Milo Manheim and Meg Donnelly Pass The Torch In Zombies 4, Plus The New Cast Wants A Descendants Crossover!
In Zombies 4: Dawn of the Vampires, Zed and Addison’s summer road trip finds them face to face with warring factions of Vampires and Daywalkers. Can they bring peace to the groups before a bigger threat takes hold? Pop Culture Planet’s Kristen Maldonado spoke with Milo Manheim, Meg Donnelly, Freya Skye, and Malachi Barton about lessons learned, touring, and a potential Zombies 5.
Four movies in and Zombies is officially one of the longest running DCOM universes that still has its main cast — but did they ever imagine they’d make this kind of history? “Yes. I knew when I was born that I was going to be a historic Disney legend,” joked Manheim, with Donnelly quoting Debby Ryan: “[I sat down with the] President of Disney Channel and I was like ‘We're going to make history.’”
In all seriousness, the duo expressed how “grateful” they are for this opportunity. “I can't believe we're in this position. Life is insane. We're very grateful,” said Manheim. “Not only just to be a part of something that's lasted this long, but to be a part of something that is this cool. The message of Zombies is something that I care deeply about. A lot of positivity has been spread through this franchise, and I'm a very positive person, so I'm just really grateful that the universe whipped it all up so that it was this franchise that we got to be a part of.”
This new film introduces not one, but two new monster groups into the Seabrook world, which means new cast members! Manheim and Donnelly pass the baton on to Skye and Barton who seem to be the next Zeddison as Nova and Victor. “I feel like they’ve been doing this for so long. They know Zombies better than anyone, so getting to watch them on set and also be producers as well was so helpful,” said Skye about working with the OGs. “And they were kind of similar ages to us when they were doing the first movie, so the understanding of everything that we felt… they just understood everything, which was the nicest thing. Anything that's happening I'm like Meg and Milo will get this, so that was just incredible having them there.”
“I know I couldn't agree more. It was so, so clutch. It was a literal cheat sheet to have them there,” agreed Barton. “I love them. They're such sweethearts. They welcomed us with open arms and [I’m] very grateful to be a part of it.”
From pulse energy to monster politics, there’s a lot to tackle in Zombies 4: Dawn of the Vampires, but at its heart is still that love and connection that Zed and Addison have continually brought to the franchise. This film even dives deeper into making the most of the time you have with the people you love. “I think it's really hard, especially in this industry, to get really lost, at least speaking from my stance personally, with comparison and wanting to gain all of these things that you think you want,” shared Donnelly. “A lot of artificial tangible things and accomplishments, but really at the end of the day, I think your family and friends and who you surround yourself with and who you are at home, like outside of work, is the most important. I've definitely learned that. You need that grounding.”
She continued: “Literally Zed and Addison go through the same thing where they are leaving Seabrook and they think leaving their legacy and making their parents proud and family proud and friends proud is by tangible trophies and accomplishments, but it's really not. I mean, it is. Like that's amazing accomplishments to have, but it's not everything. It's kind of like Soul the movie where it's like all the accomplishments and your passions are amazing, but what matters is how you live your life.”
Manheim agreed. “I've been thinking about this a lot lately about what legacy I want to leave behind and how so. I feel like a lot of the times we search in the wrong places of what it is we want to leave behind. I think Zed and Addison do some deep thinking on that this time and they really find what's important. I'm clearly a very positive person and I really value kindness and I think that that is really important. I think that we find in this franchise that being accepting of others and embracing people can really change the world. That's a legacy you can leave behind, for sure.”
The film wraps up with a clip featuring a big ocean event as Victor and Nova look on. Could this tease sea monsters in a potential Zombies 5? “I think there's a realistic possibility, but I also think expect the unexpected with the Zombies world. You never know,” said Barton, highlighting the past movies that feature werewolves and aliens. “People are just gonna have to wait and see because full transparency: we know nothing.”
Up next, Skye and Barton take the Zombies 4 music on the road as part of the Descendants/ZOMBIES: Worlds Collide Tour. “We are so excited. We actually finished rehearsals last Sunday. Rehearsals, let's just say, were brutal, but in the best way possible. We were grinding. We have put together an amazing show. We are very excited to finally get up on the big stage and finally perform it. […] It's definitely a new experience that I don't think any of us have done before,” said Barton. “I'm going into it with an open mind of just like ready to accept whatever is in store for us.”
After working closely with the Descendants: The Rise of Red crew, they tease which actor they’d love to see join the Zombies world. “Joshua Colley,” they unanimously agreed, shouting out the actor who plays young Hook. “We just love him. […] He is so funny. He is such a personality. I just feel like he'd be so much fun to have,” said Barton. “I know we have the Worlds Collide Tour, but I think there needs to be a Descendants/ZOMBIES: Worlds Collide the movie.”
“DeZombies,” pitched Skye. We’re in!
Zombies 4: Dawn of the Vampires is streaming on Disney+, while the Descendants/ZOMBIES: Worlds Collide Tour kicks off July 17.
