David Schwimmer, from Friends to Goosebumps: “It's quite different from what I've done before”

The eternal Ross from Friends returns in a new series, which a priori has nothing to do with the sitcom that made him so popular. Unless…

Goosebumps has changed a lot since Halloween 2023. The books by RL Stine, which had been declined in a friendly and kitsch series for preteens in the 90s, and in two comedies that are more funny than horrific with Jack Black in 2015 and 2018, inspired Nicholas Stoller and Rob Letterman to create a new formula for Sony and Disney+.

More than “Monster of the Week” on the program, Goosebumps 2.0 is intended for teenagers over 14 years old, already fans of fantastic-horrific works, like Strangers Things or American Horror Storyand/or soap opera a la Riverdale. As well as their nostalgic parents from the nineties, each story spread over 8 to 10 episodes making jumps in time between today and thirty years ago.

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Justin Long had a lot of fun as a creepy teacher throughout the first season, surrounded by perfectly convincing young people. Now it is David Schwimmer who comes to be frightened in Goosebumps: Disappearancesand the good news is that once we accepted that his character was less than 20 years old in 1994 (which is still difficult given that the whole world discovered him that year in Friends !), it is clear that the 58-year-old actor takes great pleasure in playing with his image in this new role as a New Yorker, divorced and a scientist – a botanist, this time, not a paleontologist.

Receiving his teenagers for the holidays while he watches over his sick mother, he does mysterious research in his basement. Obviously, his research will push him to make terrifying discoveries. We won't say more so as not to spoil the surprises for you! Just note that the VFX are a little gorier than in season 1. Good news for horror fans, even if this sequel would undoubtedly have deserved a more in-depth plot and characters. The strong nods to the classics of fantastic cinema, Bodysnatchers has Christina passing through Blair Witch, should still find their audience. Fans of Friends will also have something to rejoice, as Schwimmer is at the heart of this season 2. Those who appreciated him outside of his cult sitcom will also, moreover, because beyond his incarnation of Ross Geller, he has continued to set himself eclectic challenges, for example playing a soldier in the series Bands of Brothers (2001) or Robert Kardashian, OJ Simpson's lawyer in the first season ofAmerican Crime Story (2016).

20 years after the end of the cult series, we were able to ask David Schwimmer a few questions when the first images of Goosebumps: Disappearances. We share his words on the occasion of the arrival of this sequel on Disney +, starting this Friday, January 10.

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First: Hello David. As we speak, only a short teaser of Goosebumps season 2 has been revealed. Do you have the right to tell us more?

David Schwimmer: Of course. I play Anthony, a divorced father of two teenagers, Devin (Sam McCarthy) and Cece (Jayden Bartels). He is a botanist, who studies all kinds of plants. He is at a complicated point in his life: his mother is losing her autonomy, so he returns to his childhood home to take care of her, and his children join him for the summer. He does everything to ensure his family has a great time, but everything goes wrong. Very quickly.

Playing a divorced scientist in New York… it's not that far from Ross after all.

(laughs) Except that it’s generally scary!

You draw inspiration from Basement prohibitedby RL Stine?

Yes, season 2 mixes several plots from the novels and for me, it mainly comes from this teacher who has set up his lab in his basement, and who is scared at the idea that his children could find themselves mixed up in his experiments. He is aware that what he is doing is dangerous, so he forbids them from going down.

Is your character related to that of Justin Long?

Oh no. Goosebumpsit's an anthology series, so every year it can come back with a new cast, a new story, a new city… But Justin was great in the first season, by the way. Very funny.

And you had fun on Goosebumps ?

Obviously ! There is logically a lot of action and horrific scenes, but there is also comedy. This mix of genres is not so easy to play, because you have to find the right tone, know why you are laughing. The substance of this story is very serious, very dark, and the comedy is there partly to ease the tension. It's quite different from what I've done before, but since I love acting, I accepted the challenge. And then, there will also be more physical jokes, in the action.

After making films (Still running Dennis, Trust), ten episodes of Friends or one of Joeywere you able to get back behind the camera here?

I love directing, but thank God I wasn't asked to direct an episode! It was already hard enough to concentrate on the game, because we had a very intense schedule, long complicated scenes to shoot. Not to mention I have no experience with special effects. This series requires a certain mastery of digital technology.

As to create this sort of Venom-style symbiotewhich we see in the teaser? We are far from the greenish slime of books Goosebumps…

I see what you mean. This black liquid which spreads everywhere in the video, it will be at the heart of this story. I don't want to tell you too much, but everything is darker here. Sometimes it’s even perfectly terrifying! (laughs) This substance can take several forms, and it directly attacks my character. But we don't completely forget the original slime, we play with this concept in a particular episode.

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This new season will return in time, like the previous one?

Yes, I can tell you without spoiling that something tragic happened in 1994. 30 years ago, my older brother disappeared and there were four of us friends who witnessed this tragedy. My own children will discover this enormous mystery, in the present. So over the course of the eight episodes, we will go back in time, via important flashbacks.

In 1994, you became a global star: it was the beginnings of Friends…

It's crazy to think that thirty years have passed. Amazing ! You know, as an actor, it's exceptional to find yourself in a show that still finds its audience so long later. New spectators discover Friends today, and they find it funny. That means it’s still relevant. It's so cool! I will obviously be forever grateful for this whole experience. Friendsit's like a time capsule, a journey to a time when there were no smartphones, so when we got together with friends, we had to talk to each other. (laughs) Maybe it was good times? I don't know…

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