The Haunted Mansion is a 2003 American supernatural horror comedy film directed by Rob Minkoff and written by David Berenbaum.

Loosely based on Walt Disney's theme park attraction of the same name, the film stars Eddie Murphy as a realtor who, along with his family, becomes trapped in the titular building.

When he tries to make amends by suggesting a vacation to the nearby lake, Sara is suddenly contacted by the residents of Gracey Manor, located in the nearby bayou; Jim, eager to make a deal after learning the mansion's address, takes his family there and meet its owner, Edward Gracey, his butler Ramsley and his other servants – maid Emma and footman Ezra.

Gracey gives Sara a tour of the mansion, discussing his past and the death of his "grandfather" after the supposed suicide of his lover, Elizabeth Henshaw.

Leota leads them to a locked trunk in the attic, in which Jim finds a letter Elizabeth wrote to Gracey, revealing she truly wanted to marry him and indicating that she was murdered.

Furious, Gracey confronts Ramsley, who rages at his master's apparent selfishness for loving Elizabeth and summons wraiths to attack the group.

However, with the truth revealed, the demon Mephisto emerges from the ballroom's fireplace and drags Ramsley down to Hell to face eternal punishment for his sins.

Afterwards, the Evers set off for their intended vacation, accompanied by Leota and a quartet of singing busts that Jim and the children encountered while locating the mausoleum strapped to the roof.

[5] The original concept for the film's setting was Upstate New York, with the mansion's exterior modeled after the Walt Disney World version.

Five Hidden Mickeys are seen throughout the film similar to the ride; the most notable ones being the padlock at the mansion's gates, the second when an axe wielded by an animated suit of armor nearly hits Jim, and a third which is briefly seen when Ramsley poisons a goblet of wine during the wedding ceremony.

Two other hidden mickeys are the couch in the library and the windows on the doors Jim passes when he is chased by musical instruments summoned by Madame Leota.

With a final domestic gross at $75.8 million, the film made just more than a quarter of the earnings of its theme-ride predecessor Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl.

[8] David Sterritt of Christian Science Monitor wrote "While it may supply giggles and shivers to preteens, grownups should think twice before entering this all-too-haunted house."

Roger Ebert in The Chicago Sun-Times gave the film two and a half stars out of a possible four, writing "The surprising thing about "The Haunted Mansion" isn't that it's based on a Disney theme park ride, but that it has ambition.

Although considered a critical failure and a decent box office success upon its release, The Haunted Mansion has undergone a reassessment over the past several years.

Like Clue (1985), The Monster Squad (1987), and Hocus Pocus (1993), all similar dark-yet-broadly-comical films that initially opened to poor reviews and disappointing box office results before growing an appreciative audience over time, The Haunted Mansion has grown in popularity since its original theatrical run and has achieved cult status, as noted by media outlets such as Insider Inc.[10] and Full Circle Cinema.

A vital portion of the original intended audience of this clean Eddie Murphy comedy - intrepid kids and inqusitive tweens - have grown up, and an observation of their social media demonstrates that this generation of late Millenials considers "The Haunted Mansion" their own Halloween movie, the same way that the generation of early-aughts Haunted Mansion fans considered 1993's "Hocus Pocus" to be their spook show of choice.

"The Haunted Mansion" - with its Rick Baker-designed zombies and a decomposing-face scene - could even be considered a 2003 version of "Poltergeist," which was a much-scarier '80s film which targeted teens during a generally less-family-oriented period in Hollywood history.