Last year’s popular “Haunted Elevator” skit on Saturday Night Live will be the inspiration for a half-hour animated Halloween special that will bring back Tom Hanks back as the enigmatic, orange-suited David S. Pumpkins.
NBC will air the David S. Pumpkins Halloween Special at 11:30 p.m. ET on Saturday, October 28. The special will bring back the movie star and veteran SNL host as the bizarre character who — accompanied by a pair of skeletons played by Mikey Day and Bobby Moynihan — confused and eventually terrified a pair of guests on a haunted attraction.
According to NBC’s announcement of the Halloween special, the animated tale will be set “in a small suburban town on All Hallows’ Eve,” and feature a young boy and his sister who learn about the true meaning of Halloween from David Pumpkins and his skeleton sidekicks. In keeping with the theme of the original skit, the trio of weird Halloween characters teach the siblings about Halloween while “answering none of their questions,” according to NBC.
Along with Hanks returning to voice David Pumpkins, and Day and Moynihan voicing the skeletons, the special will also feature a character voiced by Emmy-winning Game of Thrones actor Peter Dinklage.
The original “Haunted Elevator” skit aired on October 22, 2016, and immediately became a viral video sensation.
“It’s scary how quickly the original SNL sketch caught on, and we’re thrilled that Tom Hanks is back to keep the fun going,” said George Cheeks, NBC Entertainment’s President of Business Operations and Late Night Programming, in a statement accompanying the announcement.
Although it’s far from the first SNL skit to be expanded into a television of movie feature, the David S. Pumpkins character is somewhat unique for being a role played by one of the show’s guest hosts instead of an SNL cast member. Previous SNL skits that were adapted into long-form features include Wayne’s World and The Blues Brothers, and most recently, 2010’s action comedy MacGruber. The most commercially successful feature to date was 1992’s Wayne’s World, which earned $121.6 million in U.S. theaters and $183 million worldwide.
Animation for the special will be provided by Bento Box Entertainment, with Day, Moynihan, and skit co-creator Streeter Seidell writing and producing the special.
