Overnight, crews installed a scrim where the Hatbox Ghost will be installed near the Endless Hallway scene in The Haunted Mansion. Disney World previously teased that work would begin “soon” and yesterday was the final day for a pre-Hatbox experience.

Crews will continue to work on modifications to the area for the installation of the figure in the coming days. Disney previously announced a closure of The Haunted Mansion beginning August 9th for a brief refurbishment. Disney said that the upcoming refurbishment is not related to the installation of the Hatbox Ghost character and it remains unclear when the Hatbox Ghost will debut.

While visiting Magic Kingdom today, we rode The Haunted Mansion to take a look at the work now underway! As you can see in our photos and video below, the “Donald Duck” chair has been removed and black drapes have been installed to the left of the Endless Hallway scene to support installation of the Hatbox Ghost. If you had x-ray vision and could see through the wall of this portion of the ride, eventually you would find the ballroom scene, which does not appear to be impacted by the installation.

First, here’s a look back at the “Donald Duck” chair that has now been removed.

Disney has done everything they can to make the area dark and we’ve done everything we can (without using flash or external lighting, which is against the rules for this attraction) to try and see what’s going on. The result is, unfortunately, a compromise in photo and video quality, but hopefully shows what the attraction will be like during the brief installation process.

In the photo below, the Endless Hallway would be to the right, the hall of doors to the left, and the scrim hidden in the blackness in the center of the photo.

Here’s a quick video of us passing by the scene earlier today.

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!