[Editor’s note: The following contains some spoilers for Goosebumps: The Vanishing.]

Summary

‘Goosebumps: The Vanishing,’ the latest installment in the anthology series inspired by the books of R.L. Stine, follows teen twins uncovering family secrets in Brooklyn.

David Schwimmer embraced mixing genres in ‘Goosebumps,’ enjoying the horror, action, comedy blend.

Schwimmer found it a joy to play a botanist dad whose circumstances lead him to make use of his physical comedy skills.

Goosebumps: The Vanishing, streaming on Disney+ and Hulu, is the next chapter in the anthology series inspired by the R.L. Stine books. When teenage twins Cece (Jayden Bartels) and Devin Brewer (Sam McCarthy) go to Brooklyn to stay with their divorced dad, Anthony (David Schwimmer), for the summer, they realize they have dark family secrets that are connected to the mysterious events suddenly occurring around them. As the kids and their friends try to figure out what’s going on, their botanist dad finds himself battling some dangerous plants that seem to have turned against him.
During this one-on-one interview with Collider, Schwimmer talked about why he was so interested in this mix of genres, his longtime love of horror, the rich backstory for his character and this world, bonding with his Goosebumps kids, the fun in doing physical comedy, and what gets him to say yes to a project.
David Schwimmer Was Excited To Explore the Dramatic Backstory of His ‘Goosebumps: The Vanishing’ Character

Image via Disney+

Collider: With a project like this, you don’t necessarily even need a full pitch to know what it will be, once you hear that it’s Goosebumps. Were you aware of Goosebumps when this came your way? Were you immediately interested? What was your reaction?
DAVID SCHWIMMER: I was aware of Goosebumps and immediately interested. I love the genre. I love action, comedy and horror, especially mixed together. And so, I was immediately intrigued. And then, I read the script and talked to the writers, and I learned about the really, really deep, dramatic backstory, as well as where it goes in the series. I was genuinely excited. I went and read the book that my character is inspired by, Stay Out of the Basement, about a botanist dad who starts to change, and I was like, “Oh, this is gonna be so much fun.” And I just loved that there was such a rich backstory to the character. It’s a tragic one, with what happened to his brother back in 1994, when four teenagers go missing. That traumatic event shaped my character’s whole life, and then my own grown kids now get sucked into this mystery that ties back to something that happened in 1994 to my brother. I just thought that whole idea was really interesting. I get to play a dad of teenagers, and do some physical comedy, some stunts, and some horror. It was just really fun.

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Horror is one of your favorite genres, but you’ve never had the opportunity to act in it. Did people just never see you in those types of projects? Did you ever actively pursue trying to do something in the genre before doing this?
SCHWIMMER: No. I should have actively pursued it because I’m a genuine fan and because of my background in physical comedy. I’m a very physical actor, so I think I can lend something to action and horror that hopefully worked. [Viewers will] be the judge. It was great fun to finally shoot some of this stuff.
David Schwimmer Is a Fan of Every Kind of Horror, Which Is Why He Was Drawn to ‘Goosebumps’

What was it that first got you interested in horror? Was it a movie you saw as a kid? Did you like being scared?
SCHWIMMER: It’s a great question. I was probably scared by some of those early movies, like Fantasia, which has this scary sequence. I don’t know. I really got into it with those early horror films of the seventies. I started to become a genuine fan, with films like Rosemary’s Baby and The Shining. I was interested in the films that were based in real grounded characters and relationships, where the horror was coming from what was happening to real people, and then the supernatural thing started to happen. That was what attracted me, initially. Although, I’m a fan now of every kind of horror, that’s what drew me to this character. It’s grounded in a real guy who’s in a challenging part of his life, taking care of his mom with dementia, having to take care of his two grown teenage kids, going on sabbatical as a botanist, and then stuff just starts to happen. That was really cool.

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There are layers to the family with this. This guy is taking care of his mother and he’s also a divorced dad who has these 17-year-old twins dropped in his lap. What was it like to form that relationship with the kids? What is his relationship like with the kids? What is your relationship like with your co-stars?
SCHWIMMER: My relationship with the actors themselves was terrific. They’re super-talented and really committed, present actors. I was actually amazed at how prepared and talented they were. They just had natural talent, all of them, but especially my kids, who I had the most work with. We all took it pretty seriously and wanted to do as much as we could, as quickly as we could. We talked about, “Okay, what is the relationship here? What’s the dynamic? How do we mine the comedy? How do we make it feel real for us?” The more it felt real for us, the more real it would be for the audience. We had this great leadership, especially with (co-creator) Rob [Letterman], who was directing and was one of the writers. He really created space for us to explore and play. Given the time constraint and everything he had on his plate, it was pretty generous of him as a director. He felt it was important that we really find what this relationship is because you have to establish and believe it, and you have to buy in that this is a family, otherwise the rest of it won’t really feel as meaningful. I saw the first episode, and I buy this family.
David Schwimmer Loves Making Use of his Physical Comedy Skills for ‘Goosebumps: The Vanishing’

Image via Disney+

The physical comedy with your character seems very related to who he is, with his plants misbehaving a bit. What have you enjoyed about doing that kind of physical comedy and getting thrown around and banged up a bit? When you haven’t done it for a while, is it like riding a bike? Do the muscles immediately remember how to do that?
SCHWIMMER: Yeah. In terms of physical comedy, I feel like I’m very lucky that it comes instinctively to me. I’m moving in an older body, so I have to make sure, with some of the bigger stunts, that I’m doing it safely. It just means working really smartly and carefully with the stunt team and figuring out what I can do. I’d like to do as much as possible, but I can’t do everything. It was just about figuring it all out and planning it carefully, so that it looks great and it always looks like me, but it’s not always me. The fun is just using your imagination, as an actor. When you’re shooting it, there’s nothing actually growing out of my arm, so I have to pretend. At times, you feel stupid with everyone watching you pretend to pull something out of your arm, but you have to commit to it and really believe that it’s happening. The reward is when you finally see everything cut together, all the special effects are in, they’ve put this stuff growing out of my arm, and it works. That kind of movie magic is just amazing to be a part of.

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It feels like this project, in particular, was so perfectly tailored to you and all the things you like to do. At this point in your life and career, what gets you interested in a project, as an actor? If that perfect combination isn’t there, what gets you to say yes?
SCHWIMMER: It’s a good question. Mostly, I’d say it’s something different and something I’ve not done before, whether that’s a character I’ve not done before or a genre like this. That is one of the most appealing things. I love a challenge, and I love to learn how to be a better actor. So, first and foremost, I’d say it’s that. And then, there are other things, like where it shoots and how long the shoot is. I’m a dad and I really want to be present for my kid, at this stage of life. I’m just enjoying it so much. It’s not going to last long, and then soon off to college. That’s a factor that I weigh. I live in New York, and they shot this in New York, so I was like, “Yes!”

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Five teenagers accidentally discover an old collection of R.L. Stine’s “Goosebumps” manuscripts, releasing a variety of sinister creatures and spooky happenings in their town. As they navigate these supernatural challenges, the group learns to rely on each other and solve the mysteries behind each story.

Release Date

October 13, 2023

Cast

David Schwimmer
, Jayden Bartels
, Francesca Noel
, Galilea La Salvia
, Elijah M. Cooper
, Ana Ortiz
, Zack Morris
, Justin Long
, Ana Yi Puig
, Miles McKenna
, Will Price
, Isa Briones
, Rachael Harris
, Rob Huebel

Seasons

2

Story By

R.L. Stine

Streaming Service(s)

Disney+
, Hulu

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Goosebumps: The Vanishing is available to stream on Disney+. Check out the trailer: