Haunted Mansion: Justin Simien to direct former Guillermo del Toro project

Last Updated on August 2, 2021

Seven years after Disney released the 2003 film Haunted Mansion (watch it HERE), starring Eddie Murphy and inspired by the ride that's at both Disney Land and Disney World, the studio hired Guillermo del Toro to direct a new take on the concept. Del Toro was attached to this project for years, and at one point Ryan Gosling was in talks to star in the film. But if fans were still holding on to hope for a Guillermo del Toro Haunted Mansion eleven years after his involvement was announced, it's time to put that hope to bed. Disney has now hired Dear White People and Bad Hair director Justin Simien to take the helm of Haunted Mansion.

The ride that inspired the project sees

theme park guests go inside a spooky and creepy manor that includes some classic characters like the spirit of psychic medium Madame Leota to the skeletal Bride to the cloaked Hatbox Ghost.

According Deadline, 

Insiders say this will be a completely different take as a film that stands on its own. Disney has wanted to work with Simien for some time, with him meeting on several other projects before settling on this one following his recent pitch on how he envisioned the story going.

Dan Lin and Jonathan Eirich will be producing the film through their Rideback banner, with Rideback's Nick Reynolds serving as executive producer. The most recent draft of the Haunted Mansion screenplay was written by Katie Dippold, who co-wrote the 2016 Ghostbusters with Paul Feig.