Multiple casts from various beloved shows and movies have been doing reunions via Zoom since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. Popular shows and films like “Parks & Recreation,” “Community,” “High School Musical,” “Legally Blonde” and others have done table reads and cast reunions for fans to watch.
“For fans, Zoom reunions can be a great opportunity to revisit their favorite shows or films,” said Dr. Lori Bindig Yousman, Department Chair of Communication Studies.
Casts have been participating in nostalgia-filled Zoom call reunions as a way to entertain fans, come together and catch up since their shows or films have wrapped.
Some reunions included new content, while others involved repeats of old episodes or scenes.
“‘Parks & Recreation’ was a full-on TV episode in canon with a whole new storyline and whatnot, which was a bonus,” said junior Ryan McHallam. “As for the ‘Community’ one, they did a virtual table read of an older episode and just sort of hung out after, which I thought was great to see.”
“Watching live table reads, reactions to scenes or conversations between actors can deepen a connection with the original show or film,” said Bindig Yousman.
Fans were able to see actors from their favorite shows be together again and talk about the shows that they used to star in.
“While the technology to do Zoom reunions has been in existence pre-COVID-19, it’s the fact that actors are home and not working on other projects that we are seeing a rise in these reunions,” said Bindig Yousman.
“Since the days of self-quarantine began earlier this spring, dozens of stars from long-gone television shows have reunited virtually,” said Rebecca Lannucci, writer for TV Line.
Stars including John Krasinski, Reese Witherspoon and Donald Glover have all been a part of these Zoom reunions as well.
“The reunions I was most excited for hands-down were ‘Parks & Rec’ and ‘Community,’ and those happen to be my favorite shows, so it just really worked out,” said McHallam.
Most shows were able to get the whole cast back together for a Zoom call.
“‘Community’ is one of my favorite shows, and I watched the entire reunion. I was so happy about it,” said senior Matthew Russo.
“Parks & Recreation” released a brand-new episode with the entire cast playing their characters as if the characters were in a Zoom call. The episode aired on April 30.
“One of TV’s most beloved sitcoms found a way to come together to give fans 30 minutes of entertainment and remind us how good it feels to be a surrogate citizen of Pawnee,” said Megan Vick, writer for TV Guide.
“I really enjoyed watching the ‘Parks & Rec’ Zoom reunion. It’s my favorite show, and I loved being able to see all of my favorite characters back together after not seeing them for so long,” said junior Gabrielle Premont.
The “Community” cast talked and caught up on each other’s lives and also read a script from an older episode.
“I was so excited when I saw that Donald Glover was going to be a part of the Zoom reunion because he was my favorite part of the show and he left early, so I don’t think that many people saw it coming,” said junior Rachael Gilroy.
“During quarantine, I was so happy that shows were doing reunions because I literally ran out of shows to watch in the first month, and it gave me something to do,” said junior Cora Koproski.
Fans were happy to see these reunions and their favorite actors together again.
“I was so happy to see that so many shows were doing reunions and I loved getting to watch them,” said senior Maya Isom.
