What’s this? Tim Burton’s The Nightmare Before Christmas is celebrating its 30th anniversary with a return to theaters. On October 20th, director Henry Selick’s stop-motion animated classic will be re-released into theaters across the United States and Canada, 30 years after it originally opened in October 1993. Disney also announced Monday that the El Capitan Theatre in Hollywood, California, will show The Nightmare Before Christmas in 4D — a 3D presentation with in-theater effects — and host anniversary screenings featuring specialty concessions, souvenirs, and more.
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To commemorate the re-release, Disney commissioned new artwork inspired by the film (below), created by Shepard Fairey’s Studio Number On.
The holiday classic tells the tale of Jack Skellington (Chris Sarandon and Danny Elfman), the Pumpkin King of Halloween Town and all things that gobump in the night. Bored with the same old trick and treats, he yearnsfor something more, and soon stumbles upon the glorious magic ofChristmas Town. When Jack decides to bring this joyful holiday back toHalloween Town, his dreams to fill Santa’s shoes unravels, and it’s upto Sally (Beetlejuice‘s Catherine O’Hara), the rag doll who loves him, to stitch things together again.
Featuring music by composer Danny Elfman (Burton’s Batman, Edward Scissorhands),the film also stars William Hickey as Halloween Town’s resident madscientist, Dr. Finkelstein; Glenn Shadix as the literally two-facedMayor of Halloween Town; Ken Page as Oogie Boogie, the boogeymancomposed of creepy crawlies; Paul Reubens, O’Hara, and Elfman as the voices of Lock, Shock, and Barrel, the Sandy Claws-napping minions of Oogie Boogie; EdwardIvory as Christmas Town’s Santa Claus; and Frank Welker as Jack’sghostly, glowing-nosed dog, Zero.
Along with Nightmare‘s return to theaters, Disney is marking the milestone anniversary with new 30th-anniversary collectibles, including a clothing line and a limited-edition Starbucks tumbler. Fans can also purchase the movie, newly remastered on 4K UHD for the first time, or tune into Freeform’s 31 Nights of Halloween throughout October. ABC will air The Nightmare Before Christmas on October 22nd at 8 p.m. ET, followed by airings on the Disney Channel on October 28th and December 11th.
“I saw it as a mashup, that it’s both [a Christmas and Halloween movie,” Selick previously told ComicBook. “Then subsequently, when we actually made the film as afeature, I might have tended to answer one way, but I’ve arrived at theoriginal feeling. It is a mashup. It is a perfect collision betweenthose two holidays. So there’s no better answer than both. It is both,and it’s its own thing. It’s a great celebration of Halloween that canlast all the way into Christmas.”
Tim Burton’s The Nightmare Before Christmas — and the sing-along version — remains available to stream any time on Disney+ and is included in the streamer’s Hallowstream 2023 collection. Sign up for Disney+ here.
