Press release - Movies
February 10, 2024
Disney Branded Television Greenlights Fourth ‘Zombies’ Movie, With Milo Manheim and Meg Donnelly To Star and Executive Produce
Cast Members Chandler Kinney and Kylee Russell to Return; Freya Skye and Malachi Barton Join the Cast
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“ZOMBIES 4” (working title), the latest movie in the hugely popular “ZOMBIES” franchise, has received a greenlight from Disney Branded Television, it was announced today by Ayo Davis, president, Disney Branded Television, during the 2024 Television Critics Association winter press tour in Pasadena, California. Additionally, “ZOMBIES: The Re-Animated Series,” the franchise’s first-ever animated series, will debut this summer on Disney Channel and Disney+.
Production on “ZOMBIES 4” (working title) will begin next month in New Zealand, with Meg Donnelly and Milo Manheim set to reprise their roles as Addison and Zed, Seabrook’s star-crossed zombie/cheerleader couple. Donnelly and Manheim will also executive produce.
Cast members Chandler Kinney and Kylee Russell will return as werewolf Willa and loveable zombie Eliza, respectively. Newcomer Freya Skye and Disney Channel star Malachi Barton (Disney’s “Villains of Valley View”) have been cast in the roles of new characters Nova and Victor, mysterious supernatural strangers whom Zed and Addison encounter during their summer travels.
The franchise’s fourth installment follows Zed and Addison as they embark on a road trip the summer after their first year of college. As adventures unfold, they unexpectedly discover the warring worlds of Sunnyside and Shadyside and come into contact with two new groups of monsters.
One of Disney Branded Television’s most successful franchises, the premiere telecasts of all three “ZOMBIES” films ranked No. 1 among Kids 6-11 and Tweens 9-14 when they debuted (2018, 2020, 2022)**, and have logged 253 million hours watched across linear and streaming since launch. Additionally, the films’ music has amassed over 2.7 billion streams across YouTube Music, Disney Channel YouTube and Disney Music Vevo – while soundtracks for “ZOMBIES” and “ZOMBIES 3” hit No. 1 on the Billboard Top Kid Albums chart. Overall, the “ZOMBIES” franchise has earned one certified platinum single and five certified gold singles from the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA).
“ZOMBIES 4” (working title) brand extensions will include a cross-category product line of apparel, accessories, costumes and fashion dolls by Mattel, and more.
DGA Award-winner Paul Hoen, director of all three “ZOMBIES” films and a record-setting 16 Disney Channel Original Movies (“The Luck of the Irish,” “Jump In,” “Let it Shine,” “Camp Rock 2”) will helm “ZOMBIES 4” (working title). The movie was written by David Light and Joseph Raso (nominees for a Humanitas Prize for “ZOMBIES”) and Josh Cagan (“Under Wraps 2”). In addition to Manheim and Donnelly, the film’s executive producers include Hoen, Light, Raso, Jane Fleming (“The Quest”) and Mark Ordesky (“The Lord of the Rings” film trilogy). Mahita P. Simpson is a co-executive producer on “ZOMBIES 4” (working title), which is a production of Bloor Street Productions.
*Source: Nielsen, Live+35, Z1: 1/29/18 – 2/25/18, Z2: 1/27/20 – 2/23/20, Z3: 8/1/22 – 8/28/22; ranked on average audience, based on cable movies only
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ABOUT DISNEY BRANDED TELEVISION
Disney Branded Television encompasses the creative storytellers and production and content marketing teams responsible for Disney-branded television series, movies and other programming spanning live-action, animated and unscripted formats. The group fuels the Disney+ streaming platform and Disney Channel, Disney XD and Disney Junior linear networks with content geared toward kids, tweens, teens and families, with stories that are imaginative, aspirational and reflective of their world and experiences.
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