The Cast of ‘Halloweentown,’ Then and Now

1998’s Halloweentown is one of the most beloved Halloween and Disney Channel movies, and is a gift that keeps on giving as new generations discover the film that is celebrating its 25th anniversary this year.

Starring Kimberly J. Brown, Joey Zimmerman, Judith Hoag and Debbie Reynolds, the film directed by Duwayne Dunham followed Marnie, who on her 13th birthday discovers she’s a witch and is transported to Halloweentown, a magical place that is facing an evil curse. The film spawned three sequels: Halloweentown II: Kalabar’s Revenge in 2001, Halloweentown High in 2004 and Return to Halloweentown in 2006.

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Halloweentown, written by Paul Bernbaum, Jon Cooksey and Ali Marie Matheson, holds a score of 83 percent on Rotten Tomatoes. You can currently watch Halloweentown on Prime Video or on Disney+. The franchise is also airing as part of Freeform’s “31 Nights of Halloween.”

In celebration of the film’s 25th anniversary, take a look at what the cast has been up to since the film’s release.

Kimberly J. Brown as Marnie Piper

Brown played Marnie Piper, the eldest of the Piper kids who found out she was a witch, just like her mother, Gwen (Judith Hoag), and grandmother Aggie (Debbie Reynolds). Since the release of Halloweentown, she starred in its sequel, Halloweentown II: Kalabar’s Revenge, in 2001 and Halloweentown High in 2004. Sara Paxton took over the role of Marnie in 2006’s Return to Halloweentown; in a 2017 interview with E!, producer Sheri Singer said “it was not something we wanted to do. We could not come to terms that we felt were fair. We just weren’t able to. We couldn’t make the deal work. That was why, and we didn’t want to not do it. I know people didn’t like it, but it’s not like people haven’t been recast before. I always was sorry. That’s how it went.”

Since Halloweentown, Brown starred in various TV series, like Two of a Kind (1998-99), Rose Red (2002), Guiding Light (1987-2006), Low Winter Sun (2013) and General Hospital (2021). In 2023, she starred in one episode of The Ghose and Molly McGee. She has also starred in various films like Bringing Down the House and Friendship!

She, along with a friend, runs an Etsy shop called CraftlyCreative. which sells items that include Halloweentown-themed merchandise. In 2016, she also published a children’s book called Poppin’s Pumpkin Patch Parade with co-author Diane Yslas.

Debbie Reynolds as Aggie Cromwell

Reynolds reprised her role in the other Halloweentown franchise entries and lent her voice to projects like Kim Possible and Family Guy. She also starred in various films like Behind the Candelabra (2013) before she passed away in 2016, one day after the death of her daughter, Carrie Fisher.

Joey Zimmerman as Dylan Piper

Zimmerman, who played Marnie’s brother Dylan in Halloweentown, had a lot of stints on TV shows like The Practice, 7th Heaven, That ’70s Show, Lizzie McGuire and In Plain Sight, as well as reprising his role in the other Halloweentown entries.

However, in recent years, he has focused more on work behind the camera as a creator, producer, writer and director. In 2014, he co-created ZFO Entertainment, which focuses on science-fiction projects. He also directed the stage play The Dark Heart of Poe in 2023.

Emily Roeske as Sophie Piper

Roeske, who starred as the youngest Piper kid in Halloweentown, appeared in one episode of ER in 1999. In 2021, she starred as herself in the TV miniseries Artist of the Valley. She did not reprise her role in 2006’s Return to Halloweentown.

Judith Hoag as Gwen Piper

Hoag is best known for playing April O’Neil in 1990’s Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles as well as Gwen in the Halloweentown film series. She also starred in the HBO drama Big Love from 2006-11, as well as Nashville (2012-18) and The Magicians (2016-20). Other credits include Armageddon, Hitchcock, Six Feet Under, The X-Files, Grey’s Anatomy, Private Practice, Castle and Grimm.

Phillip Van Dyke as Luke the Goblin

Van Dyke played Luke the Goblin in the films, but can count other shows like Hey Arnold! (he became the voice of Arnold in the second season of the show),The Amanda Show, Gilmore Girls, Without a Trace and NYPD Blue to his credits. He also appeared in three episodes of Boston Public in 2003.

Robin Thomas as Kalabar, the Mayor of Halloweentown

Thomas is a film, TV and theater actor as well as a sculptor. Outside of the Halloweentown franchise as the mayor of Halloweentown, his credits include Another World and Who’s the Boss? as well as The Mommies, Switched at Birth, 90210, NCIS, CSI: Miami, Criminal Minds, Desperate Housewives, Castle, Fuller House and Blue Bloods. He has also starred in films like About Last Night…, The Contender, and Pacific Rim and, in 2019, Seberg.

Rino Romano as Benny, the Skeleton Taxi Driver

We all loved the skeleton taxi driver, right? Romano is known for his work as Batman in the animated series The Batman (2004-08), Spider-Man in Spider-Man: Unlimited (1999-2001) and the video games Spider-Man and Spider-Man 2: Enter Electro. Between 2006 and 2021, he also narrated the PBS series Curious George, as well as previews for NBC, The WB and The CW, and was the narrator for the courtroom reality TV series Hot Bench from 2014 until 2020.

Kenneth Choi as Hip Salescreature

Choi’s first role was on Halloweentown, and he has since appeared in The Wolf of Wall Street, Captain America: The First Avenger, Red Dawn and Suicide Squad. On the TV side, he starred in Sons of Anarchy, Ironside, The People v. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story, The Newsroom, Glee, Heroes, 24, CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, The Last Man on Earth and The King of Queens. He also reprised his character of Jim Morita in the video game Captain America; Super Soldier and voiced the role of a gangster in 2004’s Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas. Recently, he appeared in the films Gringo and Hotel Artemis.

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