EPCOT Anna, Elsa and Kristoff Audio-Animatronics refresh coming to Frozen Ever After in EPCOT

[Sirwalterraleigh]

Okay and if you saw multiple videos of Mcdonalds with one being very clean and another being visibly very dirty taken on different days, you cannot make an inference that one is more likely to be the cleaner one than the other?

You don't have to lick the countertop to find out its dirty, if it looks dirty, it most likely is. It's not a perfect guess but you can be atleast 90% sure its probably dirty.

The fundamental appeal of Disney parks…over six flags over cowabumba…was the atmosphere and feel in the park. It’s a combination of the all the pieces to create a sensory feel that has never been really replicated…not at universal or anywhere…but the gap has closed.

You really can’t get that from video. Most old timers had a kinda “euphoric feel” that you really couldn’t put into words. That’s why they are at the top of the food chain.

I’m sad you’re not old enough to have felt that. You would have liked it.

Now is it “bad” now? No…the strength of the build still is solid. But it feels WAY more like a meat market now than it once did. Lower quality over all with micro transactions everywhere.

I advise younger folks to not assume it was always this way or inferior in the past. If you lower your expectations…they will lower their outlays. It’s a race to the bottom.

No one wins

 

[aladdin2007]

The orange spotlights on Anna and Kristof are indeed problematic in lighting up a blue background.

Throw softer and a bit more whiter lights from more spread out sources, and put blue up lights on the floor behind the AAs.

They must have borrowed some from Gran Fiesta Tour, or had a deal on them, whoever on their team thinks its good show lighting, its not.

 

[Disney Analyst]

I wonder if Anna’s neck / head is fixed today? It seemed stiff yesterday, like she had a kink in it. Did not seem like it has full motion during the soft.

Saw some clips from today, her head is moving a lot better today.

The one thing noted is that it does seem Elsa's new lips cannot keep up as well to the speed of the lyrics, but maybe she just got too much filler?

 

[Chester&Hester Enthusiast]

It is clearly a massive improvement, although the bar was pretty low to begin with. That said, the new show lighting is not great and it creates some odd shadows on surfaces that should not have them. The wigs on the Elsas also do not seem to sit flush against the forehead. There appears to be a noticeable gap or deep shadow between the hairline and the skin. I'm not sure if this was also an issue with the old heads and the new lighting is just making it more obvious, but it's especially noticeable in the ice castle scene.

Genuinely not understanding the decision to change the show lighting to bright spotlights and warm orange tones in a ride set at night in a snowy ice castle, but welcome to 2026 WDI, I guess. The masterful artists that thought to place a candle on Madame Leota's table to trick your mind from registering the projection glare on her ball are truly dead and gone, along with their institutional knowledge, and this is what passes for acceptable attention to minute details these days.

Photos from BlogMickey

 

[eddie104]

Walt Disney himself get plenty wrong.

Let’s not get started on that because a lot of things could be said.

He was a product of his time.

 

[Architectural Guinea Pig]

This is a great example of how we continue to invest in attractions to enhance the experiences our Guests know and love,

Ugh this is so smug for the barest of bare minimums I hate it so much

 

[James Alucobond]

Ugh this is so smug for the barest of bare minimums I hate it so much

I'm not going to complain if they continue on this trajectory with refurbs. We've had or will have Country Bears, Big Thunder, Buzz, Carousel of Progress, Frozen, HS Mermaid, and the Animation building all in relatively short order, all happening alongside two land redos, a half-land redo, and a fully new land. If some Future World pavilions, some Tomorrowland attractions, and some old Fantasyland attractions can get similar attention in the next few years, things will be in significantly better shape than they have been in a very long time.

 

[AidenRodriguez731]

I'm not going to complain if they continue on this trajectory with refurbs. We've had or will have Country Bears, Big Thunder, Buzz, Carousel of Progress, Frozen, HS Mermaid, and the Animation building all in relatively short order, all happening alongside two land redos, a half-land redo, and a fully new land. If some Future World pavilions, some Tomorrowland attractions, and some old Fantasyland attractions can get similar attention in the next few years, things will be in significantly better shape than they have been in a very long time.

This, there is so much genuinely happening at once right now. Every single attraction in Frontierland has been updated recently (I'm hoping Tiana's goes down for a refurb once BTM opens to fix the animatronic issues), Tommorrowland imo is next up on the docket with Buzz, COP, rumors on Space, MILF, and Speedway. Rafikis is also getting some work done, they are adding in a ton of new areas. RNRC and MF SR are also getting updates

I don't think there is any other resort in the world going through so many improvements and updates. They are systemically going through and updating almost every single thing people had problems with and I hope they continue.

 

[PizzaPlanet]

Since they can do brighter show lighting now, it would be awesome if they reopened the waterfall where the boats used to go outside. That was such cool feature and the pavilion hasn’t been the same without it

 

[Sirwalterraleigh]

I'm not going to complain if they continue on this trajectory with refurbs. We've had or will have Country Bears, Big Thunder, Buzz, Carousel of Progress, Frozen, HS Mermaid, and the Animation building all in relatively short order, all happening alongside two land redos, a half-land redo, and a fully new land. If some Future World pavilions, some Tomorrowland attractions, and some old Fantasyland attractions can get similar attention in the next few years, things will be in significantly better shape than they have been in a very long time.

So this is because Bob loved us, right?

…there’s no way all that is to preserve/advance the upsell machine?

 

[AidenRodriguez731]

So this is because Bob loved us, right?

…there’s no way all that is to preserve/advance the upsell machine?

I mean what "upsell" is some of these things that either don't have LL, can't have LL, or won't really be useful with lightning lane. I think they just genuinely want to make the parks look good and are refining bad looking areas.

I don't think its necessarily Bob as this judge, jury, executioner. Either there's more funds available than before or the people in charge of these decisions have a different view on how to use those funds. I really don't think Bob personally is going around and asking for AC to be The Little Mermaid show to be updated. He just signs the check to allot a certain amount of money.

 

[monothingie]

I mean what "upsell" is some of these things that either don't have LL, can't have LL, or won't really be useful with lightning lane. I think they just genuinely want to make the parks look good and are refining bad looking areas.

I don't think its necessarily Bob as this judge, jury, executioner. Either there's more funds available than before or the people in charge of these decisions have a different view on how to use those funds. I really don't think Bob personally is going around and asking for AC to be The Little Mermaid show to be updated. He just signs the check to allot a certain amount of money.

 

[monothingie]

Ugh this is so smug for the barest of bare minimums I hate it so much

What's next on your wishlist? Begging for 2-Ply in the restrooms?

 

[Vegas Disney Fan]

I believe they mentioned some show lighting etc was also improved.

I think the clothing may be new too but maybe they just look different because you can see them better now. I never noticed how dark the ride was before.

As noted the lighting has created a few new issues but overall I think it’s still a massive upgrade. I’ll take a background shadow over a very noticeable transition line on a face any day.

 

[HauntedPirate]

So this is because Bob loved us, right?

…there’s no way all that is to preserve/advance the upsell machine?

Well, considering that every build now has a required LL revenue component included in its ROI… Nah. They don’t care about that, it’s only because of Bob’s benevolence and sympathy caused by overpricing by the Other Bob.

 

[brb1006]

The truth is Disney is under much more scrutiny than before because EVERYTHING they do in blasted in the media, on forums that never existed in Walt's age, on TV, etc, etc.

That’s what bad management earns you…

As far as how the parks used to be: they were immaculate into the late 90’s…and most importantly - they were built on schedule to handle more people than travel was producing at that moment in time. Then they stopped. Just a tad of a difference.

Strongly agree with @Sirwalterraleigh statement regarding how the Disney Parks (mainly between Disneyland and WDW) were immaculate during the late 90's. They maintained this as recent as 2001.

There's a good reason why Tokyo Disney Resort has been highly praised by Disney fans. Because OLC owns the resort, Tokyo Disneyland and DisneySea is well-regarded for keeping the same amount of love and dedication into the shows and attractions that WDW was once known for. Their attractions (both old and new) are well-maintained and offers high quality shows and entertainments to keep their guests satisfied. Then there's the amount of seasonal and holiday offerings.

 

[Biff215]

Since they can do brighter show lighting now, it would be awesome if they reopened the waterfall where the boats used to go outside. That was such cool feature and the pavilion hasn’t been the same without it

Isn’t that where the giant snow monster thing is? Doubt the show lighting changed any there as no projections are used.

 

[flyerjab]

I will be interested to see if there is a shift to how the parks are maintained and expanded with a true parks “guy” running the company. Some of this will also depend on who takes Josh’s place. If it’s Vahle I will cry real tears. I’ve heard Vaughn’s name mentioned and that would be incredible. Josh did get him back after all, but we will see. This could end up being a real shot in the arm for the Experiences division if they get the right person.

Currently the parks are the money maker for the company so having Josh in charge will be interesting. Some people have said that some of the recent decisions like putting the OT into SW:GE are being made by Josh. This rumor from Len about being more ambitious for Villians Land is most likely Josh.

With the cost of everything with the parks only increasing, I would hope that we see him doing more of this. If he takes pride in his roots, I.e. the parks, I would hope that he works to get things like cleanliness and maintenance back on track as priorities for park operations. The company should not have the “best” parks be owned and operated by an outside company, meaning OLC. That would irk me to no end.

 

[Sirwalterraleigh]

I will be interested to see if there is a shift to how the parks are maintained and expanded with a true parks “guy” running the company. Some of this will also depend on who takes Josh’s place. If it’s Vahle I will cry real tears. I’ve heard Vaughn’s name mentioned and that would be incredible. Josh did get him back after all, but we will see. This could end up being a real shot in the arm for the Experiences division if they get the right person.

Currently the parks are the money maker for the company so having Josh in charge will be interesting. Some people have said that some of the recent decisions like putting the OT into SW:GE are being made by Josh. This rumor from Len about being more ambitious for Villians Land is most likely Josh.

With the cost of everything with the parks only increasing, I would hope that we see him doing more of this. If he takes pride in his roots, I.e. the parks, I would hope that he works to get things like cleanliness and maintenance back on track as priorities for park operations. The company should not have the “best” parks be owned and operated by an outside company, meaning OLC. That would irk me to no end.

You’re really setting yourself up here…the “true Parks guy” has toiled for decades in a lot of middle management. How really…is that totally different than chapek?

And he has a better personality…but does that equate willing to stick his neck out for better park quality over financial backlash?

Scary thought…he’s more “groomed like bob”…who I’ll remind had NEVER done anything wrong…

 

[Tha Realest]

You’re really setting yourself up here…the “true Parks guy” has toiled for decades in a lot of middle management. How really…is that totally different than chapek?

And he has a better personality…but does that equate willing to stick his neck out for better park quality over financial backlash?

Scary thought…he’s more “groomed like bob”…who I’ll remind had NEVER done anything wrong…

I really don’t get it. Some of the worst, most unpopular, and most anti-guest decisions were implemented when this guy was in charge of WDW or the Parks at large. And very little was undone or reversed in the years since Chapek left.