Disney’s ‘Descendants 2’ to Debut Across Five Channels

The July 21 premiere of Disney Channel’s Descendants 2 original movie will be simulcast across five networks, Disney announced Tuesday.

The movie, a sequel to the network’s 2015 Descendants film, will also appear on each network's branded digital and on demand platforms, according to network officials. The networks are: Disney Channel, ABC, Freeform, Disney XD and Lifetime.

The original Descendants, which follows the exploits of the teenage sons and daughters of Disney’s most infamous villains, generated 12.2 million viewers -- the fifth most watched movie in cable TV history. Descendants stars Dove Cameron, Cameron Boyce, Sofia Carson and Booboo Stewart will reprise their lead roles in the sequel, with newcomers China Anne McClain, Thomas Doherty and Dylan Playfair joining the cast for the sequel.

"The passion that fans – across every demographic and geographic landscape – have demonstrated for Descendants rivals anything we've seen since High School Musical, said Gary Marsh, president and chief creative officer for Disney Channel Worldwide in a statement. “Sharing the new sequel movie across our far-reaching portfolio of TV networks and digital platforms is something only Disney can do – and we do it proudly."

R. Thomas Umstead

R. Thomas Umstead serves as senior content producer, programming for Multichannel News, Broadcasting + Cable and Next TV. During his more than 30-year career as a print and online journalist, Umstead has written articles on a variety of subjects ranging from TV technology, marketing and sports production to content distribution and development. He has provided expert commentary on television issues and trends for such TV, print, radio and streaming outlets as Fox News, CNBC, the Today show, USA Today, The New York Times and National Public Radio. Umstead has also filmed, produced and edited more than 100 original video interviews, profiles and news reports featuring key cable television executives as well as entertainers and celebrity personalities.