Roger Rabbit's Hollywood (scrapped planned for Disney-MGM Studios in 1990s)

DisneyFan32

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
In the Parks
Yes
Roger Rabbit's Hollywood was supposed to be added at Disney-MGM Studios part of Sunset Blvd expansion in early 1990s, it would have four major attractions: Toon Coaster (based on RollerCoaster Rabbit short), Toontown Transit (a motion simulator like Star Tours), Baby Herman's Runaway Buggy Ride (based on Tummy Trouble short) and Benny the Cab Ride (now as Roger Rabbit's Car Toon Spin at Disneyland in 1994). Why this mini land didn't happen..1) Steven Spielberg's contract with Michael Eisner and Disney. 2) Euro Disneyland's failed money drop. It's a shame, this mini area will be perfect fit for Sunset Blvd expansion.
 

champdisney

Well-Known Member
If Disney were to revisit that world and it proves to be a success, then I would say why not. Concepts are often put on the shelf and after years of collecting dust, either popularity over the IP begins to rise again or something adjacent to it takes shape and therefore whatever that was once on the shelf is then removed from that said shelf and reworked.

Reworking Sunset Blvd centered around that franchise can still work today. You don’t necessarily need to build new attractions for it. Attractions like Twilight Zone: Tower of Terror or Rock N’ Rollercoaster can easily be rethemed to that property... or be themed to classic cartoon characters that fit within that time period of Who Framed Roger Rabbit.

These attractions I mentioned are due for rethemes in the future and I think retheming it centered around the world of Roger a Rabbit can work. It really all depends on Disney, though.
 

marni1971

Park History nut
Premium Member
Roger Rabbit's Hollywood was supposed to be added at Disney-MGM Studios part of Sunset Blvd expansion in early 1990s, it would have four major attractions: Toon Coaster (based on RollerCoaster Rabbit short), Toontown Transit (a motion simulator like Star Tours), Baby Herman's Runaway Buggy Ride (based on Tummy Trouble short) and Benny the Cab Ride (now as Roger Rabbit's Car Toon Spin at Disneyland in 1994). Why this mini land didn't happen..1) Steven Spielberg's contract with Michael Eisner and Disney. 2) Euro Disneyland's failed money drop. It's a shame, this mini area will be perfect fit for Sunset Blvd expansion.
Try a thread search. You might like the recent discussion elsewhere about this very topic.
 

TrainsOfDisney

Well-Known Member
I’m surprised DHS didn’t get the cartoon spin when Disneyland got theirs. It would have been a perfect fit for that area of the park and DHS did and STILL needs a classic family dark ride. (Midway Mania and Mickeys do check the box now, but they check the box using quite a few screens!).

I wish DHS could get the Red Car Trolleys too which are of course featured in the film.
 

Robbiem

Well-Known Member
I’m surprised DHS didn’t get the cartoon spin when Disneyland got theirs. It would have been a perfect fit for that area of the park and DHS did and STILL needs a classic family dark ride. (Midway Mania and Mickeys do check the box now, but they check the box using quite a few screens!).

I wish DHS could get the Red Car Trolleys too which are of course featured in the film.
I think a toontown area would have been a much better fit than toy story land for DHS, it would be perfect as a kind of Hollywood themed fantasyland for the classic character. If Roger wasn’t available for rights issues a goofy version of cartoon spin would have been fun. You could move Philharmagic for a donald attraction and with a classic character looking runaway railway and some meet and greets you’d have the basis for a decent area you could build on
 
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ohioguy

Well-Known Member
Roger Rabbit is old hat and, unless there's a revival, I don't see it appearing anywhere on property soon. Licensing with Amblin shouldn't be an issue (since Kathleen Kennedy can make that happen), but character rights to the creator could be a problem. Toy Story has stood the test of time; sadly, Roger Rabbit has not.
 

JIMINYCR

Well-Known Member
As stated above... Roger Rabbit is an old has been. At the peak of its popularity it had a chance. Those ride tie ins would have added a lot of fun action to the park and be themed well. But I'd bet the farm that it will not make a return. Disney is sooo past RR and is looking at a different kind of DHS that wont permit anything RR. Unless we can find a way to put Roger and Jessica into space.
 

Animaniac93-98

Well-Known Member
Toy Story has stood the test of time; sadly, Roger Rabbit has not.

That's because Toy Story has had a constant stream of content released over time to keep it in the public consciousness. 3 sequels, TV specials, rides in the parks, even a stage musical for the cruise line.

Roger Rabbit was intended to be an evergreen character. 3 follow up shorts were made and a sequel was planned. Rights issues and the growth of in house and acquired properties meant there was less of a need for the character in the eyes of management.

The movie holds up, people have nostalgia for it, but you can't deliberately ignore a property for over 25 years and expect people to care about it was much. Other companies have successfully milked 80s content for years, but Disney has intentionally avoided such a strategy. At least two Disneyland's still have a ride with him.
 

Magenta Panther

Well-Known Member
If Disney were to revisit that world and it proves to be a success, then I would say why not. Concepts are often put on the shelf and after years of collecting dust, either popularity over the IP begins to rise again or something adjacent to it takes shape and therefore whatever that was once on the shelf is then removed from that said shelf and reworked.

Reworking Sunset Blvd centered around that franchise can still work today. You don’t necessarily need to build new attractions for it. Attractions like Twilight Zone: Tower of Terror or Rock N’ Rollercoaster can easily be rethemed to that property... or be themed to classic cartoon characters that fit within that time period of Who Framed Roger Rabbit.

These attractions I mentioned are due for rethemes in the future and I think retheming it centered around the world of Roger a Rabbit can work. It really all depends on Disney, though.

YOU. DO. NOT. TOUCH. THE. TOWER! :mad:

Hey, I like Roger too, and think that his star being allowed to fade is ridiculous. I'd rather watch a new film starring the Rabbit than this new stuff starring the latest "I-Am_Woman_Watch-Me-Bore" junk we've been getting lately. (No, I have no issue with strong female characters. IF they're believably mighty in their fictional environment. Kiera Knightley's Elizabeth Swann was an awful, pandering sop of a character in the Pirates movies; she was cringingly unbelievable. We were asked to accept that somehow a pampered governor's daughter is a master swordsman, ship's captain, and fist-fighter just because she's female. Ugh! Forget it. On the other hand, Judy Hopps from Zootopia is an outstanding female character. Her skills match her world and her persona - they aren't illogically tacked on to make her invincible. Love her!) But there is no need to reconfigure brilliant attractions like the Tower or even R&RC. There's "the blessing of size in WDW", remember? Plenty of space for something new.

A caveat - I do agree with whoever mentioned here that Roger makes more sense in DHS than Toy Story. Roger's bio is all ABOUT classic Hollywood. Toy Story takes place in some kid's bedroom. Its connection with Pixar, as its most successful franchise, is arguably the reason it gets its own attraction...but I'd much rather have Roger. Even if a Roger ride was modelled after Toy Story's shooter ride, it'd still be fun. And funnier, IMO.
 

ppete1975

Well-Known Member
Do kids even know who roger rabbit is? Its been forever since ive seen it but between jessica and the rest of the movie im sure it would offend someone. It feels like a movie of its time. And that time has passed
 

champdisney

Well-Known Member
I’m with you. Just throwing out ideas as it appears that rethemes for TOT and RNRC are in the pipeline to be redone with IPs that are detached from what’s there currently.


Do kids even know who roger rabbit is? Its been forever since ive seen it but between jessica and the rest of the movie im sure it would offend someone. It feels like a movie of its time. And that time has passed
Offending the large or not large chested.
 

JIMINYCR

Well-Known Member
im sure it would offend someone.
Yes. Woke Disney wouldnt look kindly now on how Jessica is animated. Very offensive to women who would object to how shes drawn. Remember the way some of the characters responded to her? She also wouldnt be accepted because her body and mannerisms objectify women. Shes offensively busty and curvaceous which doesnt typify ordinary females. And shes.... gasp..a Red
Head.
jessica-rabbit-disney.jpg
 

FigmentForever96

Active Member
Yes. Woke Disney wouldnt look kindly now on how Jessica is animated. Very offensive to women who would object to how shes drawn. Remember the way some of the characters responded to her? She also wouldnt be accepted because her body and mannerisms objectify women. Shes offensively busty and curvaceous which doesnt typify ordinary females. And shes.... gasp..a Red
Head.
View attachment 536506
She isn’t bad..,she’s just drawn that way.
 

Robbiem

Well-Known Member
Yes. Woke Disney wouldnt look kindly now on how Jessica is animated. Very offensive to women who would object to how shes drawn. Remember the way some of the characters responded to her? She also wouldnt be accepted because her body and mannerisms objectify women. Shes offensively busty and curvaceous which doesnt typify ordinary females. And shes.... gasp..a Red
Head.
View attachment 536506
And yet ironically Jessica is very much a strong female character who deals with things herself rather than playing the damsel waiting to be rescued - remember she is the one who hits roger with the pan and locks him in the trunk of the car 😀✌️
 

JIMINYCR

Well-Known Member
And yet ironically Jessica is very much a strong female character who deals with things herself rather than playing the damsel waiting to be rescued - remember she is the one who hits roger with the pan and locks him in the trunk of the car 😀✌️
And yet, being Disney Woke means a woman may be strong and still not fit the narrative they wish to display. Ask Gina Carano.
 

LittleBuford

Well-Known Member
Yes. Woke Disney wouldnt look kindly now on how Jessica is animated. Very offensive to women who would object to how shes drawn. Remember the way some of the characters responded to her? She also wouldnt be accepted because her body and mannerisms objectify women. Shes offensively busty and curvaceous which doesnt typify ordinary females. And shes.... gasp..a Red
Head.
View attachment 536506
I’m what many here would disparage as woke, yet I love Jessica. Why assume such outrage if you haven’t actually encountered any?
 

champdisney

Well-Known Member
She isn’t bad..,she’s just drawn that way.
What happens when she’s redrawn, redesigned and reanimated?

“Nowadays I’m drawn with respect. Decency is always in style.”

If anything Roger Rabbit related were to be made anytime in the future, that can actually work and be funny at the same time!
 

OG Runner

Well-Known Member
It really would have been a good idea, but now with Toy Story land there, I am pretty sure it will stay on the self.
Probably right next to the Dick Tracy ride that was rumored around that time frame.
 

OG Runner

Well-Known Member
Yes. Woke Disney wouldnt look kindly now on how Jessica is animated. Very offensive to women who would object to how shes drawn. Remember the way some of the characters responded to her? She also wouldnt be accepted because her body and mannerisms objectify women. Shes offensively busty and curvaceous which doesnt typify ordinary females. And shes.... gasp..a Red
Head.
View attachment 536506

You are right, her being a redhead would definitely push if over the top. :D
 

OG Runner

Well-Known Member
What happens when she’s redrawn, redesigned and reanimated?

“Nowadays I’m drawn with respect. Decency is always in style.”

If anything Roger Rabbit related were to be made anytime in the future, that can actually work and be funny at the same time!

Pixar redid her, now she is known as Edna Mode.
 

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