Sophia Michaels
Disney has been on a quest for years, trying to figure out how to make movies based on their beloved theme park rides into successful films. While the studio has had hits like the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise, there have also been misses like Mission to Mars. One of the projects in the works is a film adaptation of the Tower of Terror attraction. Since 2021, Scarlett Johansson has been linked to the Twilight Zone-inspired project based on the accelerated drop tower dark ride. But what’s going on with the movie?
Following the end of the writers’ and actors’ strikes, the Black Widow actress is free to discuss upcoming projects. She’s reportedly taking on the roles of both star and producer in the upcoming Tower of Terror flick. In a recent interview with NBC’s TODAY, she revealed the current status of the movie.
It’s based off the ride. Now that the writer’s strike is all so over, we are finally able to dive back into polishing up this script. So it is a massive… huge undertaking. But, I’m a huge Disney [fan]… I love the Disney parks.
The Avengers vet is joining forces with the co-writer and director of Toy Story 4, Josh Cooley, who is crafting the script. Taika Waititi, the filmmaker behind Thor: Love and Thunder, has been rumored to be taking the director’s chair. The movie’s fate was in limbo following Johansson’s legal action against the studio due to Marvel’s streaming misstep with Black Widow. Now, it appears that relations between the actress and Disney are still relatively cordial, and if she is to be believed, work on the attraction-turned-flick is back on track.
Drawing inspiration from Rod Serling’s timeless anthology series, The Twilight Zone, the Tower of Terror premiered at Disney’s Hollywood Studios in Walt Disney World in 1994. This immersive experience occurs in a simulated Hollywood Hotel Tower circa 1939, inviting guests to enter a maintenance service elevator following a lightning strike on the building. It almost up being a Hollywood Studios hotel too.
With Serling’s distinctive voice serving as a guide, visitors embarked on a spine-chilling journey haunted by the ghosts of five mysteriously vanished passengers, ultimately leading to a hair-raising drop at a top speed of 39 miles per hour.
This revamped interpretation of the ride staring the MCU alum marks Disney’s second attempt at bringing a movie based on the IP to the screen. The studio previously created a made-for-TV movie in 1997 featuring Kirsten Dunst and Steve Guttenberg and has been working on a TOT reboot since 2015. While specific details about the plot are still undisclosed, The Twilight Zone: Tower of Terror ride narrates the story of unfortunate hotel guests who mysteriously vanish under supernatural circumstances when lightning strikes their elevator.
The Ghost World alum also took the opportunity to dispel any rumors regarding her return or appearance in any upcoming Marvel movies with her morning show appearance.
I feel like, I don’t know, I mean, I feel like, that’s kind of the end. Could you come back? Could it be a vampire version of the character? Because I’m here for that. A zombie version, maybe? Because I’m here for that.
There you have it. Unless Scarlett returns as a vampire in the upcoming Blade or Marvel Zombies television series ever crosses over to the silver screen, then Johansson claims she’s done with Marvel. But never say never. Or maybe do say, ‘What if?’
The Tower of Terror doesn’t have a release date or any plot info yet, but no worries—we’ll keep you posted on any updates. In the meantime, why not kick back and enjoy some of Disney’s coolest ride-based movies and Scarlett Johansson’s remarkable run in the MCU? You can catch them all with a Disney+ subscription.
