*“Darby and the Dead” is the new supernatural comedy from 20th Century Studios that centers on the near-death experience of a young girl, Darby Harper (Riele Downs) who gains the ability to see dead people.
As a result, she becomes introverted and shut off from her high school peers and prefers to spend time counseling lonely spirits who have unfinished business on earth. But all that changes when Capri (Cravalho), the Queen Bee of the school’s most exclusive clique, unexpectedly dies in a freak hair straightening accident, resulting in the obvious cancellation of her upcoming “Sweet 17.” Capri, however, pleads with Darby from the other side to intervene and convince Capri’s friends to proceed with the party as planned. In order to appease the wrath of the undead diva, Darby must emerge from her self-imposed exile and reinvent herself — which along the way allows her to find new joy back in the land of the living, per the official synopsis.
We spoke exclusively with series stars Chosen Jacobs and Asher Angel about their experience working on the project, set to debut exclusively on Hulu later this week.
Check out the trailer below.
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Jacobs (“IT,” “Sneakerella”) stars as Alex, a cute and charmingly awkward new student who is immediately drawn to Darby. But all that changes when he becomes the school’s mascot, Douglas the Donut. Jacobs shared how the character fits into Darby’s world.
“Alex bumps into Darby by fate. He sees a side of her that she’s not showing everyone and sometimes doesn’t even know it is still there,” Jacobs said.
The actor also noted that his character is important because he’s eccentric and secure in himself.
“Alex helps Darby in his openness, to open up herself. I think his mission is to spread love and not conform to the normality of the school but to retain his individuality. And I think that rubs off on Darby. And he also thinks she’s really cute,” he explained.
Asher Angel (“Shazam!”) portrays Capri’s boyfriend, James, an aspiring singer/musician. Handsome, humble, and laid back, he was Darby’s 6th-grade crush, with whom he finds comfort on the heels of Capri’s recent death.
James and Darby have known each other forever; they’ve been family friends. Angel shared that James was having a hard time with Capri’s death and discovered that Darby had been there for him the entire time. Angel said that changed James for the better and introduced Darby to some new things.
Check out my full conversation with the pair via the clip below.
“Darby and the Dead” premieres December 2 on Hulu.
*Jill Munroe is a Los Angeles-bred entertainment journalist, producer, and host. You can follow her on all social media @StilettoJill or check out JillMunroe.com
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