Top 10 Things You Missed in Disney's Haunted Mansion Movie
#10: The Sea Captain
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Returning home, LaKeith Stanfield’s Ben finds that a ghostly sea captain has hitched a ride. Leaving him up a creek without a proton pack, Ben ventures back to the mansion for answers. At one point, Imagineer Ken Anderson intended a character named Captain Gore to be the Disneyland ride’s antagonist. This idea got scrapped, but a sea captain was still worked into the attraction as a homage. Not only does a captain emerge from a hearse in the Great Hall, but a tombstone reading “Bartholomew Gore” was later added to the Magic Kingdom version. The film’s captain also resembles the mariner from a portrait hanging in the Disney World location’s loading area. Just like this mariner, the seadog who haunts Ben sports a trusty harpoon.
#9: The Duelists
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Ben and company cross paths with many ghosts at the mansion… 999 to be precise! Two of these ghosts pack pistols, engaging in a duel that persists beyond the grave. These characters draw inspiration from the duelist paintings that can be found in Disneyland, Disney World, and Tokyo Disneyland. On the ride, the duelists appear to be upper-class gentlemen who both shot first. In the film, one of the duelists resembles his ride counterpart with a dapper top hat, but the other one looks more like a pirate captain. Although still a neat nod to the ride, it’s kind of a missed opportunity that the duelists weren’t played by Lin-Manuel Miranda and Leslie Odom Jr. Or would that have been too on the nose?
#8: Hitchhiking Ghosts
Whenever someone who’s stepped inside the mansion tries to leave, they’re sure to be followed by ghosts. There are three, in particular, that we were waiting to hitch the ride. It’s only a matter of time until Ben crosses paths with the Haunted Mansion’s signature hitchhiking ghosts. They don’t properly introduce themselves to Ben. In the ride’s lore, though, these three are named Phineas, Ezra, and Gus. The trio aren’t the only ones that Ben unearths outside. Also present are the mansion’s caretaker and his faithful dog. On the ride, the groundskeeper and dog are among the mansion’s only living residents. In the film, though, both have met the same fates as their fellow ghosts. Did the hitchhikers run them over?
#7: Doom Buggie Chairs
Everything about the Haunted Mansion attraction is iconic, including the seating arrangements. Approaching the Omnimover system, riders hop aboard black carriages known as “Doom Buggies.” While the Doom Buggies aren’t prominently featured in the movie, the filmmakers do pay tribute to them. When a seance goes south, Tiffany Haddish’s Harriet is taken on a wild ride… not of the Mr. Toad variety. Her chair comes to life, sending Harriet charging out of the room and through the front door. With a large, circular back post that practically engulfs Harriet, the production designers clearly had the Doom Buggies in mind while crafting this chair. The major difference? Harriet’s chair doesn’t have a safety bar that automatically comes down. Now there’s a safety violation.
#6: Ghosts Come Out to Socialize
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With every trip to the Haunted Mansion, we always look forward to the Grand Hall set piece where we find the ghosts at their most social. The film borrows a fair deal of imagery from this part of the ride. One ghost is seen playing a pipe organ, causing small spirits to emanate from the instrument. Another ghost hangs from a chandelier, proving to be the life of the party even in death. Fun fact, this ghost is named Pickwick according to Imagineering notes. The movie ends with the living and dead assembling for a swinging wake in the ballroom, complete with ghosts waltzing from up above. If these grim sights don’t leave you grinning, we guess that you’re just not the social type.
#5: The Stretching Room
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Every tour of the Haunted Mansion begins in this gallery, although in the film, the room doesn’t start stretching until the climax. The production designers faithfully recreate the stretching room, right down to the wallpaper. The room is also decorated with paintings that aren’t revealed in full until the floor descends… or is it the ceiling that moves upward? In any case, the portraits resemble the ones on the ride, from the bearded gent in his undergarments to the three men sitting on each other’s shoulders. The stakes are raised for the characters, however. You know the alligator under the woman standing on the tightrope? Well, it comes to life and its appetite hasn’t been satisfied. We’ll take the other way out, thank you.
#4: The Bride
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Actress Lindsay Lamb strikes fear into the characters (and audience) as the film’s axe-wielding ghost bride. At Disneyland Paris’ Phantom Manor, a dearly departed bride named Melanie Ravenswood plays a key role in the ride’s story. However, this film’s bride draws more from Constance Hatchaway, who can be spotted in Disneyland and Disney World. Although a ghostly bride had been a Haunted Mansion staple for years, Constance didn’t make her official debut until 2006. Constance spends much of her afterlife hanging around the attic, which is where Ben also encounters the bellowing bride. Despite being a relatively new addition to the attraction, the hatchet-happy bride has become of its most familiar elements. She wouldn’t miss this party, but she might miss your head.
#3: The Hatbox Ghost
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The film’s most haunting spirit is the Hatbox Ghost, played by Jared Leto. This ghoulish foe has come a long way since his inception. The character originally appeared in the attic alongside the beating-heart bride when the Haunted Mansion first opened its doors in 1969. However, the Imagineers couldn’t get the vanishing head trick down, forcing them to almost immediately remove the Hatbox Ghost. Yet, the character gained a cult following, popping up in souvenirs and artwork. He even appeared in a comic series where he was named Randall Pace. With technology catching up to what the Imagineers initially envisioned, the Hatbox Ghost finally returned to the ride in 2015. Now he’s the villain of a major motion picture, adopting the name Alistair Crump.
#2: It’s a Small World After All
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Trying to piece together the mystery of the Hatbox Ghost, our heroes venture to another mansion where they meet two tour guides, Winona Ryder’s Pat and Dan Levy’s Vic. 35 years after “Beetlejuice,” Ryder still can’t get away from haunted houses, but David Rose has upgraded from motel dweller. As Ben and his friends sneak away from the tour, Vic can be heard playing a familiar tune on the piano. No, it’s not the Haunted Mansion theme, although that can be heard various times throughout the film. Vic is singing along with another Disney attraction, It’s a Small World. It might seem like an odd fit for a scary movie, but listen to the song enough times, it’ll become your worst nightmare.
#1: William Gracey
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As the characters unravel the mystery of the mansion, they find that the happy (and not-to-happy) haunts are tied to William Gracey. In the ride’s history, one of the first tombstones to be included in the family plot read, “Master Gracey,” honoring Imagineer Yale Gracey. In the SLG comics, elements of Captain Gore were recycled for a composite character called Captain William Gracey. A character named Edward Gracey is also revealed to be the mansion’s original owner in the 2003 “Haunted Mansion” movie. In this new version, William Gracey is given a similarly heartbreaking backstory linked to a woman named Eleanor. This could be a nod to Eleanor Audley, who voiced Madame Leota in the Haunted Mansion attraction - not to mention Lady Tremaine and Maleficent.
