Press release - Movies
January 25, 2018
Milo Manheim and Meg Donnelly, Stars of Disney’s ‘Zombies,’ Present a ‘Zombies’-Themed Cheer Performance and Announce the Launch of a Nationwide ‘Zombies’ Spirit Challenge on Friday, Jan. 26
MILO MANHEIM AND MEG DONNELLY, STARS OF DISNEY’S ‘ZOMBIES,’
PRESENT A ‘ZOMBIES’-THEMED CHEER PERFORMANCE AND
ANNOUNCE THE LAUNCH OF A NATIONWIDE ‘ZOMBIES’ SPIRIT CHALLENGE
ON FRIDAY, JAN. 26
Multi-talented young actors Milo Manheim and Meg Donnelly (ABC’s “American Housewife”), stars of the Disney Channel Original Movie Disney’s “ZOMBIES,” will present the debut of a “ZOMBIES”-themed, action-packed cheerleading routine choreographed by Varsity Spirit and performed by a nationally-ranked cheer squad on FRIDAY, JAN. 26 on Disney Channel. Manheim and Donnelly will also launch Disney Channel’s “ZOMBIES” Spirit Challenge inviting kids and tweens nationwide to show their zombie spirit for a chance to win a “ZOMBIES” screening party with a Disney Channel star or have their photo featured during the movie’s premiere telecast on Friday, Feb. 16 (8:00 p.m., EST/PST) on Disney Channel.
Performing to the high-energy dance single “BAMM” from the movie’s soundtrack, Florida’s Bartow High School Varsity Coed Cheer squad (Champions of the 2016 Varsity Spirit Universal Cheerleaders Association National High School Cheerleading Championship) execute an elite cheerleading routine, introduced by Manheim and Donnelly. A behind-the-scenes sneak peek and full-length version of the performance at the grand opening of The Arena at ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex at Walt Disney World Resort in Florida, will be available in the DisneyNOW app and on Disney Channel YouTube beginning Thursday, Feb. 1. The performance will also be featured in various telecasts of the “2018 UCA National High School Cheerleading Championships,” which the Bartow Coed Cheer squad will compete in, on ESPNU, ESPN2 and Varsity.TV; and in encore telecasts of the “2017 UCA National High School Cheerleading Championships” on EPSNU.
The “ZOMBIES” Spirit Challenge will take place Friday, Jan. 26 through Tuesday, Feb. 6, allowing kids and tweens nationwide to dive into the movie’s unique take on zombies – where they are the heroes in a world filled with cheerleading, football, dance and music. Participants are invited to get creative and express their unique spirit by participating in “ZOMBIES”-themed photo challenges including best green “ZOMBIES” hair, outfit, nail art, cheer pose, zombie “draggy leg” pose, zombie slime photos, or a photo of them eating something green. Submission details and more information will be available at Disney.com/ZombiesSpiritChallenge.
Disney’s “ZOMBIES” is a music- and dance-filled story set in the fictitious world of Seabrook, a cookie-cutter community brimming with perky conformity 50 years after a zombie apocalypse. Today, the zombies pose no threat, but are required to live in Zombietown, an isolated, rundown community infused with their unique creative spirit. When zombies are finally allowed to enroll in Seabrook High School, the charming, charismatic zombie Zed, who is determined to play football, meets freshman Addison who dreams of being a cheerleader – the ultimate form of status in Seabrook. Addison takes a lot of flak for befriending Zed and his zombie friends, but comes to learn that zombies and cheerleaders aren’t so different after all. Zed and Addison work together to show Seabrook what they can achieve when they embrace their differences and celebrate what makes them a community.
Starring are Meg Donnelly (ABC’s “American Housewife”) as Addison; Milo Manheim as Zed; Trevor Tordjman (“The Next Step”) as Bucky; Kylee Russell (Disney Channel’s “Jump In!”) as Eliza; Carla Jeffery (“Curb Your Enthusiasm”) as Bree; James Godfrey (“The Swap”) as Bonzo; and Kingston Foster as Zoey.
The story and teleplay were written by David Light and Joseph Raso, who are also co-producers. The movie was directed by Paul Hoen (director of over a dozen Disney Channel Original Movies including “Camp Rock 2” and “Jump In!” for which he won a Directors Guild of America Award) and executive-produced by Effie Brown (Producers Guild of America Award-winner for “Real Women Have Curves” and “Stranger Inside”) and Paul Hoen. The choreography is by Christopher Scott (“So You Think You Can Dance,” “Teen Beach Movie”) and Jeffrey Hornaday (“Teen Beach Movie”). Mark Hofeling (“Descendants 2,” “High School Musical”) is the production designer and Rita McGhee (“The New Edition Story,” “Empire”) is the costume designer.
The “ZOMBIES” soundtrack, from Walt Disney Records, releases on Feb. 16 with five original songs and four reprises performed by the cast and is available for pre-order now. The single “BAMM” is available now and can be downloaded HERE and streamed HERE.
Follow @DisneyChannelPR for up-to-date news on #DisneyZOMBIES.
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Disney Channel Media Relations:
Lakeitcha Thomas
(818) 569-7807
Corina Galdamez
(818) 973-4047