Witch Mountain, the Disney+ revival of the classic science fiction property, has not escaped the streamer’s budget cuts. The series, based on the novel and film series Escape to Witch Mountain, was set to star Bryce Dallas Howard and even filmed a pilot episode. Unfortunately, according to Howard, it will now not lead to a series. Howard revealed the news during a panel at Fan Expo Canada in Toronto, moderated by Collider’s Maggie Lovitt. When asked about the show’s status, Howard delivered the bad news. She said:
“It’s not happening, which is disappointing. It was a really great groove, and we really all enjoyed shooting it here in Toronto. Some things make it, and some things don’t, and that’s the unfortunate truth of this industry.”
The series was to star Howard as Audrey, whose teen daughter Tia (Isabel Gravitt, The Watcher) begins exhibiting strange mental abilities. It was also to star Levi Miller (A Wrinkle in Time), Bianca “b” Norwood (You), and Jackson Kelly (Chucky) and was written and executive produced by Star Trek: Picard‘s Travis Fickett and Terry Matalas.
What Is ‘Escape to Witch Mountain’?
Based on the 1968 novel by Alexander Key, Escape to Witch Mountain was first adapted into a film in 1975. The film starred Ike Isenmann (Star Trek: II: The Wrath of Khan) and future Real HousewifeKim Richards as Tony and Tia, two preteen extraterrestrials who attempt to escape a paranormal-obsessed millionaire (Ray Milland) and reach an alien colony on the titular Witch Mountain, with the aid of a crotchety widower (Eddie Albert). It was a hit, making $20 million at the box office, and spawned one theatrical sequel, 1978’s Return From Witch Mountain, which pitted Tony and Tia against Bette Davis and Christopher Lee, and a made-for-TV follow-up, Beyond Witch Mountain.
Disney remade the first film as an ABC TV movie in 1995, with a pre-Mad MenElisabeth Moss as one of the alien teenagers. The franchise made its return to theaters in 2009 with Race to Witch Mountain, which starred Dwayne Johnson as a Las Vegas cabbie and Carla Gugino as an astrophysicist who get mixed up with a pair of alien teens (AnnaSophia Robb and Alexander Ludwig) on the run from a sinister government agent (Ciarán Hinds); Isenmann and Richards had cameos in the film. Reviews were mixed, but it made $106 million at the box office on a $54 million budget.
Despite the cancelation of Witch Mountain, Howard is staying busy both in front of and behind the camera. She is directing episodes of the new Star Wars series Skeleton Crew, which is set to be released later this year, and will star in the action comedy Deep Cover with Orlando Bloom.
Disney+’s Witch Mountain series will not be moving forward. Stay tuned to Collider for future updates.
Escape To Witch Mountain (1975)
Watch on Disney+
