Disney Channel’s cast and director of Under Wraps gives their thoughts on honoring the original movie, what their characters taught them & more!

Written by: Chae Jones – October 1st, 2021 1:04 pm pst

Chae’ Jones was able to chat with the cast of the new Under Wraps; Malachi Barton, Phill Wright, Emmy Nominated Christian J. Simon, Sophia Hammons, and director and co-writer Alex Zamm at a virtual junket. They talked about the reboot, what they’ve learned from the characters, what fears they have, and what it was like becoming Harold.

Under Wraps re-imagines the story, a few days before Halloween when 12-year-old friends Gilbert, Marshall, and Amy accidentally revive a mummy they discover in a neighbor’s basement, which they affectionately name Harold. However, they must rush to return him to his resting place before midnight on Halloween. Along the way, the team narrowly escapes a nefarious group of criminals intent on selling the mummy to the highest bidder. When Harold is inevitably captured, Marshall, Gilbert, and Amy must band together to stand up to the criminals, face their fears, and rescue their new—but rather “ancient”—friend.

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Director Alex Zamm, talked about his inspiration behind bringing back this classic, “I’ve always been a huge fan of monster movies. I was one of those kids who stayed up late at night so I could get my hands on. I found that most monster movies that we should be scared of and this was a monster movie that I shined to right away. Same way with E.T. You know, it was another one because I loved monster movies in which the audience is forced to reexamine what they think is scary. It’s why I love Harold because he’s not your ordinary mummy who is trying to chase and kill you. He’s the one who’s…you need to protect him, and then he’ll ultimately become the friend who protects you. So when Disney told me they wanted to remake this. It was so thrilling to be asked to be part of this with them. It was a great collaboration, but for me, who loves the supernatural, it was really one of those gifts from above.”

Interview with stars of Disney's Under Wraps

Credit: Disney Channel

Simon plays Gilbert, and Hammons plays Amy in the remake. Gilbert is the best friend who might be afraid of everything, but you know you can count on him. Amy is a fearless future journalist who’s not scared and new to town. Both characters we can relate to or even know someone who might remind us of them. When asked what their characters taught them about themselves, Simon said, “I’d say probably just go after it. Gilbert, I feel like he was scared in the beginning. He still went after because he loved his friends so much. And he seen how much Harold meant to his friends, and he was like, you know if they rocking with them, I’m rocking with them, and he kinda just went for it. I think Gilbert inspired me to be fearless. Got after it!”

Hammons added, “I think I can say the same thing about Amy. Honestly, in real life, I am kind of the scaredy-cat of the group.” She continued, “We went to Disneyland yesterday, and I was about to ride the Incredi-coaster, and I was so nervous. I’m not even kidding. I thought about what Amy would do because Amy is pretty fearless when it comes to pretty much everything. I just kept thinking that she’d just go on it. She’d probably just yeah, you can do it. So I was like, I got this. And I did it!”

Credit: Disney Channel

Friendship is important. No matter if you’re a mummy who just woke up from a 4,000-year sleep, because, at that point, all your friends are gone. Some things are universal, like helping each other when they need help.

Wright is known as a dancer and choreographer as well as host for Disney Channel’s Fam Jam. When asked, since movement isn’t something that is new being a dancer himself, how he used that to help him transform into becoming Harold, “I think Alex gave me a great reference point. We actually looked back at some older comical…physical comedy film. Like I Love Lucy, and we did some research on how they were displaying physical comedy. Mixing in the physical comedy with the dancing and then the actual characteristic with mummified movements was one of the few variables of the physicality that Harold had to embody. So it was a challenge, but hopefully, scaredy-cat I was able to transpire that throughout the film. Which I think we did a good job doing.” Wright said.

Halloween is known for a lot of different things. Trick or treating, Halloween parties, scary movies with your friends. Something it also is big on is fear. Now Barton shares more in common with the character Marshall than most would think. When asked does he have any fears of his own, Barton replied confidently, “Personally, I’m not afraid of anything. No, but I think that I don’t have too many fears. I’m not trying to sound cocky. I honestly don’t really have a fear. Some people have a fear of spiders, the dark, or heights or stuff like that, but I honestly don’t really have a fear or any of that stuff.” Barton replied.

Well, it’s safe to say that the re-imagined version of the 1997 classic lives up to its namesake and hopefully touches the hearts of this generation the same way it did over two decades ago.

If you want to know about a possible My Date With The President’s Daughter sequel, which cast member would like to be a Zombie or Mummy, and What they hope fans take away from the movie, CLICK HERE for the full interview!

Under Wraps airs Friday, October 1 on Disney Channel and will be able to stream on Disney Plus on October 8.

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