Delta high school’s hallways are haven for remake of Disney’s ‘Escape to Witch Mountain’
The former Delta Secondary School will have a role in Disney's remake of Escape to Witch Mountain."
The mouse factory is turning its 1975 film into a TV show and the pilot will be filmed in Hamilton and Toronto over the next month.
Cast and crew moved into the Main Street East and Graham Avenue South school last week. There was filming outside and inside the building this past week, plus the use of smoke special effects. The school opened in 1924 and closed in 2019.
The show, about two teens who find out they have superpowers, is destined for the Disney Plus streaming service.
This is the second show Disney filmed at Delta this year. In May, it shot scenes for the family comedy Mathinated" for the streaming service.
The cast has not been publicly announced, but reports from Hollywood indicate Bryce Dallas Howard (the Jurassic Park" franchise) will play a single mother to one of the main characters. The show has been written by Terry Matalas and Travis Fickett, who worked on the Star Trek series Picard" starring Patrick Stewart. Disney is making the pilot with Davis Entertainment, which has been involved in such movies as Shaft" (2019) and TV shows like The Blacklist."
The Witch Mountain" franchise counts three theatrical films and two TV movies. The two films made in the 1970s involved big Hollywood names - Eddie Albert, Bette Davis, Christoper Lee, Ray Milland and Donald Pleasance. It is all based on a 1968 novel by Alexander Key.
Escape to Witch Mountain" (1975) featured Kim Richards and Ike Eisenmann as teens Tia and Tony. They find out they have superpowers and are from another planet. Ray Milland plays a cruel millionaire who captures the pair in order to use their powers.
The sequel, Return from Witch Mountain" (1978) featured baddies Davis and Lee trying to corral the teens. Two TV movies followed, Beyond Witch Mountain" (1982) and Disney's Escape to Witch Mountain" (1995).
In 2009, Race to Witch Mountain" hit the theatres. It starred Dwayne Johnson, (the Rock) as a Las Vega cab driver who gets pulled into the adventures of the two teens.
Disney first announced in 2019 it was looking at turning Escape to Witch Mountain" into a TV show. It approved the pilot last year.
The miniseries Fellow travellers" will showcase some of Hamilton's historical looks when it hits the U.S. cable channel Showtime next year.
The epic love story between two men filmed at a historic Ancaster home last Monday, and then moved to downtown Hamilton.
The show covers the period from the 1950s to the 1980s and stars Matt Bomer (White Collar") and English actor Jonathan Bailey (Bridgerton"). It has been filming in the Hamilton area since September and has delighted passersby with its use of period cars.
The show filmed at a majestic home known as Fairview at Sulphur Springs Road and Lovers Lane in Ancaster on Nov. 21. The home, perched on a hill, was built circa 1859. Scenes were shot inside and outside of Fairview, which is on the inventory of city buildings of architectural and/or historical interest.
On Nov. 23, the show filmed on MacNab Street, alongside the MacNab Street Presbyterian Church and other buildings on the street. The church was built circa 1857 and the neighbouring buildings can't be far off.
The old church manse was used as the gathering spot for background actors.
Also, period cars from the 1960s stretched along MacNab, starting near Bold Street. There was an old Mercury, Studebaker, Cadillac, Chrysler Imperial and a Ford Galaxie 500.
On Nov. 14, the show filmed scenes at the intersection of Mineral Springs and Sulphur Springs Road in Ancaster. Period cars from the 1970s were seen around the set. It shot travelling scenes of the actors in the cars.
The show also filmed outside Hutch's on the Beach on Van Wagners Beach Road a few weeks ago.
Daniel Nolan is a freelance writer who writes about film for The Hamilton Spectator. He can be reached at dannolanwrites@gmail.com