A few days ago, the lovable and hug-gable Guillermo del Toro took to Reddit to answer some questions and drum up some excitement for his FX show, The Strain (you can check out our review of the pilot episode here). Despite delivering some less than stellar news that Hellboy 3 is a $150 million dollar pipe dream, he also dropped some other tid bits of information regarding another property he's been associated with: HAUNTED MANSION. The last we heard about the project was at the beginning of the year, when drafts were being passed around. It sounds like not too much has changed since then, however.
When asked about what was going on with HAUNTED MANSION:
Well, I spent 2 weeks ago, I went back to Disneyland with the executives with whom I am developing the screenplay. It's a hard screenplay to crack. We've done it a few times. We are on our third or fourth draft, with 2 different writing teams, and I think the main thing is to try to combine everything that is great about the ride into the movie, and to make it a really intense but with a sense of fun – just like the ride. It's a tough balance, and I would be happy to report if we had the screenplay. We always feel like we are very close, but not yet.
In regards to how far along they are in pre-production:
We have developed 50-60 pieces of art, We've developed maquettes of the Hat Box Ghost, over the body and face of Doug Jones, but we have not succeeded yet in cracking the screenplay. I have to believe that Disney will make this movie as soon as we crack the screenplay, but until then we cannot tackle it.
Whether or not he would direct:
It is a movie I would love to direct, but I would be happy to just produce it if the timing is not right. I, by the way, was named Guest for the Day for the Haunted Mansion the last time I did, which gave me unlimited access to ride the mansion several times during the day. Unfortunately it was just the moment my left knee decided to bust and I had to go back home with a busted knee.
On one hand, Disney and del Toro aren't any further than they were earlier this year, but I'm happy that del Toro is still involved and given how busy that man's going to be for the next three years, I'd be surprised if he actually gets behind the director's chair for this one.
Guillermo del Toro's next film, CRIMSON PEAK, will be released on October 16, 2015.