Which DCOM could be a TV show?
Which Disney Channel star never led her own movie?
We made a miniseries based on Charles DickensTheOld Curiosity Shop.
Credit: Disney Channel; Everett Collection; Fred Hayes
We didGreat Expectations[as a mini-series].
We did a remake ofHeidi, and a wonderful movie calledMark Twain and Me.
They were all very elegant and more adult-driven family movie storytelling.
Disney Channel/Everett Collection
…but everything changed when the kids took over.
Hopefully, it was the must-see TV of the schoolyard set.
The third DCOMs the charm.
Everett Collection
That was the first one that really captured everybodys attention, says Marsh.
AndSmart House[in June 1999] was probably the next one that people took special note of.
It was the playground buzz, which was the equivalent of watercooler conversation, says Marsh.
Disney
You were in the in-crowd if you knew what Cetus lapetus!
[fromZenon] meant, or if you could use cheetahlicious [fromThe Cheetah Girls] in a sentence.
It really became a calling card for six- to 14-year-old kids.
4.Zenonalmost became a TV series and still could.
Why have no DCOMs ever made the leap into full-fledged television shows?
I have no good reason why.
Some things just have a life of their own and live in a certain space.
The ones that had staying power, from a storytelling perspective, we created sequels and threequels.
Its one of the only DCOMs that created an entire world beyond just a capsulized story.
That world can go anywhere, he says.
5.High School Musicalwasnt the first DCOM to mess with the marketplace.
But, he says, it was actually 2003sThe Cheetah Girlsthat first shook up the system in stores.
The Cheetah Girlswas the first of our broad-based, music-driven movies.
We said to all the talent, You dont get the part because youre in a Disney Channel series.
You getfirst rightto earn the part.
…and auditions werent easy.
The casting process, to the networks credit, wasnt just for show.
and we say, But this isnt you.
I called Shia up and said, This is yours to lose.
He trained for it for two weeks, then came in and auditioned, and he overdid it.
He was doing a version ofGilbert Grape, a much more severely impacted condition than the movie called for.
And he gave a performance that knocked our socks off.
Thats how he got the part.
One big Disney Channel star is missing from the DCOM roster.
The answer is Miley Cyrus, and itstechnicallytrue.
Non-Disney stars were always welcome, despite being outside the family.
), and Mischa Barton (A Ring of Endless Light).
The 18th most-watched DCOM might surprise you.
(8.45), andGood Luck Charlie, Its Christmas!(8.3).
Only three Disney Channel properties have been scooped up by the features side.
A live musical might launch the next generation of DCOMs.
Weve talked about [a live musical], he admits.
If theres a piece of event programming that makes sense to adapt, wed certainly explore it.
And the more successfully we hit those four tentpoles, the more successful the movies are.
