Goosebumps Cast Praises David Schwimmer for Being ‘Generous Work Dad’

The cast of Goosebumps: The Vanishing will take any opportunity to praise David Schwimmer

for being an exceptional costar on and off screen.

During an exclusive interview with Us Weekly, Ana Ortiz, Elijah M. Cooper, Galilea La Salvia, Francesca Noel, Stony Blyden, Sam McCarthy and Jayden Bartels opened up about sharing the screen with Schwimmer, 58, as the hit Disney+ series evolved into an anthology show.

“I grew up [watching David’s sitcom] Friends to such a psychotic degree that getting to work with him was amazing,” Blyden, 28, who plays Trey, shared. “He gave me a lot of little tips and tricks of just his inside comedy.”

La Salvia, 21, meanwhile, was just thrilled to see Schwimmer “do his thing” on screen.

“I feel like you can learn so much from that,” the actress, who brings Frankie to life, added while Cooper agreed: “Working with him was great [and] seeing his range too. Him playing this character now vs. what he played [later in the season] was really incredible.”

Goosebumps, which premiered in 2023, takes inspiration from R.L. Stine‘s popular horror novels. Season 2 introduces a new cast and story centered around twins Cece (Bartels) and Devin (McCarthy) who are sent to spend a summer in Brooklyn with their divorced dad (Schwimmer). They quickly realize that dark secrets are among them, with Schwimmer’s character specifically taking inspiration from the book Stay Out of the Basement about a dad who does plant-testing until things take a turn.

“Working with David as our dad was an honor and a privilege. It was just a lot of fun getting to know each other and bonding. You can’t really play a family without getting to know each other,” Bartels, 20, shared with Us. “It was a lot of David on the side pulling us aside to run lines or collaborating or discussing, like, ‘What do we think happened before this? What do we think we’ve been through as a family?’”

Bartels was grateful for the “learning” experience of “becoming closer to one another,” adding, “David definitely helped us a lot through that entire process.” McCarthy, 22, also gushed over Schwimmer as both a costar and onscreen father figure.

“David is a lovely guy and he’s a generous leader and a generous work dad. Of course you can’t help but learn a lot from somebody who is much more experienced than you who you’re working in close quarters with,” McCarthy detailed. “I remember about a third into filming this, you shoot a scene and then you sit down for however many minutes and then you go back and you do it again. And you have to have the muscle of that endurance to be willing to go over and over again for maybe 12 or 13 or 14 hours.”

He continued: “There was a challenge in that for sure. I spoke to David about how I was struggling with that a little bit. And he spoke to me about how that’s a part of the craft and that’s a big part of the job. It is that endurance and that discipline to reapply yourself and to give again.”

While many of the Goosebumps stars knew Schwimmer from his iconic run as Ross on Friends, Noel got to start fresh with the seasoned actor.

“I had no idea who David was. To be honest, I’ve never heard of David Schwimmer in my life,” Noel, 26, who portrays Alex, revealed to Us. “He’s very enthusiastic [though] and whatever he throws himself into, he seems very committed. He is just such an actor’s actor and he’s a theater kid so he really cares about his craft. You can feel that when you step into the room.”

Ortiz, 53, for her part, was thrilled to see Schwimmer get into the material.

“He really wants to talk about the scene and where we’re going. He just brings such an amazing real dynamic to it that you forget that it’s this spooky monster show,” the actress, who plays Jen, said. “And you’re just really in the moment. It’s spectacular and it’s really fun to work with [someone like him].”

All episodes of Goosebumps: The Vanishing start streaming on Disney+ and Hulu Friday, January 10.