Disney and Guillermo del Toro surprised San Diego Comic-Con attendees today by announcing a reboot of The Haunted Mansion. The previous incarnation, starring Eddie Murphy, was a family-oriented comedy that was universally panned. Del Toro’s version, however, will be much different.

“We are not returning Eddie Murphy’s calls,” del Toro said, “…and we are not making it a comedy… We are making it scary and fun, but the scary will be scary…If you take the children, they will scream.”

The film will be live-action and 3D and will delve into the story behind The Hatbox Ghost. Del Toro is no stranger to horror and seems like the perfect man for the job, with a filmography that includes Blade II, the Hellboy films and involvement with this year’s Splice and the upcoming Don’t Be Afraid of the Dark.

I think this is great news. Although I was disappointed when del Toro left The Hobbit (due to scheduling delays), this is definitely a film to get excited about.

What do you think – are you excited for this?

Sources: FirstShowing, Deadline, ComingSoon

UPDATE: Below is the first piece of artwork for the film: