Scooby-Doo on Zombie Island (film)


 * For other uses, see Scooby-Doo on Zombie Island (disambiguation).

Scooby-Doo on Zombie Island is a 1998 American mystery horror-comedy direct-to-video film based on the Scooby-Doo, Where Are You! TV series in 1969. It was released by Warner Home Video through the Warner Bros. Family Entertainment label on September 22, 1998. It was written by Glenn Leopold and Davis Doi, and directed by Jim Stenstrum. The film was intended to be a one-off, but high sales led to a sequel in 1998 called Scooby-Doo! and the Witch's Ghost, which itself was a success, ultimately leading to a series of direct-to-video films that continue today.

The film depicts Mystery Inc. as having grown from teenagers into adults, who are trying to find their own paths, some easier than others, such as Daphne, who has become a reporter with her own supernatural investigative show. This soon leads to a reunion, where Mystery Inc. travels to Louisiana, where all too real zombies and werecats plague the island they have been invited to.

Detailed summary
At a remote castle in the middle of a stormy night, Mystery Inc. becomes involved in another mystery that gets way over the heads, being chased by a homicidal amphibious-looking creature. It is eventually caught when Scooby swings down a staircase and lands on a chandelier which breaks and knocks into a grandfather clock that creates a domino effect with several suits of armors eventually knocking into the monster, pinning it to the floor. Velma is then able to reveal the monster is a fraud, having taken off the rubber mask to reveal Mr. Beeman, a real estate agent using the castle as his base of operations in printing millions of counterfeit money with a printing press in the basement.

As it turns out, this is a mystery long ago solved, and the gang has grown up and all five are now trying to build careers or hold jobs. Daphne, for instance, has become the host of a travelogue TV show called Coast to Coast with Daphne Blake, and is retelling the frightening events while promoting it on Chris. She tells the host that her new season will have her drive across America and find a real ghost, unlike in her mystery-solving days, which were always fake and didn't care for that, but she wouldn't mind seeing her friends again, who she's grown out of touch with, except for Fred, who's stayed by her side and is now her producer and one-man crew. Hearing this backstage gives Fred an idea, and he makes a couple of phone calls.

Meanwhile, Shaggy and Scooby are working a shift as custom inspectors at an airport. When going into the customs room after Scooby sniffs out contraband cheese, they see all the confiscated food, such as other cheeses and sausages, and not being able to help themselves, eat all the contraband within sight. Their boss discovers this and fires them promptly. Their sorrow is quickly squashed when they immediately receive that call from Fred invited them along. Lucky for him, they have some free time. The second and last phone call is to Velma, who's got herself her own bookstore, but running it has become tedious. She is overjoyed when Fred calls her.

The following morning, Fred arrives to pick up Daphne to start their cross-country tour. He stalls for time by asking her if she's got everything until he annoys her enough and insists she does, before Fred surprises her and opens up the back of the van to reveal Velma, Shaggy, and Scooby have come along for the ride, on her birthday, no less, which she's completely forgotten about. The gang being back together will be just like old times and Fred marks the occasion by taking off the Coast to Coast with Daphne Blake sign off the van to reveal the old Mystery Machine logo underneath. Mystery Inc. is back in business and head to Louisiana to find some real ghosts. Unfortunately for Daphne, what follows is nights of the same old routine they did as kids; a swami using a projector to create a ghost, an old man dressed up as a vampire in a cemetery, an old woman as a zombie riverboat captain, and a young man as a lobster-creature at a crawdad plant.

They stop at a market for supplies, where Lena Dupree, a cook on Moonscar Mansion, overhears Daphne, Velma, and Fred and invites them to take a look at the mansion, which she claims to be haunted by the ghost of Morgan Moonscar. After talking it over and doing some research they decide to take her up on their offer, but they have to wait for Scooby and Shaggy who are eating at a sandwich shop for a couple of poor boys covered in peppers, something that will be a recurring gag. The gang regroup and follow Lena out of the market and to a chain of bayous. Lena's friend, Jacques, operates a ferry who takes them to their destination.

On their way, Scooby meets an unusually big and playful catfish called Big Mona, who squirts and splashes Scooby, but when he tries grabbing Big Mona, he loses his footing and falls in the water, taking Shaggy with him. This gets the attention of two alligators in the area, but Jacques ferry isn't fast enough to turn around in time. Fortunately, Snakebite Scruggs, a catfisher, is also in the area and keeps them back with his hook, while they climb on board his boat for safety. Snakebite seems to have saved them to spite himself, as he blames them for preventing him from catching the elusive Big Mona. They then meet the wrong side of Snakebite's hunting pig, Mojo, before being sent back to Jacques's ferry so they can continue their trip to Moonscar Island.

Once on the bayou, they drive the rest of the way to the mansion, where Scooby finds several cats on the property and promptly chases them, even though Shaggy assured Lena before he would be okay. The chase proceeds to make a big mess and doesn't end until he knocks right into the mansion's owner, Simone. The gang apologizes and when Simone finds out Lena invited them, she seems to suddenly settle down and is happy to tell them about the history of the mansion. Like Simone, she also claims that the mansion is haunted and invites the gang to look around if they dare, except for Scooby, who she fears will attack her cats again. Shaggy makes a deal that he will keep Scooby occupied if they can help themselves to her kitchen. As the gang apologizes to Lena for the mess, she says that the new gardener, Beau, will take care of it, who hears this and angrily mocks her under his breath.

Inside the kitchen, Shaggy and Scooby take a sip of Lena's gumbo and then try out some of her infamous hot peppers, creating screams that get the attention of Mystery Inc., Lena, and Simone. When the gang leaves to go back on Simone's tour, Shaggy dares Scooby to have another, when they start screaming again for another reason: "Get Out" has been scratched on the wall as if caused by a breeze. Everyone runs back in thinking its peppers again, until they hear of the paranormal event, which Daphne is delighted about for her segment. As she talks about it on camera, another breeze-like phenomenon occurs, and "Beware" is also scratched beneath what was already written. Then out of the blue, Velma starts floating in mid-air. When Shaggy and Scooby attempt to get her back down, she promptly falls on top of Scooby. Everyone watches over Fred's footage to discover that a ghost pirate is in the frame. But this isn't just any ghost pirate, it is the ghost of Morgan Moonscar, the namesake of the island. The possibility of a real haunting has just risen, but to Simone's surprise, this doesn't deter the gang, perhaps except for Shaggy and Scooby. Instead of joining in on the investigation, they just go back to the kitchen to make a picnic. As they leave, Velma walks in, who is curious about the chipping in the wall and uses a spatula to uncover that "Maelstrom" is written underneath. Simone reveals that parts of the house were constructed from Moonscar's ship, the Maelstrom, and that his treasure was supposed to be buried somewhere on the island, but has never been found. This leads Fred to believe that someone has acted out the ghost pirate to scare them off the island to get the treasure for themselves. Although the others don't seem so sure.

Meanwhile, Shaggy and Scooby have started their picnic in the front garden of the mansion, competing against each other with Simone's peppers. When Scooby moves onto the potato salad, he finds some of Simone's cats inside the bowl, and another chase ensues. Shaggy chases after him, but is quickly distracted by the pepper field. Scooby is halted by falling in a lake, where Snakebite just happens to be trying to catch Big Mona. Enraged, Snakebite sends his pig after Scooby, who hurries past Shaggy, warning him of Mojo, or "Rojo" as Scooby pronounces it. Mojo chases them until they fall into a deep hole. While down there, they find a skeleton's arm, followed by the entire broken skeleton, which is reformed by a ghostly wave. The skeleton then is then turned into a zombie of Morgan Moonscar. With their lives at risk, Shaggy and Scooby quickly manage to climb back out and run for their lives, as it were, until they crash into Beau, the gardener. Scooby and Shaggy point out to the bushes in the direction of the zombie, but all that emerges are the gang and Simone & Lena, who could hear their screaming all the way from the mansion.

Scooby and Shaggy lead everyone to where they found the zombie of Morgan Moonscar, who is nowhere to be seen. After Velma suspects the Beau, and Daphne remarks that he's cute, Fred wants to leave, but Daphne perishes the thought as the island gets more interesting by the minute. It's also late and the ferry doesn't work at night, so Simone invites them to stay over night. As the gang settles into their rooms, Shaggy and Scooby see the ghost of a Civil War soldier emerge from their mirror, telling them to "Get away." They run off scared into Fred's room and right on top of him, even, who can't take the weight of both of them and staggers out of his room and into Simone. Velma and Daphne hear the commotion, and when Velma takes a look behind the mirror she sees that it belongs to Colonel Jackson T. Pettigrew of the 8th Louisiana regiment. Shaggy can't take much more of this until Lena calls them all for dinner.

At a candle-lit dinner, Simone informs them that she doesn't want Scooby at the dinner table, and although Shaggy takes him to the kitchen they find more of Simone's cats, and Scooby sends one of the cats running into the dining room and into Simone's arms. Simone has had just about enough of Scooby, when Lena sets them up with a meal outside in the Mystery Machine. They chow down on crawfish and biscuits when more pesky cats appear on a tree and even on top of the Mystery Machine. Shaggy decides to drive further away. Back inside the house, the gang discusses why the ghosts want them off the island, which Velma and Fred put down to some illegal cover-up, when Daphne honestly believes that it could be a real supernatural occurrence for once.

Meanwhile, Shaggy has driven him and Scooby deep into the bayou where they finish off their meals before burning themselves on peppers again. They're so hot, they dip their heads under the nearby river. As they cool off, an eerie wind picks up and a ghostly wave is summoned out of nowhere and shoots down into the river and then the ground, which raises the unrested dead bodies. Shaggy and Scooby flee to the Mystery Machine, but are unable to navigate past the zombies and mud, so they bolt on foot, knocking into Beau on the way, who they believe is a zombie the way his lantern lights up his face in the dark. Their friends can hear Shaggy and Scooby screaming all the way from the mansion, so with some lanterns and Fred's camera in hand, he and the girls go out to investigate, meeting Beau along the way, who Fred and Velma find awfully suspicious. To cover more ground, they split up, Fred with Daphne and Velma with Beau.

While Velma calls for Scooby and Shaggy, Beau wants to know why she keeps on treating him like a suspect, which is simple for Velma, because he is one. Beau reacts by picking up a large rock seemingly intending to use it on Velma, but he really uses it to reveal that they were about to walk into quicksand. Velma thanks him, but it changes nothing about how she feels about him. The scene then shifts to Daphne who has found the abandoned Mystery Machine, which is littered with crawdad shells. This draws out some conflict between Daphne and Fred, as the crawdad was cooked by Lena, who has shown affection towards Fred, while Fred wants to know what's going on between her and Beau. Just then Daphne feels something on her shoulder, which she handles without hesitation by throwing what is revealed to be a zombie over her shoulder, then does the same thing when Shaggy crops up. The zombie acts completely immobile, allowing the gang to test if its real or not. After Daphne struggles to a mask off, claiming it to feel real, so Fred takes a turn and ends up pulling it so hard, he rips the head off. The gang disgustingly play keep away until it falls into the lap of its body, which has suddenly come to life, so to speak, and puts its head back on. Then, a ghostly breeze kicks in, bringing to life even more zombies. Fred and Daphne hear then Lena's scream from the mansion and run back to aide her. As Fred begins to run, he trips on a root and loses his camera into the quicksand and thus all the evidence. There's no time to remorse, as Fred grabs Daphne by the arm to lead her away as the zombies swarm around them, as thy do with Shaggy and Scooby. It's Terror Time Again"! The chase ends when Fred and Daphne run into Velma and Beau, and Shaggy and Scooby roll into a cave, which leads to under the mansion.

Inside the cave, Shaggy and Scooby are surprised to find wax dolls of their friends. Amused by the dolls, they pick them up and start to play, which begins to have an effect on their friends in real life, losing all control of their movements and start involuntarily knocking into each other. This stops when bats inside the cave are finally awoken by Scooby and Shaggy, which scares the two back out, passing more zombies. While the others, free from Shaggy and Scooby's control, head back to the mansion when they hear more of Lena's screams.

Arriving back at the mansion, they find the lights have gone out. As Fred starts to climb the staircase, he accidentally falls through and into a secret tunnel, where Lena is hiding. She claims that she and Simone went outside to wait for them when the zombies came. They fled into the secret passageway under the stairs, but the zombies got to Simone and dragged her away. They follow the path to a door, which leads to the same cave as Scooby and Shaggy found. It has voodoo ritualistic dials and cat shrines everywhere and the whole mystery starts to un-spiral. Velma deduces by the footprints of Simone's heels, she wasn't dragged, but walked. Simone then reveals herself, holding the wax dolls of Velma and Daphne, which she uses to take control over them and knock them into a wall. Lena does the same thing with Fred and Beau. Simone and Lena tie up the dolls, which keeps the models at bay in a corner.

Simone declares the Harvest Moon is nearly upon them and the ceremony will begin when the moonlight hits the midnight point of the moon dial, allowing them to drain their life forces to preserve their immortality. Daphne warns her that she won't get away with it, but Simone has been getting away with it for 200 years. And just when things couldn't get even darker, Simone and Lena begin the transition into their werecat forms. Fred hopes to his friends that Shaggy and Scooby are still free, leaving some hope, but Lena overhears this and claims that because they are simpletons and wasn't worth the time and magic wax. In the meantime, Shaggy and Scooby find Jacques and his boat, but Jacques isn't his friendly self anymore, transforming into full werecat mode and begins chasing them.

Velma accuses Simone of finding Morgan Moonscar's treasure, but Simone is enraged by it, stating that he is the cause of their anguish. She explains how she and Lena were cat god worshiping settlers on the island, looking forward to a bountiful harvest, when Moonscar and his crew came ashore, looking to bury their treasure when they found and forced the settlers into the bayou's waters where they were eaten by the alligators, except for Simone and Lena, who hid and witnessed the tragedy. They fled to their cat god shrine, asking for a curse on Morgan Moonscar and his crew in revenge. Their prayers were answered and they themselves were able to act out their own revenge by being able to transform into cat creatures and killed the pirates, who were in the middle of burying their treasure. Simone and Lena then found out that they had been cursed in the process and in the ensuing years, they drained the lives of groups who came across the island, such as pepper plantationers, Civil War soldiers, and plain tourists, making the menacing zombies the victims after all. Needing help along the way, they recruited Jacques, who was more than happy to help being rewarded with immortality.

At that point, Jacques has caught up with Shaggy and Scooby and holds them both in the air, but thanks to the intervention of the zombies dogpiling Jacques, they can escape and run until they trip over a root and topple into the cave, knocking into Simone and Lena like bowling bowls as they advance on their friends for the harvest moon. The sight of Shaggy and Scooby, especially Scooby, entices Simone and Lena into their full werecat forms. When Shaggy and Scooby run, they accidentally knock the wax dolls towards a fallen torch, causing Fred, Daphne, Velma, and Beau to sweat until their near to essentially melting, before saving them when they unknowingly save them by kicking away the dolls. Velma is able to get her doll between her feet and works on untying herself, while Scooby and Shaggy are grabbed by Simone and Lena, but some zombies stop them. Daphne tries to tell Shaggy that the zombies are the good guys, but he thinks she's crazy for thinking that, and he and Scooby run out into the cave where they unexpectedly run into Jacques. They tear themselves away from Jacques but go flying across the ground, dropping peppers. Scooby picks one up and sprays it in Jacques's eyes. They are no safer, though, as Simone and Lena apprehend them and begin to drain them. Suddenly, they are flown across the room by Velma and Daphne who used torn materials from Simone and Lena on the wax dolls and begin to turn the tables. However, Jacques, who is still reeling from the pepper sauce in his eyes, runs into Velma and Daphne, who lose grip of the dolls and unintentionally free Simone and Lena. Simone, Lena, with a recuperated Jacques, advance onto Fred, Velma, Daphne, and Beau, but it is too late as the moondial goes past midnight, and for failing to suck the life out of them, Simone, Lena, and Jacques crumble into dust. This breaks the curse not only for the werecats, but for the zombies, as well, who can finally live in peace, such as Morgan Moonscar and Colonel Pettigrew, the latter of whom salutes the gang, but only a terrified Scooby sees this. Daphne is distraught that not having any evidence of what occurred, her show is done for, not to mention the police, as Velma adds, but Beau tells them not to be so sure, as he reveals himself to have been an undercover detective all along, not that it will do any good as Beau believes his superiors won't believe what happened. This brightens Daphne up, though who believes they back each other's stories up.

As everybody prepares to leave the island on Jacques's ferry, Fred and Daphne watch the sunrise together, with Daphne remarking that it's almost romantic. Before they depart, Shaggy calls for Scooby, who's grabbing some more peppers for the trip back. As Scooby tries to get on, his foot gets caught on the dock's posts. When he gets free, he flies through the air, knocking Big Mona out of Snakebite's net. Darn it. As the ferry finally leaves the nightmarish island, Shaggy passes Scooby a sandwich for him to finally enjoy peacefully. But as Scooby goes to do so, he discovers that Simone's cats have come on board as well, with a disturbing new feature: Glowing eyes.

In a post-credits scene that has no bearing on the real story, Scooby tears away the black screen to reveal he is feeding a couple of cats a saucer of milk, and says his "Scooby-Doob-Dooby!" catchphrase.

Memorable quotes
Shaggy: Scooby-Doo, where are you?!

Mr. Beeman: And I would've gotten away with it, too, if it wasn't for that big dog and you meddling kids.

Chris: Gee, it's too bad the rest of the old gang won't be along for the ride. Daphne: Yeah, I really miss them. Shaggy: Yeah, like, we really miss you, too, Daphne.

Shaggy: Like, hi, boss! Boss: You-you-you ate all the contraband! Scooby: Excuse me. Shaggy: Like, untrue, boss. We didn't eat it all. There's still a couple of Gorgonzolas left. Help yourself! Boss: You're a couple of Gorgonzolas! You're fired! Shaggy: Sheesh. What a grouch! Looks like we're unemployed again, old pal. Scooby: Yeah. Unemployed. Shaggy: Like, take it easy, buddy. Something will turn up. So what if this was, like, the greatest gig ever? Like, so what if we starve? Turn to skin and bones? Like, hello. Freddy? Zoinks! We just caught you on the tube! Busy? Nah. Scoob and I were just thinkin' of takin' some time off. Scooby: Yeah! Yeah!

Velma and Shaggy: Happy birthday, Daphne! Daphne: Gosh, it's great to see you all. I've been working so hard, I guess I forgot my own birthday. Fred: I hope you don't mind, but I-I asked the gang to come along. Daphne: Oh, Freddy. This is the best birthday present ever. It'll be just like old times. Scooby: Yeah! Rold rimes. Fred: Hey, hey, easy boy. It's great to see you, too, Scoob. Velma: Speaking of old times, look what I have for you, Scooby. Scooby Snack! Scooby: Roh, boy! Roh, boy! Roh, boy! Shaggy: Like, oh, boy! Oh, boy! Oh, boy! Velma: Go long, guys! Shaggy: Hey! Velma: I've been saving these Scooby Snacks for a long time. Scooby: Yuck! Shaggy: Like, too long, Velma. They're stale.

Velma: Perfect! Mystery Inc. is back in business!

Daphne: Bad guys in masks, mechanical claws, magnets, hologram projectors. Velma: Just like the good old days. Daphne: Too much like the good old days. I've got a show to do. I need a real live ghost. Velma: That's an oxymoron, Daph.

Lena: A pirate named Morgan Moonscar died on that island and his spirit still haunts the place. Fred: Uh-huh... Well, no offense, Lena, but it's probably just some guy in an old pirate suit trying to scare off the local kids. Lena: The ghost is real. Of course, if you're too scared to go... Fred: Scared? Me? No, I-I don't think so.

Fred: Well, what do you think? Daphne: What do we have to lose? It's the best lead we've had all day. Fred: And that Lena is kinda cute. Daphne: Fred! Fred: I just meant she'd be real photogenic for our segment. Daphne: Um. Right. Wipe your upper lip, Romeo.

Jacques: Well, if they wanted haunted, they've come to the right place. Peoples go into that bayou, and they don't never come out. Daphne: Uh, so we understand.

Lena: I didn't know you had a dog! Scooby: Dog? Where?

Shaggy: L-l-like, th-thanks, m-mister. Snakebite: Should have let the 'gators eat ya. I can't stand tourists!

Daphne: Scooby, leave them alone! Cat: Yeah!

Simone: Who brought this-this dog?! Scooby: Rog? Where?

Simone: We do not have television on my island.

Daphne: Wow. A real case of levitation. This just gets better and better! Velma: Maybe from where you're standing.

Simone: So, you're not going to heed Moonscar's threat? Daphne: Are you kidding? We don't scare that easily? Shaggy: Like, we do. Fred: Besides, it's probably just a hologram or some guy in a pirate suit.

Shaggy: Like, what times dinner? Lena: Well, I have never met a pair who ate so much. Shaggy: Like, being in a state of constant terror makes us constantly hungry. Scooby: Yeah, ronstantly.

Shaggy: Like, ghost pirates, ghost soldiers. What's next? Lena: Dinner! From all the screaming up here, I'd say you two must be starving.

Daphne: Your dining room is beautiful, Simone. Simone: Thank you, Daphne. But I'm afraid your dog will have to eat in the kitchen? Scooby: Rog? Where?

Fred: Hey, we should do a segment on Lena's pecan pie, Daph. It's supernatural. Daphne: You are so corny! Scooby and Shaggy: AHHHHHH!!!! Fred, Velma, and Daphne: Now what?!

Daphne: I think we should split up. Fred: Good idea. Daphne: I'll go with Beau. Fred: Bad idea.

Daphne: Well, I guess the guys liked your girlfriend's cooking, too. Fred: She's not my girlfriend, Daph. I just said I enjoy her cooking. And what about Beau? Daphne: What about him?

Daphne: Okay, Mr. Macho. Why don't you try it? Fred: Sure. Hold this, Shag. Shag: Whoo-hoo-hoo. Fred: Either hold it still or give it to Daphne. Fred: It's the gardener. Daphne: No! Fred: It's the fisherman. Shaggy: No! Fred: It's the ferryman. Scooby: Ro! Fred: Ah-h. Maybe it's... real? Huh!

Daphne: And I suppose they'll all animatronic, too! Fred: Well, it is a possibility, Daph! Daphne: You're not a skeptic, Fred. You're in denial.

Lena: Sorry, Freddy. I really do like you. Fred: What would you do if you didn't like me?

Fred: Just what are you planning to do to us? Simone: Ah, it's simple. Every harvest moon I must drain the life force from victims lured to my island to preserve my immortality. Daphne: This is more haunted stuff than I really wanted.

Jacques: What's the matter? Cat got your tongue?

Lena: Jacques is in trouble! Simone: Forget about him. They must be drained now while the moonlight is in the midnight alignment.

Simone: I've had enough of that meddling dog! Scooby: Rog? Where?

Daphne: Shaggy! The zombies are the good guys! Shaggy: Like, are you out of your mind?!

Velma: Looks like your nine lives are up!

Shaggy: Zoinks! Like, what's happening to them?! Velma: Their spirits have been avenged, Shaggy. So, they can finally rest in peace.

Daphne: I can't believe all this. And without our videotape, no one else will, either. I've got nothing for my show! Velma: Yeah, and the police will never believe this either. Beau: Don't be so sure. I'm Detective Beau Neville. Been working undercover investigating the island disappearances.

Beau: The bayou casts a spell all its own. And no matter how hard you try to solve its mysteries, it always keeps something hidden. Velma: Aw. That was beautiful, Detective Neville. There's a bit of a poet in you. Beau: I don't know about that, ma'am. But I would like to write detective stories someday. Velma: Jinkies! I've always been crazy about a good detective--story, that is. I even own my own mystery bookstore.

Scooby: Rhaggy! Rats! Yikes!

Characters

 * style="background-color:#d2d2ff"| Moat Monster
 * style="background-color:#aaffaa"| Unavailable
 * style="background-color:#d2d2ff"| Daphne Blake
 * style="background-color:#aaffaa"| Mary Kay Bergman
 * style="background-color:#d2d2ff"| Fred Jones
 * style="background-color:#aaffaa"| Frank Welker
 * style="background-color:#d2d2ff"| Velma Dinkley
 * style="background-color:#aaffaa"| B.J. Ward
 * style="background-color:#d2d2ff"| Shaggy Rogers
 * style="background-color:#aaffaa"| Billy West
 * style="background-color:#d2d2ff"| Scooby-Doo
 * style="background-color:#aaffaa"| Scott Innes
 * style="background-color:#d2d2ff"| Mr. Beeman
 * style="background-color:#aaffaa"| Ed Gilbert
 * style="background-color:#d2d2ff"| Chris
 * style="background-color:#aaffaa"| Jennifer Leigh Warren
 * style="background-color:#d2d2ff"| Airport customs boss
 * style="background-color:#aaffaa"| Mark Hamill
 * style="background-color:#d2d2ff"| Swami
 * style="background-color:#ffff00"| N/A
 * style="background-color:#d2d2ff"| Hooded skeletal ghost
 * style="background-color:#ffff00"| N/A
 * style="background-color:#d2d2ff"| Vampire beast
 * style="background-color:#ffff00"| N/A
 * style="background-color:#FDB56C" colspan="2"| Jim Shindrix
 * style="background-color:#d2d2ff"| Elderly jewel thief
 * style="background-color:#ffff00"| N/A
 * style="background-color:#d2d2ff"| Zombie riverboat captain
 * style="background-color:#ffff00"| N/A
 * style="background-color:#d2d2ff"| Elderly woman
 * style="background-color:#ffff00"| N/A
 * style="background-color:#d2d2ff"| Crawdad man
 * style="background-color:#ffff00"| N/A
 * style="background-color:#d2d2ff"| Bubba Joe
 * style="background-color:#ffff00"| N/A
 * style="background-color:#d2d2ff"| Lena Dupree
 * style="background-color:#aaffaa"| Tara Charendoff
 * style="background-color:#d2d2ff"| Pierre
 * style="background-color:#aaffaa"| Billy West
 * style="background-color:#d2d2ff"| Jacques
 * style="background-color:#aaffaa"| Jim Cummings
 * style="background-color:#d2d2ff"| Big Mona
 * style="background-color:#ffff00"| N/A
 * style="background-color:#d2d2ff"| Snakebite Scruggs
 * style="background-color:#aaffaa"| Mark Hamill
 * style="background-color:#d2d2ff"| Mojo
 * style="background-color:#ffff00"| Unavailable
 * style="background-color:#d2d2ff"| Det. Beau Neville
 * style="background-color:#aaffaa"| Cam Clarke
 * style="background-color:#d2d2ff"| Simone Lenoir's cats
 * style="background-color:#aaffaa"| Frank Welker
 * style="background-color:#d2d2ff"| Simone Lenoir
 * style="background-color:#aaffaa"| Adrienne Barbeau
 * style="background-color:#d2d2ff"| Morgan Moonscar
 * style="background-color:#aaffaa"| Jim Cummings
 * style="background-color:#d2d2ff"| Frog
 * style="background-color:#aaffaa"| Unavailable
 * style="background-color:#d2d2ff"| Owl
 * style="background-color:#aaffaa"| Frank Welker
 * style="background-color:#d2d2ff"| Col. Jackson T. Pettigrew
 * style="background-color:#aaffaa"| Jim Cummings
 * style="background-color:#d2d2ff"| Zombie pirate
 * style="background-color:#aaffaa"| Frank Welker
 * style="background-color:#d2d2ff"| Plantationer
 * style="background-color:#aaffaa"| Jim Cummings
 * style="background-color:#d2d2ff"| Snakebite Scruggs
 * style="background-color:#aaffaa"| Mark Hamill
 * style="background-color:#d2d2ff"| Mojo
 * style="background-color:#ffff00"| Unavailable
 * style="background-color:#d2d2ff"| Det. Beau Neville
 * style="background-color:#aaffaa"| Cam Clarke
 * style="background-color:#d2d2ff"| Simone Lenoir's cats
 * style="background-color:#aaffaa"| Frank Welker
 * style="background-color:#d2d2ff"| Simone Lenoir
 * style="background-color:#aaffaa"| Adrienne Barbeau
 * style="background-color:#d2d2ff"| Morgan Moonscar
 * style="background-color:#aaffaa"| Jim Cummings
 * style="background-color:#d2d2ff"| Frog
 * style="background-color:#aaffaa"| Unavailable
 * style="background-color:#d2d2ff"| Owl
 * style="background-color:#aaffaa"| Frank Welker
 * style="background-color:#d2d2ff"| Col. Jackson T. Pettigrew
 * style="background-color:#aaffaa"| Jim Cummings
 * style="background-color:#d2d2ff"| Zombie pirate
 * style="background-color:#aaffaa"| Frank Welker
 * style="background-color:#d2d2ff"| Plantationer
 * style="background-color:#aaffaa"| Jim Cummings
 * style="background-color:#d2d2ff"| Owl
 * style="background-color:#aaffaa"| Frank Welker
 * style="background-color:#d2d2ff"| Col. Jackson T. Pettigrew
 * style="background-color:#aaffaa"| Jim Cummings
 * style="background-color:#d2d2ff"| Zombie pirate
 * style="background-color:#aaffaa"| Frank Welker
 * style="background-color:#d2d2ff"| Plantationer
 * style="background-color:#aaffaa"| Jim Cummings
 * style="background-color:#d2d2ff"| Plantationer
 * style="background-color:#aaffaa"| Jim Cummings
 * style="background-color:#aaffaa"| Jim Cummings

Organizations

 * Mystery Incorporated

Locations

 * Castle
 * Chris set
 * Airport
 * Velma's bookshop
 * Daphne's residence
 * Louisiana
 * New Orleans
 * Mansion
 * Cemetery
 * Casino riverboat
 * Bubba Joe's
 * Pierre's Poor Boys
 * Jacques Landing
 * Moonscar Island
 * Moonscar Mansion
 * The Moon

Objects

 * Missing Mystery Planes
 * Scooby Snacks
 * Fred's camcorder
 * Louisiana Guide Book
 * Chili peppers
 * Voodoo dolls

Vehicles

 * The Mystery Machine
 * Jacques's ferryboat
 * Maelstrom

Development
When Warner Bros. became the owners of the Hanna-Barbera intellectual properties after their parent company, Time Warner, bought out Turner who owned the animation studio at the time, Scooby-Doo was initially suggested as an idea for a movie simply because it was noticed that merchandise sold well and tested positively in polls for mothers/housewives. It was originally intended for theatrical release until Warner Bros. wanted to boost sales for their video department. The film was an experiment in the home video market and supposed to be a one-off, so time was more relaxed than usual and Warner Bros. saw no reason to interfere. The drafts were written on the 10th, 13th, and 17th of October 1997.

When it came time to devise the story, a "brain trust" came together, including Davis Doi, Jim Stenstrum, Glenn Leopold, and Lance Falk. The movie's combination of fake and real monsters was suggested by Falk to appease the differing views of Stenstrum, who wanted real monsters, and Leopold, who thought having real monsters was against the Scooby-Doo formula, as there needed to be a solvable mystery for the audience. Davis agreed to real monsters because he felt that the premise of having someone behind a fake monster couldn't hold for the length of a movie like it could for an episode.

The plot isn't entirely original, as it is repurposed from Glenn Leopold's script of "The Curse of Kataluna", an unfinished episode of the canceled TV series SWAT Kats: The Radical Squadron. Leopold also used a similar premise for The Real Adventures of Jonny Quest episode "Eclipse". However, had that episode of SWATS Kats been finished, the story wouldn't have had been used.

Davis hired Iwao Takamoto, the original character designer, to storyboard the comedy sequences of Scooby and Shaggy.

Casting
Most of the original cast was replaced from previous Scooby-Doo productions:
 * Don Messick, the voice of Scooby-Doo, had only just died before recording took place, so he was replaced by radio personality, Scott Innes.
 * Heather North, the second voice of Daphne, was initially cast, doing a table read and spent a day doing half her lines in the booth, but after recording, the studio decided they needed someone fresh, so North was recast with Mary Kay Bergman, who redid all of North's existing lines.
 * For Velma, instead of going back to Nicole Jaffe, the casting department went with Ward, who had performed the voice of Velma the previous year in the Johnny Bravo episode "Bravo Dooby-Doo".
 * Casey Kasem was the most difficult to get back as he had strict demands in how he would only return if Shaggy was converted into a vegetarian to match the actor's own lifestyle, largely brought on by already refusing to act in a Burger King commercial as Shaggy. When they couldn't reach an agreement, Kasem was replaced with Billy West, who was already on a pay-or-play contract, in the hopes of a last-minute change of mind from Kasem.
 * Frank Welker, the voice of Fred, was the only member of the original cast to be successfully brought back. Initially, there were some concerns about his voice, as the recording director, Colette Sunderman, believed he should be talking in a higher pitch, but he had to convince her with old tapes that he was performing the voice correctly. The confusion may have been the result of the likes of Cartoon Network time compressing episodes, which speeds up the audio and results in characters talking in a higher pitch than they usually are.

Music
The film's music was composed by Steven Bramson. The "Scooby-Doo, Where Are You?" is revived for the first time since Scooby-Doo, Where Are You? ended in 1970, but instead of being a bubble gum pop song, it is redone by the rock band Third Eye Blind.

Songs

 * "Scooby-Doo, Where Are You?" - performed by Third Eye Blind
 * "The Ghost is Here" - performed by Skycycle
 * "It's Terror Time Again" - performed by Skycycle

Behind the scenes

 * Fred and Daphne are given blue eyes, while Shaggy is given brown.
 * There's a grave that reads "In Memory 1947-1972 Jimi Shindix", which is an allusion to musician Jimi Hendrix, who lived from 1942-1970.
 * Fred borders on gluttony; he takes way more interest in food and eats way more in this film than he ever did before.
 * Velma says "Jinkies" ten times.
 * Shaggy says "Zoinks" fourteenth times.
 * Scooby says "Zoinks" once.
 * The romantic interest between Fred and Daphne is shown for the first time in a Scooby-Doo production. There was the Johnny Bravo crossover, although that was done for laughs.
 * Beau acts somewhat of a love interest for Velma, which has never happened before, unless you take into account Johnny Bravo. The next film, Scooby-Doo! and the Witch's Ghost, progresses that idea further with her idol, Ben Ravencroft.
 * Fred goes through three outfit changes (four including his original).
 * Daphne goes through two outfit changes (three including her original).

Errors

 * Velma's bookshop has three different names: "Dinkley's Mystery Book Shoppe" on the window; "Dinkley's Mystery Books" on the sign sticking out; and then calls it "Mystery Inc. Bookshop" on the phone.
 * The Mystery Machine has been redesigned to be more like a minivan, yet in-universe, it's still supposed to be the same. However, in the fourth DTV, Scooby-Doo and the Cyber Chase, Fred makes an oblique comment about it being good to be back in the old Mystery Machine while riding around in the Cyber Gang's van.
 * When Pierre brings the guys their sandwich, the basket of peppers looks more like soup. The basket is also irregularly in front of the item next to it, instead of sitting next to it.
 * Shaggy says to Scooby not to hog all the hot sauce, but he doesn't use any himself anyway.
 * The Jacques Landing sign is missing grammar, so it neither says "Jacques' Landing" or "Jacques's Landing".
 * When Simone tells the gang how the mansion has been in her family for generations, her face isn't detailed at all, save for some lines in place of her eyes and nose.
 * When Daphne reacts to seeing Velma levitate, her lipstick is a pinker shade.
 * When the gang check on the hole where Moonscar was reanimated, the detail on the faces of Velma, Shaggy, and Fred are practically devoid of all detail. Velma also looks off-model and Scooby's mouth looks wrinkled.
 * When Daphne doesn't want to leave the island, the faces of Velma, Daphne, Fred, Shaggy have little to no detail. Fred's head also looks mangled.
 * As the dusk sets, the "Mystery Machine" words on the van are just two full orange bars, and when it is night, it is one full orange bar with "The" having disappeared..
 * When Fred holds up the biscuit, it passes through his hair.
 * The outside shot of the Mystery Machine before it switches to Scooby and Shaggy inside, has the logo of the van kind of messily applied.
 * When the zombie puts his head back on, Scooby and Shaggy have mysteriously separated from Daphne and Fred.
 * Simone contradicts herself when she first says that her people were settlers, then islanders.
 * When Simone and Lena, as werecats, catch Scooby and Shaggy the first time, Scooby is missing his collar, which returns in the next shot, and is later ripped off by Jacques. Scooby remains without a collar until the sunset when they all leave Moonscar Island.
 * Lena's torn left sleeve is drawn incorrectly in the scene when she, Simone, and Jacques begin dying. Instead of her bare shoulder poking through a hole, her sleeve completely covers it while most of the bottom section is ripped off.
 * It's unknown how Simone provided for herself and Lena, as well as pay Beau for his work. She could actually sell the island's peppers, but that would probably bring more attention to the island than she would want. Of course, she might have stolen money from the victims they drained, as if what they were doing wasn't bad enough.
 * When Fred recorded the zombies that are real and ran with Daphne, he held the VHS camcorder backward, but in the next shot after that, he drops it forward in the quicksand.
 * Morgan Moonscar's buried treasure does exist, as shown in the flashback describing his demise. However, it is dropped from the story altogether as a red herring, but the treasure presumably is still there.
 * The flashbacks show his crew carrying the chest ashore and later beginning to bury it, so it appears that the motive of killing the colonists was (at least in part) to keep them from witnessing where he buried his treasure.
 * The chances of an undercover detective (especially one investigating a possible string of homicides) not carrying a gun or a dispatch radio are extremely remote, even in a cartoon.
 * Why would the police wait until now to investigate the disappearances on the island when the latter has already been occurring for two hundred years? While the first disappearances would've been unnoticeable due to the population scarcity, it is very unlikely that they only just started noticing.
 * How Simone and Lena got ahold of Velma's eyeglass cleaning cloth and other articles of clothing and/or hair from Fred and Daphne was never explained. Beau already lived there so the two women could have taken something from him at any time.
 * Velma picks up a piece of red fabric, saying it was part of Lena's blouse. However, Lena's blouse is purple. Her vest and skirt are red. Since her werecat transformation didn't tear her vest, the fabric should be part of her skirt.
 * When Beau helps Velma onto the ferry, his face is absent of detail.
 * When Fred and Daphne board the ferry as the Mystery Machine also drives on, "The Mystery Machine" is written as "The Mysery Machine".
 * The glow on the cats' eyes isn't properly placed on their eyes but above them.
 * The reveal at the end of Simone's cats' eyes glowing could suggest something more to them, such as a long lifespan (even immortality), since they were more than just house pets, they were creatures that Simone and Lena worshipped in the 1700s, meaning the cats in the flashback and Simone's could be one and the same, although, of course, this isn't directly confirmed.

Everlasting influence
Scholastic published adaptations in Scooby-Doo on Zombie Island and Scooby-Doo and Zombies, Too!

In the next film, Scooby-Doo! and the Witch's Ghost, Ben Ravencroft hires Mystery Inc. because of the Moat Monster case he reads about in the newspaper.

Photos of Moonscar Mansion and the Moat Monster's capture are Easter eggs in the 28th and 29th DTVs, Scooby-Doo! and the Gourmet Ghost and Scooby-Doo! and the 13th Ghost, respectively. This was a tease building up to the 30th DTV, Scooby-Doo! Return to Zombie Island, where it acts like a long-awaited sequel, although ends up more like a reboot of the whole event, changing several key scenes, the biggest of all that the real monsters were fake. A similar occurrence happened in ''Scooby-Doo! and the 13th Ghost, which undoes the fact that there were real monsters in the TV series it was supposed to conclude for, The 13 Ghosts of Scooby-Doo''.

Marketing and promotion
The film gained significant promotion from General Mills, NASCAR, Wendy's, and SpaghettiOs.

Scholastic published adaptations in Scooby-Doo on Zombie Island and Scooby-Doo and Zombies, Too!

The film was highly publicized with the tagline, "This time the monsters are real."

Trailers
Teaser #1:

Teaser #2:

Trailer #1: