'Alice Through The Looking Glass' TV Spot: The Mad Hatter Is Still Creepy As Hell

At last year's San Diego Comic Con, I was shocked by the amount of people dressed up as Johnny Depp's loud and frightening take on the Mad Hatter. I'm always surprised by how much some people love the character, but then again, Tim Burton's adaptation of Lewis Carroll's book made over a billion dollars at the box office, so audiences clearly have a fondness for this world.

Burton didn't return to direct the sequelAlice Through the Looking GlassJames Bobin (The Muppets) took over the reins, and we'll what he's come up with this summer.

Below, watch a Alice Through the Looking Glass TV spot.

I'm sure a lot of people will take the opportunity to joke "this cannot be good," as the Mad Hatter says in this TV spot, but I think Alice Through the Looking Glass could actually be good. Bobin's a charming filmmaker, with a very strong sense of humor and tone — which was sorely lacking in Alice in Wonderland. The original cast is returning for the sequel, which, based on the footage we've seen, including this TV spot (posted on Disney's Twitter page), looks like a far more lively affair than Burton's film:

Here's the official synopsis:

In Disney's "Alice Through the Looking Glass," an all-new spectacular adventure featuring the unforgettable characters from Lewis Carroll's beloved stories, Alice returns to the whimsical world of Underland and travels back in time to save the Mad Hatter. Directed by James Bobin, who brings his own unique vision to the spectacular world Tim Burton created on screen in 2010 with "Alice in Wonderland," the film is written by Linda Woolverton based on characters created by Lewis Carroll and produced by Joe Roth, Suzanne Todd and Jennifer Todd and Tim Burton with John G. Scotti serving as executive producer. "Alice Through the Looking Glass" reunites the all-star cast from the worldwide blockbuster phenomenon, including: Johnny Depp, Anne Hathaway, Mia Wasikowska and Helena Bonham Carter along with the voices of Alan Rickman, Stephen Fry, Michael Sheen and Timothy Spall. We are also introduced to several new characters: Zanik Hightopp (Rhys Ifans), the Mad Hatter's father and Time himself (Sacha Baron Cohen), a peculiar creature who is part human, part clock.

Alice Kingsleigh (Wasikowska) has spent the past few years following in her father's footsteps and sailing the high seas. Upon her return to London, she comes across a magical looking glass and returns to the fantastical realm of Underland and her friends the White Rabbit (Sheen), Absolem (Rickman), the Cheshire Cat (Fry) and the Mad Hatter (Depp), who is not himself. The Hatter has lost his Muchness, so Mirana (Hathaway) sends Alice on a quest to borrow the Chronosphere, a metallic globe inside the chamber of the Grand Clock which powers all time. Returning to the past, she comes across friends – and enemies – at different points in their lives, and embarks on a perilous race to save the Hatter before time runs out.

Alice Through the Looking Glass opens in theaters on May 27, 2016th.