Gravity Falls Creator to Homage the Mystery Shack in Upcoming Amphibia Episode

07/08/2020 03:49 pm EDT

Gravity Falls remains a beloved series for countless fans, with audiences enjoying the surreal cult classic years after its series finale initially aired. With animated revivals and reunions growing surprisingly popular in recent months, many have wondered if and when Gravity Falls will follow suit. If a new report is any indication, it looks like some key elements of the series are set to pop back up on another Disney Channel series -- in a pretty unexpected way. Variety recently confirmed that Gravity Falls creator and star Alex Hirsch will guest star on an upcoming episode of Amphibia, which will pay tribute to the earlier series.

The Amphibia episode, titled "Wax Musem", will see the show's family traveling to a mysterious roadside oddities museum called the "Curiosity Hut", which bears a surprising resemblance to Gravity Falls' Mystery Shack. Hirsch will voice both "The Curator" and "Frog Soos", who look an awful lot like Gravity Falls' Grunkle Stan and Soos.

Amphibia is created and executive produced by Matt Braly, who previously won an Annie award for working as a storyboard artist and director on Gravity Falls. And according to Braly, the idea of homaging his past series has been in his mind for a while.

"I have always wanted to create a Gravity Falls tribute in Amphibia," Braly said. "I just didn't know when or how. The two shows share so much DNA that it seemed like a missed opportunity not to have the worlds interact in some fashion. So when Amphibia writer Jenava Hudek pitched an episode where the Plantars would stop at a creepy wax museum during their roadtrip, I knew this was our golden opportunity. Jenava herself was a huge Gravity Falls fan and leapt at the chance to work with its iconic characters. The decision was made early to feature alternative universe versions of Grunkle Stan and Soos as frogs. This would be the easiest way to pay homage without stepping on anyone's toes continuity wise."

"Not only did [Hirsch] end up voicing the characters but he even improvised a number of his lines in the booth, giving the characters that classic Gravity Falls off the cuff flair," Braly continued. "It's no surprise that the Amphibia episode 'Wax Museum' is one of my favorite episodes of the season and that the Curator and Frog Soos are stand out characters. Working on this episode felt like coming home in a lot of ways."

Amphibia follows Anne Boonchuy (Brenda Song), a 13-year-old girl who is magically transported to the frog haven known as Amphibia. There, she teams up with Sprig Plantar (Justin Felbinger), Polly Plantar (Amanda Leighton), and their grandfather "Hop Hop" Plantar (Bill Farmer) on a wide array of adventures.

Season 2 of Amphibia will debut on Saturday, July 11th on Disney Channel. "Wax Museum" will air on August 8th.

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