5 Reasons We Can’t Wait For Netflix’s “Julie and the Phantoms”

Just when we felt like we’d run out of shows to binge during quarantine, Netflix revealed that its highly-anticipated series, Julie and the Phantoms, would start streaming on September 10. There are so many reasons we can’t wait to watch, but we’ve managed to narrow the list down to five. Let’s go!

1 – Two words: Kenny Ortega

Ever since we learned that the legendary director had signed an overall deal with Netflix last Spring, we’ve been anxiously awaiting his first project with the streaming behemoth. After all, this is the same guy who brought us High School Musical, Descendants, Newsies, and so many more incredible movies that shaped our lives.

2 – The Inspiring Premise

Julie and the Phantoms centers around a high school student named Julie who absolutely lives for music. However, after suffering the devastating loss of her mother, she loses her passion for it and no longer wants to write, sing, or perform. One year later, three teenage musicians who passed away in 1995 suddenly appear in her mom’s studio. Over time, they start to form a beautiful friendship and help Julie rediscover her love of music.

3 – The Incredible Music

Earlier today, Netflix dropped a sneak peek at one of the show’s songs, “Edge of Great” – and it’s definitely way more than great; it’s amazing. Check out the video below, which the cast recorded from home across multiple time zones. Your ears will thank you!

4 – The Phantoms are “Phantastic.”

Charlie Gillespie, Owen Patrick Joyner, and Jeremy Shada play the three musicians who passed away in 1995, when they were just teenagers, and reappear 25 years later at Julie’s house. The three of them are not only adorable, but they’ve also got the musicianship, the chemistry, and the charisma to make it completely convincing (and at times, heartbreaking.)

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5 – Madison Reyes is a revelation.

Believe it or not, casting directors had a really difficult time casting the lead role of Julie. So after an exhausting round of auditions, they opted to launch a nationwide open casting call. Thousands of videos came in, but none like Madison Reyes’ submission. The Pennsylvania high school student had never been on television or in a recording studio before, but Kenny Ortega was blown away. “She had the magic,” he says. “I’ll never forget it.”

Madison’s voice is just unreal (She could sing the phone book and it’d be Grammy-worthy), but she’s an amazing person, too. When asked about why she was inspired to play the role, it wasn’t to be famous, but to be a role model. “I definitely push myself to follow my dream more for my family and also for my little sister,” she said, according to Deadline. “I wanted her to have someone she could look up to that looked like her and that she could have a connection with, whether it be my ethnicity or curly hair. It was about making sure that my sister had somebody that she could look up to. I wanted to be that role model for her. That was what motivated me to follow my dreams.”

And after Julie and the Phantoms hits Netflix on September 10, we’re pretty sure that Madison, and her portrayal of Julie, are going to inspire millions of people to follow their dreams, too.