Welcome, foolish mortals! The notorious Disney ride, The Haunted Mansion, is returning to the big screen with a new spine-chilling movie.
This isn’t the first film adaptation of the ride. The original movie of The Haunted Mansion was released in 2003, starring Eddie Murphy. Unfortunately, the film underperformed domestically at the box office and didn’t receive the critical praise the creators had hoped for.
Nevertheless, Disney is taking another attempt at the ghostly ride with a new movie. Here is everything to know about the “Haunted Mansion” reboot:
1. What is the movie about?
Fans of the 2003 “The Haunted Mansion” can expect this film’s plot line to differ from the original. The original film follows a real estate agent, Jim Evers (Eddie Murphy), and his family, who stop at an eerie mansion and discover that the house is haunted. In the reboot, however, the movie will be solely based on the Disney ride. The story follows a single mother and her 9-year-old son as they move into a ghost-filled mansion. They quickly discover that their newly bought estate is not what they anticipated and try to seek help to get rid of the ghosts. This help includes support from a priest, a paranormal tour guide, a psychic and a historian.
2. Where will the film take place?
The second “Haunted Mansion” adaptation will take place in New Orleans in honor of Disneyland’s location of the ride. The teased trailer quickly showed some influences of the ride’s site with the identical gothic style and antebellum architecture of the mansion and the surrounding area with the yard and gate.
The movie was also filmed in New Orleans and Atlanta, according to IMDB, so there could be other potential connections to the location.
3. Who will be in the movie?
The movie has a significant number of celebrity appearances. The main cast includes Rosario Dawson, Chase Dillion, Owen Wilson, LaKeith Stanfield and Danny DeVito. Fans can also expect to see notable figures from the Haunted Mansion ride, like Madame Leota, played by Jamie Lee Curtis and Hatbox Ghost, played by Jared Leto.
Additionally, Disney announced at the D23 Expo in Sept. 2022 that Winona Ryder, Dan Levy and Hasan Minhaj will appear in the film. However, what roles they will be playing has yet to be confirmed.
4. Who is the director of the film?
Filmmaker Justin Simien, well known for his Netflix series “Dear White People,” will be directing the “Haunted Mansion” reboot. Guillermo Del Toro was initially scheduled to direct the new movie in 2010. According to Collider, he wanted to avoid committing to a new project due to scheduling conflicts. Although Del Toro won’t be directing this adaptation, Simien’s take on the notorious ride seems promising.
According to Variety, Simien, during the D23 expo, said he drew inspiration from his connection to the Haunted Mansion ride when he worked at Disneyland. He wanted to take the ride’s experience and incorporate that into the movie.
“There was something about that ride that I felt was there in the script,” Simien told the D23 audience. “I wanted to be sure all the Easter eggs are there because I’m a nerd.”
Viewers saw a glimpse of the nods to the Haunted Mansion ride with a scene in the teased trailer where there was a moment of the art pieces stretching like the elevator experience of the Disney ride. This was in addition to the Haunted Mansion’s endless hallway that Ben (LaKeith Stanfield), the paranormal tour guide, appears to be walking through. Fans can anticipate seeing these Easter eggs throughout the movie.
5. When is the release date?
The “Haunted Mansion” reboot was initially announced to release in theaters on Aug. 11. However, Disney has since moved the release date. The film will now be in theaters on July 28. It is unknown why the movie’s release date has changed, though viewers now get to see the movie a few weeks earlier. In the meantime, “The Haunted Mansion” (2003) is available to watch on Disney+.
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