As The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993) celebrates its 30th anniversary, the Walt Disney Company makes a super exciting announcement: Walt Disney World Resort is finally receiving an attraction straight out of Halloween Town.
When it first debuted, The Nightmare Before Christmas wasn’t just a film, it was revolutionary. The full-length stop-motion animated film brought attention to the medium as an art form and helped begin a trend of similarly animated movies.
The film was also nominated for an Academy Award for Best Visual Effects and was the first animated movie to receive this nomination. While it understandably lost the Academy Award to Jurassic Park (1993), the nomination was still historical.
The Nightmare Before Christmas was also praised for its whimsically dark art style, its iconic soundtrack (thanks to the genius of Danny Elfman), and its memorable characters.
Despite these praises, the Walt Disney Pictures film was only considered a humble success at the box office. Since then, however, the movie has earned a huge cult following, and the film is still as culturally relevant as ever, even 30 years later.
Although the spooky movie may be considered an unusual choice for Walt Disney Pictures, the Walt Disney Company has recognized the popularity of the film, and The Nightmare Before Christmas‘s presence in Disneyland and Walt Disney World is especially noticeable around the holidays.
In Disneyland Resort, specifically, The Nightmare Before Christmas is so beloved that it receives its own attraction. Once a year since 2001, the Haunted Mansion attraction is transformed into Haunted Mansion Holiday.
Instead of touring the Haunted Mansion in an iconic doom buggy, guests rewatch the story of Jack Skellington, the Pumpkin King of Halloween Town, as he takes over for Santa Claus in this Christmas overlay.
This attraction is incredibly popular, and Walt Disney World locals have been begging the Walt Disney Company for something similar for over 20 years now. Finally, it seems that the Walt Disney Company has finally heard fans’ prayers.
Over in Hollywood Studios, Disney World is offering a brand new separately ticketed event for the holidays: Disney Jollywood Nights, which will run on select nights from November 11 to December 20.
During this special event, the theme park will offer new attractions, entertainment, and rare character sightings. The “What’s This? Tim Burton’s The Nightmare Before Christmas Sing-Along” attraction will offer all three.
Disney writes:
Enter a dreamlike adventure in The Hyperion Theater where Jack Skellington takes us on an ethereal exploration of “Tim Burton’s The Nightmare Before Christmas.” Sing along to beloved songs from the iconic film and discover peculiar magic in unexpected places. Along the way, you’ll conquer Oogie Boogie and be encouraged to follow your curiosity.
This sing-along experience can be found in Hollywood Studios’ Hyperion Theater during Disney Jollywood Nights. Finally, guests visiting Walt Disney World can experience a Nightmare Before Christmas attraction!
