Paramount+ YA Series School Spirits Adds Zombies Star

Paramount+’s upcoming YA series School Spirits has officially found its latest star. On Monday, it was announced that Milo Manheim will be starring alongside Cobra Kai‘s Peyton List in the upcoming live-action series. Manheim is known for portraying Zed Necrodopolis in Disney Channel’s Zombies franchise, as well as roles on American Housewife, The Conners, and Dancing With the Stars. The actor is set to play Wally, a lovable ghost from the 1980s who in his glory days was a star high school football player.  

The series focuses on a teen stuck in the afterlife who decides to investigate her mysterious disappearance alongside a group of other students who are also stuck in limbo at their high school. The show will be based on the upcoming graphic novel School Spirits, which is from Nate & Megan Trinrud and Maria Nguyen, and will be published by Clarion Books/HarperAlley, an imprint of HarperCollins Children’s Books in the fall of 2023.

List will be starring in the series, which will be an eight-episode season showrun by Pretty Little Liars and Bridgerton alum Oliver Goldstick. The pilot episode of School Spirits will be directed by Max Winkler, whose work includes Cruel Summer and Jungleland. Production will be overseen by Shauna Phelan and Zack Olin, executive vice presidents and co-heads of Nickelodeon and Awesomeness live-action series and film.

“When it comes to the fans and the people watching, I feel like I have a responsibility to use my voice in a good way,” Maheim explained in a previous interview with Hollywood Life. “I feel like I’m figuring out what it is that I’m trying to do with all of this because I know that there’s going to be a big picture coming up soon that I’m going to start focusing on. I’m talking about with my mom and I don’t know what I’m going to use this platform for, but to me, I see all these videos and I get so many comments and feedback from all the families that have watched it. It just helps these young girls and boys through their school experience. A lot of the time, I’ll get letters saying, “I’ve been bullied in school and watching your movie has helped me through that.” I definitely feel like I’ve made a change in so many people’s lives. That is just something that means the most to me. When it comes to the cast, I have a family that I will have forever. I haven’t even spent that much time in Toronto but I feel like all my friends are there. I feel like a Toronto person because I leave so much of my life back there. So much happens there and when you go to shoot a movie like that, it’s your whole world. Everything about this is just a blessing.”

What do you think of Manheim joining the cast of School Spirits? Share your thoughts with us in the comments below!

h/t: Deadline