Jamie Lynn Spears ‘carried the torch’ for ‘Zoey 101’ reunion film

Zoey Brooks and her Pacific Coast Academy cohorts return to the tv panorama 15 years later in thirtysomething grownup terrain.

Jamie Lynn Spears, who performed Zoey within the vastly standard Nickelodeon dramedy “Zoey 101” (2005-2008), headlines “Zoey 102,” a one-off Paramount+ film (paramountplus.qflm.net/9WG5D0) reuniting lots of the sequence authentic stars together with Sean Flynn (Chase Matthews), Christopher Massey (Michael Barret), Matthew Underwood (Logan Reese) and Erin Sanders (Quinn Pensky).

“This [movie] wouldn’t have existed with out her,” “Zoey 102” director Nancy Hower advised The Submit about Spears. “She’s been carrying this torch [to return] for 15 years and wanting to return again and do that.”

Spears takes heart stage within the film, through which Zoey — who’s now engaged on a actuality present — and her faculty buddies reunite in Southern California to have fun Logan and Quinn’s wedding ceremony.

Zoey, in her 30s, is a bridesmaid. One of the best man? Her ex-boyfriend … Chase.

“We discover Zoey in part of her life the place she’ in her 30s and hasn’t actually gotten to the place she needs to be, or doesn’t actually know the place she needs to be,” Hower mentioned.

“The writers [Monica Sherer and Madeline Whitby] created this nice world of this actuality present and going behind-the-scenes there, which may very well be a present in itself,” she mentioned. “I believe they preferred the concept that Zoey is on this job … and give it some thought, she’s a girl who sort of gave up on love … and now she’s engaged on a actuality present about love — which is all faux.

“Like they are saying, it’s no coincidence the place you find yourself in your life,” Hower mentioned. “We needed to make a humorous rom-com about when all your mates are getting married off and also you’re in that point of your life the place you’re like, ‘Oh God, what occurred to me?!’”

Hower mentioned she didn’t develop up with “Zoey 101” however that she “immersed herself” in its world after studying Sherer/Whitby’s script — which helped to allay any fears she had of making an attempt to stay as much as “Zoey 101” followers’ expectations.

“I don’t assume I had that, ‘Oh, no, what do I do now?’ feeling,” she mentioned. “I believe my fear was, ‘OK, it is a group of actors, a few of whom haven’t acted shortly. How is that going to work?’

“I was an actor [including Ensign Samantha Wildman on ‘Star Trek: Voyager’] so I introduced the solid in and we did numerous improv collectively and talked lots in regards to the historical past of the characters, like ‘What do you assume occurred to your character the final 15 years?’

“We began doing numerous improv across the scenes — about what occurred earlier than and after — and these actors had actually thought deeply about this … they actually introduced their A recreation and the love they’ve for one another is profound.”

Hower mentioned Spears, who’s additionally an govt producer on “Zoey 102,” was deeply concerned within the film on a number of fronts.

“She has such an unbelievable work ethic … and was continuously giving me data on [the original series] that I wouldn’t essentially have identified except I actually dug down,” Hower mentioned. “She shared the concept that we needed to make this for a brand new viewers that shouldn’t have to know something in regards to the sequence to like this.”

That being mentioned, Hower mentioned there are a bunch of surprises (“Easter eggs”) in retailer for hardcore “Zoey 101” followers.

“I’ll offer you an instance,” she mentioned. “Chris [Massey] was telling me how he got here up along with his [‘Zoey 101’] catchphrase ‘Drippin,’ so we have been like, ‘Oh my god, you need to have an album referred to as ‘Drippin’!’

“When Zoey’s automotive breaks down I used to be like, ‘Can we discover that outdated automotive that her father drove [in the series] and put that in? So we threw that in … it’s little issues that an actual fan would snort about.

“I needed to raise this world,” she mentioned. “These characters got here from a personal faculty they usually’re LA youngsters so I pitched it as ‘The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel’ meets ‘Loopy Wealthy Asians,’” Hower mentioned. “It ought to have a larger-the-life really feel.”

Followers would possibly get extra of an opportunity to snort much more ought to “Zoey 102” spur a sequel sequence, since Hower mentioned each choices (a film or a sequence) have been thought-about through the improvement course of earlier than Paramount CEO Brian Robbins gave the film a inexperienced mild.

Hower mentioned that the solid bonded so strongly that, when the “Zoey 102” premiere was cancelled as a result of SAG-AFTRA strike, they took issues into their very own arms.

“These guys have now all flown themselves out [to LA] and we’re all right here going to observe the premiere collectively,” she mentioned.

“That’s uncommon.”