Several stars have joined the cast of Disney’s upcoming spinoff movie set in the Descendants franchise.
Disney Channel and Disney+ announced that Darren Criss, Sherry Cola, James Monroe Iglehart, Hugo Ateo, Sean Yves Lessard and Dan Bakkedahl have joined the cast of Hidden Heroes: A Descendants Story. The new film centers on the descendants of classic Disney sidekicks and goes into production this month.
“Hidden in the center of each fairy tale is a portal to a secret training facility where the descendants of legendary sidekicks are challenged to join the elite ranks of partners to heroes,” according to an official description. “When a villainous duo comes to Sidekick Academy, a group of fresh recruits must band together — without heroes, without parents — using only their new skills to save the fairytale realm before it’s too late.”
Criss will play Jiminy Cricket from Pinocchio, Iglehart will play Genie from Aladdin, Cola and Ateo will play Yzma and Kronk from The Emperor’s New Groove, Lessard will play Lumiere from Beauty and the Beast and Bakkedahl will play Yen Sid from The Sorcerer’s Apprentice in Fantasia.
Notably, Iglehart is returning to the role of Genie. He won a Tony Award in 2014 for originating the part in the Broadway production of Aladdin.
The film’s main cast includes Dior Goodjohn as Jennie, the daughter of Genie; Momona Tamada as Zara, the daughter of Yzma; Jacob Rodriguez as Kronk Jr., the son of Kronk; Eva Fossaceca Smedley as Meri, the daughter of Merryweather from Sleeping Beauty; and Harry Jones as Lou, the son of Lumiere.
Also part of the cast are Rhys Dawkins, Connor Wong and Kyra Wong as the Potts siblings from Beauty and the Beast. Only Murders in the Building director Jude Weng is helming the film that was written by Tamara Chestna, Eydie Faye and Emma Fletcher.
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