News Avatar Experience coming to Disneyland Resort

[BrianLo]

Exactly. Has Josh D'Amaro ever shown a concept sketch that has actually been built or approved yet? I can't think of one, even though he's shown at least a half dozen concept sketches for new lands and rides for parks around the world.

Actually, you’d be surprised. Josh almost has a perfect batting average compared to Chapek.

MMRR (was his announcement even though Chapek was P&R head). Luminous, Tiana’s on both coasts, Country Bears, Epcot spine.

I do not think putting out a Dinoland project, saying they are working on its concept still, coming through with a superior version of it the following year counts against him in the slightest.

So that really leaves Beyond Big Thunder, which by all means is far from something even remotely promised as shown, but also far from cancelled…

And Avengers. Which technically only the new version was shown by him and that new version still was happening. But totally that counts if cancelled as his first mis-promise.


Most importantly of all this… this is an Iger project in technicality and Iger legacy projects have always seemingly come through.

 

[Consumer]

I’m not sure many hold your same convictions on this topic.

The world would be a better place if they held my convictions.

 

[yensidtlaw1969]

Here’s Animal Kingdom’s. It’s fairly baked concept art. Not perfect, but the broad details are the same

View attachment 776905

Precisely. Not 100% but pretty darn close.

 

[Disney Irish]

The world would be a better place if they held my convictions.

Agree to disagree

 

[BrianLo]

Precisely. Not 100% but pretty darn close.

I’d actually go so far as saying the DCA one looks even more detailed and quite specific.

It’s much more of a proper view of the land itself, specific with evidence of queues, designed ride vehicles, outdoor animatronics, etc. I’d expect the shade structure is also real and I also feel like those three otter mermaid things aren’t just a design flourish.

It looks like the right side is the ride and the left sided structure is probably dining/retail.

 

[Tha Realest]

Scott Trowbridge comments on the possible Avatar experience: "At today’s Disney shareholder meeting, Bob Iger shared “Our Imagineers have been hard at work dreaming up what guests might expect” with a possible Disneyland Avatar experience. Yes…… we are……. Excited to share more in the future."

Hear me out.

Autopia is being reimagined.

This Instagram post. And his tweet from a year ago:



Bye bye Nemo and a reworked (shortened/rerouted) Autopia?

 

[britain]

I’ve always felt they should put Autopia in Carsland.

 

[Consumer]

I’ve always felt they should put Autopia in Carsland.

Same. I'd love to see the old Goofy road trip attraction combined with Autopia. It'd be perfect.

 

[britain]

While I definitely think Avatar is thematically right between sci-fi and fantasy, and therefore a better fit in between Tomorrowland and Fantasyland, DCA really NEEDS a super high caliber Pirates equivalent boat ride. I’ll acquiesce to those needs rather than be a theme police stickler.

 

[celluloid]

For those who are skeptical, compare this Blue Sky sketch for "Beyond Big Thunder" at Magic Kingdom with the new art for Avatar at Disneyland:

View attachment 776903


View attachment 776904

There's a reason one is so much more developed and detailed than the other - and it's not for the fun of it.

As always, reality never completely matches the concept art 100%, but this Avatar rendering isn't exactly speculative. Unlike Beyond Big Thunder, which is a very real project but whose attraction menu was (and maybe still is?) very much in flux at the time the image was released.

Actually, it is very likely that this was an early concept for another park that was to feature Avatar attractions before it was scaled back and a different direction was taken

 

[BrianLo]

Hear me out.

Autopia is being reimagined.

This Instagram post. And his tweet from a year ago:



Bye bye Nemo and a reworked (shortened/rerouted) Autopia?

This lends ever better support to @britain theory it started life as a Subs overlay - especially since we now know Scott Trowbridge is project lead.

This might have ultimately 'killed' the other proposed Tomorrowland redo along the way.

 

[Squishy]

Former Imagineer Jim Shull has showcased a big flaw in Bob Iger's idea.

 

[mickEblu]

This lends ever better support to @britain theory it started life as a Subs overlay - especially since we now know Scott Trowbridge is project lead.

This might have ultimately 'killed' the other proposed Tomorrowland redo along the way.

Possible but I have a hard time believing they’d put Avatar right next to the Matterhorn instead of Frozen. I also have a hard time believing Avatar was originally designed to go into DL when DCA is the park that needs it much more.

 

[britain]

This lends ever better support to @britain theory it started life as a Subs overlay - especially since we now know Scott Trowbridge is project lead.

This might have ultimately 'killed' the other proposed Tomorrowland redo along the way.

Thanks, but I meant more of a sub replacement (probably a full bulldozing and new build) that retained the outdoor kinetic feel.

 

[MagicWDI]

Actually, it is very likely that this was an early concept for another park that was to feature Avatar attractions before it was scaled back and a different direction was taken

Your arms will fall off with all that reaching.

 

[MisterPenguin]

Former Imagineer Jim Shull has showcased a big flaw in Bob Iger's idea.

Thank god no other land in DLR has open sky to see planes.

I guess Jim knows that the fly zone restrictions are being lifted??

 

[BasiltheBatLord]

The "Walt's original theme park"quote seems to me to be referring to the resort area generally, not Disneyland Park.

My guess is that this is going to go in the DL Forward plot. But what do I know.

 

[MagicWDI]

The "Walt's original theme park"quote seems to be me to be referring to the resort area generally, not Disneyland Park.

My guess is that this is going to go in the DL Forward plot. But what do I know.

I'm the dumb butt still thinking Stitch Parking lot for Avatar. They can go shovels ready by Oct 1st with the Eastern Gateway project as well. But, y'know, Disney's track record and all keeps reminding me not to hold my breath. They'll have to really change course in order to get this big of a project rolling. But at the very least all signs point to this just waiting to be green lit after the rezoning.

 

[WoundedDreamer]

While I'm appreciative of their decision to create a different attraction and change the focus of the land, on the other hand I'm a little nervous too. One of the reasons Pandora the World of Avatar has been so successful, is the decision to completely divorce the land from wars in the films. There are no guns shooting. There are no gratuitous cameos by actors from the films. And animals and nature take center stage.

Truthfully, the success of Avatar has never singularly, or maybe even primarily, been about the plot or characters. It's about the incredibly immersive world that James Cameron created. At Rohde's insistence, the characters and plot points were largely relegated to the side. Instead, the immersive worlds James Cameron created would be center stage.

Pandora is the best thing about Avatar.

What makes me a little concerned about this, is the possibility that Rohde's unique perspective might be absent in this project. It would be easy to make this version of Pandora one that is set during the time of the film. Forced/contrived appearances from the cast and a battle with the RDA are now on the table. If this is going to be another Rise of the Resistance only set on Pandora, count me out. That completely misses the appeal of the first land.

I'm hoping that James Cameron has caught the vision of Rohde while working with him. But I'm a little aphrenrsive. That's not to say I'm fatalistic. The concept art looks great. I'm just hoping that the ride delivers an experience of a similar caliber to Flight of Passage.

One thing I wonder... Do we think that the Battle for the Sunken Treasure ride system might be in play? Sorry if this has been touched on, but it looks like it would fit in this application.

 

[WoundedDreamer]

Scott Trowbridge comments on the possible Avatar experience: "At today’s Disney shareholder meeting, Bob Iger shared “Our Imagineers have been hard at work dreaming up what guests might expect” with a possible Disneyland Avatar experience. Yes…… we are……. Excited to share more in the future."

I missed this... Not Scott Trowbridge. Anyone but Scott Trowbridge.

Okay, I might be fatalistic now.