Statues of Walt Disney and Mickey Mouse stand in the garden in front of Cinderella Castle at Magic Kingdom Park in Walt Disney World on May 31, 2024 in Orlando, Florida.
Gary Hershorn | Corbes News | Getty Images
The time of the wicked has come.
disney The classic villain is getting his own theme park at the Magic Kingdom in Orlando, Florida.
The company first revealed the possibility of a hostile takeover at the last D23 expo in 2022 as part of a series of “blue sky” projects it was considering, but was unsure whether they would materialize.
While the prospect of exploring a world beyond Big Thunder Mountain appealed to fans, its lack of tangibles left many wondering what exactly Disney was doing to compete with the upcoming film. Universal Epic universe.
The company had the answer Saturday night at an experiential showcase at the Honda Center in Anaheim, California.
“As we sit here at Honda Center, imagine the engineers hard at work,” Josh D’Amaro told the cheering crowd. “Everything we’re going to share with you is under active development … which means the dirt is moving. That’s not blue sky.”
Disney’s theme parks, part of the broader Experiences segment, have long been the company’s best-performing unit, especially during a period of changing linear television networks and declining cable advertising revenue. Parks have provided stability in recent quarters as Disney adjusts its entertainment business to changing consumer habits following the pandemic.
In the latest quarter, however, consumer demand slowed and inflation picked up at Disney’s domestic parks in California and Florida. The company expects this flat attendance to continue into the coming quarters.
Still, Disney is bullish on its experiences segment, which includes theme parks, cruise lines and restaurants. The company has pledged to invest $60 billion in experiences over the next 10 years, a key part of its strategy to keep parks fresh and relevant in a competitive market.
About 70% of the funds will be used for new experiences in domestic and international parks and cruise lines. Another 30% will be spent on technology and infrastructure, including the maintenance of existing attractions.
On Saturday, Disney fans learned where the investment was going with the help of some big names.
walt disney world
Rita Ora performed “Trust Me” from “The Jungle Book” on stage to announce a new villain coming to the Magic Kingdom. In the Magic Kingdom, Villainland is unfolding. This new area of the park will include two major attractions as well as shopping and dining options.
“So be prepared, you poor unfortunate souls,” D’Amaro teased.
Shaboozey’s rendition of “Life Is a Highway” rocked the Honda Center as part of the announcement that parts of Florida’s Frontier Land will be rethemed with elements from the movie “Cars.”
D’Amaro told viewers that this area will be different from the areas at Disney California Adventure and will take place in the wilderness. There will be an e-ticket attraction, an exciting cross-country rally, and a second, more family-friendly ride. Construction is expected to begin in early 2025.
D’Amaro noted that these expansions to Magic Kingdom are the largest ever in the park’s history.
At Hollywood Studios, Disney will build a park centered on “Monsters, Inc.” Billy Crystal, who voices the one-eyed green monster Mike Wazowski, appeared on stage to tease the new area to attendees.
Crystal sang “If I Didn’t Have You” and received a standing ovation.
The land will feature a major attraction where visitors can experience the thrilling ride of the Laugh Factory on a suspended roller coaster. Spectators cheered for the new ride. Damaro said construction will begin next year.
Animal Kingdom’s Tropical America, opening in 2027, will feature an Indiana Jones attraction located inside a Mayan temple. Ke Huy Quan appeared on stage with D’Amaro to tease the new ride and recall his first performance in Raiders of the Lost Ark: Temple of Doom.
“Josh, I gotta ask you, are there going to be snakes?” Quan joked.
D’Amaro said construction will begin in the fall and guests will have to wait and see what happens with the Orlando-based attraction’s new story.
As part of the land of Tropical America, Disney is creating Puebla Esperanza, which means Village of Hope. The company is building the “Casita Madrigal” in “Encanto” here and will have an attraction centered on the character of Antonio, who has the magical gift of talking to animals. Casita animated the house furniture for guests touring the house, where they would venture into Antonio’s jungle room.
Part of this area will also feature a new carousel themed after carved wooden animals from classic Disney stories.
disneyland
D’Amaro said Saturday that the world of “Avatar” is coming to Disney California Adventure. The area will draw inspiration from the second film, Aqueduct, and feature a new attraction.
“For our new destination, we were inspired by the second film, Waterfall, as well as the upcoming Fire and Water,” said Ali Rubinstein, global executive executive, creative development, Walt Disney Imagineering. “Ash” as well as future Avatar movies “It’s going to be a scale and level worthy of these epic stories. “
The park will also open a “Coco” attraction, which will follow Miguel through the Land of the Dead. It will utilize state-of-the-art audio animatronics technology, just like in Tiana Bayou Adventure Park was recently renovated. It also draws inspiration from the iconic Haunted Mansion and Pirates of the Caribbean rides. The company will break ground in 2026.
Deadpool appeared on stage to tease the parks, including the animatronic dragon that caught fire at Disneyland last year, as well as Damaro.
The company later revealed that the Avengers campus will nearly double in size with the addition of two new attractions. The first, called Avengers Infinity Defense, will take guests on an adventure to stop King Thanos from using stolen portal technology. Riders will help defend iconic locations such as Asgard, Wakanda, and New York City.
The second attraction is the Stark Flying Laboratory, where guests will learn how to fly like a superhero. Construction will begin next year.
The company also announced that the revamped Splash Mountain Tiana Bayou Adventure Park will open on November 15.
international park
Disneyland Paris’ Adventureland theme park will add a “Lion King”-themed area and a “Pride Place”-themed log flume attraction. The previously announced Frozen theme park will open in 2026.
Shanghai is about to launch a new thrilling roller coaster with a Spider-Man theme.
“This is going to be a dynamic, thrilling roller coaster,” said Scott Trowbridge, senior creative director at Walt Disney Imagineering.
Hong Kong Parks will also add a Spider-Man thrill attraction to the Stark Expo site.
Tokyo will launch a new nighttime spectacle called “Reach for the Stars” in September. These include characters from The Big Six, Up, and Marvel superheroes.
disney cruise
Disney Cruise Line is expanding in a big way. In addition to the five ships already sailing around the world and the four ships in production, Disney will add four more ships to the fleet between 2027 and 2031.
D’Amaro brought All-4-One to perform “This I Swear” to announce four new ships. Disney Cruise Line will soon have 13 different destinations.
“Disney Cruise Line has always been the top-rated cruise line for families because it offers something for everyone,” D’Amaro said. “Expanding our fleet provides more people in more parts of the world the opportunity for at-sea experiences that only Disney can offer.”
‘Epic’ partnership
Disney also used Saturday’s presentation to update fans and shareholders on its status Epic Games invests $1.5 billion.
D’Amaro took the stage with creative executives from across the company, including Walt Disney Animation’s Jennifer Lee, Pixar’s Pete Doctor, Marvel’s Kevin Feige and Lucasfilm’s Dave Filoni, to share a few moments with Epic Games and Fortnite have several upcoming collaborations.
D’Amaro said Disney live-streamed this segment of the show on “Fortress Heroes,” and more than a million people tuned in.
Lee said Disney animated characters will appear in the game this fall, including Cruella, Hook and Maleficent. Doc added that Pixar’s The Incredibles will also join the mix, including “Frozone,” “Elastigirl” and “The Incredibles.”
Filoni said Lucasfilm will unveil new Star Wars characters next week, including back costumes for IG-11 and Grogu. Filoni also teased that he and Jon Favreau are working on a Mandalorian and Grogu story for the Star Wars Smugglers Run ride in Galaxy’s Edge.
Marvel has been an Epic partner since 2018, with more partners on the way. Feige said many fans discovered Marvel characters through “Fortress Heroes” and then went on to read comics and watch Marvel Cinematic Universe content. A new Doctor Doom-centric event is launching in the game next week. On Saturday night, D23 viewers were treated to a trailer that included a number of new special weapons, including Captain America’s shield and Peeley’s version of Wolverine.
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