Following an earlier report today that the Haunted Mansion attraction at Magic Kingdom would be closed for a short refurbishment in August – just days before the start of Mickey’s Not-So-Scary Halloween Party – Disney has reportedly said that the closure is not for the installation of the Hatbox Ghost (via Scott Gustin). The refurbishment will still go on as planned, but only for “routine refurbishment”.

At the September 2022 D23 Expo, Disney Parks Chairman Josh D’Amaro said that the Hatbox Ghost would be coming to Disney World in 2023. That’s it. No timeline beyond 2023 was given, and with the release of the Haunted Mansion movie later this month and the Halloween Season kicking off in early August, it seemed destined that the 3-day refurbishment would be to finally bring the Hatbox Ghost to Magic Kingdom.

Now, the fact that the Hatbox Ghost will not be part of the August 2023 refurbishment does not mean that we won’t see him before the Halloween Season (or even before the movie hits theaters on July 27th). It just means that the August 2023 closure isn’t for the Hatbox Ghost.

It would seem impossible that Disney World wants to wait much longer for the installation as a holiday season install would lose all of the wonderful synergy that Disney surely wants to extract from the happy haunts, but who knows what the plans are at this point.

As always, keep checking back with us here at BlogMickey.com as we continue to bring you the latest news, photos, and info from around the Disney Parks!