Diary of a Wimpy Kid: The Long Haul New Cast Faces Backlash From Fans

The latest installment of Jeff Kinney’s “Diary of a Wimpy Kid” book series is finally here. “The Long Haul” has just released it’s full trailer; but as early as now, fans of the original “Wimpy Kid” movie trilogy aren’t happy about the casting change.

Kinney saw the first signs of uneasiness with “The Long Haul” after a test screening of the newest “Diary of a Wimpy Kid” movie.

Diary of a Wimpy Kid: The Long Haul’s Critical Reception Is In Jeopardy

The road-trip family vacation movie features new faces for the Heffley family and the entire cast in general—Susan is being played by Alicia Silverstone, Tom Everett Scott plays Frank, Jason Ducker plays the title protagonist Greg and Charlie Wright plays Rodrick, the evil older brother of the “Diary of a Wimpy Kid” series. Casting announcements seemed okay, but it was during the initial screening where a lot of scratching heads and grumpy faces were seen.

In an interview with USA Today, Kinney went on to discuss what went down during the test screening for “The Long Haul.”

“We got a lot of laughs,” says Kinney, who is also the executive producer of the film. “Then the lights came on and people started asking, ‘Why didn’t they use the old cast?’ They were genuinely confused about why we would replace such a good cast. It took us a little bit off guard.”

The previous “Diary of a Wimpy Kid” features Rachael Harris (Susan), Steve Zahn (Frank), Zachary Gordon (Greg) and Devon Bostick (Rodrick). Fans have grown used to seeing the original cast after being in the previous three films.

Once the trailer for “Diary of a Wimpy Kid: The Long Haul” arrived, fans expressed their dismay at the change of casting, especially Rodrick, with the #NotMyRodrick hashtag dominating Twitter.

Rodrick died and was replaced by a clone a conspiracy theory thread by me #NotMyRodrick pic.twitter.com/YPxZxCuIkg

— Fly Dizzee D (@starboy_dizzee) May 17, 2017

Who’s NOT planning on seeing the new Diary of a Wimpy kid movie#notmyrodrick #notmygreg #notmymanny #notmyheffleys #itwillsuck #worstmovie

— Brett Maust (@BrettMaust) May 16, 2017

Y’all leave Edna alone. This is her great come back. #NotMyRodrick pic.twitter.com/Fti1m8MehH

— spiderman’s cousin (@alexa_lynne00) May 16, 2017

Jeff Kinney And Alicia Silverstone Defends The New Wimpy Kid Cast

According to Kinney, the decision to change the cast for “Diary of a Wimpy Kid: The Long Haul” was inevitable, given how the film will always be focused around middle school.

“The Wimpy Kid movies are different from Harry Potter, which follows the kids as they age,” says Kinney, adding that main character “Greg is frozen in this preadolescent amber while young actors grow and change. This kind of movie really begs to be re-invented every few years.”

Gordon, who was 11 when he first played Greg, is now 19 and too old for a middle schooler (obviously) while Bostick is now 25, which is way out of range for being a high schooler.

Silverstone compares the casting change to new superhero casting announcements. “It was the same with Batman. People get attached,” she says. “But you cannot continue to play a ‘wimpy’ kid when you have muscles and a deep voice. That’s a different story.”

But despite the negative reaction surrounding the new trailer, Kinney believes that audiences will still come through.  “People are still so invested,” he says. “It’s going to take kids a few minutes to adjust to the new cast and then we’re off to the races.”

The film is based on the novel of the same name, and tells the story of the Heffley family as they embark on a road trip to attend Meemaw’s 90th birthday party. It goes hilariously off course–thanks to Greg’s newest scheme to finally become famous.

“Diary of a Wimpy Kid: The Long Haul” hits theaters on Friday, May 19. Watch the official trailer below: