Memorial Day Weekend is finally here, which means it’s time for Disney Channel’s marathon weekend of some of their best Disney Channel Original Movies! It’s important to remember where it all began. The very first DCOM ever in 1997 was Under Wraps, which dealt with a mummy coming back to life. Ever since, there has been a spooky film almost every Fall, leading to an overwhelming number of Halloween-themed DCOMs. The third part of our guide to DCOMs explores this genre (be sure to check out Part 1: Science Fiction and Part 2: Sports for more DCOM madness).
Halloweentown
When a screen legend like Debby Reynolds agrees to be in a DCOM, you know it’s gonna be good. Halloweentown wasn’t just a single good film, it became a franchise for Disney with three sequels, more than any other to date (although High School Musical will also receive a fourth installment in the near future). Marnie loves Halloween, but her strict mother doesn’t want her to have an interest in the supernatural. When her grandmother arrives for her annual Halloween visit, Marnie sneaks home with her and discovers that her grandmother is a witch who lives in a special place called Halloweentown where all of the classic Halloween characters live. But when an evil warlock named Kalabar takes over, Marnie will have to discover her powers to help her grandmother save her home. (Airing Monday, May 20th, at 11:30 am)
Halloweentown II: Kalabar’s Revenge
While visiting her non-magical home, Marnie falls for a cute boy named Kal and lets her guard down as he secretly steals her grandma’s spell book. When she returns to Halloweentown, everyone has transformed into mortals and are losing their color, becoming black & white. Meanwhile. in the mortal world human’s are becoming trapped in their Halloween costumes as they transform into the creatures they were mimicking. When it turns out that the son of Kalabar (Kal!!!) is behind this, Marnie and her magical family must once again summon their powers to save both worlds before it’s too late. (Airing Saturday, May 28th, at 1:25am)
Halloweentown High
Now that Marnie is in high school, she wishes to combine her life in Halloweentown with her life in the mortal world, convincing the Halloweentown council to allow a group of students to spend a year in the mortal realm as foreign exchange students. However, the last of an ancient order of knights that exists to banish magical creatures from our world intervenes, causing trouble for the students. And with the Cromwell family magic on the line, Marnie will have to save the students she’s responsible for without any magical abilities. (Airing Sunday, May 29th, at 2:40 am)
Return to Halloweentown
This Fall will mark the 10th anniversary of the last Halloweentown film (feeling old yet?). Marnie was recast for this last installment, replacing Kimberly J. Brown with Sara Paxton simply because Disney was hoping to groom her as the next Hilary Duff. Marnie is off to college at Halloweentown University, where she is heartbroken to find that magic is forbidden. But when a mysterious box turns up for her with a secret power inside, it may be just the thing to stop a trio of bad witches from taking over Halloweentown. (Airing sometime in June)
Twitches
Tia and Tamera Mowry star as twin witches separated at birth for their own protection. When the pair accidentally meet on their 21st birthday, they discover that they come from a magical realm that is under attack from a dark power. The twin witches, or “twitches,” are the only ones strong enough to save their birthplace and their mother who is held captive there, but only if they combine their powers and work together. (Airing Saturday, May 28th, at 2:50 pm)
Twitches Too
Tia and Tamera return as Camryn and Alex in the sequel to Twitches. When the two discover that their father may still be alive in the magical realm, they return to find him. But when they accidentally revive an evil warlock, they must unite their powers once more to vanquish the darkness. (Airing Saturday, May 28th, at 2:55am)
Don’t Look Under the Bed
Strange and unexplainable things have been going on in Middleberg and when B’s appear all over town and on every locked except for smart Frances’, she gets blamed for all of the strange happenings. When a boy appears named Larry Houdini that only Francis and small children can see, she learns that the Boogeyman is behind all of the mischief. When the Boogeyman kidnaps Frances’ brother, she discovers that the entrance to his lair is literally under her bed and must journey beneath to save him. (Airing sometime in June)
Under Wraps
The one that started it all, Under Wraps was the first film to receive the DCOM name when it premiered in 1997. Marshall is a teenager who loves horror movies and creepy stuff. When a grumpy old neighbor passes away, he and his friends decide to sneak into his house full of old treasures. But when the moonlight awakens an ancient mummy inside a sarcophagus in the basement, they find themselves playing babysitter while searching for his stolen tomb to put him back to sleep. Thankfully it’s Halloweentime so nobody gets too suspicious of their new wrapped up friend. (Airing sometime in June)
Mom’s Got a Date With a Vampire
Three grounded children are so desperate to get their mom out of the house so they can sneak out that they unintentionally set her up with Dimitri, a real vampire. Caroline Rhea from Sabrina the Teenage Witch headlines the film and her vampire love interest is Charles Shaughnessy from The Nanny. Once the kids find out what they’ve done, they will have to be clever to defeat their moms living dead date. (Airing sometime in June)
The Scream Team
Before Kat Dennings was famous, she starred in Disney Channel’s The Scream Team alongside Kathy Najimy and Eric Idle. When two kids visit the hometown of their recently deceased grandfather, his ghost contacts them to help complete his unfinished business. But when an evil spirt abducts their grandfather to increase his own power, they must work with the Soul Patrol, a team that collects spirits unwilling to cross over, to stop the evil spirit from taking their souls. (Airing sometime in June)
Can of Worms
When a lonely teenagers crush rejects him at a school dance, he sends a message into space asking to be rescued. But when a variety of aliens actually respond to his distress signal, he unintentionally opens a figurative can of worms. When the aliens begin to abduct humans for their intergalactic zoo, Mike will have to pool his friends together to come to the rescue.
Phantom of the Megaplex
Pete is a teenage assistant manager at a giant megaplex movie theater that is soon to play host to a Hollywood movie premiere. But when a phantom begins sabotaging the theater, Pete has to find a way to stop his antics, which always coincide with the climax of each film. Screen legend Mickey Rooney has a small role in this film as a life-long patron of the former theater whose like an honorary employee. (Airing sometime in June)
Stepsister From Planet Weird
When Megan’s mother gets married, she inherits Ariel as a stepsister. But when her new family member proves to be weirder than weird, she begins to suspect that something is wrong. What’s worse is that her new sibling quickly becomes popular, something Megan has always wanted. But when it is revealed that her new stepsister is actually an alien in hiding, Megan must learn what it truly means to be a family. (Airing sometime in June)
Girl Vs. Monster
With such a steep tradition of spooky films, it’s hard to believe that it’s now been four years since the last one, Girl Vs. Monster. When 15-year old Skylar unleashes a monster, she discovers that she comes from a long line of monster hunters. Now she must honer her families traditions and take on the monster to save her town. (Airing sometime in June)