and eagerly let them perform.

On stage, Mitchie is initially nervous, but soon settles in to her song, this being the same song she sang in the Mess Hall on that first day and the same song that Shane heard. Shane turns around after hearing the song, finally finding that voice he’s been thinking about all through camp. Shane then duets with Mitchie on stage.

Connect 3 announce the winner of Final Jam, and the one who will be recording a duet with Shane. The winner is…. Peggy! Shocked, Peggy accepts her trophy. Tess then apologises to Mitchie and Caitlyn, and says she told Brown that they didn’t take her bracelet. Tess looks forward to seeing them next year. Mitchie’s parents compliment her on her performance. Mitchie thanks them for letting her come to Camp Rock as she had a great summer. Shane then asks Mitchie to go for another canoe ride with him. Finally, there is a goodbye performance by all the campers.

That is the end of Camp Rock in the original version of the movie. However, if you happen to own the Camp Rock Extended Edition DVD, you’ll know that right after this scene, there is an additional scene, taking place three months later. Here, Caitlyn shows Mitchie, Tess, Peggy, Ella, and Lola her garage studio and they all record a song together.

CHARACTERS & CAST

Mitchie Torres has dreams of being a great singer-songwriter. She is enthusiastic and upbeat, feeling very hopeful that her parents will let her go to Camp Rock if they see how much it means to her. However, the financial cost is an obstacle to her going and all looks lost for Mitchie – until her mother just happens to take over the catering of the camp at short notice. Mitchie is very excited to be at Camp Rock, but in a way, she is quite naïve to the different types of people she is going to meet there, and feels quite insecure, especially next to the rich and famous campers like Tess, and the super talented campers like pretty much everyone! This leads Mitchie to lie about her family, because she wants Tess to like her so she can feel popular for once. It takes a while, but Mitchie eventually learns that it’s better to be yourself and accept yourself for who you are, rather than pretend to be someone else.

Demi Lovato was cast as Mitchie Torres. Lovato initially got her start in acting on the children’s show Barney & Friends (1992-2010), with this being where she met her Disney BFF Selena Gomez. Later, Lovato was cast as Charlotte Adams in Season 1 of the short form Disney Channel series As the Bell Rings (2007-09). From here, Lovato was cast in Camp Rock and this is where her Disney Channel career really took off. Just a few months later, she began starring in the Disney Channel series Sonny with a Chance (2009-11) in the lead role of Sonny Munroe, and starred alongside Selena Gomez in the Disney Channel Original Movie Princess Protection Program (2009), as well as releasing new music. Lovato was nominated for Best Performance in a TV Movie, Miniseries or Special by a Leading Young Actress at the Young Artist Awards for her role as Mitchie, but sadly, lost out to Selena Gomez in Another Cinderella Story (2008).

Shane Gray begins his time at Camp Rock as an arrogant rock star, who thinks the whole world revolves around him. We all know that stereotype and might even have some specific real-world examples. In this case, Gray’s behaviour is threatening the future of his band, Connect 3, so he is forced to go and work at Camp Rock over the summer, to try and reverse some of that negative attention he’s had from the press. His time at Camp Rock doesn’t start well, as he misses classes and clearly doesn’t like the fact his uncle is his boss here. Shane just wants to leave, but after hearing a mystery girl singing, he finds himself compelled to write new music that is more fitting to the sound he wants him and his band to have, instead of just recording the music they are being told to record. It is all thanks to Mitchie that Shane has a better time at Camp Rock than he expected and that Connect 3 have managed to reconnect with their original sound.

Joe Jonas, of the Jonas Brothers, was cast as Shane Gray. The Jonas Brothers initially formed in 2005, before working with Disney from around 2007, where they recorded the song “Kids of the Future” for the Disney Animation movie Meet the Robinsons (2007). The Jonas Brothers appeared on tour with Hannah Montana and Miley Cyrus, with this tour being recorded and released as Hannah Montana and Miley Cyrus: Best of Both Worlds Concert (2008). The Jonas Brothers got their own concert movie for Disney, Jonas Brothers: The 3D Concert Experience, in 2009. The Jonas Brothers also got to lead their own Disney Channel series, Jonas (2009-10), shortly after Camp Rock. The other two members of the Jonas Brothers, Nick and Kevin, were cast as Nate and Jason Gray, members of Connect 3.

Tess Tyler is said to run Camp Rock, because she has the most famous parent in show business. Tess thinks that she is destined to be the most famous camper because of this and therefore believes everyone is beneath her. She cares about status, which is why she initially decides Mitchie isn’t worth her time, after hearing her father runs a hardware store. But when Mitchie suggests she has parental connections in the music industry, Tess is suddenly interested in talking to her. Tess doesn’t like anyone who might have more talent than her, and those who take the spotlight away from her. She quickly puts Mitchie off performing at Final Jam on her own, and convinces her to be her backup singer instead because of this. It is later shown that Tess acts this way because her mother is so famous, she can’t spend any time with her, so Tess wants others to feel worse about themselves, because she doesn’t think she is particularly worthy of anything. It’s a shame really and you kind of have to feel a bit sorry for Tess when you see that her mother can’t take five minutes to pay full attention to her daughter for once. Tess tries to make amends at the end of Camp Rock and apologises to those she’s hurt.

Tess Tyler was played by Meaghan Jette Martin. After Camp Rock, Martin sang “When You Wish Upon a Star” for the 2009 re-release of Pinocchio (1940) and the song “Magic” for the Wizards of Waverly Place official soundtrack for Disney. She later was cast as Bianca Stratford in the ABC Family series 10 Things I Hate About You (2009-10), which was based on the 1999 film. She also starred as Jo Mitchell in Mean Girls 2 (2011), which was also released on ABC Family.

Tess being Tess, she needs to have an entourage to give that appearance of power. Tess has two girls in her group before Mitchie. These are Ella Pador, and Margaret “Peggy” Dupree. Ella is a little bit ditzy and seems to be the least musically-inclined of the group, not seeming to be interested in going solo. Peggy clearly has talent, being seen playing the guitar early on in the film, and performing her own song at Final Jam, eventually winning the competition. Although Peggy and Ella may view music and their time at Camp Rock differently, they both hate how Tess talks down to them and orders them around all the time. Peggy is the first to walk away from Tess, and Ella, inspired by Peggy, does the same thing at Final Jam, leaving Tess without any backup singers.

Ella was played by Anna Maria Perez de Tagle, who had been cast in the recurring role of Ashley DeWitt in Hannah Montana (2006-11) prior to her role in Camp Rock. She went on to play Joy Moy in the 2009 remake of Fame, and was cast in the 2011 Broadway revival of Godspell. Peggy was played by Jasmine Richard, who had previously been cast as Margaret in the Canadian teen comedy drama Naturally, Sadie (2005-07) and went on to appear as Tara Bohun in the series Overruled! (2009).

We also have Caitlyn, who dreams of being a big-time music producer. Caitlyn is the first person to talk to Mitchie at Camp Rock, and introduces her to some of her friends there. However, once it becomes clear that Mitchie would rather ditch Caitlyn to spend time with Tess, Caitlyn decides Mitchie isn’t her type of person after all. She tries to warn Mitchie about what being friends with Tess does to you, but Mitchie doesn’t listen. Eventually, the two are forced to talk after Caitlyn finds herself by working in the kitchens. Caitlyn decides to keep Mitchie’s secret about her mother’s job and the two become friends. Caitlyn is there for Mitchie when the lie unravels and even helps Mitchie with her Final Jam performance.

Alyson Stoner was cast as Caitlyn, having already voiced the character of Victoria in Lilo & Stitch: The Series (2003-06) and been cast in the recurring role of Max in The Suite Life of Zack and Cody (2005-08). Stoner was also cast as Sarah Baker in Cheaper by the Dozen (2003) and its 2005 sequel before Camp Rock. They also voice Isabella in the popular Disney animated series Phineas and Ferb (2007-15, 2025-present) and its two films.

Within Caitlyn’s “group”, there are Barron, Sander, and Lola. In Camp Rock, we don’t see all that much from them, other than Lola’s performance at Open Mic Night, and Barron and Sander’s performance at Final Jam. Barron and Sander seem to be the jokers at Camp Rock, knowing that this is a good time to work on their breakdancing and rapping skills but also knowing that Camp Rock is the place to have fun over summer. Lola seems to be the cool, older one at Camp Rock, who knows exactly who she is and who she wants to be.

Lola Scott was played by Aaryn Doyle, and Barron was played by Jordan Francis. Roshon Fegan was cast as Sander. Fegan went on to be cast as Ty Blue in the Disney Channel series Shake It Up (2010-13) and appeared as a contestant on Season 14 of Dancing with the Stars (2005-present) in 2012. More recently, he voiced the recurring role of Elbone in Netflix’s DreamWorks Dragons: Rescue Riders (2019-22).

For the adults at Camp Rock, first, there is Connie Torres, Mitchie’s hardworking and caring mother. Connie has a lot of work to do at Camp Rock, having to make themed meals to go with all the numerous themed “jams” the camp has. But luckily, she has Mitchie, and then, Caitlyn to help her out. Connie is thrilled to be able to send her daughter to Camp Rock by being the catering manager there, as this is something that Mitchie must’ve been talking about for months. She doesn’t even mind when Mitchie basically ditches her, by moving out of their cabin into Tess’s, and then barely speaking to her outside of helping in the kitchens. Connie understands that Mitchie wants to make friends. The only thing she doesn’t understand is why she’d feel the need to lie about her family to fit in at Camp Rock. Connie consistently tells Mitchie she is a brilliant singer, and a great person, so she should just be herself in future and not change herself for anyone.

Connie Torres was played by Maria Canals-Barrera, who is perhaps best known for her role as Theresa Russo in the Disney Channel series Wizards of Waverly Place (2007-12) and its 2009 movie. However, before Wizards of Waverly Place, Canals-Barrera had voiced the character of Sunset Boulevardez in Disney’s animated series The Proud Family (2001-05), returning to voice the character in the series’ reboot The Proud Family: Louder and Prouder (2022-present). Canals-Barrera also voiced the character of Paulina in Danny Phantom (2004-07).

Brown Cesario is Camp Rock’s director, as well as the uncle of Shane and the other members of Connect 3. Brown tells Connie as soon as she meets him that he was a founding member of the band the Wet Crows, before proceeding to say how he knows Mick Jagger. As cool as Brown is, not being overly strict or disciplinary except when he has to be, and very encouraging of the campers, he is definitely a bit of a name-dropper! Daniel Fathers was cast as Brown. In more recent years, he has played Rudy Moore in A Christmas Prince (2017) for Netflix, and Clarence Perry in Season 2 of Snatch (2017-18).

Finally, we have Camp Rock’s musical director Dee La Duke. She is upbeat and full of energy the few times we see her introducing events around Camp Rock. Dee was played by Julie Brown, who was also the co-writer of Camp Rock. In terms of previous acting work, Brown had voiced Lisa in A Goofy Movie (1995) and played Coach Stoeger in Clueless (1995). More recently, Brown was cast in the recurring role of Paula Norwood in the ABC sitcom The Middle (2009-18).

MUSIC

Camp Rock is a musical, however, it differs from typical musicals, including Disney Channel ones, in that the main characters do not suddenly burst into song. In Camp Rock, the music is either accompanying music playing in the background, or the campers are singing these songs as part of performances, both on stage, in class, and just at camp in general. This might have helped some non-musical lovers like this movie, especially if they perhaps don’t like the normal musical storytelling format, where songs seemingly come out of nowhere.

In movie order, the first song to appear in Camp Rock is “Who Will I Be?”, which plays in the opening sequence, as background music playing from a CD that Mitchie has recorded of her own songs. Here, Mitchie is getting ready for her last day of school before the summer break, and seems very optimistic about her day, hoping that today will be the day her mother says she can go to Camp Rock. It’s an upbeat pop song to match Mitchie’s mood, and all about being able to choose what kind of person you want to be. Sadly, Mitchie’s optimism doesn’t last past breakfast! “Who Will I Be?” also reappears as Mitchie’s solo singing performance in her first class with Brown Cesario. “Who Will I Be?” was written by Matthew Gerrard and Robbie Nevil, and is performed by Demi Lovato as Mitchie Torres.

The next song in Camp Rock is performed by Lola at the Open Mic Night on the first night of camp. Lola performs the song “What It Takes”. It’s a catchy song, particularly the chorus, where Lola sings about finding the perfect guy. It’s not the best song in Camp Rock but since Lola isn’t in the movie all that much, it’s good that she had a moment in the spotlight. “What It Takes” was written by Tim James and Antonina Armato, and performed by Aaryn Doyle as Lola.

Following that is a song that is used during Shane Gray’s dance class. It is not performed in the class but is played from a CD, although the song is technically credited to Jordan Francis, who played Barron in this film. It is later used by the girls at Camp Rock as an audition song when Shane tries to find his mystery girl and “that voice”. “Start the Party”was written by Matthew Gerrard and Robbie Nevil.

Next up is my favourite song in Camp Rock, “Too Cool”, Tess’s song for Campfire Jam. I will be absolutely clear and say that I like the song, but I find the performance of this song in the movie to be just a tad bit cringey with the choreography. Don’t get me wrong; I like to do the shoulder movements in the chorus, but Tess preening and posing to the camera is a bit awkward to watch at times! It matches the tone of the song though, because “Too Cool” is all about Tess, telling people she’s just too good to talk to them! The song was written by Toby Gad and Pam Sheyne, and was meant to be a teen version of “I’m Too Sexy” by Right Said Fred[1]. Meaghan Jette Martin as Tess performed “Too Cool”.

After that, we get a calm ballad from Shane Gray, as he plays “Gotta Find You” to Mitchie by the lake, to get her opinion on his “new sound”. Shane states that he was inspired to write this song after hearing a girl singing at camp. I really like “Gotta Find You”, although it is fun that viewers have since pointed out that there are mysterious backing vocals and instruments performing this song, even though it is meant to be just Shane and his guitar! “Gotta Find You” was written by Adam Watts and Andy Dodd, and performed by Joe Jonas.

Then we have the song I dislike the most in Camp Rock: “Play My Music”. This might seem a bit weird to some as “Play My Music” is performed by the members of Connect 3 at the Beach Jam, making this the most typical Jonas Brothers song you’ll find in Camp Rock, and the only song the three guys sing together. I guess I’m not a big Jonas Brothers fan. I mean, I’m not a big fan of their music; they seem like nice enough people. “Play My Music” was written by Kara DioGuardi and Mitch Allan.

Following that we just have performances at Final Jam, the first of which is “Hasta La Vista”, performed by Jordan Francis and Roshon Fegan as Barron and Sander, the aspiring rappers. Anna Maria Perez de Tagle also performs this song as Ella in the movie, adding her vocals at certain times in the song, although it is unclear if this is her singing as she was not specifically credited on the song as a performer. I quite like this song; it’s fun and easy to sing along too. It was written by Toby Gad, Pam Sheyne, and Kovasciar Myvette.

After that is Tess’s second song at Camp Rock, which I like but not as much as “Too Cool”. It is “2 Stars”, once again performed by Meaghan Jette Martin as Tess, written by Adam Anders and Nikki Hassman. I think “2 Stars” is just less memorable than “Too Cool”, but it does reflect Tess’s complicated relationship with her mother and even though Tess is the “villain” in Camp Rock, it isn’t nice to see Tess performing her heart out for her mum, only for her to be on the phone during the song. It’s not an amazing song, but it’s an important moment for Tess and her character development and backstory.

Technically the final song of Final Jam is “Here I Am”, which is a last-minute entry from Peggy after she ditches Tess in favour of performing her very own solo. It’s a good thing she did too, because Peggy goes on to win Final Jam due to her thought-provoking lyrics about not letting yourself fade into the background whilst others shine, the perfect summing up of Peggy’s journey at Camp Rock that summer. “Here I Am” was written by Jamie Houston and was performed, not by Peggy’s actress Jasmine Richards, but by Renee Sandstorm, also known as Renee Sands, who was part of the girl group Wild Orchid and went on to perform other songs for Disney including “Just Like We Dreamed It”, which was the theme song for Disneyland Paris’ 15^th Anniversary in 2007, and recently sang the theme song for the Disney Junior show The Chicken Squad (2021-22).

After Final Jam has ended, Mitchie and Caitlyn ask Brown if they can perform their song now as they were banned from camp activities after allegedly stealing Tess’s bracelet. Brown is very happy for them to perform, knowing this will be a chance for Mitchie to shake off her shyness and show what she’s made of. Mitchie starts off uncertain in her performance of her song “This Is Me”, but gradually, she gains confidence and belts out that chorus. This song is also combined with Shane Gray’s song “Gotta Find You” as Shane realises that Mitchie was the voice he’d been searching all of Camp Rock for, to give Mitchie a very Cinderella ending. Mitchie had sung “This Is Me” in the Mess Hall on the first day of camp, and Shane happened to overhear it after hiding from crazy fans by the hall’s open window. It’s a brilliant solo performance and then duet, and obviously one of the best Camp Rock songs. “This Is Me” is also sung very briefly by Mitchie after she moves into Tess’s cabin and the girls ask her to sing a song she’s written, as they find her song book in her bag. “This Is Me” is performed by Demi Lovato, and later Joe Jonas since the song as it appears in Camp Rock, as part solo, part duet, is how it appears on the official soundtrack. It was written by Adam Watts and Andy Dodd.

The last song in the original cut of Camp Rock is the less rock, more pop song “We Rock”, which is performed by the entire cast at the very end of Final Jam, and therefore camp, as a goodbye song from the campers. I really like “We Rock” and the air guitar dance moves are incredibly easy to learn and remember. “We Rock” was written by Kara DioGuardi and Greg Wells. An instrumental version of this song is also used during the montage of the campers making their preparations for Final Jam.

But there is one other song that appears on the official Camp Rock soundtrack and in an End Credits scene within the Extended Edition version of the film. Here, the girls from Camp Rock come together to record a song in Caitlyn’s garage recording studio. This song is “Our Time Is Here”. The three singers credited on this song are Demi Lovato, Aaryn Doyle, and Meaghan Jette Martin, although Anna Maria Perez de Tagle and Jasmine Richards are also singing in this scene as their characters. Surprisingly, I actually like “Our Time Is Here”, and that’s only surprising because I don’t normally like the “deleted” songs in movie. This song was written by Tim James and Antonina Armato.

The Camp Rock soundtrack was officially released on 17^th June 2008, just a few days before the US premiere of the film. The soundtrack was released on different dates internationally, although seemed to also be available prior to the movie premiering, as Disney Channel did with many of their musical movies. The soundtrack had some success in the official charts, peaking at No. 3 on the US Billboard 200 chart in July 2008, staying in the Top 10 for ten consecutive weeks. It also topped the US Billboard Top Soundtracks chart. Four of the movie’s songs were released as singles to promote Camp Rock in the build-up to the film’s premiere. These were: “We Rock”, “Play My Music”, “This Is Me”, and “Gotta Find You”, all of which charted in the US Billboard Hot 100.

Internationally, the soundtrack charted at No. 1 in Argentina, and No. 2 in countries like Canada, Mexico, Spain, and UK. Some of Camp Rock’s songs were also recorded by local artists for different versions of the soundtrack and DVD, such as French singer Sheryne and Dutch singer Nikki performing “This Is Me” for their respective countries’ soundtracks, and English singer and actor Brad Kavanagh, who was cast as Dylan in Season 2 of Disney Channel UK’s As The Bell Rings (2007-08), performing his version of “Here I Am”[2].

David Kitay is credited as the composer of the music in Camp Rock. At Disney Channel, Kitay also composed the music for other DCOMs, like Cadet Kelly (2002) and Eddie’s Million Dollar Cook-Off (2003), and co-composed for Stuck in the Suburbs (2004) with Jeff Vincent. Away from Disney, Kitay has worked on the music for such non-Disney movies as Clueless (1995); Scary Movie (2000); and Over Her Dead Body (2008).

PRODUCTION

Disney Channel movies are normally used as a springboard for young actors, singers, and dancers to become more integrated in the Disney family, before hopefully moving on to become mainstream stars outside of Disney.

In the case of Camp Rock, although the Jonas Brothers were already famous prior to the film, Demi Lovato was a relative unknown, so Camp Rock was an opportunity for her to become the next big Disney Channel star, following in the footsteps of Miley Cyrus and Selena Gomez. However, Lovato was not the only person who auditioned to play Mitchie.

On an episode of the podcast Magical Rewind, hosted by former Cheetah Girls star Sabrina Bryan and Will Friedle, who played Eric Matthews in Boy Meets World (1993-2000), in 2024, Meaghan Martin, who played Tess Tyler in Camp Rock, stated that she had initially auditioned to be Mitchie, but she knew she was meant to be the mean, blonde girl in this film – because what teen movie doesn’t need a mean, blonde girl[3]? They were all the rage in the 2000s! Martin was so good at playing bully Tess that she said on this podcast that she still gets nasty messages on social media about how mean she was to “Demi” in Camp Rock. People know Camp Rock is just a movie, right?

But that wasn’t all. Alyson Stoner, who ended up playing Caitlyn, read for the lead, and after being cast in numerous projects at Disney previously, Stoner believed she had a shot at being Mitchie. However, it was later told to them that casting actually had them in mind for the part of Caitlyn, thus basically becoming the “sidekick” to Mitchie, which was a little bit disappointing at the time[4]. On top of that, according to her “TV Dad” in Disney’s Wizards of Waverly Place (2007-12), David DeLuise, who spoke in an interview in 2020 about this, said that Selena Gomez had been offered the role of Mitchie Torres in Camp Rock, but that Gomez had turned it down in the hopes that her best friend at the time, Demi Lovato, would be offered the lead instead, because Gomez had already been given her “breakout role” at Disney by being cast as Alex Russo in Wizards of Waverly Place[5]. If this was the case, this makes a moment in the Sonny with a Chance Season 1 episode “Battle of the Networks’ Stars” when Gomez made a guest appearance as a fictionalised version of herself, even more amusing. At the end of this episode, the cast of So Random! and Chad Dylan Cooper are supposed to be sitting down to watch Chad’s new movie about his life, but instead, they end up watching Selena Gomez in the film Camp Hip Hop, and we see a small clip of Gomez dancing with three boys who look a lot like the Jonas Brothers!

Demi Lovato had initially auditioned for Disney to be cast in Jonas, the Disney Channel series based around the Jonas Brothers that was being developed. Lovato screen tested for it, but she did not get the part. However, Disney still wanted to see her for two other roles – one was Mitchie in Camp Rock, and the other was Sonny Munroe in Sonny with a Chance. Lovato got both of them and was whisked away with her family to Los Angeles. to begin her new life as a Disney Channel star[6].

Even Shane Gray had an interesting casting story because Taylor Lautner auditioned for the part! He wasn’t seen as quite the right fit for Shane though and ultimately did not get it. Coincidentally, Lautner starred alongside Alyson Stoner in Cheaper by the Dozen 2 (2005) in one of his earlier screen roles, so had Lautner gotten the lead role in Camp Rock, it might’ve been a nice reunion for the two of them. But it was not to be, and that’s fine because Lautner ended up being cast as Jacob Black in Twilight (2008), which came out just a few months after Camp Rock, and began a five-movie series. All things considered, I think he did alright for himself without this film!

So, how did that part go to a Jonas Brother? Well, Joe Jonas was asked to send in an acting tape for the part of Shane Gray after the director of Camp Rock attended a Jonas Brothers show in L.A. It was clear from watching the show that Joe could sing and had that “rock star image”, and so they just needed to see him act. After looking at his audition tape, Jonas was offered the part. Shane was meant to simply be the camp director’s nephew who had a solo act before being forced to come to camp to fix his attitude, but because Joe Jonas was in a band with his real-life brothers, it was decided that Shane Gray would have bandmates written into the script so that Joe could appear with Nick and Kevin in the film. This also meant that instead of an adult telling Shane he needed to get his act together, the message would come from his bandmates, making it less of a punishment.

Camp Rock’s story was written by Julie Brown, who played Dee La Duke in the film, Paul Brown, Regina Hicks, and Karin Gist. Gist had previously written the DCOM Jump In! (2007), and went on to write and produce shows like Mixed-ish (2019-21); Our Kind of People (2021-22); and Revenge (2011-15). Hicks had co-written Jump In! with Karin Gist, and had previously written and produced the show Girlfriends (2000-08) before Camp Rock. After Camp Rock, Hicks worked on the sitcom Instant Mom (2013-15) and most recently The Upshaws (2021-25) for Netflix. Paul Brown had written and produced the series Quantum Leap (1989-93) and Pacific Blue (1996-2000) before co-writing Camp Rock.

Camp Rock was directed by Matthew Diamond. In 1998, Diamond directed the documentary film Dancemaker which was nominated at the Academy Awards for Best Documentary Feature. For Disney, he directed episodes of the Disney Channel series That’s So Raven (2003-07) before working on Camp Rock, and directed episodes of other non-Disney series such as Gilmore Girls (2000-07) and Desperate Housewives (2004-12).

The movie was filmed in Autumn 2007 in Canada, as so many Disney Channel movies are. Specifically, two different summer camps were used as the set of Camp Rock. One was Kilcoo Camp in Minden, Ontario, and the other was YMCA Camp Wanakita in Haliburton, Ontario. This meant that a typical camp setting, with picturesque landscaping and a beautiful lake, could be the backdrop of the movie, alongside the standard wooden cabins that make up a normal summer camp. In their downtime, the cast spent a lot of their time as though they were actually at Camp Rock, singing and dancing, as well as taking part in usual camp activities like canoeing.

Although much of Camp Rock was filmed at the camps, the Final Jam was not filmed there. It was meant to be filmed at one of the camps, but it was moved to a soundstage to make it a bigger showcase. They decorated a soundstage to look like Jacob’s Pillow in Massachusetts, which is a theatre housed inside a barn. The director even had a whole backstory for Brown Cesario and why he’d have all this expensive tech equipment at a summer camp. The story went that Brown, who we already knew was a touring rocker, wasn’t paid for his final tour at the end of career and took all the tour’s lighting equipment to Camp Rock with him as payment. Since it was never questioned why all this equipment was at Camp Rock, Brown’s backstory was not used[7]!

Another behind-the-scenes secret is that the Campfire Jam was filmed with a real, huge fire, lit by propane, burning behind the dancers and singers. It was actually further away from the cast than it looks on screen, thanks to a touch of forced perspective and camera trickery, but there were crew members on hand with fire extinguishers just in case something went wrong. The cast members said they could feel the heat from the fire as they were shooting the scene. The performance was also not filmed as late at night as it might appear in Camp Rock, with filters being used to make it look darker[8].

The filming of Camp Rock was an enjoyable experience for the young cast members, who called the set “Disney High” because it was just like high school, with everyone dating each other, and people falling out over silly things, but they all became good friends simply because they were spending so much time together. However, high school isn’t always a pleasant experience, and that was the case at Disney High for some as well. For example, Alyson Stoner and Demi Lovato have since talked about their experiences during their time at Disney, and they both stated that they struggled with their body image and self-confidence during this movie, which no doubt was exacerbated by the fact that the set was full of pretty, talented performers, some of which had already been on television before, plus the fact all these young people were growing up in a high pressure environment, with fans and the press being fascinated and judgmental, in some cases, about them.

Having said that, Lovato and Stoner have been able to laugh at some of their moments in Camp Rock over the years, such as joking about Caitlyn’s keyboard scene in the Pajama Jam and how they hate the music that was overlaid over this scene in the final cut, not believing it to match Caitlyn’s opinion of herself as a would-be music producer, and how Stoner still knows all the steps to the “Start the Party” dance[9].

RECEPTION

Camp Rock first aired on Disney Channel in the US on 20^th June 2008. It was rebroadcast on the Disney-owned channels ABC and ABC Family that weekend too. The movie made its way to international Disney Channels in the coming months, although in some cases, it did miss the school summer holidays, so viewers were unable to join Mitchie in her enthusiasm to have a great summer, because in these countries, kids were already going back to school!

On its US Friday night premiere, Camp Rock brought in around 8.9 million viewers, with 3.4 million of those being in the 9-14 age bracket, Disney Channel’s prime audience. At the time, Camp Rock was the second most-watched DCOM, after High School Musical 2 (2007), which had an unprecedented 17.2 million watching its premiere. Camp Rock did outperform High School Musical’s 2006 premiere though, which reached 7.7 million viewers, making Camp Rock the best performing non-sequel movie for Disney Channel at the time[10]. Camp Rock remained as the best performing Disney Channel Original Movie of 2008, but it lost its position as second-most watched DCOM just a year later. In 2009, Wizards of Waverly Place: The Movie brought in 11.4 million viewers on its premiere, bumping Camp Rock down a place, however, Camp Rock does remain in the No. 3 spot to this day, and will likely remain there, since Disney Channel movie premieres don’t hit the same numbers they did in the 2000s and 2010s any more.

Camp Rock was meant to be a new age of Disney Channel musicals after High School Musical and its trilogy, since the third – and rumoured to be final – movie was coming to theatres in late 2008. Although many regular Disney Channel audience members enjoyed Camp Rock with its cute, simple story, catchy music, and its typical message of loving yourself and being yourself, it was not seen to be as good as the High School Musical series. But it did bring a new Disney Channel actress and singer to screens, as Camp Rock launched Demi Lovato’s career, with Lovato continuing to be a favourite within the group of actors and artists formally known as Disney Channel stars.

However, there was quite a lot of cynicism in critics’ reviews of Camp Rock, specifically around the marketing of the movie alongside its cast. The Jonas Brothers were said to be well on their way to “world domination” because of Camp Rock and Disney’s clever marketing strategy, and that Demi Lovato would soon be the next female teen star to come from the company. It was both amazing, and scary, to see how much power Disney Channel had in launching new acts. Others also did not like the fact Camp Rock was predictable and almost too wholesome, whilst being clichéd and cringey in places, especially around some of the “mean girl” moments. Some musicians were also annoyed with the continuous use of the word “jam” in Camp Rock, which was being used incorrectly, as a jam session is supposed to be informal and improvised whereas the performances at Camp Rock are clearly not that, and that there were very few people at Camp Rock who could even play an instrument.

Camp Rock’s director Matthew Diamond was nominated at the Directors Guild of America Awards for his work on Camp Rock in the category of Children’s Program, alongside two other 2008 Disney Channel movie directors, The Cheetah Girls: One World, directed by Paul Hoen, and Minutemen, directed by Lev L. Spiro. However, all three lost out to Classical Baby (2005-17) on HBO Family, directed by Amy Schatz.

LEGACY

Soon after Camp Rock aired, it was already being discussed whether there was going to be a sequel, because Disney Channel seem to like musical sequels in particular.

It was later confirmed in 2009 that Disney Channel were working on Camp Rock 2, and production began in Summer 2009. A few story details and cast additions were known around this time, such as the story revolving around Camp Rock and another rival camp, Camp Star, as well as a Romeo and Juliet-style romance going on between a camper at each of the two camps[11]. In April 2010, a premiere date of 3^rd September 2010 was confirmed, and the soundtrack of 15 new songs went on sale on 27^th July. It was also confirmed that Demi Lovato and other Camp Rock 2 cast members would be joining the Jonas Brothers on a worldwide concert tour to promote the film, beginning on 27^th July 2010. This came off the back of the success of Camp Rock as a film, its soundtrack, and its DVD, which became the No. 1 TV Movie and No. 1 Family TV title on DVD in 2008[12].

To bridge the gap between Camp Rock and Camp Rock 2, on the European Disney Channels, there was a singing competition called My Camp Rock, where young viewers could compete through a series of workshops and performances, with the winner getting to professionally record “This is Me” from the film. This show originally began on Disney Channel UK, with the first season airing in April 2009. There was also a second season, which aired in August 2010, before the second film came out. The final episode seems to have aired a week before the UK premiere of Camp Rock 2: The Final Jam. This competition also came to Disney Channels in France, Spain, Scandinavia, and Benelux countries, in 2009 and 2010.

At the US Disney Parks, Camp Rock has been referenced in very small ways over the years. At Disney’s Hollywood Studios at Walt Disney World, from 2010 to 2013, there was a short stage show performed called Disney Channel Rocks, which was similar to the High School Musical pep rallies that had been seen at this park as promotion for the trilogy of films. Disney Channel Rocks showcased music from many Disney Channel musicals including The Cheetah Girls, StarStruck (2010), Jump In! (2007), and of course, High School Musical. From Camp Rock, the song “We Rock” was performed.

A slightly altered version of this show later appeared at the special event Disneyland After Hours: Disney Channel Nite in March 2024. It contained music from The Cheetah Girls, Camp Rock, this being “We Rock”, and its sequel, and High School Musical still, but not some of the lesser-known Disney Channel musicals. Also at Disney Channel Nite in 2024, guests could have their photograph taken in front of a Camp Rock backdrop, and sing-along to hits from the movies at Camp Rock Karaoke.

Apparently, you can also go to Kilcoo Camp, where Camp Rock was filmed, to take part in a Camp Rock experience with all the usual camp activities, like dancing, campfires, and s’mores. Kilcoo Camp is a working private summer camp though, so this Camp Rock experience would only seem to take place in the off-season, however, apart from the odd TikTok video and a couple of articles, where one states the price at almost $4,000 for a two-week stay at Kilcoo Camp, or just over $6,500 for a four-week stay, I can’t find anything categorically showing that this is a bookable experience on the camp’s website[13].

FINAL THOUGHTS

Sadly, my enjoyment of Camp Rock has been somewhat tainted by the experiences that some of its cast have since talked about as they’ve processed events as adults, even if they can laugh about some of their more embarrassing on-screen moments now.

I’m obviously not putting blame on any of the cast for these mixed feelings I have about the film. Working at Disney Channel at that time must’ve been a hugely pressurised environment for many of them.

It’s just a shame that something that seemed so carefree and looked like such fun to be a part of, apparently wasn’t so much in real-life. Unfortunately, this pressure only increased with the sequel, creating a situation that unnecessarily reached boiling point.

REFERENCES

[1] Credit: Rachael Ellenbogen, ‘‘Camp Rock’ director shares 17 things fans probably never knew about the iconic Disney movie’, BusinessInsider.com, 21^st June 2023.

[2] Credit: Disney, “Music Videos”, from Camp Rock (2008) Extended Rock Star Edition UK DVD (2008).

[3] Credit: John Russell, ‘Meaghan Martin Says She Still Gets Backlash About Her Character’s Bullying of Demi Lovato in Camp Rock’, People.com, 7^th August 2024.

[4] Credit: Zach Sang, ‘Alyson Stoner on Losing the Lead Role in ‘Camp Rock’ to Demi Lovato’, Zach Sang Show Clips YouTube Channel, 14^th August 2025.

[5] Credit: Sara Delgado, ‘Selena Gomez apparently turned down the lead role in Camp Rock for Demi Lovato’, GlamourMagazine.co.uk, 10^th November 2022.

[6] Credit: Demi Lovato and Nicola Marsh, Child Star (2024), Disney+.

[7] Credit: Rachael Ellenbogen, ‘‘Camp Rock’ director shares 17 things fans probably never knew about the iconic Disney movie’, BusinessInsider.com, 21^st June 2023.

[8] Credit: Disney, ““Too Cool”: Setting the Scene”, from Camp Rock (2008) Extended Rock Star Edition UK DVD (2008).

[9] Credit: Demi Lovato and Nicola Marsh, Child Star (2024), Disney+.

[10] Credit: Kate Authur, ‘High ratings for ‘Camp Rock’, the Disney Channel’s Jonas Brothers movie’, LATimes.com, 21^st June 2008.

[11] Credit: Helen O’Hara, ‘Camp Rock 2 Starts Production’, EmpireOnline.com, 8^th July 2009.

[12] Credit: Charlie Piane, ‘Disney Channel Announces World Premiere of ‘Camp Rock 2 The Final Jam’ 9.3’, BroadwayWorld.com, 27^th April 2010.

[13] Credit: Lucy Marshall, ‘Disney Channel fans buzz over ‘real-life Camp Rock’ with lake views and studios’, Mirror.co.uk, 7^th July 2025.