More grim grinning ghosts are coming to socialize: at this year’s D23 showcase, it was announced that a number of new stars are joining Disney’s live-actionHaunted Mansionmovie. Joining previously announced starsRosario Dawson, LaKeith Stanfield, andOwen Wilsonare a number of veteran actors, includingDan Levy, Danny DeVito, Winona Ryder, Hasan Minhaj,Jared Leto, and the iconic final girl herself,Jamie Lee Curtis, as Madame Leota. Who the rest of the stars will play is currently being kept under wraps, as is the plot of the film.
Curtis and Leto, who will reportedly be playing the Hat Box Ghost, a legendary Disney figure who appeared in the original attraction but was removed when his effects didn’t hold up to Disney’s standards, were rumored to be in the production, but it looks like we have final confirmation as the film continues into production, along with a number of others teased at today’s live-action and animated showcase, includingPeter Pan & Wendyand another upcoming Halloween-themed release,Hocus Pocus 2. DeVito is also making a jump from one Disney property to another, having starred as the voice of hero-trainer Phil in 1997’sHercules— personally, he seems like a perfect fit for a hitchhiking ghost.
Ryder, too, seems like an ideal fit for a spooky film like this, having made a name for herself in films likeBeetlejuiceandEdward Scissorhands, and more recently coming to prominence as Joyce Byers inStranger Things. It’ll be interesting, indeed, to see who she winds up playing — perhaps the ever-famous Attic Bride, one of the most iconic people (can you call them people when they’re ghosts) in the Haunted Mansion’s lore.
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This is Disney’s second attempt at bringing the iconic ghoulish attraction to the screen — the first was in 2003, starringEddie Murphy,Terence Stamp, and horror iconJennifer Tillyas Madame Leota, a film which predated Disney’s success with adapting their attractions for film withPirates of the Caribbean. While the film, which leant more into Disney’s family-friendly comedy than it did scares, did modestly, this new reboot looks to be a much more interesting take on the haunted grounds that have become such an iconic part of Disney history.
Haunted Mansiondoes not yet have a release date. Stay tuned to Collider for more details.
