The Hulu Horror Movie About One of America's Most Haunted Ships

Publish date: 2024-06-09

The Big Picture

Haunting of the Queen Mary combines history and horror to present a dark and gory take on the legendary ship's haunted past.
The film fuses real-life ghost sightings and rumors with the fictionalized story to bring authenticity to the haunted ship's legacy.
The filming style and inclusion of historical details provide valuable insights into the Queen Mary's past as a tourist attraction.

Gary Shore’s 2023 British horror film Haunting of the Queen Mary combines a piece of history with imaginative horror storytelling to present a dark, twisted, and occasionally gory take on the legend of the infamous retired British ocean liner, RMS Queen Mary. Sailing primarily on the North Atlantic Ocean from 1936 to 1967, the Queen Mary has witnessed a major chunk of 20th-century history, including World War II, making it a relic of the past, now preserved as a museum-cum-hotel in the port of Long Beach, California. But what makes the celebrated ship a great subject for a horror film is its tainted history, thanks to the many deaths and reportings of ghost sightings that have made their way onto the popular conscience. The Alice Eve-led film presents an interesting concoction of fact and fiction, inspired by true events that continue to haunt the ship’s legacy, even long after its retirement.

'Haunting of Queen Mary' Takes Inspiration From Real-Life Ghost Reportings

Set and shot on the actual RMS Queen Mary, Haunting of the Queen Mary presents two timelines to fuse together various aspects of the story and present a complete yet fictionalized account of the hauntings, which reportedly continue even to this day, earning Queen Mary the honor of one of the most haunted hotels in America. Throughout the film, various real-life reportings and rumors about the ship are also hinted at and fused with the story to bring a level of authenticity. While capitalizing on the myths and stories already existing around the luxury liner, writers Gary Shore and Stephen Oliver also manage to infuse elements into the story that highlight the ship’s relevance as a tourist attraction. Notably, Shore’s choice to adopt a mockumentary style, during certain parts of the film, only assists the film’s endeavor to provide valuable insights into the ship’s past that some of the audience may not be aware of.

According to the official website of the ship turned hotel, the Queen Mary was built to replace the aging RMS Mauretania for the Cunard Line in the late 1920s. The Great Depression did cause a scare in the construction of the ship, but a British government loan enabled the successful completion of the ambitious ocean liner. Built by John Brown & Company in Clydebank, Scotland, Queen Mary set sail for her maiden voyage on May 27, 1936, quickly becoming one of the foremost express superliners crossing the Atlantic regularly. As per the legend associated with the naming of the ship, it was upon King George V’s insistence that the ship was named after Mary of Teck, the consort of His Majesty.

World's Most Haunted Ship Shares a Long History

According to the Queen Mary website, the beginning of World War II saw the ship’s transformation into a troopship. Along with its new running mate Queen Elizabeth, the ship was the largest and fastest troopship functioning during the way. The ship’s grey repaint and incredible speed earned it the moniker “Grey Ghost.” Among Queen Mary's decorated guest list was the British Prime Minister Winston Churchill, who also gets a mention in the movie. Post-war, the ship was refitted for passenger service, and it dominated the transatlantic passenger trade route before the arrival of transatlantic flights in the late 50s decided the fate of the iconic ship.

Per Press-Telegram, in 1967, the ship was retired, and it was bought by the City of Long Beach to be turned into a floating hotel and tourist attraction. In May 1971, Queen Mary was opened for tourists intending to explore the rich history and experience the time capsule that the ship served as. At one point in time, the ship was also part of Disney’s plans for a huge attraction known as DisneySea, which was expected to prop up around the docked ship. Since its opening as a tourist attraction, the ship has seen many closures owing to different reasons, including financial uncertainties and the COVID-19 pandemic, but the ship continues to serve visitors looking to deep-dive into its rich past.

Real Claims of Hauntings Inspire Events in 'Haunting of Queen Mary'

Apart from its historical relevance, Queen Mary has gained great exposure due to its notorious history as the sight of many deaths, some of which are included in the film. Bill Winberg, the archivist for the line, told the Los Angeles Times at least 47 deaths have happened on board since Queen Mary’s first voyage in 1936. Many of these deaths can be attributed to occupational hazards, such as the one accident portrayed in Haunting of the Queen Mary, when a boiler room worker is exposed to hot steam, accidentally. One of the major mishaps is also highlighted in the film when the ship’s current captain, Bittner (Dorian Lough), points out to Alice Eve’s Anne Calder and Joel Fry’s Patrick Calder an event that really did happen. As BBC reports, on October 2, 1942, Queen Mary pierced through its escort ship HMS Curacoa accidentally, killing 239 people onboard and leaving only 99 survivors. The haunting reality of this incident lies in the fact that the ship was ordered to proceed forward without halting for rescue, due to the risk of U-boat attacks during the war.

Other events, reports of which have contributed to the ship’s place in Time’s “Top 10 Haunted Places,” are also covered in Haunting of Queen Mary. World Of Cruising states that one of the most haunted areas of the ship includes a first-class swimming pool, most frequented by the spirits of Jacqueline “Jackie” Torin, a young girl who drowned in the swimming pool, and Jackie Ratch (Florrie May Wilkinson) who was murdered by her possessed father David Ratch (Wil Coban). The film also takes from the reporting of 18-year-old crew member John Pedder’s spirit being seen roaming around the “watertight door #13,” which crushed him to death in 1966.

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A major hotspot for hauntings remains the stateroom B340, which is portrayed as the sight of multiple murders carried out by David Ratch in the film after he's possessed by the spirit of Edward Clark, the crewman who was killed as part of the "foundation sacrifice." A British third-class passenger passed away in the room in 1948 and the room has been at the center of many supernatural activities ever since. Visitors to the hotel can rent the stateroom B340, touted to be one of the most haunted places on Queen Mary. Apart from the ghost sightings, Haunting of Queen Mary also includes various other real-life details surrounding the luxury liner. In one of the early scenes, Jackie meets actor-dancer Fred Astaire, who invites her for a dance in one-off brighter moments of the film. In real life, Fred Astaire did travel on the ocean liner on June 2, 1939. Early in the film, a tour guide is also heard talking about the infamous “Lady in White,” who also appears in one gory scene, beating her face to a pulp on her beloved piano.

To this day, the continued efforts of the various promoters, who have held control of the ship through the decades, have only further propelled the myth of the haunted ship around Queen Mary, thanks to the marketing efforts which are also reflected in the film. Interestingly, the film's producer Brett Tomberlin also commented on the eery nature of the ship's environment. While some have called the hauntings to be fueled by illusions and ill-founded legends, others stick to the widely-held belief that the treacherous, blood-stained history of the ship continues to haunt the rooms and corridors of the world-famous liner.

Haunting of Queen Mary is available to stream on Hulu in the U.S.

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