Scoob! Holiday Haunt
Directed by
  • Michael Kurinsky
  • Bill Haller
Screenplay by
Based on
Produced by
  • Tony Cervone
  • Mitchell Ferm
Starring
Music byDara Taylor[1]
Production
company
Distributed byWarner Bros. Pictures
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish

Scoob! Holiday Haunt is an unreleased American animated mystery comedy film based on Hanna-Barbera's Scooby-Doo franchise, produced by Warner Bros. Pictures and Warner Animation Group and distributed by Max. It was set to be a prequel to the 2020 film Scoob!. The film follows a young Mystery Incorporated investigating a mystery in a holiday-themed resort.

The film was directed by Michael Kurinsky and Bill Haller from a screenplay by Paul Dini and Tony Cervone, and stars Frank Welker, Iain Armitage, Ariana Greenblatt, Mckenna Grace, Pierce Gagnon, Mark Hamill, Michael McKean, Andre Braugher and Ming-Na Wen.

Premise

To celebrate Scooby Doo's first Christmas, 10-year-old Shaggy and the gang take him to a holiday-themed resort owned by Fred's favorite Uncle Ned. When the park is beset by a ghostly haunting, the kids must solve a 40-year-old mystery to save the resort and show Scooby the true meaning of Christmas.[2]

Voice cast

Additionally, Mark Hamill, Cristo Fernández, Ming-Na Wen, Maya Hawke, Priah Ferguson, J.B. Smoove, and Patrick Warburton had been cast in undisclosed roles.[2][5]

Development

In June 2021, Tony Cervone said that a follow-up to Scoob! was in development.[6] On December 22, 2021, HBO Max released a sizzle reel featuring a first look at a Christmas-themed prequel film, titled Scoob! Holiday Haunt, which was to be released on the service in December 2022. The film takes place in the gang's youth, with Welker and the actors who portrayed the younger versions reprising their roles while Cervone returned to write the film with Paul Dini as well to produce the project. The film was co-directed by Bill Haller and Michael Kurinsky, and had a production budget of $40 million.[2]

Animation

Like Scoob!, the animation services were provided by Reel FX Animation.

Cancellation

On August 2, 2022, Warner Bros. Discovery canceled its release, citing cost-cutting measures and a refocus on theatrical films rather than creating projects for streaming.[7][8] Tony Cervone would go on to say on the same day that the project was "practically finished".[9] Later that month, it was reported that the film would still be finished, even though Warner Bros. Discovery had no present plans to release it.[10] The film was finally finished on November 4, 2022.[11]

Following Andre Braugher's death in December 2023, Cervone revealed details on the actor's casting in the film where Braugher joined the project after a ten-minute meeting. He then later accepted the part after mentioning his "soft spot for Scooby-Doo."[12]

See also

References

  1. ^ "Dara Taylor Scoring HBO Max's 'Scoob! Holiday Haunt'". August 7, 2022. Retrieved November 9, 2023.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i Burlingame, Russ (December 22, 2021). "Scoob!: Holiday Haunt First Look Revealed in HBO Max Teaser". ComicBook. Archived from the original on May 30, 2022. Retrieved November 12, 2022.
  3. ^ Tony Cervone (December 23, 2021). "Also starring Michael McKean as Uncle Ned! Full length, full production feature film produced by @wearereelfx for HBO Max". Instagram. Archived from the original on February 25, 2023. Retrieved December 22, 2021.
  4. ^ [1]
  5. ^ [2]
  6. ^ Wilding, Josh (June 18, 2021). "SCOOB! Director Tony Cervone Confirms A Sequel To The 2020 Movie Is In Development (Exclusive)". Comic Book Movie. Archived from the original on May 16, 2022. Retrieved November 12, 2022.
  7. ^ Couch, Aaron (August 2, 2022). "'Batgirl' and 'Scoob!: Holiday Haunt' Scrapped at Warner Bros. Amid Cost-Savings Push". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on August 2, 2022. Retrieved November 12, 2022.
  8. ^ "Scoob! Sequel Shelved By HBO Max". Archived from the original on August 3, 2022. Retrieved November 12, 2022.
  9. ^ "Scoob! Sequel Director Revealed Film Was "Very Close" to Completion Before HBO Max Cancellation". comicbook.com. Archived from the original on August 3, 2022. Retrieved November 12, 2022.
  10. ^ "Scoob!: Holiday Haunt Could Still Get Finished Despite Being Shelved by Warner Bros. Discovery". comicbook.com. Archived from the original on August 27, 2022. Retrieved November 12, 2022.
  11. ^ Tony Cervone (November 5, 2022). "Well, we finished this thing today. A bittersweet conclusion for sure". Instagram. Archived from the original on May 3, 2023. Retrieved June 11, 2023.
  12. ^ [3]

External links

Scooby-Doo
Warner Bros. Pictures Animation
Warner Bros. theatrical animated feature films
Feature films produced by or based on works by Hanna-Barbera
Warner Bros. Animation
Categories