The history of Guillermo del Toro’s abandoned Haunted Mansion movie
Visionary filmmaker Guillermo del Toro almost directed his own “Haunted Mansion” film based on the Disneyland ride, but the movie was never made.
Haunted Mansion in the Movies
We’re getting ready to head to the movies and enjoy “Haunted Mansion,” a spooky adaptation of the classic Disney theme park attraction. The new flick directed by Justin Simien (“Dear White People,” “Bad Hair”) opened today, starring LaKeith Stanfield, Tiffany Haddish, Owen Wilson, Danny DeVito, Rosario Dawson, Jamie Lee Curtis, and Jared Leto.
But 20 years ago, we also went to the theater to see a “Haunted Mansion” movie. The 2003 version directed by Rob Minkoff (“The Lion King,” “Stuart Little”) and starring Eddie Murphy swings back and forth between comedic slapstick to a modest attempt at horror.
Quite recently, in 2021, Disney+ debuted “Muppets Haunted Mansion,” a 40-minute special that leans all the way in toward the mansion’s sillier interpretation of ghouls and ghosts. The outing was directed by Kirk Thatcher (“The Muppets’ Wizard of Oz,” “Muppets Now”) and stars Taraji P. Henson. In the role of Madame Leota is (who else?) Miss Piggy.
Perusing the previous filmography of each director who previously helmed a “Haunted Mansion” movie reflects the kind of tone and approach each filmmaker brought to their stint with the 999 happy haunts. With this in mind, it’s a thrilling creative exercise to imagine what might have been for the long-abandoned “Haunted Mansion” movie that was slated to be directed by one of cinema’s most macabre auteurs: Guillermo del Toro.
“We’re Not Returning Eddie Murphy’s Calls”
On July 22, 2010, Disney took the stage at San Diego Comic-Con. The studio had a surprise announcement: Guillermo del Toro would direct a new “Haunted Mansion” movie. At the time, the Disney Parks Blog shared the announcement with a new piece of concept art (pictured).
The Park Blog also quoted a few details del Toro revealed during the panel. “I couldn’t be more excited to be a part of my own adaptation of the original theme park attraction Walt envisioned,” del Toro said, “and that remains — for me — the most desirable piece of real estate in the whole world!”
According to Variety, del Toro called the Disneyland attraction “sacred ground,” and said directing the movie was “a dream come true.”
During the panel, del Toro stressed the new project was not a continuation of the 2003 movie. Entertainment Weekly reported del Toro told the crowd, “We are not returning Eddie Murphy’s calls,” to which the audience applauded.
A separate Variety report provided even more detail, quoting del Toro as saying, “We are not making a comedy. If you take the children, they will scream. We want that to happen. It’s a litmus test of character.” The director confidently asserted the film “needs to be the haunted house movie for this generation.”
Scary vs. Spooky: A ‘Haunted Mansion’ Debate Since the ’60s
The idea of different artists presenting different creative visions for “Haunted Mansion” is something of an unintentional tradition. The conversation dates back to the design process for the original ride.
In “The Imagineering Story,” author Leslie Iwerks recounts how art direction from Imagineers Claude Coats and Marc Davis clashed. Coats’ ghostly visuals were cryptic. Davis’ were kooky.
“The focus of the attraction became the combination of Audio-Animatronics figures in Davis’ semiserious style,” Iwerks writes, “with Coats’ more eerie scenarios and a series of then-stunning three-dimensional illusions created by [Yale] Gracey.”
While it seems del Toro would have embraced Coats’ darker tone in his “Haunted Mansion” film, the director had an appreciation for Davis, too. According to The Hollywood Reporter, original Marc Davis concept art for the ride hangs in del Toro’s home.
Purgatory and Afterlife
Following the initial 2010 announcement, word about del Toro’s “Haunted Mansion” remained quiet. Whenever news reports mentioned the project, they merely referenced it as an aside while discussing the director’s other movies. For years, this pattern continued: “Haunted Mansion” seemingly still on del Toro’s radar, but far from materializing.
In April 2015, The Hollywood Reporter shared that former Mouseketeer Ryan Gosling would possibly star in the film, saying that he and Disney had been “meeting for months, trying to find a project on which to work together.” The actor reportedly even visited Disneyland with del Toro and rode “Haunted Mansion” with him.
After news of Gosling’s potential casting, buzz around del Toro’s “Haunted Mansion” again simmered to a ghostly whisper. Several years passed with no public-facing signs of progress.
By August 2020, a new version of the project was well underway, announced by The Hollywood Reporter, with a script by Katie Dippold (“Parks and Recreation,” 2016’s “Ghostbusters”); however, the Hollywood Reporter was mum on the transition from del Toro’s version to this new adaptation. That being said, the announcement’s verbiage indicated a clean slate. This would be a new production rather than a continuation of del Toro’s.
The mysterious abandonment of a del Toro-led “Haunted Mansion” didn’t deter the director from taking on other projects that reflect his affinity for the supernatural. In particular, if a del Toro version of “Haunted Mansion” interests you, check out “Guillermo del Toro’s Cabinet of Curiosities.” Though not directed by del Toro, the 2022 anthology series on Netflix features del Toro as its creator, executive producer, and host to introduce each sinister tale (somewhat like a Walt Disney figure, in a way).
Imagining What Could Have Been…
Guillermo del Toro loves “Haunted Mansion.” In helming a film adaptation of the ride, he wouldn’t have only infused his unique brand of spine-chilling cinema — though there would have been plenty of that, too — but he also would have directed the movie as a superfan of its source material.
According to Entertainment Weekly, during the 2010 announcement at Comic-Con, del Toro called the Disneyland ride “a place where I go when I need to think and to relax.”
As a 2016 video from Team Coco reveals, a wall-to-wall bookshelf in del Toro’s home is actually a secret door. The passageway leads to a room filled with memorabilia from the attraction, including a full-size Hatbox Ghost.
Variety reported that, during the 2010 announcement, del Toro expressed his intentions of putting the Hatbox Ghost — a mythic figure in “Haunted Mansion” history — in his film. Imagineers had removed the one-time resident of the Disneyland attraction due to technical difficulties. It wasn’t until 2015 that Disney reintroduced the Hatbox Ghost into the west coast’s version of the ride (In 2022, Disney confirmed Imagineers will add the Hatbox Ghost to Magic Kingdom’s version in 2023) In the new film, Jared Leto portrays the character.
Guillermo del Toro is a student of not only “Haunted Mansion,” but Disney heritage at large. Variety quoted del Toro as saying, “Disney himself was the father of some really chilling moments and characters. Think Chernabog from ‘Fantasia,’ or Maleficent as the dragon, or the Evil Queen in ‘Snow White.’ We will make the ‘Haunted Mansion’ the most haunted place on earth.”
…and Appreciating What Is
Two things can be true. 1.) Guillermo del Toro’s unmade “Haunted Mansion” movie would have likely been visually stunning and narratively captivating. 2.) Justin Simien’s 2023 “Haunted Mansion” movie can possess both of those qualities, simply with a different artist behind the camera.
Even days away from the movie’s release, everything about its trailers and marketing indicates it has potential to be a home run as a stand-alone story and an adaptation that pays tribute to a theme park ride. (Its PG-13 rating is a good sign for horror fans, too, as the 2003 movie was rated PG.)
From the perspective of someone writing for a publication called Attractions Magazine, it’s easy to forget the general public is not all that familiar with theme park lore In fact, a poll on my personal Instagram revealed that 22% of my network didn’t know “Haunted Mansion” was a ride before it was a movie; and 32% voted the same for “Pirates of the Caribbean.” This data isn’t a definitive, scientific case study by any means, but I find it illuminating nonetheless.
There are likely a fair amount of movie-goers who vaguely remember the 2003 Eddie Murphy flick and perhaps wonder what led Disney to remake such an obscure title. To this demographic, Simien’s 2023 films perhaps falls into the same category as the studio’s slate of live-action remakes of animated movies.
For these and other reasons, 2023’s “Haunted Mansion” takes on a difficult challenge. To work best, it should stand on its own as a well-told story for someone who has no familiarity with its source material, as well as satisfy those who have enjoyed the ride for decades. That’s no small task.
“This Chilling Challenge”
Deadline first broke news of Simien’s direction in April 2021. The publication later reported on Simien’s appearance at D23 Expo in September 2022. There, the director discussed his stint as a former Disneyland Cast Member and his longtime adoration for “Haunted Mansion.”
According to Deadline, upon reading Dippold’s “Haunted Mansion” screenplay, Simien said, “For me, there was something about that ride I felt was there in the script. It was funny and full of interesting characters, but with a dark edge to it. I just related to it.” He decided to pitch his direction for the film to Disney. “It felt I knew how to make it. I love New Orleans and I felt I had a responsibility to make sure all the little Easter eggs are there.”
There’s also a fair bit of Disney alumni among the cast. Owen Wilson has been the voice of Lightning McQueen in Pixar’s “Cars” movies since 2006, and currently co-stars in Marvel’s “Loki” series. Rosario Dawson is the live-action Ahsoka in Lucasfilm’s “The Mandalorian” and its connected projects (including Ahsoka’s self-titled adventure debuting Aug. 23, 2023). Jamie Lee Curtis played opposite Lindsay Lohan in the 2003 comedy “Freaky Friday,” while Danny DeVito voiced Philoctetes in the 1997 animated film “Hercules.”
There’s plenty of reason to, as they say, “look alive” toward Simien’s expression of the story while also dreamily imagining the del Toro counterpart we might never get to see.
