Guillermo Del Toro Talks about THE HAUNTED MANSION along with Press Release and Official Logo

Hey gang! Yesterday it was announced that director Guillermo del Toro was going to develop a new horror film for Disney based on the classic Hunted Mansion ride. The movie will obviously be called, The Haunted Mansion. This time around it looks like we are actually going to get a nice old finished horror film, and who better to that then Del Toro? I think it's okay for everyone to get excited about this movie because it's going to be nothing like that crappy Eddie Murphy version. I think it's very cool that Disney is letting Del Toro make this! The kid in me can't help but be incredibly excited.

Here's a full transcript of what Del Toro said at the Comic-Con panel:

I went to Disneyland the first time when I was three years old, and I was a lump of fat about this big. And I fortunately was there the year the mansion opened, and I’ve been there every year at least once for the rest of my life. It’s one of those places that I go to… Literally, that’s how freaky I am, unfortunately.

This is a place where I go to when I need to think, when I need to relax and unwind. When we were going through the worst process of Mimic in 1997, we were doing post in Los Angeles and I would go on the weekend and ride it over and over again, and to me, my man cave, my little house that I have… I have my own Haunted Mansion room with the gargoyles, the wallpaper, original art by Marc Davis, and so on and so forth. And I always felt that the Haunted Mansion told such stories without having to be done solely as a horror film. I thought that the clash or the poignancy of Claude Coates, Rolly, and Marc Davis created a unique flavor for the Mansion.

I would love to say we are doing the movie, it’s live-action. It is going to be in 3D. And we’re making the Haunted Mansion the most haunted place on Earth. And we are doing it by being true to the spirit and the art and the aesthetic of the original Imagineers that created the mansion.

We are not returning Eddie Murphy’s calls, and we are not making it a comedy. We are making it into an e-ticket ride. We are going to make it scary and fun at the same time. But the scary will be scary. And to me, the mansion has to become the haunted house movie that a generation remembers and loves after being created by us. We are doing this by reintroducing… the mythology in the mansion will be done, and this is really for the hardcore fans, it is going to be created around the character we are reintroducing into the tale. And it is my biggest hope that we can reintroduce it right, and that is the Hatbox Ghost.

I always loved his image. I think he is one of the scariest creations, but he is also incredibly whimsical. What I decided was, in the talks with Disney, that this would be the pivotal character to reintroduce the mythology. And I said, please, this is going to be scary. If you take the children, they will scream. But we hope that happens, and it’s a litmus test of character. This, to me, is a dream come true, and I hope to steal as many props as possible.

Here’s the official press release:

THE WALT DISNEY STUDIOS AND GUILLERMO DEL TORO DEVELOPING DISNEY’S HAUNTED MANSION

Del Toro Set to Write and Produce Film for Disney

SAN DIEGO, Calif. – July 22, 2010 –Guillermo del Toro surprised the 6,500 fans gathered today at Comic-Con with the announcement that he is currently developing a new film for The Walt Disney Studios based on the classic Disney theme park attraction, The Haunted Mansion.

“Dark imagery is an integral part of the Walt Disney legacy. After all, Disney himself was the father of some really chilling moments and characters - think Chernabog from Fantasia or Maleficent as the Dragon or the Evil Queen in Snow White,” said del Toro. “I couldn’t be more excited to be a part of my own adaptation of the original theme park attraction Walt envisioned and that remains- for me- the most desirable piece of real estate in the whole world!”

“Millions of people from around the world visit The Haunted Mansion each year, but no one has ever had a tour guide like Guillermo del Toro,” said Rich Ross, Chairman of The Walt Disney Studios. “Guillermo is one of the most gifted and innovative filmmakers working today and he is going to take audiences on a visually-thrilling journey like they’ve never experienced before.”

Since August 1969, foolish mortals have dared to trespass on the macabre grounds of Disney’s Haunted Mansion. A hallowed landmark in Disneyland’s New Orleans square, it’s the dwelling place of 999 happy haunts dying to meet new visitors each day. The plantation-style of the mansion’s facade is a sweet deception for visitors. Inside, ghostly doom buggies line the hallways. Since its construction, the mysteries of the mansion have transcended the attraction with stories surfacing about horrifying encounters with the supernatural. Versions of the daunting edifice have been built at other Disney theme parks in Orlando, Tokyo and Paris.