Spooky Surprise: Disney Characters Steal the Limelight on Red Carpet for Haunted Mansion Movie Amid Actors' Strike!

Disneyland costumed characters took over the red carpet of the new Haunted Mansion movie during the Screen Actors Guild (SAG-AFTRA) strike. The strike, starting on July 14, prohibits actors from attending promotional events related to struck productions. While some future projects might face release delays due to this, the release date for Haunted Mansion was already scheduled for July 28, allowing the promotional campaign to run smoothly until now.

Variety has shared several videos from the movie's premiere at Disneyland, where the stars, including Tiffany Haddish, Owen Wilson, Danny DeVito, Rosario Dawson, Jamie Lee Curtis, and Jared Leto, were unable to attend. As a result, the red carpet was adorned with costumed Disney characters from the theme park. Take a look at the characters as they make their way down the red carpet below:

In a Variety video, Cruella de Vil confidently parades in front of the actual Haunted Mansion, expressing her opinion that "my residence in Suffolk is considerably more glamorous than this."

A different tweet from Variety showcases Mickey and Minnie tenderly embracing one another in front of the Disneyland Railroad station located in New Orleans Square.

In the upcoming Variety video, Maleficent engages with an audience member, insisting that they come closer by stating, "Come closer, I say!"

Continuing the lineup of malicious characters, the subsequent Variety video showcases the arrival of Snow White's Evil Queen. She gracefully twirls her cape while boasting, "I too, have received an invitation."

The SAG-AFTRA Strike Could Hugely Impact Disney

SAG-AFTRA is currently striking for fair compensation, seeking a deal with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP) to regulate AI use and ensure fair residuals for streaming. Disney's response to the absence of actors on the red carpet is somewhat appropriate, considering the film's inspiration from Disneyland itself. However, these videos also highlight the significance of the stars in drawing attention to a project.

The strike aims to highlight the vital role actors play in keeping studios afloat. Haunted Mansion is one of the first battlegrounds showcasing this. The movie's shortened promotional campaign could potentially impact its overall box office earnings upon theater release, as the absence of the Haunted Mansion cast may pose challenges for generating publicity in the two weeks leading up to the premiere.

If the SAG-AFTRA strike persists for an extended period, Haunted Mansion will only be the beginning of the problems for Disney. The studio has already faced significant setbacks at the box office with underwhelming performances of Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania and Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny. Unless an agreement is reached with the AMPTP, Disney's financial situation could deteriorate further due to diminished promotion for their upcoming releases like The Marvels and Wish.