Sony Animation Checks Back In For Fifth ‘Hotel Transylvania’ Film

Sony Pictures Animation and Amazon MGM Studios have confirmed a return to the Hotel Transylvania franchise for a fifth theatrical feature, officially titled The Haunting of Hotel Transylvania. The film is set to release on October 8, 2027.

The film will be directed by Jennifer Kluska and Alan Hawkins, and produced by Lawrence Jonas, with the franchise’s original director, Genndy Tartakovsky, executive producing alongside Michelle Murdocca.

According to Deadline, which broke the news, in the new film Dracula has settled comfortably into retirement while his daughter, Mavis, now runs the famous monster resort. But when a series of eerie, unexplained events begin haunting the hotel, Drac and the familiar monster gang set out to uncover the mystery of a ghost lurking within Hotel Transylvania.

The announcement marks the franchise’s return to theaters after nearly a decade spent on streaming, partly intentionally and partly forced by the pandemic. While 2022’s Hotel Transylvania: Transformania debuted exclusively on Prime Video after Sony sold the film during the pandemic, The Haunting of Hotel Transylvania will bring the series back to cinemas, where it has proved to be a box-office powerhouse. The four previous films have collectively grossed more than $1.3 billion worldwide, making it Sony Pictures Animation’s highest-grossing original franchise.

The news follows earlier this year’s confirmation by Keegan-Michael Key, who revealed that work on a fifth installment had begun. At the time, the actor, who voices Murray the mummy, praised voice acting as “a sacred connection to the drawings” while discussing his return to the franchise in a refreshingly reverent reflection on the role of celebrity voice acting.