Haunted Mansion Director Teases Jared Leto’s Hatbox Ghost Is “Terrifying”

There’s arguably no spirit from Disney’s Haunted Mansion attraction more iconic than the Hatbox Ghost, despite having taken a decades-long sabbatical from the ride itself, with director of the upcoming Haunted Mansion film Justin Simien teasing Jared Leto’s take on the ghoul. With the original Hatbox Ghost debuting in 1969 and then quickly being removed due to the challenges of necessary special effects, Simien detailed that it was a similarly complicated process for Leto to embody the figure, with the end resulting seemingly being a hit. Haunted Mansion is currently expected to land in theaters on July 28th.

“It’s very surprising. You’d be shocked to know who it was until you’re told,” Simien revealed to Entertainment Weekly. “The character itself, it’s part digital, part physical performance. We’re trying to go for something scary that feels like it could exist physically in the real world, on the ride, but pushes the scare a lot further than the ride does. He knocked it out of the park. He’s very menacing and terrifying.”

In the original ride, the ghost appeared holding a hatbox, with the goal to be for his head to then appear in the very hatbox he was holding, though the limitations of effects in the late ’60s never allowed the effect to be pulled off effectively. In the years since the figure’s removal, he earned a mythical reputation among Disney enthusiasts, only for the Hatbox Ghost to make his official return with modern upgrades in 2015.

In the new film, a doctor (Rosario Dawson) and her 9-year-old son (Chase Dillon), looking to start a new life, move into a strangely affordable mansion in New Orleans, only to discover that the place is much more than they bargained for. Desperate for help, they contact a priest (Owen Wilson), who, in turn, enlists the aid of a widowed scientist-turned failed-paranormal expert (LaKeith Stanfield), a French Quarter psychic (Tiffany Haddish), and a crotchety historian (Danny DeVito).

With Leto having a reputation for his method acting and embracing his on-screen roles between takes, Simien confirmed this wasn’t the case with the Hatbox Ghost, yet Leto still managed to be frightening at the drop of a…hat.

“When I was with him [filming], yeah, he was full-on Hatbox Ghost. A lot of that is voice performance, a lot of that is voice capture. It’s a little bit of a different animal,” Simien admitted. “But it gave us time to craft it and gave us quiet moments between the performance.”  

Haunted Mansion will land in theaters on July 28th.

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