WELCOME, FOOLISH MORTALS… AND EQUALLY FOOLISH MUPPETS. GONZO AND THE GANG GO BUMP IN THE NIGHT IN NEW HALLOWEEN SPECIAL MUPPETS HAUNTED MANSION

WORDS: NICK SETCHFIELD

FOR ALL THEIR RAINBOW connections, there’s always been a delicious shudder of spookiness to the Muppets. The Muppet Theatre itself boasted a legit Phantom –a tribute to horror film icon John Carradine, no less – while digit-obsessed fiend the Count brought a touch of Transylvania to the utopian zipcode of Sesame Street.

New Halloween special Muppets Haunted Mansion goes further, hurling Jim Henson’s creations into Disney’s legendary dark ride, the ghoul-infested spot of real estate that’s a cornerstone attraction of their theme parks. It’s the kind of brand-splicing corporate synergy that only a multi-million dollar acquisition can buy – the House of Mouse bagged the Muppets lock, stock and felt flipper in 2004.

“The Haunted Mansion is so beloved and so are the Muppets,” says Leigh Slaughter, Vice President of The Muppets Studio and Characters Strategy at Disney Live Entertainment. “We tried, as much as we possibly could, to honour both. We want to make sure the fans understand that this is a Muppets special, and we wanted it to be as Muppety and crazy as everybody wants it to be. But we also wanted to honour the mythology of the Haunted Mansion.”

LEGENDS AND LEGACY

Opening in 1969, the Mansion remains a cherished celebration of feel-good fear. Its Southern-style walls conceal a world of cobwebbed chandeliers and free-floating crystal balls, where punters ride black Doom Buggies through endless corridors of doors. Assorted spectres – “999 happy haunts” – still defy the exorcists to delight tourists, including such ectoplasmic classics as the Hatbox Ghost and the disembodied head of psychic medium Madame Leota. Even the wallpaper is somehow possessed.