Liz Gillies and Milo Manheim Talk Teaming Up for ‘Little Shop of Horrors’: ‘It Feels Right’

Suddenly Little Shop of Horrors has their new Audrey and Seymour — and the casting feels like a match made in TV heaven.

Victorious and Dynasty alum Liz Gillies and Zombies and School Spirits star Milo Manheim made their debuts in the critically acclaimed Off-Broadway revival of Howard Ashman and Alan Menken’s musical on February 25, and both stars told Us Weekly that the pairing felt fated.

“I feel like the universe aligned perfectly and made this happen,” Manheim, 24, told Us following a Wednesday, March 5, performance of Little Shop. “I feel like the luckiest man in the world. When I found out that I was doing it with Liz I was over the moon.”

Gillies, 31, added of playing Audrey: “I couldn’t have picked a better Seymour and we’re having so much fun every night. I’m very thankful. … I’m so glad to be here. It feels right.”

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The horror comedy rock musical follows plant shop worker Seymour as he raises a blood-lusting plant and pines over his coworker Audrey. The current Off-Broadway revival opened at the Westside Theatre in October 2019.

As for Gillies and Manheim’s respective Nickelodeon and Disney Channel histories, there’s no cross-channel tension between the stars, only love and camaraderie.

“We both look back on that chapter fondly and we’re in a new chapter now,” Manheim told Us of their backgrounds on kids TV. “It’s a little quirky thing and I think it’s really exciting for the fans.”

The casts of their respective shows came to support them for their debuts, including Gillies’ Victorious castmates Avan Jogia and Daniella Monet.

“It’s surreal,” Gillies told Us of their support. “It’s the melding of worlds. It’s amazing.”

Gillies made her Broadway debut at 15 years old in the musical 13 alongside her future Victorious castmate Ariana Grande — and just as Grande, 31, returned to her theatrical roots by portraying Glinda in last year’s Wicked, Gillies’ return to the stage feels like a homecoming.

“It’s not lost on either of us how much theater means to us and how important this return has been for us in very different ways,” Gillies said of her and Grande’s musical theater renaissance. “We’re going back to the thing that started it all and our first love. It’s very meaningful and it’s very special and we have connected on it.”

As for Manheim, the rising star was spotted by Little Shop director Michael Mayer during his performance in the Deaf West production of American Idiot last year — and the rest is history. The Zombies alum brings a notable physicality to the role of Seymour, accentuating the dorky character’s comedy and heart.

“Everybody does [Seymour] so differently and I decided that I would lean on a more physically quirky Seymour,” Manheim told Us. “That was one of the strengths that I wanted to bring to this one.”

One can’t help but wonder if his Dancing With the Stars training — Manheim finished in second place on season 27 of the reality competition show alongside partner Witney Carson — helped him in Little Shop.

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“I feel like it was more so the work ethic that I learned on Dancing With the Stars that helped the most,” Manheim said when Us asked him that exact question. “I guess on [the song] ‘Mushnik and Son’ we do a little ballroom-esque type thing, but honestly my frame is out the window in that dance. … But Dancing With the Stars really taught me how to focus and sit down and really lock in.”

At the end of the day, Manheim said no matter how fantastical the content of the show is, he hopes audiences take away the truth at its heart.

“This is such an absurd, almost farcical show, but beneath it all is true emotion and things that we experience,” he said. “While the situation is absolutely absurd, I hope people can take away the truth of it. And also to take care of the environment.”