Is Disneyland really removing the hanging corpse from the Haunted Mansion....

[Tinkaboo]

I really do prefer the holiday version as to me, it’s not as dark. I always ride it when I’m at the park, but I still get startled when one of those heads pop up in the graveyard scene. Never was much of a scary house fan…lol. At my age, you’d think it wouldn’t bother me. I’d never go to those Halloween haunted houses at Universal…way too scary for me!

 

[BrianL]

I'm in the unpopular vote that I would be okay with this changing and would trust Disney to come up with a good alternative. When we rode it for the very first time- with our kids- this part was unnerving. The vibe in the Que and leading up to it doesn't match it. If I sign up for a haunted house at universal or around Halloween time after dark here in the Midwest I know the vibe to be expected and wouldn't take my 5 year old... Haunted mansion doesn't give that same vibe- it gives spooky fun vibes..

And even without kids that section makes me a bit uncomfortable..

I'm just curious - what's not "spooky fun" about it? It's a bit of a joke after all, as the Ghost host suggests that his was is a bit unexpected. It's not much different than a guy stuck in a coffin or Constance chopping off her husbands' heads.

 

[DizMe]

My thought is it's a Haunted House. Why is it odd for it to include things like death, ghosts, creepies, darkness, spiders, murder, etc? That's the whole reason there are ghosts trapped in the house. I mean, that's the POINT. The fact that the narrator's "way out" of the house was to hang himself in the turret is classic haunted mansion stuff. If we remove anything that might trigger someone's fear/anxiety/personal discomfort, we'd have to eliminate almost everything in the HM. I get that it's not everyone's thing, but it seems like it would be more fair to look away from that part than to eliminate it for everyone.

While I'm sure Disney would be able to come up with a good replacement, it just seems like we continue to go further down this path of trying to "fix" anything that someone else finds triggering/inappropriate, even if the majority disagree.

 

[BrianL]

While I'm sure Disney would be able to come up with a good replacement, it just seems like we continue to go further down this path of trying to "fix" anything that someone else finds triggering/inappropriate, even if the majority disagree.

Yes, you can never be sensitive to everyone and everything. That's not to say that certain stuff shouldn't be fixed - overt racism, etc. - but each thing is different and should be judged independently. I really do wonder who is complaining about the srtetching room scene.

 

[disneychrista]

I'm just curious - what's not "spooky fun" about it? It's a bit of a joke after all, as the Ghost host suggests that his was is a bit unexpected. It's not much different than a guy stuck in a coffin or Constance chopping off her husbands' heads.

Suicide is not "spooky fun." Which is kind of the reason for the possible change.

 

[BrianL]

Suicide is not "spooky fun." Which is kind of the reason for the possible change.

But murder is?

Hey, I can totally understand someone finding all of that stuff unsavory, but then I would say that the Haunted Mansion is not for them.

 

[woodys_girl]

As gottalovepluto mentioned above, it is not in the holiday overlay.

I'm so glad you said this. I was reading this wondering where there was a hanging corpse. We only go in October.

 

[JayMass]

Ok, you know what? I have been on the Haunted Mansion at WDW probably 20 times or so in my life. My DW and DD asked me about the hanging in the stretch room and I said, "what are you talking about?" I had absolutely no idea that was happening above me. I actually called them out for making it up. They then showed me a YouTube video of it. I was stunned! They wanted to know what I thought the ghost host meant by, "there's always my way...hahahahaha." I just thought it was kind of left up to imagination as the lights go out.

We are going in a couple weeks and can't wait to actually see it in person!!

 

[disneychrista]

But murder is?

Hey, I can totally understand someone finding all of that stuff unsavory, but then I would say that the Haunted Mansion is not for them.

Of course not. I am just relaying the reasons I have heard for the change.

I honestly never really went to suicide with that scene, even though it obviously is. My mind went to "death" being the way.

 

[Brian Noble]

what's not "spooky fun" about it?

There's a spectrum. Of all of the things in the Mansion, this is at one end of the spectrum. Even the murder of the various husbands is a little more tongue-in-cheek.

For me, the part that puts it at one end is not the visual. It is the lines from the Ghost Host. Having experienced suicidal ideation more than a few times during early sobriety, the "find a way out...there's always my way" couplet hits me a little harder than most anything else in any park.

That said: I think this is some Internet culture-wars-fueled rumor that has absolutely no basis in reality. I don't believe it for a second.

 

[JerrodDragon89]

The attraction has been around for over 50 years, from my knowledge nothing has ever happened because of this scene that ended in someone being hurt

I think it should stay, I think some want Disney to be 100% child friendly and like we are in this magical happy world but I like when we have things that are dark. For every laugh, there should be a tear, as Walt said and it makes things feel lived in and real.

Its like the changes to Pirates at least to me most, just make it feel like a cartoon while the OG version felt pretty darn real and lived in.

I don't think we should change things for .000001 Percent of people, especially when those people aren't even complaining about it

 

[BrianL]

The attraction has been around for over 50 years, from my knowledge nothing has ever happened because of this scene that ended in someone being hurt

I think it should stay, I think some want Disney to be 100% child friendly and like we are in this magical happy world but I like when we have things that are dark. For every laugh, there should be a tear, as Walt said and it makes things feel lived in and real.

Its like the changes to Pirates at least to me most, just make it feel like a cartoon while the OG version felt pretty darn real and lived in.

I don't think we should change things for .000001 Percent of people, especially when those people aren't even complaining about it

And the thing is, "child friendly" varies. I don't really think there is anything in the HM that isn't child friendly. Many old Disney movies have some harrowing scenes, and I think that's okay. Walt was always adamant about not talking down to children. They can handle the concept of a pirate. Let's not even start about the end of Mr. Toad's Wild Ride! Still, I don't think that's not child friendly. It's really all about the tone. I mean, I have some misgivings about Deadpool being in the parks considering how crass those movies are - it's the tone that makes it different. That said, I'm not going to throw a fit about it - in the long run, it's fine.

 

[dreamer17555]

I always find that part jarring but as someone who has suffered serious depression it might hit me harder than most. Nothing else on that ride causes the same reaction for me but I think that could vary.

However suicide rates are very high in the US and we loose twice the amount of lives to suicide vs homicide annually (49K vs 24K)

And I don't think the ride "needs" this scene. It is like the change on Pirates. The ride is still enjoyable even though they are selling rum & chickens and not women.

 

[BrianL]

And I don't think the ride "needs" this scene. It is like the change on Pirates. The ride is still enjoyable even though they are selling rum & chickens and not women.

I didn't mind the scene overhaul, but I wish it had been a little more interesting. I love Redd as a pirate, but I think they should still shout "We wants the redhead!" and then she tells them off and shoots at them!

 

[ajrwdwgirl]

Ok, you know what? I have been on the Haunted Mansion at WDW probably 20 times or so in my life. My DW and DD asked me about the hanging in the stretch room and I said, "what are you talking about?" I had absolutely no idea that was happening above me. I actually called them out for making it up. They then showed me a YouTube video of it. I was stunned! They wanted to know what I thought the ghost host meant by, "there's always my way...hahahahaha." I just thought it was kind of left up to imagination as the lights go out.

We are going in a couple weeks and can't wait to actually see it in person!!

I'm glad I'm not the only one. I've been going to the parks for about 30 years now and it was just a few years ago I finally looked up and saw the hanging corpse. I think I was always getting ready to turn around and face the door that I always missed it.

 

[BayouQueen]

Some others have mentioned how this scene doesn't really fit with the tone of the rest of the attraction. I do think this is true. The whole attraction feels kind of...whimsical?

Are there other scenes in there that others think are also true edgy but ok? I can't really think of any, but I for sure could be forgetting something.

 

[LKing]

We are going in a couple weeks and can't wait to actually see it in person!!

It won't be there in a couple of weeks. If HMH is open, it will still be the holiday version which doesn't have the corpse.

 

[Sykes]

Are there other scenes in there that others think are also true edgy but ok? I can't really think of any, but I for sure could be forgetting something.

I thought about this a bit before posting my thoughts earlier in the thread and the best I could come up with is the attic scene revealing that Constance was beheading her husbands. For me, though, that scene successfully stays whimsical because of the over-the-top old-timey portraits of her ex-husbands (bordering on cartoonish) and her clever quips at the end. (I also think that aspect of her storyline wasn't part of the original attraction?)

 

[BrianL]

I thought about this a bit before posting my thoughts earlier in the thread and the best I could come up with is the attic scene revealing that Constance was beheading her husbands. For me, though, that scene successfully stays whimsical because of the over-the-top old-timey portraits of her ex-husbands (bordering on cartoonish) and her clever quips at the end. (I also think that aspect of her storyline wasn't part of the original attraction?)

I believe "THe Bride" was always part of the story, but they refreshed her into "Constance Hatchaway" as some point much later. I think the murders are much darker personally. I mean, The Ghost Host is fine with it and you can barely see it anyway as some have mentioned.

 

[Sykes]

I think the murders are much darker personally. I mean, The Ghost Host is fine with it and you can barely see it anyway as some have mentioned.

I don't really disagree with that. A big part of the difference for me may be that, for the beheadings, we are separated from the act itself. The Ghost Host scene feels like we're closer to witnessing the act itself. (Presumably it happened a while ago, but still ...)

I feel like this anecdote is somewhat related to that point (but I may just be rambling): I eat meat, and I have no qualms about eating ethically sourced meat, but even though I fully understand where my meat comes from I can't eat it if the final dish is too similar to the animal it comes from. I just need a bit of distance from it--I can't kill fish I catch, I don't like eating dish presented as a whole fish, and even eating meat off the bone is a bit weird for me.