Rumor What is everyone’s confidence level that a Villain’s land will happen?

[The Chatbox Ghost]

If y’all think a Villains land would be scary, then by that logic, Mickey’s Not-So-Scary is a horror event. Dark and spooky doesn’t always equate to scary, its why the Haunted Mansion has lasted for so long and why Alien Encounter hasn’t.

I’m personally in the camp of wanting Villains land to be a whimsical kind of spooky. Like the vibe of the Haunted Mansion, but a whole land, almost like a Halloween land in a way. Lots of twisted trees, fog, and old Bavarian village buildings with a dark castle looming in the distance. The sound of owls and wolves in the distance, the light of old lanterns and overly melted candles, the smell of oak and smoke in the air. No jump scares or truly horrifying imagery, just some nice spooky ambience.

 

[James Alucobond]

Certainly hope not. I don't understand the attraction that some people see in this idea

I don’t love it, but it is the least offensive of any idea that currently has any rumor clout behind it.

 

[SirLink]

I do think a big draw like villians would be good for dhs. Tbh all that dhs needs is one new attraction outside of a potential villain's land, and the park would be good for a while. Hopefully one that wouldn’t replace something that isn’t there but i could 100% one of the older attractions there biting the bullet in 5-10 years.

Makes zero sense for the Studios, the whole reason it was floated before NFL was put into place was it would of enhanced parties and fireworks.

If the land does come I would imagine they would stick with the whole conceit of Merlin needing help as he believes the Villains are plotting something you go spy and something bad happens.

 

[Bocabear]

Merlin? I don't think that franchise hasn't seen the light of day in a very long time....They would have to do something to make him relevant again...It could be as simple as walking the old overgrown carriage road past the Haunted Mansion and finding yourself in a hive of Villainy...Not sure who the Hero would be, but Merlin would not make sense... As long as it's not any of the characters from that stink-bomb WISH.

 

[Coaster Lover]

I’m personally in the camp of wanting Villains land to be a whimsical kind of spooky. Like the vibe of the Haunted Mansion, but a whole land, almost like a Halloween land in a way. Lots of twisted trees, fog, and old Bavarian village buildings with a dark castle looming in the distance. The sound of owls and wolves in the distance, the light of old lanterns and overly melted candles, the smell of oak and smoke in the air. No jump scares or truly horrifying imagery, just some nice spooky ambience.

Sounds a lot like a description of Dark Universe at EU...

 

[DCLcruiser]

As long as it's not any of the characters from that stink-bomb WISH.

If the

Spoiler: Spoiler

Mirror

isn't in Villainsland, I don't know what they are doing.

 

[Bocabear]

Sounds a lot like a description of Dark Universe at EU...

Well.....Monsters and Villains....you are talking about the same genre, different characters... so yeah, it sounds like Universal's Darkmoor. But I have a feeling that the Disney version will not be as immersive in design, and will probably be a sugary ssweet version of the Vilains... I like the mix of light and fright.... with a great big dose of humor. I hope it is beautiful and moody and whimsial and fun....They can blend all of those things... (see Harry Potter)... Magical enough for the little ones but still exciting enough for adults...

 

[DisneyHead123]

I think the look and feel of a Villain's land would depend greatly on the amount of acreage allotted to it. It doesn't seem feasible to do a Malificent's Castle and such on a Toy Story Land lot. If on the other hand it has enough room to really sprawl out and doesn't share borders with other park lands (because that would be a hard transition,) I think it could be much more atmospheric.

What I think would be cool:

- Something like a next gen version of Sorcerer's of the Magic Kingdom. I haven't been to Great Wolf Lodge yet but I've heard from my nephews that their MagiQuest is really cool - maybe something like an older (like for older kids / teens / adults) version of that. That would be a perfect place for the Magic Mirror from Snow White to show up.

- I feel like the Forest of Thorns should surround it. To give a distinct feeling that you're transitioning into a new land with a new vibe and - I mean c'mon, it's the Forest of Thorns!

- Fun stores. I know there will be stores, but in a Villain's land they could be truly unique and fun, not ubiquitous. Disney pet accessories / supply store (Because how in the world do they not have one yet? The company that sells me a specialized holder for sticky lollipops doesn't have a store that caters to pet owners? What?!) with animatronics of the villain's animal sidekicks. Cave of Wonders store that actually looks like a cave. Snow White's candied apple stand made to look like the witch's laboratory. Etc.

- Old fashioned gas street lamps, with a light themed to each villain. Bonus if the lights have some kind of special effect intermittently, like Ursula's lamp glows purple every so often.

- Malificent's Castle - I feel like that should be there in some form, although logistically, it's probably going to be a facade more along the lines of a bigger Rapunzel's Tower at MK. I just don't see them having the space for something the size of Cinderella's Castle. Maybe with recent competition from Universal I'll be surprised though. I think adding a new castle would really represent them going "all out".

- A "Villain's Lair" type restaurant with over the top theming. I mean over the top, almost to the point of being a walkthrough attraction. There are so many fun things they could do with rotating menu items and characters there.

- If they're realistically going to have about 3 rides, with 4 being a faint hope and 5 being a pipe dream, maybe dividing the villains by environment. Ursula, Hook, Davey Jones, Monstro, etc. get a spooky water based ride. Malificent, The Evil Queen, Jafar, The Wicked Stepmother, Gaston, etc., get something based around a dark castle. I don't know, maybe that would muddy the theming too much. But I think it could be fun if there was a central storyline and they all speak to it. Like you're trying to escape from the villain's castle with something or other (kinda like the hat in Philharmagic,) and have to get past each of them.

- For the love of Pete, some shade. If air conditioning is too much to ask, so be it. But the company that comes up with technological advancements all the time can figure out a way to work some sun absorbing overhead tarps into the design. It's a Villain Land. It's supposed to be dark anyways.

 

[James Alucobond]

The Darkmoor aesthetic can stay miles away from a potential Villainsland for all I care. I can’t think of anything more generic than the brown overgrowth and cinder-smeared gray stonework that covers virtually the entire land. Hopefully it at least has a good lighting package at night.

 

[Haymarket2008]

They have to go the Fantasy Springs route. Have a full fledged "Dark Fantasyland" with a major E-ticket and 3-4 smaller attractions of varying size.

 

[Rhinocerous]

I would like to see a sight gag where Genie is imprisoned in a cage of lightning.

 

[jpinkc]

0000000000000000000000

 

[Jrb1979]

A Villains Land is 100% happening.

While that sounds great. My fear is it won't be as dark and scary as Dark Universe is at Epic.

 

[The Chatbox Ghost]

While that sounds great. My fear is it won't be as dark and scary as Dark Universe is at Epic.

It won’t be, expecting Disney to do true horror anymore is a good way to disappoint yourself. DU was always going to be the darker and scarier land

 

[easyrowrdw]

If the land does come I would imagine they would stick with the whole conceit of Merlin needing help as he believes the Villains are plotting something you go spy and something bad happens.

Interesting. I'd much prefer seeing Merlin and other mystical/magical elements within the land than just villains/spooky stuff. IMO the former feels much more like a complete land than the latter.

 

[The Chatbox Ghost]

Interesting. I'd much prefer seeing Merlin and other mystical/magical elements within the land than just villains/spooky stuff. IMO the former feels much more like a complete land than the latter.

That's a good point. Perhaps a Villain Land would work better as a "Dark Fantasyland", where other non-villain characters could fit naturally, like Merlin, Prince Phillip, Beast, etc.

 

[MrPromey]

- For the love of Pete, some shade. If air conditioning is too much to ask, so be it. But the company that comes up with technological advancements all the time can figure out a way to work some sun absorbing overhead tarps into the design. It's a Villain Land. It's supposed to be dark anyways.

Ideally, they would lift an idea from Wizarding World and knockoff what Universal did in Diagon Alley with Knockturn Alley.

There could be LOTS of areas like this, largely essentially enclosed, with minimal ambient light and lots of black lighting and even with a little AC. They could make the entrance to these areas a seedy ally like Universal did, one could be a forest with a path that transitions from open, to heavy-ish tree cover to completely inside in a way that just makes it look and feel like you've gone to a dark place.

If they did all of this with the black lighting and paint like they do in the dark rides, they could have the creepy but also cartoonish effect and keep it family-friendly.

I mean, in a lot of ways, the company has a lot under their belts to pull this all off, already. It's basically trying to take what they do in dark rides in general and make that most of a whole land - have the outdoor areas be basically just ways to transition from one dark area to another where needed.

Make more of an effort to have the ceilings for these areas hidden or at least things like catwalks and pipes and lighting setups hidden than they have in a lot of their newer attractions and it could be both whimsical and immersive.

This would solve tons of sightline problems and allow them to make something in a smaller footprint feel larger than it really is, too by making the whole area intentionally convoluted and winding.

I don't know if the current group of people working in Imagineering are up to such a task or if leadership would be willing to spend for this but since there will be unfair direct comparisons made to Dark Universe, this is something Disney could capitalize on that Universal isn't currently doing in an expansive way.

 

[The Chatbox Ghost]

There could be LOTS of areas like this, largely essentially enclosed, with minimal ambient light and lots of black lighting and even with a little AC. They could make the entrance to these areas a seedy ally like Universal did, one could be a forest with a path that transitions from open, to heavy-ish tree cover to completely inside in a way that just makes it look and feel like you've gone to a dark place.

I wonder though, if it were to go in MK, how would they hide the giant show building on the other side of the RoA?

 

[MrPromey]

I wonder though, if it were to go in MK, how would they hide the giant show building on the other side of the RoA?

By having it not be a single show building but instead a series of them. If you're in a dark forest, for instance, you don't need the ceilings to be that high - not if the "trees" are providing a lot of cover and you're getting "moonlight" shinning through here and there with most of it lit by "torches" and "candles" (and of course, black lights galore). put that more towards the front.

In other areas, if the ceilings are simply matte black and not lit, they can be made to seem a lot taller than they are with forced perspective used on the themed structures inside.

You don't have to enclose the entire area like it's a pavilion. It can all be broken up between smaller and bigger buildings some connected and some not.

The trick would be to avoid the sprawling open dead spaces that Galaxy's Edge is full of and use the slightly claustrophobic nature of feeling like you're a little confined to their advantage.

Splash Mountain Tiana's Bayou Aventure is a massive show building hiding in plain site in all guest facing directions - it can and has been done to a greater extent than would be needed for this. (actual attraction buildings aside)

... Not pretending it would be cheap to construct, though.

 

[co10064]

I wonder though, if it were to go in MK, how would they hide the giant show building on the other side of the RoA?

They could theoretically put most of it behind the Mansion/Small World show-buildings, plus any amount of rock work would help.