The Great Gonzo – world-famous daredevil artiste, has done it all, seen it all, and survived it all. But on Halloween night, the fearless Gonzo takes on the greatest challenge of his life by spending one very daring night in the most grim grinning place on Earth …The Haunted Mansion.
Inspired by all four of the iconic Disney Haunted Mansion attractions located across the globe at various Disney Parks, the “Muppets Haunted Mansion” includes many hidden Easter Eggs for Disney fans and “Muppet-ized” sets and props that help immerse viewers in the storytelling experience.
This marks the Muppets’ first-ever Halloween special and features the trademark attraction theme song, "Grim Grinning Ghosts". In addition, the special also features three new original songs, "Rest in Peace", "Life Hereafter", and "Tie the Knot Tango", a star-studded Muppets cast, celebrity cameos, and spooky fun for families to enjoy together.[1]
This is one of the final performances of Ed Asner, along with Dug Days, which premiered on Disney+ a month prior to his death. The special was dedicated to his memory.
This is Brian Henson's first time working on a Muppet production since The Muppets' Wizard of Oz (2005).
References and Easter eggs
The numbers on the mansion 924 are a reference to Muppets creator Jim Henson's birthday (September 24).
Among the celebrities Pepe hopes to meet at a big Hollywood Halloween party when asking the Ghost Host about whether there's any "famous peoples" at the Mansion is Ryan Gosling, who was attached to Guillermo del Toro's cancelled Haunted Mansion reboot.
The scene in which the ghosts tell bad jokes while dancing is an homage to the "At the Dance" sketch from The Muppet Show.
Five nods to the song "Be Our Guest" from Beauty and the Beast (1991) appear in the song "Life Hereafter", which was originally planned as a more direct parody[3]:
The Ghost Host's introduction to Gonzo and Pepe's funerals is strikingly similar to Lumiere's opening lines at the start of the song.
After the Host sings about a flying candelabra, Rizzo sings the lines "But he ain't french and he can’t croon", clearly referencing Lumiere. Yolanda and the Host then sing "We did that in a beastly cartoon. She was a beauty".
One of the lyrics is "We tell jokes. I do tricks. With my deadly candlesticks", a nod to the line "We tell jokes. I do tricks. With my fellow candlesticks" from "Be Our Guest".
The Ghost Host’s line, "You’re all alone, but don’t be scared, we’ve got your wake all pre-prepared." references Lumiere’s line, "You’re alone and you’re scared But the banquet’s all prepared."
Another lyric is "corpse by corpse and one by one, til you shout my life is done" a nod to the line "course by course, one by one, til you shout enough I'm done"
One of the ending shots from the "Life Hereafter" song references one of the closing shots from The Muppet Show's opening theme.
When Gonzo relates to his mirror some of the stunts he did, footage from previous Muppets productions (such as Muppets Tonight) can be seen.
The organ part of the song "Grim Grinning Ghosts" can be heard through the special.
The special's closing shot is an homage to the title credits for The Muppet Movie.
Gallery
Logo
Geoff Keighley as Uncle Theodore
Darren Criss as the Caretaker
Videos
Announcement - Muppets Haunted Mansion - Disney+
Muppets Haunted Mansion - Official Trailer - Disney+
