Disney is conjuring up a new “Haunted Mansion” live-action movie, based on its 51-year-old Disneyland theme park ride, with “Ghostbusters” writer Katie Dippold attached.
Producers are Dan Lin and Jonathan Eirich through their Rideback banner. Lin has extensive producer experience with the “Sherlock Holmes,” “It” and “Lego” franchises. He and Eirich teamed on Disney’s live-action “Aladdin” movie last year.
“The Haunted Mansion” opened at Disneyland in 1969 and was an immediate success, spawning similar rides at Walt Disney World in Florida and Tokyo Disneyland. Patrons are placed in a “Doom Buggy” riding through a haunted house with dozens of supernatural scares.
Disney used the ride as inspiration for its 2003 horror comedy “The Haunted Mansion” with Eddie Murphy portraying a workaholic realtor who buys a mansion that turns out to be haunted. The movie, directed by Rob Minkoff, grossed $182 million worldwide on a $90 million budget.
Disney saw enormous success from its theme park ride “Pirates of the Caribbean,” which opened in 1967 at Disneyland and arrived on the big screen in 2003. The five “Pirates” movies, all starring Johnny Depp as Captain Jack Sparrow, grossed $1.5 billion domestically and $3.07 billion internationally.
Disney also released the 2002 family comedy “Country Bears” based on the Disneyland attraction. The studio has also finished “Jungle Cruise,” based on the Disneyland ride, with Dwayne Johnson and Emily Blunt starring. The film is due out on July 30, 2021 — a year after its original release date, which was scrubbed due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Dippold’s credits include “Parks and Recreation,” “The Heat” and “Snatched.” She is repped by Ziffren Brittenham.