Lion King Dark Ride

[Patricia Melton]

I wish the jungle book would get a dark ride or something at the animal kingdom

I wonder why this was never done. The Jungle Book characters are pitch perfect for an Adventureland attraction.

They'd also be great in DAK if they would expand Asia to include animals from India...would love to see an Indian food restaurant of some kind there too.

 

[Patricia Melton]

My first thought when I saw this post was I would love a Lion King dark ride however it will either go one of two ways, 1) include scar and therefore have a "scare" factor such as Snow White's Scary Adventures did or 2) be dimmed down and just include the songs in the Lion King therefore not displaying the story of The Lion King.

You make a really good point.

BUT they could also portray Scar in a comical way, the way he's shown in the movie at times. He's depressed and he could be shown scheming and plotting, not outright menacing. The hyenas could also be portrayed comically, not scary.

 

[doctornick]

I wonder why this was never done. The Jungle Book characters are pitch perfect for an Adventureland attraction.

They'd also be great in DAK if they would expand Asia to include animals from India...would love to see an Indian food restaurant of some kind there too.

Well, Asia (the DAK land) is themed primarily to India. Anandapur is depicted as a being ruled by a Maharaja and the decor is primary of the Indian Subcontinent. Per wikipedia, Ananpapur means "place of delight" in Sanskrit. I think that cartoons don't fit as well into the themed lands in DAK. Having a Jungle Book attraction would taker away from the authenticity of the rest of Asia. Which is why I think a cartoon oriented land would be more appropriate for that or other animal franchises. (Yes, I realize that FOTLK is moving to Africa, but that fits in a bit more because it's a show about animals that you'd find in Africa -- so I could see it branded as a show being put on by the people of Harambe.)

 

[doctornick]

Actually, I could totally dig that. A DAK land based on Disney 'animal' movies. Like a mini-DAK. Jungle book for Asia, Lion King for Africa, Bambi for North America. Something like that. They could even add a 'Dinosaur' area, and de-infantilise adult dinoland.

This would be cool. Although I could see using Tarzan for Africa instead of TLK since Tarzan really isn't present in WDW at this point. They could even use The Emporer's New Groove and llamas if they wanted to represrnt South America.

But really I don't think it would need to be geographical in nature. A cartoony land for DAK would be a nice transition IMHO from the "real" animals of Asia/Africa/Rafiki's and the "fantastic" animals of Pandora. But it would offer some more attractions that could be open late if you want to shut down Africa/Asia at night for the sake of the comfort of the live animals. I don't know if Pandora/Dinoland would be enough.

Actually, that reminds me of a question I've had: once Pandora is open, the alleged plan is to stay open late and have a nighttime show. Would they have a dedicated area for the nighttime show (a la Fantasmic! at DHS) or would be just utilize other space? I don't think they'd want to do a fireworks type show in the sky for fear of scaring the animals, so I think it would be something at ground level. Is there any early plans for what might be done? I guess it's far off given the timeframe for Pandora, but I'm sure some plans might exist.

 

[Vader2112]

I beleive there was to be a Sleepy Beauty Attraction in FLE. Where you would be celebrating "Auora/Briar Rose's birthday party there was even convept art. The Idea was dropped....

 

[rufio]

I don't see this happening any larger than a show. Or maybe it's just a lion king dark ride has no interest for me.

Maybe a Hercules or Beauty and the Beast dark ride I can easily see more clearly?

I would be okay with any of these three! I would LOVE any of these, actually. Three of my favorite Disney movies!

 

[JimboJones123]

The DL walkthrough has always been one of those charming quiet things that the average guest has no clue about. I wish WDW would work to make more of these experiences. The walkway from Toontown to Tomorrowland was alway a cute little perk that went unnoticed by the masses but was always a great escape.... when it was open.