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“Family: 101,� you might call it.

In the new series, Schwimmer plays dad to fraternal twins, Bartles and McCarthy.

The three, however, didn’t meet until two days before filming started.

“Whenever we’re not actually filming, it’s like, ‘OK, what about this?’ and ‘What do you think about…?’ you know, just trying to make some quick choices and decisions about what our relationships are,� Schwimmer says. “Hopefully, you pull it off, but it felt pretty good from the start.�

Bartles and McCarthy, however, weren’t sure they were going to be chosen as siblings when they auditioned for the show. Producers paired them with different actors, then dubbed McCarthy and Bartles the twins.

“We’re different in the way Dev and Cece are different,� McCarthy says of their characters.

“But there’s a similarity in how we act,� Bartles adds. Toss in Schwimmer as the wild card, and it becomes a learning process for all of them.

“Creating a bond was really important,� Bartles says. “Part of being a twin is knowing what the other is going to do, knowing how the other acts.�

Knowing those traits, McCarthy adds, shows a connection. “Not that it’s such a strenuous thing getting to know another person, but you just put your trust in your partner and kind of walk in with an open heart and see what happens.�

In the series, they’re pulled into a mystery that has some connection to teenagers who vanished in 1994. They befriend others from Gravesend, Brooklyn, where their dad is a botany professor.

He warns them to stay out of the basement but that falls on deaf ears and, soon, the mystery-solving begins.

Because the series has plenty of special effects (and a lot of green-screen production), the actors had to rely on instincts.

When he was stumped, McCarthy talked to his dad, actor Andrew McCarthy. “It’s a really huge help because I can call my father at any point and say, ‘Hey, dad, I have no idea how to do this scene.’ We always will talk shop and work through that kind of stuff. People ask me, ‘Is your dad giving you acting advice?’ And, well, it’s kind of been a language of our relationship my whole life.

“There’s nothing secure about being an actor in this business,� he adds. “My dad can’t get me a job but there is something psychological to it – if he did it, then it must be possible.�

Conversely, Bartles, a YouTube sensation, had no touchstone in the business, even though she started acting at an early age.

“I got social media eight years ago to be noticed by casting directors,� she says, “so it definitely influenced my career. (She has eight million followers on TikTok.) I’ve going through many routes, but I’m really, really happy to be going back to what I truly love, which is acting in front of a camera for television and feature films.�

To help with the bonding process, Schwimmer’s character gives his children a binder that lists the rules of the house (like staying out of the basement).

“I gave Cece a taser gun, even though everyone know you’re not allowed to have one under the age of 18,� Schwimmer says. The book also included maps of the area, the subway system and tips on being safe in New York.

Naturally, the children don’t pay attention.

Both Bartles and McCarthy say they enjoy horror films and grew up on R.L. Stine’s book series.

“Part of the reason so many people are hooked (on the books) is you don’t have any clue what kind of monster you’re going to encounter in the next book you read,� Bartles says. “It could literally be a car that is haunted. It doesn’t have to be a creature.�

“It’s a bit of lightning in a bottle,� McCarthy adds. “If I knew what it was, I’d bottle it myself.�

Schwimmer figures the Stine books work because they focus on family and school. “There’s something quite accessible about it because of how ordinary it is.�

“Goosebumps: The Vanishing� becomes available Jan. 10 on Disney+ and Hulu.