After shelving Batgirl, Warner Bros. has decided not to release Scoob!: Holiday Haunt in theatres and HBO Max. Due to the studio’s refocus on theatrically released films, the sequel to the 2020 film Scoob! has been cancelled. Before the merger and new CEO David Zaslav’s appointment, Warner Bros. decided to opt for a same-day-and-date release hybrid model on HBO Max, which did not suit well with their top creative clients.
Scoob! was released in mid-2020, at the height of the pandemic, mostly on VOD, but it did make $28 million at the global box office at the time. That was sufficient for WB to approve Holiday Haunt. The sequel which is shelved cost $40 million to produce, which is another reason for it being cancelled as the studio is looking for cost-cutting measures along with theatrical strategy. Holiday Haunt was supposed to go straight to HBO Max, but the studio no longer wants to make big budgeted projects for the streamer and has been gradually cutting back on HBO Max’s original content.
Scoob’s director Tony Cervone confirmed in July 2021 that a sequel was in development. The holiday film would have followed a younger version of the Mystery Incorporated gang. The official synopsis of the sequel reads: 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 favourite 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.
Frank Welker, Iain Armitage, Ariana Greenblatt, McKenna Grace, Pierce Gagnon, Mark Hamill, Cristo Fernandez, Michael McKean, Andre Braugher, and Ming-Na Wen are the voice actors for Holiday Haunt.
