Everything looked to be heading the right way for Disney’sHaunted Mansionremake, with strong early reviews, a well-received trailer or two and an all-star cast including Owen Wilson, Danny DeVito and Rosario Dawson. However, no one planned for the onset of an actor’s strike orthe phenomenon of Barbenheimer, which have both contributed toHaunted Mansionbecoming a big flop for the House of Mouse on its opening weekend.
Based on information shared byThe Hollywood Reporter,Haunted Mansion’s spooky story has become something of a horror story as it has claimed the dubious title of lowest opening weekend for a Disney theme park ride since Eddie Murphy walked the ghoulish corridors ofThe Haunted Mansionback in 2003. When not adjusted for inflation, the original movie opened to the tune of $24.3 million, and it looks like the remake is going to struggle to take more than that over its three-day opening. Thankfully, neither movie comes close to the two lowest ever ride-based movies, which areMission to MarsandThe Country Bears, which earned a respective $22.9 million and $5.3 million.
The fate ofHaunted Mansionis probably one that is a little harsh for a movie that seems to have done all it could to exorcise the memory of the previous movie based on one of Disney’s long-standing rides. However, it will potentially get a second lease of life when it starts streaming on Disney+. Based on the performance of the movie this weekend, that will possibly not be too long in coming.
Related:‘Haunted Mansion’ Director Justin Simien Condemns Hollywood Studios For Not Supporting Artists
Haunted Mansion Will Be Another Disney Box Office Bomb.
Disney just cannot seem to catch a break in recent yearsat the box office, and that is not something that anyone believed would be said of the once dominant cinematic force. With some of the biggest franchises under their control, Disney has been relying on their live-action remakes and MCU movies to keep themselves bringing in big bucks at the box office.
Outside of that though, it has been a rough ride over the last three years. Coming out of the Covid pandemic, Disney appears to have shot itself in the foot with its Disney+ platform frequently bringing big screen movies into people’s homes within just a couple of months of their debut. When many people have been choosier about spending money on a trip out to the cinema, Disney’s original movies have just not had the “must-see” appeal they need to draw families into theaters and instead have been unimpressive enough to make them happy to wait a short time to watch in the comfort of their own homes.
Haunted Mansionnow joins the likes ofStrange World, Lightyearand to some degreeEncanto,which did not bomb at the box office but really didn’t find its real audience until it landed on Disney+, as a movie that promised big things that it ultimately failed to deliver. Although there are some questions over why Disney chose to makeHaunted Mansiona summer movie rather than release it around Halloween when it could have had a better chance - even ignoring the Barbenheimer effect - of finding an audience.
