So unless you’ve been living under a rock for the past few months, it was recently announced at the D23 Expo in Anaheim this past September that a new update will be coming to the Haunted Mansion at the Magic Kingdom next year:
That’s right. The Hatbox Ghost will finally be able to go “ghost-to-ghost” within the United States, as the originally intended plans to have Hattie in both American mansions will finally be realized. Much like the newly installed version in Anaheim that has been active for the past seven years, the Florida mansion will have the updated effects for the Hatbox Ghost in how he will be represented, in addition to the ReHaunting that took place 15 years ago, which added Constance, new audio effects, the Endless Stairs, the ReVamped Portrait Corridor, and the blinking Demon Eyes in the wall.
Interestingly enough, this is the second time that the Hatbox Ghost will be in the same building as the Endless Stairs. Seen above is a two-page spread from Marvel’s short-lived Disney Kingdoms comics, issue 3 of the Haunted Mansion to be exact. According to Hattie, the Stairs are a maze that only he knows how to properly navigate, acting as a nexus to other haunted locations. The comic uses this as a way to explain why he was gone for nearly 40 years after his initial appearance for the Mansion’s opening week.
This all culminates in Hattie leading main character Danny to a gallery of “Ghostly Materials”, showing the boy all sorts of other Haunted Mansions beyond the one in Louisiana. According to him, they are either meant to have been build as retirement homes for ghosts, places of pure magic, houses of fun and exploration, and abodes of the mystic and macabre. Even then, all of them are meant to be a reminder that all ghosts must celebrate life, even in death.
Many an eagle-eyed fan can recognize several of the Mansions on the wall. These include the original concept for the Florida Mansion, which was to resembles a colonial house from Maine or Massachusetts, sketch designs for the Anaheim Mansion, the exterior for the Florida Mansion, and Phantom Manor in Disneyland Paris (set in the town of Thunder Mesa, Arizona)
At least now he can celebrate Halloween properly without Jack Skellington popping in to redecorate for Christmas.
Take a Look Through My Eyes 