The Haunted Mansion, one of Disney parks’ most underrated rides, is finally getting the movie treatment it deserves
Anyone who loves Disney parks will tell you that despite often having less crowds (and more manageable lines) than the more popular rides, the Haunted Mansion is an absolute classic. It’s spooky, it’s entertaining, it has a great story—and like so many of the most nostalgic, beloved Disney parks rides before it, it’s finally getting the big screen treatment it deserves.
Disney is remaking its 2003 Haunted Mansion film (the one starring Eddie Murphy, which you probably don’t remember because it was, um, not great), and it looks like things will be much better this time around. The trailer is spooky and dark, but with a few moments of unexpected comedy—very much like the classic ride itself—so it’s clear that the new version already nails the tone.
The trailer introduces us to Gabby, a single mom who unknowingly moves into a stately New Orleans mansion with her 9-year-old son—only to discover that the property is extremely, extremely haunted. While that’s not quite the plot from the ride, there are plenty of Easter eggs—like the Hatbox Ghost (played by Jared Leto), a classic character introduced to the ride in 1969, removed, and then brought back in 2015.
The cast of this movie is absolutely stacked, including LaKeith Stanfield, Rosario Dawson, Jamie Lee Curtis, Jared Leto, Winona Ryder, Owen Wilson, Danny DeVito, Dan Levy, and Tiffany Haddish. Among the roles they’ll be playing: a questionable paranormal expert, a psychic, a priest, and, of course, plenty of ghosts.
Director Justin Simien even drew on his own experience working at Disney parks to make a movie that feels true to the classic attraction.
“There was something about that ride that I felt was there in the script,” he said at last year’s D23 Expo. “I wanted to be sure all the Easter Eggs are there because I’m a nerd.”
The Haunted Mansion movie will premiere in theaters on July 28.
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