Disney announces a ton of attractions and cruise ships at D23 fan expo

So I imagine the Disney faithful are very fired up , yet furious about these announcements?

Disney faithful

Im surprised by the sheer amount Iger opened the check book for and that it’s all apparently concrete. But after years of Blue Sky preaching except ships, and with Epic and Desantis they had to go hard.

Its alot of franchise stuff, but where placed it all make sense and that all are mostly unique rides was the most surprising, especially Avatar.

How is Paris getting a lion king flume before AK? Avengers campus is two rides not just one! Cars in Frontierland is probably what will rile people the most. Monsters Inc is a good use of the last of studio area, I just find it fascinating every ride based on Monsters Inc is custom.

Lets just hope they can build things quicker then they have as late.

The_Orient_of_Express:

So I imagine the Disney faithful are very fired up , yet furious about these announcements?

Actually everything I've read is extremely positive on the proposed new attractions and land with extremely cautious optimism that it will actually all happen.

Yeah, other than the California Adventure Marvel additions, I think just about every attraction was a home run. I also think that, outside of a few parks that seem to be straying from having over-arching themed, they did a respectable job of staying on-theme for the areas in the various parks, or the parks themselves. Radiator Springs by Frontierland, while maybe a minor stretch, holds up, and I think a villains land in Magic Kingdom is a good pick. Animal Kingdom might be the real winner, though. I’ll miss Dinosaur, but a tropical Americas land is a spectacular move.

I’m really excited for that Lion King attraction in Paris, too. I thought the Studios park over there might have gotten a bit of an unfair rap, but my goodness, they’re really doing a great job of updating it.

Oh, and not a park, but four new ships for Cruise Line? Yes please!

Again, I think they swung for the fences with the parks and Cruise Line additions. The movie announcements on the other hand…oof. Talk about flaunting a lack of creative muscle.

sirloindude:

The movie announcements on the other hand…oof. Talk about flaunting a lack of creative muscle.

Unfortunately for them, what’s “selling” currently is sequels, reboots and known IPs.

Sharpel007:

Im surprised by the sheer amount Iger opened the check book for and that it’s all apparently concrete.

Why? They committed to $60 billion of stuff a quarter or two ago, and this doesn't even spend all of that. If fans weren't expecting epic new stuff, I'm not sure what they did expect.

My understanding is that the cruise ships are about $2.5 billion each, so including those under construction now or announced, seven ships, that's already $17.5 billion, likely more when the later ships are built. It's crazy, what goes into those. The sheer volume of premium materials, everywhere, is nuts. Aside from a few high end hotels I've been in, you just don't see a lot of things built to that level of quality on land. Not surprised though, because the fares are starting to make even me wince a little, and the shorter itineraries routinely sell out. The demand is insane.

Why? They committed to $60 billion of stuff a quarter or two ago, and this doesn't even spend all of that.

This is Disney, they can always change the number (and plans) though this Disney is one where the experiences division makes 50%+ of the company profit, and Universal is spending big. They like to promise big then scale back, look at the Epcot refresh, or Revised Fantasyland where all the cool blue sky went to Tokyo. Iger Is also supposed to leave in 2026… now apparently Josh is in the running? But who knows.

Fixing the Paris 2nd gate was much needed, DLP, while being the most beautiful castle park, is it has not got a new ride in 30 years.

Maybe I'm really out of touch, but is Disney over-estimating the demand for Avatar attractions? Sure, the two at DAK are pretty awesome but I haven't heard many people talking about the second move like, at all.

The_Orient_of_Express:

Unfortunately for them, what’s “selling” currently is sequels, reboots and known IPs.

Yeah, but is that because that’s what people want, period, or because the originals have been duds? I’ve not seen many originals lately, but I’ve read mixed reviews on the likes of Elemental and Strange World, I heard Wish was a huge dud, and I don’t really hear much about others (Luca, Raya and the Last Dragon, etc.). Conversely, it wasn’t so long that you had the likes of Encanto, which was positively brilliant.

It just seems to me that it wasn’t so long ago that they had a huge creative hot streak. I know they go through ups and downs, but goodness, I find it hard to believe that such an iconic brand can’t pull enough creative talent to put together decent original stories.

I also have to wonder if they just brought too much into the fold. You’ve got the Animation Studios, which should be the signature entertainment brand instead of what feels like the least-hyped, Pixar, Marvel, and Star Wars. Marvel and Star Wars seem like they’re constantly pumping out content to the point where I’ve long since lost interest because it’s impossible to keep up with it all, and the endless stream of new characters makes it harder and harder to get attached to anybody.

It just feels like everything gets turned into some sort of expanded universe, and at the end of the day, does any of it actually stick?

Maybe I’m just being a bit of a curmudgeon, but it seems like Disney once knew how to put out really great stories, and this is true even in very recent history, and those stories sold just fine. When Disney originals were duds in the past (the 80s, the 00s), they didn’t retread into sequels (the Animation Studios, anyway). Instead, they focused up and before long, hit hot streaks that resulted in enduring classics. I’d like to see them do that again.

Sharpel007:

This is [any business ever], they can always change the number (and plans)

I edited that for you. All of the bitching by "fans" about what they didn't do seems completely oblivious to the extraordinary thing that happened in 2020. The company I worked for drew its entire line of credit because it didn't know what might happen. Disney was in the midst of launching a streaming service and its cash cow had to close for several months. That they changed plans was the right thing to do.

robotfactory:

I haven't heard many people talking about the second move like, at all.

This again? It made $2.3 billion worldwide.

Disney Parks Blog revealed this morning that Rivers of America and Tom Sawyer Island will be replaced by Radiator Springs:

https://disneyparksblog.com...c-kingdom/

I'm sure this will raise a lot of hackles amongst Disney die hards. The walk along the river between Liberty Square and Big Thunder Mountain is one of my favorite areas of the park, but I get the progress. I haven't been to Tom Sawyer Island since probably the late 90s and I've only been on the river boat a few times.

I'm left assuming that the villains area will be on the plot of land behind Big Thunder Mountain.

People are going to lose their ****, absolutely. That'll be fun to watch. And same, haven't been to the island or on Liberty Belle since my kid was tiny. Maybe the last year that kpjb was here. It is interesting that they want to use that plot instead of pushing out into the swamp.

I understand that Rivers of America and the Island will need to be closed to prepare for whatever is coming, but I'm not sure that the river will be eliminated altogether. I think they will need to create some midways or access points to the space "behind Big Thunder", and maybe the Island will be incorporated into that, but I suspect efforts will be made to save the "River".

If the River wasn't a key component of the park, then I think they would have eliminated the Disneyland river years ago.

I hope they keep the river myself. It makes for nice sightlines and makes the park feel bigger than it actually is. I will make it a point to check out the island in September.

It is interesting that they want to use that plot instead of pushing out into the swamp.

I feel like lately they want to keep DL more historic and push WDW more forward… and I don’t mind this but Liberty Square is one of the best parts of original WDW. And as Jeff said there is nothing but swamp to the north and west of MK, unlike at DL.

I find it funny they surely knowingly held this art back from the panel, or showed it sun in the Imagineering booth, cause they knew the backlash would be swift. It was clearly the least well received announcement of the night.

Jeff:

It is interesting that they want to use that plot instead of pushing out into the swamp.

That is interesting. Maybe they want to keep the park a certain size. Within reasonable walkability?

I almost said in my post earlier that I could see the river staying in some form. It would create a nice natural barrier between Liberty Square/Frontierland and the new area. And no doubt that access to whatever is beyond Big Thunder Mountain can happen through this area. I could also see access happening near the Big Thunder exit path.

Nope just drop it where the river and island was…

That back path is interesting cause it means Frontierland is no longer a dead end, but now the Haunted Mansion will face Off Road Pixar Cars and a path, instead of a River with an island and paddle wheel.

Though I presume a path from the Mansion will tie better with the left side of Villains.