Just in time for Halloween, Rob Zombie recently released The Munsters, the first-ever PG-rated movie from the House of 1000 Corpses director. A lifelong fan of The Munsters, the reboot had been a passion project long pursued by Zombie before he was finally able to get the rights to move forward with his vision. Zombie decided to explore the origin story of the beloved monster family picking up with the creation of Herman Munster, now played by Jeff Daniel Phillips.

In a new chat with the Digital Journal, Phillips addressed his involvement in The Munsters. He spoke about the challenges in making such an ambitious project during the pandemic, feeling that it was only possible because the entire cast and crew all shared a love for the TV series that inspired the film. That’s especially the case for Zombie, and everyone was very happy to see the director finally see his dream project realized.

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One key difference with this new film is that it’s a prequel series, set long before Eddie and Marilyn were in the picture. A love story, the movie explores the origins of the romance between Herman and Lily (Sheri Moon Zombie), who’s under the watchful eye of her vampire father (Dan Roebuck). Because this is set in an earlier period in Herman’s life, Phillips says he brought more of a “childlike quality” to the role, differing from the original version played by Fred Gwynne. Even so, Phillips makes it clear that he’s not trying to emulate or replace Gwynne, noting how the movie was made with nothing but love for the original series as well as its cast and crew.

The Munsters was written, directed, and produced by Rob Zombie. In addition to the lead cast featuring Jeff Daniel Phillips, Sheri Moon Zombie, and Dan Roebuck, the film also stars Richard Brake, Jorge Garcia, Sylvester McCoy, Catherine Schell, and Cassandra “Elvira” Peterson. Original Munsters stars Pat Priest and Butch Patrick are also featured in cameo roles.

You can stream The Munsters on Netflix.