Show notes
“The origin story feels pretty far away from where I am now,” says screenwriter Kelly Younger. “I started out in archeology. Truth be told, I wanted to be a Goonie,” he jokes. “I’m from a working class Irish family. My family went through a hard financial time. We actually lost our house when I was a kid.”
“In The Goonies, the kids are about to lose their homes, but then they find this treasure map, fight criminals, there’s pirate ships, but ultimately they find the treasure that is going to save the family home. That movie really hit me at a pretty important moment.”
“Then, when Indiana Jones came out, I wanted to be an archeologist. That was always my interest and facisnation. Lost civilizations and treasures. The kind of magic surrounding those kinds of stories. I was also a bit of a theater kid in middle school and high school. When it came time for school, I studied English Literature and the Classics.”
Eventually, it became obvious that Younger was making career choices based on movies. “Ultimately, I moved to Ireland and studied literature, drama, folk tales, mythology, and fairy tales. I started out as a student of storytelling, but then my theater background kicked in and I started writing plays—mostly because I was broke. I wrote a play and won 1,000 pounds and got involved in the Dublin Theater Festival.”
Eventually, this lead the screenwriter to Disney Animation where he worked as part of the “Story Trust,” providing feedback and advice for Moana, Cars 3, Coco, Incredibles 2, Ralph Breaks the Internet, Toy Story 4, Frozen II, Onward, Aladdin, and Raya and the Last Dragon.
As a screenwriter, Younger has credits on Muppets Now, Muppets Haunted Mansion, and the new Eddie Murphy comedy Candy Cane Lane. The story follows a man who is determined to win the neighborhood’s annual Christmas decorating contest until he makes a pact with an Elf who cast a spell on him which brings the 12 days of Christmas to life, and wrecks havoc on the town.
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