The Bad Guys: Haunted Heist

The Bad Guys: Haunted Heist is a 2024 computer-animated Halloween television special set as a prequel to the 2022 feature film. On Halloween night, Mr. Wolf tells the rest of the Bad Guys crew about a legendary amulet belonging to a notorious deceased villain named Reginald E. Scary, a shoebill stork whose haunted mansion reputedly curses anyone who dares to steal from it. The crew is skeptical of Wolf's warnings, having experienced his Halloween pranks in past years, and they head to Scary's mansion anyway. They successfully navigate the mansion's automated defenses and locate the treasure, securing the amulet. Before they leave, Wolf pulls yet another prank on his crewmates. Back at their hideout, Wolf begins experiencing increasingly unsettling phenomena — hearing mysterious music and suffering strange dreams — and becomes convinced he is genuinely cursed by the amulet. He persuades the reluctant crew to return to the mansion and give back the stolen treasure. Upon arriving, however, the rest of the gang is apparently kidnapped, leaving Wolf no choice but to surrender the amulet to whatever supernatural force seems to be at work. The twist is then revealed: the gang staged the kidnapping themselves as elaborate payback for Wolf's ongoing pranks. Wolf, however, anticipated their revenge scheme entirely — when he seemingly disintegrates upon retrieving the amulet a second time, it turns out to be another one of his own tricks. Having been outwitted twice in one night, the furious gang descends on Wolf in retaliation, ending the special on a chaotic comedic note.

Sources: Wikipedia, Web search synthesis (Animation Magazine, Moviefone, Filmaffinity)