Two of my favorite Disney franchises are the Muppets and the Haunted Mansion. So you can imagine the delight in my dark spooky soul when I saw that Disney+ was bringing us a Muppets Haunted Mansion Halloween special.
The special will see Gonzo the Great and Pepé the King Prawn survive a night spent at the titular mansion after an invitation from the Ghost Host (Will Arnett). The rest of the Muppets appear as ghosts within the mansion, and Miss Piggy takes on the role of Madame Leota’s floating head in the crystal ball.
The special features an all-star cast that includes Yvette Nicole Brown (The Hearse Driver), Darren Criss (The Caretaker), and Taraji P. Henson (The Bride), as well as Alfonso Ribeiro, the late Ed Asner, Danny Trejo, Sasheer Zamata, Skai Jackson, Craig Robinson, John Stamos, Chrissy Metz, Geoff Keighley, Jeannie Mai, and Kim Irvine.
A couple of images teasing what I have been working on most of this year and dreaming of for 30 years!!! Muppets Haunted Mansion!
We are all dying to have you see it!!!
Debuting This October on Disney+#Muppets #HauntedMansion #MuppetsHauntedMansion #Writer #Director pic.twitter.com/RGZtqeld20— Kirk R Thatcher 🐸🐷😂 (@KirkThatcher) August 9, 2021
It’s honestly surprising that in all the time we’ve had the Muppets, we’ve never gotten a Halloween special. But the time is nigh, and oh boy are we here for it. The trailer features plenty of callbacks to the beloved Disneyland ride, which includes the ghost ball, the ghost band (here played by Dr. Teeth and the Electric Mayhem, naturally), and the slowly sinking elevator with the changing portraits. There will no doubt be plenty of Easter (Halloween?) eggs for the diehard Haunted Mansion fans.
The Muppets Haunted Mansion EP will include three new original songs: “Rest in Peace,” “Life Hereafter,” and “Tie the Knot Tango,” plus a cover of the 1970s classic, “Dancing in the Moonlight.”
Naturally, fans are excited about the upcoming special:
Love the Muppets. Love the Haunted Mansion. #MuppetsHauntedMansion just became one of my most anticipated for the rest of the year https://t.co/ULtIQYfezg
— Killer Horror Critic (@KillerCritics) September 23, 2021
Y’all, Muppets Haunted Mansion pic.twitter.com/CKaxPRIbQ6
— Lee Travis (@LeeTravis_) September 23, 2021
I notice Kermit the Frog is trending, which is all the excuse I need to remind the world of the time he turned into a vampire on The Muppets Show in 1977 and bit Vincent Price on the neck. pic.twitter.com/e02IRtmNpV
— Mark Rees (@reviewwales) September 23, 2021
For many horror fans, the Haunted Mansion was their first introduction to spooky (but family-friendly) content. It’s since inspired a sub-fandom of Disney folks known as Disney Goths. Disney Goths can usually be found in line for the Haunted Mansion, sporting black fingernail polish and wearing clothing and accessories inspired by A Nightmare Before Christmas and other Tim Burton films.
The ride inspired the 2003 critically reviled film The Haunted Mansion which starred Eddie Murphy and Jennifer Tilly. Plans for a remake have been in development for years, but now Disney is moving forward with an all-new Haunted Mansion movie starring Tiffany Haddish, LaKeith Stanfield, Rosario Dawson, and Owen Wilson. Justin Simien (Dear White People) is set to direct.
Muppets Haunted Mansion premieres on Disney+ on October 8.
(image: screencap/Disney+)
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