On Nov. 18, Kings Island shared a video online re-introducing the phantoms, including the well-recognized maestro character.
“It’s been well over 20 years, but we’re back,” the character says.
“Our entire cast has returned and can’t wait for the curtain to rise on opening night,” says the ghost usher who appears with him in the Kings Island video.
Watch the video here:
The building that will house “Phantom Theater: Opening Nightmare” has been the site of several other rides over the years.
The marquee attraction of the Happy Land of Hanna-Barbera in 1972 was The Enchanted Voyage, a boat ride taking guests through the worlds of various Hanna-Barbera cartoons.
In 1984, the park rethemed The Enchanted Voyage as The Smurfs’ Enchanted Voyage.
It was in 1992 that Phantom Theater opened. Kings Island removed the boat track and replaced it with one inspired by the onmimover ride system, famous for its use in Disney rides such the Haunted Mansion.
Instead of waiting outdoors, the queue for Phantom Theater was inside the show building. Themed to the lobby of the opera house, the ghoulish Maestro would play his organ above guests, occasionally berating those below.
The ride itself would begin with Maestro welcoming guests to the show before they pass by a series of portraits depicting The Great Garbanzo, Houdelini and other performers. These paintings then seemed to “disappear,” revealing the ghostly form of each subject.
Various scenes then played out for riders. This includes Houdelini pulling a demonic rabbit out a hat, two stagehands tangled in rope and an usher seemingly floating above the ground.
After this, guests passed various props which had come to life, including a mummy in a sarcophagus and a gargoyle.
The finale took place in the theater’s boiler room, complete with workers shoveling coal into a large furnace.
Like the previous iterations, Phantom Theater would remain unchanged for approximately a decade, before closing for yet another refurbishment. This time, featuring a familiar face.
After the ride’s closure, various animatronics were used as decorations for the park’s Fearfest event, now known as Halloween Haunt.
In the early 2000s, the Scooby-Doo franchise saw a surge in popularity, due to films such as “Scooby-Doo on Zombie Island” and the 2002 live-action movie. Kings Island would capitalize on the excitement by closing Phantom Theater, replacing it with the interactive Scooby-Doo and the Haunted Castle.
After Kings Island’s then-parent company, Paramount Parks, was purchased by Cedar Fair in 2006, the park went through the process of rebranding its rides to remove certain licenses. This affected attractions such as Top Gun, renamed to Flight Deck, and Tomb Raider: The Ride, which was changed to The Crypt.
Scooby-Doo and the Haunted Castle remained in the park until 2009, when it received a small retheme and renovation.
After Kings Island’s then-parent company, Paramount Parks, was purchased by Cedar Fair in 2006, the park went through the process of rebranding its rides to remove certain licenses. This affected attractions such as Top Gun, renamed to Flight Deck, and Tomb Raider: The Ride, which was changed to The Crypt.
Scooby-Doo and the Haunted Castle remained in the park until 2009, when it received a small retheme and renovation.
Boo Blasters on Boo Hill opened in 2010 and featured the same ride system and layout as Scooby-Doo and the Haunted Castle. However, the ride had a new antagonist, Boocifer. He appeared throughout the ride, taunting guests.
Boo Blasters on Boo Hill lasted the longest of any attraction in the building. It closed for good in September 2025.
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