News Disney Not Renewing Great Movie Ride Sponsorship Deal with TCM ; Attraction to Close

[DisneyGentlemanV2.0]

I feel pretty much the same. Now the issue is...Disney is for me now just a nostalgic enterprise. The company I loved and grew up with is pretty much gone and is for all intents and purposes Mondelez, Coke, Wal-Mart, etc. I have A LOT of WDCC figures, cels, animator sketches, etc., not to mention shirts , jackets etc that I've collected over the past 25ish years. They all mean less. The company that I felt connected to is gone and I really just don't care nearly as much anymore. I'll still use ABD and DCL for vacations as they are exceptional, but the parks and my DVC investement...meh...don't care. I just wish that there were truly enough of us out there to be more than a 'fly on the butt' of the company and could really get them to notice, but I'm pretty sure that it's "over"for classic, vintage Disney.

Your comments hit home.

In their rush to promote "new" IP (acquired and created), they are tossing-aside the treasure-trove of "old" IP.

No wonder there are so many remakes - the old stuff doesn't draw like it used to.

But by forgetting (or ignoring) their base, the corporation is building a house without a foundation.

 

[wm49rs]

self awareness is not something JT can be accused of.

Plenty else though....

 

[marni1971]

So is this the last big new ride DHS is getting? The one that has been hinted at??

As far as I'm aware until sometime next decade yes.

 

[Seabasealpha1]

I guess I don't care what they do to the inside so long as that view stays put. Maybe I've missed some previous detail post where it's been mentioned that they'll level the whole shebang...? Again though, I'd take whatever so long as the outside stays the same/improved mildly...

For that matter...why don't they just shut the park down already?! Start absolutely fresh and have it knocked out in like two years...leave me with no expectations stemming from what existed before...

 

[radiohost]

Any chance next year at D23 the panelist on stage get booed?

 

[marni1971]

Only LMA and backlot tour havent yet been replaced.

Overall the park isn't growing, only replacing.
backlot tour = Star Wars attraction
LMA = Star Wars attraction
Amimation Tour = Star Wars launch bay
Sounds Dangerous (was seasonal anyway) = movie previews / Star Wars movie
American Idol = Frozen show (yes that was in the Premiere theatre as well, but that had sat empty for years after Hunchback closed)

Generally this means the two Toy Story rides will be new additions rather than replacements. But still poor in a park where every show also needs a replacement.

Remove Launch Bay and Movie previews off a list of actual attractions too.

 

[aladdin2007]

so energy, tower of terror, and now great movie ride are on the chopping block. whats next, nevermind dont answer that cant take anymore haha.

 

[LAKid53]

Will have to make a point of riding one last time during my trip in the fall.

For a company that hypes its classic movies - "get the platinum edition of Snow White before it goes back into the vault!" (until we can figure out how to make it "newer" and sell it to you again) - they sure are quick to kill a ride celebrating classic movies, some they made.

Official. There is no more Walt Disney Company. Just a collection of random IPs. Really, really sad. What is America known for, besides jazz? The movie industry.

Time to go watch TCM.

 

[marni1971]

The GMR is one of a dying breed of what used to make WDI great. Larger than life scale, intricate theming, creative animatronics and effects, evolutionary ride system, surprises, story, length, capacity, a finale.... it goes on and on.

The travesty here is then ride would still be fantastic if updated to modern standards. There's nothing actually wrong with it. Like a lot of other places we could mention it was allowed to go stale and stagnate. It could again be the parks banner E ticket family attraction.

We now have a company hell bent on overlays. The last five years (and moreso more recent) have seen a concerted effort to overlay and makeover as opposed to new, purpose built facilities. What used to be considered the norm, the bare minimum is now considered worthy of huge celebration. Not so long ago the park would have gotten a constantly refreshed GMR PLUS a new E Ticket on an expansion pad. And it's not secret this park certainly needs more capacity. What's currently planned will not address that. If anything it will be a net loss.

Will the new ride be good? Yes. Will it be fun? Yes. Is it worthy of its location? That's not my call. Is it worth removing the GMR for? I don't think so.

Now you know why I said when news comes out it will generate debate.

 

[wdwmagic]

The travesty here is then ride would still be fantastic if updated to modern standards. There's nothing actually wrong with it. Like a lot of other places we could mention it was allowed to go stale and stagnate. It could again be the parks banner E ticket family attraction.

We've all been discussing this for what, the last 15 years on this forum? Like Star Tours before it, the GMR has just been crying out updates, and it could have remained current and the park's main draw.

A condensed version of Frozen Ever After could pretty much be completely housed inside one of the larger show scenes at GMR.

Such a missed opportunity.

 

[po1998]

Very sad if GMR goes. The lack of upgrades to this attraction over the last 15-20 years mirrors the lack of park upgrades throughout WDW over that same time frame.

 

[seabreezept813]

Look on the bright side, at least this can give more guests a reason to visit AK.

We've been trying to plan what our next trip will look like in a year or two. I am desperate to see Harry Potter and want my family to see Sea World. In the past, we've just done Disney. Now that Disney continues to rip my heart out, I could see us skipping this park (sans Movie Ride) and giving up that time for Universal. We enjoy Mania, RocknRoller Coaster, Muppets, Star Tours etc., but my love for the park has everything to do with the old Hollywood appeal. It's not even a nostalgia thing, I just love classic films and theater, and I think Disney is once again being too close-minded.
I don't even think you have to be familiar with any of the films to enjoy it. My stepdaughter made us ride this repeatedly when she was 7, which was before I showed her Wizard of Oz, Singing in the Rain, etc. It has potential for longevity if given some proper tlc.

 

[GhostHost1000]

We've all been discussing this for what, the last 15 years on this forum? Like Star Tours before it, the GMR has just been crying out updates, and it could have remained current and the park's main draw.

A condensed version of Frozen Ever After could pretty much be completely housed inside one of the larger show scenes at GMR.

Such a missed opportunity.

completely agree

 

[prberk]

Your comments hit home.

In their rush to promote "new" IP (acquired and created), they are tossing-aside the treasure-trove of "old" IP.

No wonder there are so many remakes - the old stuff doesn't draw like it used to.

But by forgetting (or ignoring) their base, the corporation is building a house without a foundation.

Part of the attraction of classics is their familiarity. A good story is worth sharing repeatedly, from generation to generation. Disney used to know that, and keep the classics in rotation on screens (TV or movies or theme park attractions) from generation to generation, with new releases and promotions. Every release did not have to be a blockbuster. But instead a slow and steady course that kept the timeless stories in front of a new generation. How do you think that we all knew Snow White, which came out first in 1937? It was re-released several times, and its characters and songs used in other media.

Today's Disney still knows how to cross-promote among media, but only the newest things. And taking ALL classics off the Disney Channel has only exacerbated the situation.

I am 50, and I grow up in the '70s and '80s. "When You Wish Upon A Star" and The Twilight Zone and the original MMC were already old when I was young, but they were also true classics, repeated enough for me to know them -- and to recognize them -- and their timelessness -- in the parks. They fit like a glove right next to new classics like The Lion King.

And the parks themselves were understood to be exquisitely themed lands that took you to a different place -- sometimes to the world of a movie, but other times to a classic time and space like "Frontierland" and a cool, funny "Jungle Cruise" (itself inspired by a movie, "The African Queen," but not slave to its story). WDW truly inspired me -- but it did so in being balanced between a reverence for the past (Liberty Square/Frontierland) and a vision of the future (Tomorrowland), with a good dose of adventure and fantasy thrown in, but all in good measure.

They just need to remember that balance. I just have little hope these days that they will.

 

[PizzaPlanet]

There still might be hope. Hopefully after SWL opens they turn to animation courtyard and build some new attractions. And maybe when the new Indy movie is a huge success, we will finally get a ride.

 

[Jon81uk]

Remove Launch Bay and Movie previews off a list of actual attractions too.

Personally launch bay looks no worse than animation did when it finally closed. Back on my first trip in 2001 I loved the animation tour, a film about Disney animation, a talk from an animator and then you could look through the windows to see them animating Lilo and Stitch. By my second trip this was scaled back and on my last trip in 2010, animation just felt awful compared to what it used to be, it was just a collection of meet and greats.
If they aren't going to restore the park back to what it originally was, a working studio then I would rather see something replace animation than the poor attraction it had become.
Equally Sounds Dangerous wasn't great, it needs a better replacement than the current movie but it had basically been closed down anyway.

 

[Chef Kronk]

By the time everything opens, DHS is still going to be back at Square 1.

The park is barely gaining anything. This park NEEDS attractions and they STILL aren't getting them when the park is at an all time low.

At this point, the only thing that I have hope for is SWL.

Disney has to realize how they got to where they are. Greed is not how they got to the top.

 

[marni1971]

Personally launch bay looks no worse than animation did when it finally closed. Back on my first trip in 2001 I loved the animation tour, a film about Disney animation, a talk from an animator and then you could look through the windows to see them animating Lilo and Stitch..

I agree (even if Lilo and Stitch was after my first trips) - but once the tour shut it was an exhibit, not an attraction. As it is now. Despite what marketing would like us to believe.

Monster Sound Show was an attraction. Carey was too. Movie clips certainly aren't.

 

[DisneyFans4Life]

Hmm...I have enjoyed the GMR each time I've ridden it, but I've always thought it could use an upgrade or be spruced up. I think it's pretty clear though that WDW is moving away from the studios theme and the rides that occupy the park should fit its theming and vision. If I had to guess, this is going to be similar to FEA where we all complain about the original ride getting replaced, but then say how cool and great the new attraction is.

 

[wdisney9000]

If I had to guess, this is going to be similar to FEA where we all complain about the original ride getting replaced, but then say how cool and great the new attraction is.

Many of the arguments (at least the intelligent ones) against FEA had nothing to do Maelstrom. The GMR scenraio is the same predicament. Regardless of how good it turns out, it is not adding to the parks lineup of attractions. There is no gain. You cant get to the end zone by running left and right.

 

[britain]

The GMR is one of a dying breed of what used to make WDI great. Larger than life scale, intricate theming, creative animatronics and effects, evolutionary ride system, surprises, story, length, capacity, a finale.... it goes on and on.

I hear what you're saying, but to be honest it was never as great as it promised to be on day 1. I remember gobbling up all the Disney MGM preview materials, thinking about an attraction on the scale of Pirates or Horizons taking you from movie to movie. But when I actually experienced it, it was a minor let down. The decision to keep the "soundstage" ceiling visible during some of the areas was an immersion killer, as was the scale of the whole thing. To properly do scenes like "Westerns" or "Oz" you need space like the Bride auction. John Wayne's shadow being cast on the mural behind him kept the attraction in wax museum territory.

I know that WDI ain't making them like this anymore. But even when it opened, I felt like "man, WDI ain't making them like EPCOT or Pirates anymore."