Guillermo del Toro’s ‘The Haunted Mansion’ Asks Ryan Gosling to Step Inside

Guillermo del Toro has been developing a Haunted Mansion film for Disney for several years, but he’s also one of the most ambitious guys when it comes to lining up potential projects. In addition to a Pacific Rim sequel (perhaps two), del Toro is also hoping to work on a Justice League Dark film for DC and Warner Bros. But The Haunted Mansion has remained the project he’s most passionate about, and it looks like there’s finally some real news to report.

Hey girl, according to The Wrap, everyone’s favorite imaginary boyfriend Ryan Gosling is in talks to star in The Haunted Mansion. If you’ve been keeping up on your weekly Gosling Reports, this isn’t entirely surprising. Gosling and del Toro recently participated in a SXSW filmmaker panel together, and the two were spotted hanging out at Disneyland, where they apparently bonded over their love of Disney-things.

About five years ago, del Toro announced his Haunted Mansion project at Comic-Con, where attendees also received an exclusive promotional poster for the project. But not much has happened since then. Del Toro wrote a screenplay with Mimic and Don’t Be Afraid of the Dark scribe Matthew Robbins, but according to Slashfilm the director was still searching for a new writer to strengthen the screenplay around the time Pacific Rim was released.

His idea centers mostly around The Hatbox Ghost, a terrifying character initially introduced when the Haunted Mansion opened, but which was removed shortly after due to technical difficulties. That character has largely been forgotten over the years, but del Toro is fascinated by it.

All these delays aren’t a bad thing — Del Toro is famously passionate about the project, based on his favorite Disney theme park attraction, which also happens to be one of its oldest and most enduring. The director clearly wants to deliver the best experience possible with a property he loves so dearly. A little perfectionism is understandable, and even welcome.