As a ‘90s kid who lives and breathed Disney Channel Original Movies (aka DCOMs), something really ignited in me when Disney+ decided to launch its streaming service in 2019 with the premiere of a series inspired by High School Musical. Despite its awkward title, High School Musical: The Musical: The Series, the show was a really fun and nostalgic ride to go on across these last four years. It helped give rise to one of the biggest new pop stars, Olivia Rodrigo, and a ton of other talented folks I expect to see continue rising in popularity. Now that HSMTMTS has concluded with its fourth and final season, it got me looking at a library of beloved DCOMs Disney+ should reboot next.
From the ‘80s to today, there've been over 100 Disney Channel Original movies, but the ‘90s and ‘00s were a really key time for me and so many kids in my generation. I think so many of these movies are just waiting to be rebooted for those with a Disney+ subscription, and honestly, I’m surprised the streaming service has yet to look to them for their original content.
Smart House
Ok, so 1999’s Smart House was ahead of its time. It finds a fun and family friendly way to explore the story of a fully-automated dream house that gets out of control. It’s basically a lost Black Mirror episode for the kiddies. Katey Sagal was incredible as Pat, the Stepford Wife-type piece of technology that inserts herself to become the family’s mother. I think it would be so interesting if a Smart House sequel were to be produced, perhaps with one of the kids rebooting Pat as an adult by accident. I’d love to see how Pat interacts with the plethora of tech we have now.
Zenon: Girl of the 21st Century
Two words: Zetus Lapetus! Another 1999 DCOM that I had on repeat as a kid was Zenon Girl of the 21st Century. It was a cute family adventure about a girl who lives on a space station in the future that gave off some major Y2K vibes! For this property, Disney+ should reboot Zenon into a kids series that takes place on the space station and features some of the movie's cool gadgets in an updated way. I could see it becoming somewhat of a Star Trek-inspired series for the young ones on Disney+, with some of their parents able to connect with the nostalgia of the Zenon-verse.
Halloweentown
Haven’t you heard, Halloween is cool! Over the years, the Halloweentown movies have become a tradition in numerous households during the spooky season. With it being nearly 20 years since the last Halloweentown movie was made, I pitch Disney+ makes a series about the ongoing events of the town that always premieres in October. It would also be fab if Debbie Reynolds’ granddaughter, Billie Lourd, stars after Reynolds memorably starred as Splendora Agatha “Aggie” Cromwell in all four movies. It could even be a prequel about Aggie’s upbringing as a witch.
Brink!
1998’s Brink! Inspired a generation of kids to get into rollerblading, so wouldn’t it be fun for that to return? Rollerblading is already reportedly having a comeback, per The New York Times, making it a good time for the property to be rebooted with a new generation of soul skaters. For real though, I rewatched this DCOM within the past year and really found it to be endearing and fun. Imagine if Disney+ did a casting call for really talented skaters too and audiences could see their sick moves alongside another plotline about the commercial skating world.
Get A Clue
Another fun, but perhaps underrated DCOM favorite is 2002’s Get A Clue. The movie featured four high schoolers who investigate their missing teacher with style. It starred Lindsay Lohan and Brenda Song as besties and is memorable for all its cutting-edge fashion moments alongside a fun mystery. Of course I’d love to see Lohan’s movie comeback continue with a Disney+ sequel for Get A Clue, but if not, I think I’d be a fun title to reboot as a mystery series starring four new high schoolers.
Cadet Kelly
While Hilary Duff was Lizzie McGuire on Disney Channel, she also starred in the 2002 movie Cadet Kelly, about a fashionable teen who is forced to move to military school. It was a fun and heartwarming comedy co-starring Kim Possible and Even Stevens actress Christy Carlson Romano. Over the years, its queer subtext between the relationship between Kelly and Captain Jennifer Stone has been more widely discussed, even among Duff and Romano. Either way, it was a fun premise to set a family movie in a military school, and this flick also seems like a movie that could be rebooted for Disney+ as a coming-of-age series.
Camp Rock
Come on, Disney+, Camp Rock is literally right there and it’s not getting a reboot yet? The 2008 movie, of course, was a huge platform for the Jonas Brothers and Demi Lovato, and it would be a blast if Disney found a new way to explore the franchise. I don’t imagine the JoBros or Lovato are eager to get back on the Disney Channel train after making their own (and very successful names) in the music industry and beyond, but isn’t it about time a new generation revitalized the name Camp Rock? It could be a great opportunity for burgeoning rock bands of today to be highlighted too.
The Cheetah Girls
Lastly, there’s The Cheetah Girls! The 2003 movie was such a fun early ‘00s romp that really took young girls like me by storm. It felt like we were always referencing the Disney Channel movie and deciding which of the girl group we were. 20 years later, I feel it would be a huge Disney+ event if the original cast came together for a reunion movie.
HSMTMTS may be over, and without a big reunion for its original cast. Still, as a ‘90s kid, I still had a fun time with the nostalgia trip of a series overall (I especially liked Ashlyn and Maddox’s sweet romance in Season 4) and am all in on Disney+ taking advantage of bringing back more of these DCOMs in new ways. There are tons of possibilities for the platform to keep rebooting DCOMs and I hope they do while incorporating some clever new ideas.
