“My parents are monsters,” said every teenager at some point-but in Netflix‘s latest animated adventure Spellbound, it’s not just a mood, it’s the magical, monstrous truth!
On the eve of her 15th birthday, Ellian, the feisty princess (Rachel Zegler) of the magical world of Lumbria, should be basking in royal splendour. But fate has other plans. A mysterious, wicked spell has turned her beloved parents, Queen Ellsmere (Nicole Kidman) and King Solon (Javier Bardem), into monstrous creatures!
As the movie premiers on Netflix on 22nd November 2024, follow Ellian as she embarks on a thrilling quest to break the curse. She’ll face challenges that will test her courage and compassion, all while unravelling the secrets of a family in crisis.
To elevate the storytelling, the movie is filled with 9 songs with original score from award-winning composer Alan Menken (Beauty and the Beast) and lyrics by Glenn Slater (Tangled).
We at makchic, recently had the distinct privilege of having a video interview with some of the main voices from the movie including Rachel Zegler, Jenifer Lewis, Nathan Lane, Tituss Burgess and the director of Spellbound, Vicky Jenson (Shrek, Shark Tale).
Former Golden Globe winner Rachel Zegler, is the voice of Princess Ellian.
Hi Rachel! My kids watched the movie and found Ellian to be such a bold character. What was your process for capturing her spirit? Did she challenge you to step out of your comfort zone in any surprising way?
Rachel Zegler (RZ): Definitely out of my comfort zone in the sense that I’m not 14 (I’m actually 23!). It was really interesting because I signed on when I was 19 years-old, so trying to capture that essence of being 14, and that innocence and joy and outlook of the world that everything is going to be fine, but by the end of the film resigning to the fact that – you can’t fix everything and that doesn’t necessarily mean that it’s your fault. It’s so important for kids to see that.
So it was really capturing that youth which was a challenge but getting into that with our director, she made it very easy and told me exactly what she wanted from Ellian and really filled me with the encouragement that I could do it.
Were there any particular scenes or moments in Spellbound that you found challenging or especially rewarding to perform?
So much of it was deeply rewarding. Challenging wise, Ellian has alot of emotion and that comes with what we call ‘efforts’ in the voice over world, so there’s a lot of screaming and grunting and falling and ‘oofing’. The screaming also left me out of breath sometimes! Those really emotional moments of crying is very vulnerable.
Veteran actress Jenifer Lewis is the voice of Minister Nazara, who is Ellian’s wise and loyal advisor.
Hi Jenifer! Big fan here. It’s such an honour to speak to you. Nazara has such a commanding presence as the royal advisor. What was your creative process for crafting her voice, and did you draw on any personal experiences or inspirations to give her that powerful edge?
Jenifer Lewis (JL): Thank you sweetie. You know she just came. She was easy for me because I knew who she was. She’s intelligent, she’s stern and yet she was compassionate and warm and really cares about Princess Ellian and she just gets to take charge – but put in that character where she had so much of me, so it came a little easy for me.
It’s all the homework; you have to give your character a background, because it’s never gonna be all in the script. And that’s the fun, you know – Where is she really from? Does she have children? What’s the weather? What’s going on here? And where am I coming from?
We found Minister Nazara to be a total force of nature in Spellbound. If she could give us one piece of magical advice for navigating life, what do you think it would be?
JL: Be kind, be considerate and be compassionate and know that life is a journey. It’s not all fun and games just because you’re young and innocent – that’s not life. And tell the truth. It was a joy working on this movie.
Thank you both Rachel and Jenifer so much! My kids really enjoyed it. It was interesting when I asked them what they thought of it, they thought of the word resilience.
RZ: That’s beautiful. That’s exactly what it is.
Nathan Lane (Luno) and Tituss Burgess (Sunny) are the voices of The Oracles who end up helping the princess using Sunny’s sunny outlook and Luno’s grounded advice. Both are celebrated for their performances in Broadway-inspired roles.
Hi Nathan! You’ve played so many iconic roles as an actor (from voiceover work, to your illustrious career in film, television and the stage). What made the character of Luno stand out to you, and what were some of your favourite moments from this film?
Nathan Lane (NL): Well it was something that just came up – you know I’ve never worked with Alan Menken – here’s a story! – when I was very young I auditioned for this little Broadway musical called Little Shop of Horrors and it was between myself and (actor) Lee Wilkof to play Seymour in the original production.
Howard Ashman (who provided the lyrics for the musical) apparently wanted me, and Alan wanted Lee Wilkof. Howard Ashman had an assistant who thought Lee was cute and she pushed him toward hiring Lee and he went on to play the role brilliantly so that was the only time I might have worked with Alan Menken which was a very long time ago.
We wanted to know whether you guys managed to record together or whether there was any improv or back and forth that was going on?
NL: Yeah I was all by myself.
Tituss Burgess (TB): This is the first time we’ve ever met!
NL: Yes, we’ve never met until today, how about that! So I did (the improv) – alot of it, you know – which they really should have used – didn’t make it in but there’s a few things here and there.
(Laughing) Tituss, How much of your own personality or experiences did you see reflected in this character?
Did your character see a unique strength in the princess as you were guiding her toward breaking the spell?
TB: She, like Sunny, also wanted to help – I think that’s what pulled my character toward convincing Nathan Lane’s character to assist and we sort of got caught up in the rapture of hope, if you will, so not so much a unique one but perhaps a similar likeness.
Vicky Jenson is a director known for shaping animated classics like Shrek and Shark Tale, blending humour with heart in groundbreaking storytelling.
Hi Vicky! You mentioned hoping that Spellbound would spark conversations around the idea that ‘if there is love, then there is family—no matter how that family is composed.’ What impact do you hope this message will have on audiences, especially families who may see themselves reflected in this story?
I do hope this inspires understanding and forgiveness as a first step if a family is going through a very challenging time – they always say one door closes another opens.
That there is a way forward and what really makes a family and binds it together is love and not the arrangement of the family or any of those other superficial aspects.
Animation is clearly close to your heart. What were some of the most rewarding aspects of working with your team on Spellbound, and were there any personal stories from your team that made it into the film?
Vicky Jenson (VJ): This is a very personal story. What was really rewarding to me was to see how the cast and the crew really connected to the story, how it resonated with everybody emotionally. What we’re trying to do is nobel and important and we’re trying do it in an entertaining way and not make an after-school special.
Working with the animators and all of the artists had a lot of stories to share. They understood the reason for this movie. And the actors as well. Some of that made it into one of our songs – “The Way it Was Before”.
So what Brian Pimental (who was tasked with storyboarding) did was ask all of us to remember images from growing up – what are the things we missed like camping, going to the beach with our parents – and he put them in as Ellian’s memories and it makes it more relatable to alot of people as it’s real feelings we are trying to portray.
How did the collaboration with composer Alan Menken and lyricist Glenn Slater help bring out the emotional core of the story? Were there particular scenes where the music elevated the storytelling?
VJ: I think all of the scenes were elevated by the music because not only did Alan compose the songs that Glen wrote the lyrics for, but Alan also did the entire score. I do think their collaboration is very keen in some of the most emotional songs. One of them being the parents (monsters) as they start to get their memory back – that’s a song we simply call “Remembering” and each of them is just getting a little bit from the past.
The harmonies between the 3 characters – mum, dad and Ellian is just so beautiful and I think that exemplifies the collaboration between our imagery, Alan’s music, Glen’s words and the voices of Javier, Nicole and Rachel.
Spellbound releases globally on Netflix on 22nd November 2024. Be a part of its unique twist on the classic fairytale. Follow teenage Ellian as she leads the charge, facing challenges that will test her courage and compassion, all while unravelling the secrets of her family’s dark past.
Interview and photos courtesy of Netflix. Contents of the interview have been edited for brevity.
