Rhiannon Hendricks
Haunted Honeymoon is a 1986 comedy horror film starring Gene Wilder, Gilda Radner, Dom DeLuise, and Jonathan Pryce. The film follows Larry Abbot and Vickie Pearle, performers on radio's Manhattan Mystery Theater who decide to get married. Larry, however, has been suffering from on-air panic attacks and speech impediments since proposing. As the couple heads to Larry's family mansion for their wedding, the radio murder mysteries they perform become a reality, with werewolves and sinister plots lurking in the background. While the film was a financial flop and received negative reviews, it has gained a cult following for its atmospheric comedy and over-the-top characters. So, is Charlie the werewolf?
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Name of movie | Haunted Honeymoon |
| Year of release | 1986 |
| Genre | Horror-comedy |
| Character with a phobia | Larry Abbot |
| Character who plays a werewolf | Will Kenton |
| Character who is Larry's cousin | Charlie |
| Actor who plays Charlie | Jonathan Pryce |
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The film's plot
The 1986 comedy horror film Haunted Honeymoon stars Gene Wilder as Larry Abbot, an actor on a radio programme called Manhattan Mystery Theater, in which he also plays a character who may or may not be a werewolf. In the film, Larry and his co-star and fiancée, Vickie Pearle (Gilda Radner), are about to get married. However, Larry has been experiencing on-air panic attacks and speech impediments since proposing, which have been triggered by the sound of thunder. Vickie believes it is just pre-wedding jitters, but his condition could cost them their jobs.
Larry's uncle, Dr Paul Abbot (Paul L. Smith), decides that the best way to cure his nephew is to "scare him to death". Larry and Vickie choose to get married at the castle-like mansion where Larry grew up, and the family is in on the plan to scare him. Larry's eccentric family includes great-aunt Kate (Dom DeLuise), who plans to leave all her money to Larry; his uncle, Francis (Peter Vaughan); and cousins, Charles (Jonathan Pryce), Nora, Susan, and the cross-dressing Francis Jr (Roger Ashton-Griffiths). Also present are the butler Pfister (Bryan Pringle) and his wife, the maid, Rachel; Larry's ex-girlfriend, Sylvia, who is now dating Charles; and Susan's magician husband, Montego the Magnificent.
As Paul begins his "treatment" of Larry, something more sinister and unexpected is lurking at the Abbot Estates mansion. The pre-wedding party becomes a real-life version of Larry and Vickie's radio murder mysteries, werewolves and all.
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Cast and crew
The cast of Haunted Honeymoon includes Gene Wilder as Larry Abbot, Gilda Radner as Vickie Pearle, Dom DeLuise as Aunt Kate, Jonathan Pryce as Cousin Charlie, Bryan Pringle as Pfister, Peter Vaughan as Uncle Francis Abbot Sr., Paul L. Smith as Dr. Paul Abbot, and Roger Ashton-Griffiths as Cousin Francis Jr.
Gene Wilder also served as the writer and director of the film. The cinematographer worked with Wilder to create a dark and believable 1930s aesthetic, using no primary colours. The film was shot in London at Elstree Studios in 1985 over 11 weeks.
Haunted Honeymoon was the last feature film appearance for Radner and the last directorial role for Wilder. Radner wrote about the film: "On July 26 [1986], Haunted Honeymoon opened nationwide. It was a bomb. One month of publicity and the movie was only in the theaters for a week – a box-office disaster."
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Critical reception
The 1986 American comedy horror film Haunted Honeymoon was not well-received by critics. It grossed just under its $9 million budget, making it a financial flop. It received negative reviews, with Walter Goodman of The New York Times writing:
> With agreeable people like Mr. Wilder, Gilda Radner and Dom DeLuise (relatively restrained in the role of a dowager aunt) on call, a few laughs are guaranteed, but there just aren't enough of them amid the intentionally creaky creakings.
Alex Stewart, reviewing the film for White Dwarf #83, said:
> Amid Wilder's overindulgence in timid, repetitive gags, it's hard to sort out who's plotting with whom to bump off who else, and harder still to care. Only an admirably unpredictable performance from Dom DeLuise as wacky old Aunt Kate puts any kind of edge on the silliness at all.
DeLuise won the Razzie Award for Worst Supporting Actress for her performance.
However, some viewers have praised the film. One IMDb reviewer wrote:
> I think this is the first Dom Deluise movie I ever saw. [...] I love the performances in the radio studio with Radner and Gene Wilder playing characters in a show with the same title as the film. Dom DeLuise is amusing as Aunt Kate. But I want to really praise the hard-of-hearing butler Pfister (Bryan Pringle) who, because Wilder tells him his fiancée is slightly deaf, keeps shouting at Radner.
Another IMDb reviewer wrote:
> I've known a lot of people who liked it. I found it watchable. [...] It's an excellent movie specifically because of its quirks... if that makes any sense lol. I can understand why it didn't get a lot of support when it was released, but now 38 years later I think it has a charm of its own.
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Production
Haunted Honeymoon was inspired by a song in the 1930 film Monte Carlo, starring Jeanette MacDonald and Jack Buchanan. Wilder explained that he wanted the film to have an "emotional spine" and to be "fantastical". He also wanted to pay tribute to the Golden Age of Radio, with the film's characters, Larry Abbot and Vickie Pearle, being radio performers themselves.
The film's cast included Wilder's wife, Gilda Radner, in her final film role before her death from ovarian cancer. Radner and Wilder celebrated their first wedding anniversary during filming. Jonathan Pryce, who played Cousin Charlie, recalled that the cast and crew were very close, with everyone staying on set during breaks.
Despite being a critical and commercial flop, the film has found some fans, with many praising the performances of Radner, Wilder, and Dom DeLuise, who won the Razzie Award for Worst Supporting Actress for his performance in drag.
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Werewolf actor
The 1986 comedy horror film Haunted Honeymoon features a werewolf, but the name of the actor who plays the werewolf is not clear. While some sources indicate that Will Kenton played the werewolf, others suggest that Gene Wilder played a character who may or may not have been a werewolf.
In the film, Larry Abbot, played by Wilder, is an actor on a radio programme in which he plays a character who may or may not be a werewolf. The film's premise involves Larry developing an inexplicable phobia, set off by the sound of thunder, which gives him speech problems. Larry's uncle, a doctor, suggests a cure that involves scaring Larry "to death", and the family travels to the family estate for the wedding and honeymoon. There, the uncle's plans for Larry become intertwined with an actual plot against the family, seemingly enacted by a cursed werewolf.
Haunted Honeymoon was written and directed by Wilder and was his last directorial role. The film was a financial flop, grossing just under its $9 million budget, and it received negative reviews from critics. Despite this, the film has been praised for its atmosphere and over-the-top characters, and it remains a fun watch for fans of goofball horror-comedies.
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Frequently asked questions
Yes, there is a werewolf in Haunted Honeymoon.
Will Kenton plays the werewolf in Haunted Honeymoon.
No, Charlie is not the werewolf in Haunted Honeymoon. Charlie is Larry's cousin, played by Jonathan Pryce.
It is not clear who is playing the werewolf in Haunted Honeymoon.
Haunted Honeymoon received negative reviews from critics and was a box office flop. However, some viewers have praised the performances of the cast and the film's atmosphere.
