SIMULCAST PREMIERE OF DISNEY CHANNEL ORIGINAL MOVIE 'DESCENDANTS 2' AMASSES 13 MILLION TOTAL VIEWERS ACROSS DISNEY CHANNEL, ABC, DISNEY XD, FREEFORM, LIFETIME AND LIFETIME MOVIES
The Disney Channel Original Movie "Descendants 2" reached an astounding 13 million Total Viewers with an unprecedented simultaneous premiere (Friday, July 21, 8:00 p.m. EDT) on Disney Channel, ABC, Disney XD, Freeform, Lifetime and Lifetime Movies as its telecast on Disney Channel was Friday's #1 scripted TV telecast in Total Viewers (5.3 million). Upcoming encores for "Descendants 2" include tomorrow, Sunday, July 23 (6:00 p.m. EDT), and Monday, July 24 (10:00 a.m. EDT).
On Disney Channel, "Descendants 2" ranked as the #1 top-rated cable TV telecast since the original "Descendants" premiered (July 31, 2015) among all major youth demographics - Kids 2-11 (2.2 million/5.7 rating), Kids 6-11 (1.8 million/7.4 rating) and Tweens 9-14 (1.9 million/7.7 rating) - and is the #1 most watched telecast across kid cable TV networks since "Descendants" in Total Viewers (5.3 million). This now gives Disney Channel the Top 7 rated cable TV telecasts of the past three-and-a-half years in Kids 6-11, the Top 6 cable TV telecasts in Kids 2-11 and the Top 5 most watched kids cable TV telecasts in Total Viewers - since January 18, 2014, and March 29, 2014, respectively.
"Descendants 2" broke social media records for Disney Channel driving more Video Views (174.1 million), Impressions (90.8 million) and Engagements (14.6 million) than any social campaign in the network's history.
"Descendants 2" ranks #1 in the iTunes TV Top Seasons chart, and "Descendants" still remains in the Top 5 at #4. In the Music Store, the "Descendants 2" soundtrack, released just yesterday, quickly climbed to #1 on the iTunes Soundtrack chart, is currently #3 among the Top Albums chart, while its six singles hit the Top 10 Soundtrack Songs this morning, less than 24 hours after the movie's premiere. They include "What's My Name," "It's Goin' Down" and "Chillin' Like a Villain" in the #1, #2 and #3 spots, respectively.
"Descendants 2" videos on DisneyMusicVevo have garnered over 135 million views including over 7 million views of the movie's music and dance numbers, released just last night.
An inspiring story about the teenage sons and daughters of Disney's most infamous villains, the original "Descendants" (2015) remains the fifth most watched movie in cable TV history (12.2 million Total Viewers - Live + 7 Day ratings), reaching well over 100 million Total Viewers worldwide.
"Descendants 2" stars Dove Cameron as Mal, Cameron Boyce as Carlos, Sofia Carson as Evie, Booboo Stewart as Jay and Mitchell Hope as King Ben; and ushered in new villains China Anne McClain as Uma, the daughter of Ursula; Thomas Doherty as Harry, son of Captain Hook; Dylan Playfair as Gil, son of Gaston; and Anna Cathcart as Dizzy, daughter of Cinderella's evil stepsister Drizella and granddaughter of wicked stepmother Lady Tremaine. Also starring are Brenna D'Amico as Jane, the daughter of Fairy Godmother; Melanie Paxson as Fairy Godmother; Dianne Doan as Lonnie, the daughter of Mulan; Jedidiah Goodacre as Chad, the son of Cinderella; Zachary Gibson as Doug, the son of Dopey; Keegan Connor Tracy as Belle and Dan Payne as Beast.
Emmy Award and DGA Award-winning director Kenny Ortega ("Descendants," "High School Musical" movies) is the director, executive producer and choreographer of "Descendants 2." Wendy Japhet ("Descendants," "An Education," "The Italian Job") is also executive producer. Writers Sara Parriott and Josann McGibbon ("The Starter Wife," "Runaway Bride"), who won a 2016 Writers Guild Award for "Descendants," wrote "Descendants 2" and also serve as executive producers. Kara Saun ("Descendants," "Project Runway") is the costume designer. The production designer is Mark Hofeling ("Descendants," "Teen Beach Movie," "High School Musical"). Tony Testa ("The Rocky Horror Picture Show," "This Is It") is the choreographer with Ortega. Shawn Williamson ("Adventures in Babysitting") is producer. David Lawrence ("High School Musical" movies, "Teen Beach Movie" and "Teen Beach 2"), who was nominated for an Emmy for his "Descendants" score, returns as composer. The casting directors are Natalie Hart and Jason La Padura, C.S.A. ("Descendants," "High School Musical" and "Teen Beach" movies), as well as Kendra Patterson ("Teen Beach Movie").
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