Haunted Mansion

[MarvelCharacterNerd]

Disney should hire whoever is doing marketing for the Barbie movie. Top notch.

Yeah, Barbie AirBnB'd her dream house before this Haunted Mansion listing. (Or rather, Ken did. lol)

Barbie’s Malibu DreamHouse, Ken’s Way

While Barbie is away this summer, Barbie’s Malibu DreamHouse is back on Airbnb - with a twist: Ken is hosting.

news.airbnb.com

 

[Animaniac93-98]

And before anyone points to Hocus Pocus as an example of a Halloween movie released in the summer, remember that Hocus Pocus FLOPPED hard on its initial release and only became popular after TV reruns and VHS sales.

What often gets overlooked is that same year The Nightmare Before Christmas was released in October and Disney likely didn't want the two movies competing with each other.

But in this case, yes, it would have made more sense to release Haunted Mansion closer to Halloween. Even with @yensidtlaw1969 's Disney+ strategy, they could have released it late September and then have a "surprise" streaming release on Halloween or a couple days before.

 

[Screamface]

Disney should hire whoever is doing marketing for the Barbie movie. Top notch.

I'm really curious about Barbie. I can't tell what is a genuine groundswell of interest in the film, versus a really aggressive marketing push.

 

[TP2000]

I'm really curious about Barbie. I can't tell what is a genuine groundswell of interest in the film, versus a really aggressive marketing push.

It's a genuine groundswell. Trust me. I knew it the moment I saw the YouTube preview. This one is going to be huge.

I already bought two different Halloween costumes before they sell out; Rollerblade Ken and Cowboy Ken.

 

[WorldExplorer]

In fairness, Hocus Pocus didn't have a Disney+ to land on just in time for the Halloween season.

Pretty sure that's what Disney's counting on with this one. It's not gonna make big money at the Box Office, but it'll get streamed a billion times across the month of October. Unless it's that bad.

Seems like that's part of why the release date was moved up - Open in theaters in September and you can't double-dip like that. But if it's in theaters in the summer and then available at home through the Halloween season it'll do numbers you'd never see if it hit Disney+ in, like, January.

Is it dumb to suggest maybe they could've released it in October 2023 and put it on Disney+ in October 2024? Give it the best chance at the box office AND an appropriate Disney+ release date? Even if you presume it definitely won't make a significant amount of box office money, surely it's still better to get as much as possible?

I don't really understand why things need to show up on streaming near immediately after release.

 

[Disney Irish]

Is it dumb to suggest maybe they could've released it in October 2023 and put it on Disney+ in October 2024? Give it the best chance at the box office AND an appropriate Disney+ release date? Even if you presume it definitely won't make a significant amount of box office money, surely it's still better to get as much as possible?

The issue comes when you move one movie its not just that movie that has to shuffle. Studios have too many movies being released, so when one movie shuffles it ends up affecting potentially their whole release schedule. You saw this recently when Disney had to go and adjust almost their entire 2024/2025/2026 release schedule.

At least the July date is better than the original release date of March 10th.

I don't really understand why things need to show up on streaming near immediately after release.

They aren't anymore, Disney and other studios are changing that strategy for a lot of movies to wait months before they get to streaming.

 

[WorldExplorer]

The issue comes when you move one movie its not just that movie that has to shuffle. Studios have too many movies being released, so when one movie shuffles it ends up affecting potentially their whole release schedule. You saw this recently when Disney had to go and adjust almost their entire 2024/2025/2026 release schedule.

At least the July date is better than the original release date of March 10th.


They aren't anymore, Disney and other studios are changing that strategy for a lot of movies to wait months before they get to streaming.

I'm not expecting a shuffle, I'm questioning more why they wouldn't just do that to begin with, if we're taking it as a given that the July release date is for the sake of making a Disney + in October.

Months still seems short, from both the perspective of how long you used to need to wait, and the perspective of how long seems like too long to wait to see the thing "for free", but I guess that's opinion based (or based on information I don't have, in a general population sense).

 

[yensidtlaw1969]

Is it dumb to suggest maybe they could've released it in October 2023 and put it on Disney+ in October 2024? Give it the best chance at the box office AND an appropriate Disney+ release date? Even if you presume it definitely won't make a significant amount of box office money, surely it's still better to get as much as possible?

I don't really understand why things need to show up on streaming near immediately after release.

They want to get their return as fast as possible. There’s no major benefit to waiting a year to put it on Disney+ when they could possibly be getting *some* streaming in the meantime. It’ll be just as big next October whether it’s brand new on the platform or not.

Unless it absolutely tanks in theaters and gets immediately sent to Disney+ like Encanto did (Which proved popular with families once it was very easily accessible, but probably won’t be repeated here), they want a healthy window between the film’s release and its arrival online. Opening in July gives them a couple months of buffer before it hits Disney+ at . . . I’d guess the end of September/early October.

They want enough time to try and discourage people from waiting who might otherwise see it in theaters, but also not SO much time that people forget it even existed. Disney+ (among other streamers) think they have a problem with dead media taking up space but getting no viewership. This will probably not be one of those, but waiting a year and letting people forget the thing exists - especially if the box office is soft - wouldn’t help.

They seem to think this is their best shot with Haunted Mansion.

 

[DCBaker]

New video from when the cast of Haunted Mansion was in Disneyland.

 

[Animaniac93-98]

Regardless of how profitable or not the movie is, I hope it's at least good.

 

[DCBaker]

Mickey and Minnie have arrived at the Haunted Mansion premiere.

 

[Tha Realest]

Mickey and Minnie have arrived at the Haunted Mansion premiere.

Question - if those “friends of Mickey/Minnie” are SAG members as well, does that cause an issue given the strike?

 

[MagicHappens1971]

Question - if those “friends of Mickey/Minnie” are SAG members as well, does that cause an issue given the strike?

Disney Character Performers are not in any big entertainment union. Actors like Belle & Gaston in Beauty and the Beast - Live on Stage and the performers from Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser are part of AGVA.

On that note, I can't speak to Disneyland Character Performers, but I would say pretty confidently that they are not in SAG. Only little other tidbit I'll throw in here is that SAG has come out publicly and said that anyone who is an aspiring SAG member and "crosses the picket line" during this strike will not be able to ever become a member. I would say that would apply to these performers as they are "promoting a movie from a struck studio". Murky waters ahead for sure.

 

[Tha Realest]

Disney Character Performers are not in any big entertainment union. Actors like Belle & Gaston in Beauty and the Beast - Live on Stage and the performers from Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser are part of AGVA.

On that note, I can't speak to Disneyland Character Performers, but I would say pretty confidently that they are not in SAG. Only little other tidbit I'll throw in here is that SAG has come out publicly and said that anyone who is an aspiring SAG member and "crosses the picket line" during this strike will not be able to ever become a member. I would say that would apply to these performers as they are "promoting a movie from a struck studio". Murky waters ahead for sure.

Thanks for the update here. I just wasn’t sure if , say, a character CM also happened to be in SAG, and then, in another non-union job, performed a duty that would be considered a strikebreaker.

Walking the red carpet in the capacity conventionally expected (and required by many contracted actors) of the lead actors seems like it might be a problem, even if the character CM role isn’t a unionized one?

 

[MagicHappens1971]

Walking the red carpet in the capacity conventionally expected (and required by many contracted actors) of the lead actors seems like it might be a problem, even if the character CM role isn’t a unionized one?

Yeah, SAG actors cannot participate in any capacity that relates to promoting “struck” work.

 

[Animaniac93-98]

Looks like the Florida Mansion will be in the movie, at least for a little bit. You can see a shot in this trailer

 

[GimpYancIent]

They want to get their return as fast as possible. There’s no major benefit to waiting a year to put it on Disney+ when they could possibly be getting *some* streaming in the meantime. It’ll be just as big next October whether it’s brand new on the platform or not.

Unless it absolutely tanks in theaters and gets immediately sent to Disney+ like Encanto did (Which proved popular with families once it was very easily accessible, but probably won’t be repeated here), they want a healthy window between the film’s release and its arrival online. Opening in July gives them a couple months of buffer before it hits Disney+ at . . . I’d guess the end of September/early October.

They want enough time to try and discourage people from waiting who might otherwise see it in theaters, but also not SO much time that people forget it even existed. Disney+ (among other streamers) think they have a problem with dead media taking up space but getting no viewership. This will probably not be one of those, but waiting a year and letting people forget the thing exists - especially if the box office is soft - wouldn’t help.

They seem to think this is their best shot with Haunted Mansion.

July 16th, 1993, Hocus Pocus was released and has come on to become a Halloween classic so Haunted Mansion stands a very good chance of developing long term legs.

 

[Disney Irish]

I'm sure I'm going to get jumped all over for this, but.....

With the box office being all over the place, will this be a sleeper hit....

 

[Miss Jennifer]

They want to get their return as fast as possible. There’s no major benefit to waiting a year to put it on Disney+ when they could possibly be getting *some* streaming in the meantime. It’ll be just as big next October whether it’s brand new on the platform or not.

Unless it absolutely tanks in theaters and gets immediately sent to Disney+ like Encanto did (Which proved popular with families once it was very easily accessible, but probably won’t be repeated here), they want a healthy window between the film’s release and its arrival online. Opening in July gives them a couple months of buffer before it hits Disney+ at . . . I’d guess the end of September/early October.

They want enough time to try and discourage people from waiting who might otherwise see it in theaters, but also not SO much time that people forget it even existed. Disney+ (among other streamers) think they have a problem with dead media taking up space but getting no viewership. This will probably not be one of those, but waiting a year and letting people forget the thing exists - especially if the box office is soft - wouldn’t help.

They seem to think this is their best shot with Haunted Mansion.

I hope you're right about it being on Disney Plus in early October. I've planned my movie theme at the library where I work around it for the month of October...I'm going to be doing Disney Halloween movies that have appeal to adults as well as children. Haunted Mansion is going to be the last of them, but I'd scheduled it for 10/23...I can't bump it ahead a week because the meeting rooms where I show movies are going to be taken up with early voting. The other three are movies that are celebrating significant anniversaries this year...Nightmare Before Christmas, Hocus Pocus, and Something Wicked This Way Comes (which, for some God-unknown reason, isn't on Disney Plus so I'll need to get my hands on the DVD).

Anyway, no formal reviews yet after the premiere, but early reactions hint that it's good. The worst any of these reactions say is that the plot has a few flaws, but overall it's a fun and even genuinely touching movie with some great Easter eggs.

 

[MisterPenguin]

I'm sure I'm going to get jumped all over for this, but.....

With the box office being all over the place, will this be a sleeper hit....

<flagged for failure to use a death-related pun when referencing the Haunted Mansion>