News 'Encanto' and 'Indiana Jones'-themed experiences at Animal Kingdom

[UNCgolf]

I always thought it was meant to be deliberately abstract and interpretive, as opposed to a literal translation of the characters and scenes like in the Magic Kingdom show, which for a few years was running at the same time.

I think so too, but that's why there's plenty of room for another Lion King attraction at the park.

 

[ToTBellHop]

I think so too, but that's why there's plenty of room for another Lion King attraction at the park.

I’d love a relatively modest dark ride south of FotLK. Mermaid scale but cut the excessive queue and spend that money on AAs and animated figures.

 

[UNCgolf]

I’d love a relatively modest dark ride south of FotLK. Mermaid scale but cut the excessive queue and spend that money on AAs and animated figures.

If they're actually building a Lion King ride at DLP, I'm sure it'll make its way to Animal Kingdom eventually.

 

[Animaniac93-98]

So, I guess many forgot there was a stage show in AK when the park first opened..

I didn't forget, but it was very short lived, and in the years since there hasn't been much for the movie in the park.

 

[SpectreJordan]

I’m honestly mostly content with Epcot at the moment.

SSE and Figment obviously need work, especially Figment, but in terms of expansions or additions, it could use an extra E-ticket or two, but it would just make a great park greater.

Definitely could use some more, but it needs it the least, imho.

I do think DAK needs love the most, its ride lineup is just so shallow (yet so elite), but if Animal Kingdom doubled its ride-lineup, it’s honestly a more-chill Epcot. I absolutely love Animal Kingdom, but I hardly visit it since I only ever find myself spending a few hours there at a time (whereas I can spend every weekend at Epcot).

I’m not sure if HWS or Magic needs more first. Both have severe capacity issues, but MK continues to lack a stellar modern headlining E-ticket. It’s embarrassing imho. It’s still a great park, but since so many people will only do one day at MK, it needs to represent the resort in a better way.

How is the park better for families with very young children since the 80s? I’m likely (and hopefully) something, but if you exclude all thrill rides or coasters, the only new dark ride is Ariel? They removed Snow White, so I guess they’ve added a few meet and greets and the Aladdin Spinner, but Magic needs a slate of a few new family dark rides. It basically needs its own Fantasy Springs.

Hollywood Studios probably needs more than Magic, but it’s mainly because it needs to replace existing ugly and add 2 complete lands. What’s there is great, but there’s hardly anything there. Difference with Animal Kingdom is there’s a lot of ugly, attendance is high, and capacity is low, so solution is multiple new lands, whereas Animal Kingdom can probably get away with almost exclusively new attractions (which means it would be cheaper to fix).

I think EPCOT still needs some love. I was there on Tuesday for most of the day & all I did was LWTL & the festival. The wait times for the rides are ridiculous just because there's not many of them. Frozen & Ratatouille shouldn't have E-ticket wait times.

I'd probably say: DAK=DHS > EPCOT > MK in terms of needing additions. Preferably all 4 would be getting something in the near future though.

Yeah, It’s kinda confusing on why Disney didn’t build Beastly Kingdom earlier and Update Dinoland USA after the parks success, also with It’s tough to be a bug! Closing for the zootopia show, i think they should have put a bugs land from DCA over in animal to make sense with its themes to animals.

Pandora is the evolution of the Beastly Kingdom concept. I think it fits the park better too since it has clear conservational messages, I don't think a European fantasy land would've had those messages.

I would think that a Zootopia film could be appropriate depending upon execution. A Zootopia land like what’s in Shanghai would stick out like a sore thumb.

If they really wanted to, the movie could be about the Zootopia citizens talking about their ancestors. That IP should really just go to DHS though.

It's ridiculous that Jungle Book, one of the most consistently popular Disney titles of all time, has barely been used in a Disney theme park all about animals and jungles for the past 25 years.

That they would consider Encanto, Moana, Zootopia or Coco first shows their recency bias.

Even then, the live action Jungle Book made a billion dollars. That should be proof enough to Disney that people still love those characters.

Except the remake, by definition, means the property is not new in the same way other movies released that year were.

And the success of it has not resulted in much in the way of additional exposure for the IP.

That animated Peter Pan was the basis for basically a new land in Tokyo, despite that movies more obvious problematic elements, is a surprise to me for the same reasons.

There was rumors that there was going to be a sequel to Jungle Book, but I guess those plans fell through once Favreau became one of the head Star Wars guys.

Japan doesn't really care about problematic things (yet?), so that's why they're completely fine with a Peter Pan land & why they're keeping Splash Mountain. I guess it makes sense since they're not really exposed to as diverse a range of cultures as the US is.

 

[DisneyDodo]

I think EPCOT still needs some love. I was there on Tuesday for most of the day & all I did was LWTL & the festival. The wait times for the rides are ridiculous just because there's not many of them. Frozen & Ratatouille shouldn't have E-ticket wait times.

Agreed, I think WS in particular needs more rides. Frozen & Rat’s wait times get so long partially because, if you’re in the area and have kids, there’s not much else to do. Adding 3-4 more C/D-ticket rides back there (e.g. Poppins in UK, Coco as addition to Mexico, Tangled in Germany, Pinocchio/Luca in Italy, etc.) would help spread out those crowds.

 

[SpectreJordan]

Agreed, I think WS in particular needs more rides. Frozen & Rat’s wait times get so long partially because, if you’re in the area and have kids, there’s not much else to do. Adding 3-4 more C/D-ticket rides back there (e.g. Poppins in UK, Coco as addition to Mexico, Tangled in Germany, Pinocchio/Luca in Italy, etc.) would help spread out those crowds.

I definitely agree. I'd love if they would revive some of the ideas they had like the Italian boat ride. A mix of IP & original would be nice for WS.

 

[osian]

Agreed, I think WS in particular needs more rides. Frozen & Rat’s wait times get so long partially because, if you’re in the area and have kids, there’s not much else to do. Adding 3-4 more C/D-ticket rides back there (e.g. Poppins in UK, Coco as addition to Mexico, Tangled in Germany, Pinocchio/Luca in Italy, etc.) would help spread out those crowds.

I'd like to see them put the World back into World Showcase, rather than a Disney Movie Showcase. Agreed that WS needs more attractions to spread out the crowds. How about the Rhine River Cruise for Germany, or an omnimover in UK to demonstrate that the UK is actually four distinct nations, perhaps even emphasising that Alice has a Welsh foundation rather than perpetuating the stereotypical London area of Poppins (https://www.visitwales.com/things-do/culture/cultural-attractions/alice-wonderland-tour-llandudno), a Mount Fuji-based attraction in Japan. These are all much more exciting ideas than rehashing yet more movies.

 

[celluloid]

It's ridiculous that Jungle Book, one of the most consistently popular Disney titles of all time, has barely been used in a Disney theme park all about animals and jungles for the past 25 years.

That they would consider Encanto, Moana, Zootopia or Coco first shows their recency bias.

Not just recent bias, but synergy now too because the only new attraction work have things up and coming in the works(or did) as well.

I used to call it the The Little Mermaid rule Which was rarely anything before the 1989 was referenced or used for attractions or main themes anymore. "Art of Animation" was an example of this as there is not an entire wing to anything older than it and only references to literally anything other than the...three films it uses.

Now it is only IP with things in the works. Chasing a commercial advertisement than just synergy.

Moana
Guardians
Zootopia
Indy
Princess and The Frog
Toy Story Land
Incredibles.
Hatbox(seems convenient to be added on the year the remake of the last attempt ten years ago would occur)

Most all situations had a film out the year or so before it came or one and a half.yewrs away for a new installment.

 

[capsshield]

If the disney company was smart they would really build out wdw. It is the destination, the cash cow of the company.
It sells DVC's, and week long visits for couples and families.

It paved the way for all the other resorts to come.

They have used and abused this asset time after time to build up their other ambitious plans. They only add when it's necessary now.
Universal has actually made use of WDW better than Disney by siphoning off tourists.

If Disney does things right it will involve making the magic Kingdom a 2 to 3 day park by expanding from behind big thunder north and then east until they reach the far east berm connecting to circus land.
Turn Epcot into a two day park by fixing wol and imagination and adding an attraction to each country and additional countries.

The studios and animal kingdom need just as much to create full day parks.

I would actually expand into the parking lot of the studios and build an expansion that reaches the back end of epcot and build a second gate there with in-park hotels, shopping and DVCs connecting the two areas.

Disney should say OK Universal beat this and launch and unbeatable unstoppable juggernaut of expansion.

A full 7 day experience that needs 9 to 10 days if you add in all the extras.

That 60 billion over 10 years should be 150 billion over 20 years, and the board should be saying are you sure that's enough, not cut this, or cut that, and 17 should be 50 over 20 years going to WDW.

 

[Andrew25]

If the disney company was smart they would really build out wdw. It is the destination, the cash cow of the company.
It sells DVC's, and week long visits for couples and families.

It paved the way for all the other resorts to come.

They have used and abused this asset time after time to build up their other ambitious plans. They only add when it's necessary now.
Universal has actually made use of WDW better than Disney by siphoning off tourists.

If Disney does things right it will involve making the magic Kingdom a 2 to 3 day park by expanding from behind big thunder north and then east until they reach the far east berm connecting to circus land.
Turn Epcot into a two day park by fixing wol and imagination and adding an attraction to each country and additional countries.

The studios and animal kingdom need just as much to create full day parks.

I would actually expand into the parking lot of the studios and build an expansion that reaches the back end of epcot and build a second gate there with in-park hotels, shopping and DVCs connecting the two areas.

Disney should say OK Universal beat this and launch and unbeatable unstoppable juggernaut of expansion.

A full 7 day experience that needs 9 to 10 days if you add in all the extras.

That 60 billion over 10 years should be 150 billion over 20 years, and the board should be saying are you sure that's enough, not cut this, or cut that, and 17 should be 50 over 20 years going to WDW.

Sounds good and call... but nobody is extending their trips to Orlando anymore. It's become too expensive for people to extend. The battle will be fought over content, not quantity.

 

[TIKITIKITIKTITITKTITIROOM]

If the disney company was smart they would really build out wdw. It is the destination, the cash cow of the company.
It sells DVC's, and week long visits for couples and families.

It paved the way for all the other resorts to come.

They have used and abused this asset time after time to build up their other ambitious plans. They only add when it's necessary now.
Universal has actually made use of WDW better than Disney by siphoning off tourists.

If Disney does things right it will involve making the magic Kingdom a 2 to 3 day park by expanding from behind big thunder north and then east until they reach the far east berm connecting to circus land.
Turn Epcot into a two day park by fixing wol and imagination and adding an attraction to each country and additional countries.

The studios and animal kingdom need just as much to create full day parks.

I would actually expand into the parking lot of the studios and build an expansion that reaches the back end of epcot and build a second gate there with in-park hotels, shopping and DVCs connecting the two areas.

Disney should say OK Universal beat this and launch and unbeatable unstoppable juggernaut of expansion.

A full 7 day experience that needs 9 to 10 days if you add in all the extras.

That 60 billion over 10 years should be 150 billion over 20 years, and the board should be saying are you sure that's enough, not cut this, or cut that, and 17 should be 50 over 20 years going to WDW.

I will follow you into battle. I'm ready to start shoveling by hand if I have to!!!

 

[Brer Panther]

If they really wanted to, the movie could be about the Zootopia citizens talking about their ancestors. That IP should really just go to DHS though.

I doubt the Zootopia show will talk about actual animals at all.

Now it is only IP with things in the works. Chasing a commercial advertisement than just synergy.

Moana
Guardians
Zootopia
Indy
Princess and The Frog
Toy Story Land
Incredibles.
Hatbox(seems convenient to be added on the year the remake of the last attempt ten years ago would occur)

Where does Encanto fall into this? Unless there's an Encanto 2 in the works and they just haven't announced it yet...

Isn't there something Coco-related in these hypothetical Dinoland replacement plans too? Are they planning a Coco 2?

 

[celluloid]

I doubt the Zootopia show will talk about actual animals at all.

Where does Encanto fall into this? Unless there's an Encanto 2 in the works and they just haven't announced it yet...

Isn't there something Coco-related in these hypothetical Dinoland replacement plans too? Are they planning a Coco 2?

Ha good points. Firstly, note just for clarification it was said most all. There are a couple to a few...if that exceptions(Even Rattatouie was once rumored to get a sequel in the works) Not all. I think specifically you are meaning the Beyond Big Thunder Blue Sky from a couple years ago.
They announced it the year Encanto came out. So it fits the recent connection.

And bluntly I am putting that version of Beyond Big Thunder under call me when it actually happens. Because we can bet when it does there will be a sequel or spin off to likely in plans.

Those movies were not even that old by the time they were announced as the entirety of a new land(one like less than two years old so you know it was pushed before it even came out) So it fits the overall mandate of IP only and mostly when something is in the works to continue it.

Notice how quick Poppins got the budget boot once Mary Poppins Returns was not a smash hit and if based on more of the original, could not stick around under current environment as it is not synergy enough.

 

[Brer Panther]

Notice how quick Poppins got the budget boot once Mary Poppins Returns was not a smash hit and if based on more of the original, could not stick around under current environment as it is not synergy enough.

But wasn't the recent Indiana Jones movie a flop, too? Yet they're still going ahead with the Indiana Jones retheme of Dinosaur?

 

[celluloid]

But wasn't the recent Indiana Jones movie a flop, too? Yet they're still going ahead with the Indiana Jones retheme of Dinosaur?

Are they? We don't know for sure yet. It was written to be announced in a scripted presentation when it was releasing in theaters. Comparable to Tiana since it is a retheme in scale. Still holds the concept of a synergy. Does not mean it is always successful. If anything it shows how strict this mandate and MO of Iger and execs are. They won't let Imagineering do anything original and have not stateside in the park's major attractions for a long time. Publically, they even said they have no interest in it.

I don't think a flop is relevant. It is insult but the fact that it was in place because of congruency remains. They don't stop because it is not a hit. They try at whatever is coming out.

The Disney Plus Tiana show got completely revamped and altered/delayed and at this point maybe even cancelled completely, but the attraction synergy to retheme splash was already in place and irrelevant to how it was received. Just like Hatbox. They knew that character was going to be the antagonist and a starring role for the movie.

 

[EricsBiscuit]

I'd like to see them put the World back into World Showcase, rather than a Disney Movie Showcase. Agreed that WS needs more attractions to spread out the crowds. How about the Rhine River Cruise for Germany, or an omnimover in UK to demonstrate that the UK is actually four distinct nations, perhaps even emphasising that Alice has a Welsh foundation rather than perpetuating the stereotypical London area of Poppins (https://www.visitwales.com/things-do/culture/cultural-attractions/alice-wonderland-tour-llandudno), a Mount Fuji-based attraction in Japan. These are all much more exciting ideas than rehashing yet more movies.

Unfortunately I don’t see them building any non-IP rides anymore. The best chance for WS to get more rides are well known IPs like Poppins and Coco

 

[Brer Panther]

I don't think a flop is relevant.

Well, in the past they have cancelled attractions based on movies because those movies were flops. For example, the Atlantis retheme of Disneyland's Submarine Voyage.

 

[Zummi Gummi]

Maybe I’m naive, but I think the Indiana Jones franchise has achieved a certain level of iconic status in the cultural zeitgeist that the box office performance of the last (ill-advised) sequel can be overlooked. The public still loves the franchise, and the enduring popularity of both the show here and the ride in Disneyland are testament to that.

 

[Cmdr_Crimson]

Well, in the past they have cancelled attractions based on movies because those movies were flops. For example, the Atlantis retheme of Disneyland's Submarine Voyage.

Or hide rides original identity to reflect where it came from..
Looking at you Mission: Space