November 4th, 2019 
Jackson Murphy 
Disney’s 1991 live-action classic The Rocketeer is getting an animated revival with the new series of the same name. It premieres this Friday Nov. 8 at 11amET on Disney Channel and 5pmET on Disney Junior. Executive Producer Nicole Dubuc is a longtime fan of the film – and is passionate about this new version of the story.
Jackson Murphy: I know there were talks of a sequel to the live-action film a few years ago. Did those sequel talks sort of segway into this series?
Nicole Dubuc: You know, I know about as much as you do in that regard. I was getting my information from the internet on that front. And I was just as excited to see a sequel to the film. But no, I never heard anything about how that would affect our show. We just kind of kept on our separate tracks developing the show.
JM: So how did this series begin?
ND: Originally when I was asked to come in and work on the project, the executive I was working with slid “The Rocketeer” comic book across the table to me. And it was just a project I couldn’t say “no” to because I had been such a huge fan of the original movie – and then had found the comics growing up. I was thoroughly on board to figure out how to tell this story and make it accessible to a new audience.
JM: Did you go back and look at the movie – and intently look at the comic books?
ND: Oh, twist my arm – I was happy to go back and do those things. In fact, I made everyone on our crew see the movie to make sure we were on the same page. We have a library that has access to the novelization and the different books that have been written after the fact, as well as the comics. We kind of wanted to come at it from that place of: this is a legacy property, and we want to respect what came before – and teeter as much as we can in this new show about what existed.
JM: And with the legacy factor, you got Billy Campbell to come back. That is so cool.
ND: Isn’t that amazing? I am super stoked!
JM: Was he hesitant – because it’s not the exact same character as the one he played in the movie.
ND: I think he had as many wonderful memories of “The Rocketeer” as I did because he was on board right away for us. We actually did get him to do a little bit of the original Cliff Secord that will appear throughout the episodes. So that’s an additional bonus – that he gets to reprise his role as Cliff. And recording that: it was basically a dream come true. Having been a fan of the movie, to be working with The Rocketeer in making the new “Rocketeer”… it’s full circle.
JM: Did he give you some advice on the characters and the tone of it?
ND: In fact he just said, “This is working out really well.” He was excited with the way we were taking it, and he was just happy to be a part of the new project.
JM: You wrote the first two 11-minute stories that are in the debut episode. I like that you just jump right in. We get a little bit of Kit’s backstory, but you jump right into her saga. Tell me about crafting her – she’s so enthusiastic and takes her job very seriously.
ND: I think one of the important things I wanted to put in Kit’s personality was this resiliency. I think that’s an important part of being a hero and something that pre-schoolers can really use in their day to day life because they’re experiencing new things and learning at all times. The ability to realize, “Yeah, you can make a mistake. You just get back up and try again – try as many times as it takes – try some crazy ideas and sometimes they’ll succeed. That was originally the DNA that I was wrapping around the Kit character. And there was a little bit of that too in the original Cliff Secord. He’s thrown into this adventure – not planning at all to discover the rocket pack. He manages to save the day and persevere despite crazy odds. So that was something I thought we could draw one-to-one from Cliff to Kit here.
JM: She receives something that changes the course of the rest of her life. What is the best birthday or holiday gift you’ve ever received – and did it sort of change your course as far as getting into the world of animation?
ND: You know it’s funny you should mention that. I have an immediate answer for you. When I was 10 years old, my parents gave me a video camera for Christmas. And I made so many films with my friends all the way through high school and into college. I kept keeping this camcorder alive. It definitely showed me early on that I wanted to be telling visual stories. I even shot a version of “The Rocketeer”. Our effects were not great but that was me back in 1992!
JM: Wow. Have you watched that recently?
ND: I have not gone back to that. I was afraid it might influence my future. (laughs) I have reviewed my “Jurassic Park”, but I gotta dig up the old “Rocketeer” stuff.
JM: I think you should. I think your staff would love seeing that too – give them some inspiration. After watching your show, and the new Disney+ “Lady and the Tramp”, I love these small towns. You create these old-fashioned small towns – giving them that look and feel – and that classic vibe.
ND: I’m really glad you like that. That was also kind of a nod to the movie. I felt like when you have an air field and a community like that, everyone knows each other. Everyone’s got advice for each other. So we wanted to retain that in our town. And also it makes it more approachable for a pre-schooler, I think, because a lot of times they’re moving in a smaller circle. They’re seeing the same people every day at pre-school or at daycare or walking with their parents around the block. We wanted to make our show reflect that by having the same faces you’d see.
JM: Simplicity and consistency…
ND: And familiarity.
JM: Yeah. And you have some big names in your voice cast, including the voices of Kit’s grandparents, Frank Welker and Marlo Thomas.
ND: It’s an absolute dream. I’ve been a fan of both of them for a long time. Just to see Frank Welker go between being Grandpa and Butch (the dog), you have to blink that it’s the same person behind the microphone because he’s incredible… putting so much love into Grandpa’s voice. And then even Butch can let you know that he’s being sarcastic in his bark. That’s incredible talent. And then Marlo Thomas – she was just so special in taking the time to explore her character with us and tell stories of her history. We chatted for about 15 minutes in the booth. We all stopped the recording, and everyone listened to her. Those are dreams come true to be able to work with this level of talent.
JM: Kit is in legitimate danger. How do you keep that in check since this is a show for kids?
ND: We always try to make sure that it’s not too scary. And fortunately we have a great team at Disney – educational consultants that are checking that for us. But at the same time, we want to make sure we have that superhero adventure because if there isn’t peril, then the overcoming of it doesn’t really resonate. What’s great is that it’s so fantastical that Kit can fly through the air and take on these goofy villains that we’ve created. I think that we can push the edges as long as we keep it comic.
JM: And as I was watching it I was thinking, “this show has got to have some theme park attractions to go along with it”. Have there been any talks about that all?
ND: Nobody’s talked to me about it yet, but I like the way you think. I would love for there to be theme park attractions. And let me tell you, as soon as there’s a walk-around character, I’m taking pictures. Just being able to give kids this touchstone and this chance to imagine this character – and maybe someday ride a ride as that character – that’s when I feel like we’re putting good in the world.
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