$3 Billion Will Allow Star Wars, Pixar & Indiana Jones Overhaul of DHS

[Ian]

Courtesy Billy Donnelly July 2, 2015
Original Link: http://thisisinfamous.com/3-billion-...ios-exclusive/

Say goodbye to the Disney’s Hollywood Studios you have come to love over the years, and get ready to welcome with open arms the biggest theme park expansion Disney has ever set out to do. Details of Disney’s Hollywood Adventure are set to be rolled out at this year’s D23 Expo in Anaheim come August, but we’ve got the exclusive on some of the secrets The Mouse was trying to keep under wraps until then.

With the attention of geeks centered on what comes out of San Diego a short time from now at the 2015 edition of Comic-Con, there have been some major developments swirling beneath the radar as it pertains to Disney. The Mouse is going to have a huge presence at the event, pulling back the curtain on a great deal of STAR WARS content to whip the fans into a frenzy for the weekend, but for those who don’t just want to watch the things they love, but experience them as well, the enthusiasm will reach a much higher level when they learn of the pilgrimage to Orlando, Florida, they’ll have to make in the near future.

Per our reliable source Uncle Walt, Disney’s board has approved $3 billion for a massive overhaul of the Studios park, complete with rebranding to better reflect the shift away from how movies are made to more how they live and breathe inside of us. Along with that money, we’ll be seeing the park dominated by STAR WARS, Pixar and Indiana Jones as a great deal of the park’s older attractions are put out to pasture and about six new ones are ushered in.

Let’s start with what goes… Basically everything. It’d be easier to list what is going to be sticking around, as that list is much shorter, so here you go – The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror, Rock ‘N’ Roller Coaster, Toy Story Mania and the Great Movie Ride. If an attraction is not in that company, it’s not going to last. And yes, that even includes Muppet Vision 3D and the Indiana Jones Epic Stunt Spectacular, with things like the Magic of Disney Animation already confirmed to be on the cutting room floor.

But fear not, Disney lovers. Not all change is bad. What is in the works is something that should inject some new energy into the park, with two new STAR WARS attractions tapped to be in the works, including a Dagobah centerpiece for where Echo Lake and Gertie the Dinosaur currently reside. Details on what those attractions will be have managed to escape me for now, but, with STAR TOURS and the Jedi Training Academy, which I hear will be relocating indoors to an existing building, already in place, you’re looking at four STAR WARS attractions on the ground inside the park, not to mention the possibilities for dining and shopping experiences that would mimic what you’d encounter in that galaxy far, far away.

Indiana Jones will not be staying away from Hollywood Adventure for too long. He just won’t be doing it in a stunt capacity with the rumors of the long-standing show closing up shop finally coming true. However, an updated version of the Indiana Jones Adventure that can be found in Disneyland in Anaheim, CA, will be breaking ground in Florida finally. So there’s that to look forward to.

As for Pixar’s presence, Pixar Place will continue to grow, with three new attractions being added to the mix, and that doesn’t even count the expansion of Toy Story Mania that is currently in the works. In fact, sources tell me that construction may already be underway, hidden from public view where the Studio Backlot Tour used to exist. That would make the time from announcement to completion feel much shorter, a strategy Universal has successfully employed in recent years for their theme parks.

Now the time frame for all of this to be completed is a bit of a mystery. Disney is well aware that the park remains popular, and they’d like to keep guests coming through the turnstiles as they work through this period of transition. As a result, you’re not just going to see each of the rides and shows set to go closing their doors all at once. Disney will be moving through in waves, knowing that a handful of rides aren’t going to be enough to satisfy their crowds. So you’ll see a few things close down in order to make way for the new attractions, and, as those come along in the process, others will then start shuttering up for the new construction.

Once again, I’ve been told all of this will be revealed at D23 in greater detail and with many more specifics, but at least for now you have the blueprint for what The Mouse has planned for the next few years in Orlando.

Oh, and that doesn’t even include the new nighttime show being lined up for EPCOT to replace Illuminations or the new attraction that will be kicking Journey Into Imagination to the curb.

Zip-a-Dee-Doo-Dah.

[disneymom15]

Can't wait to hear what else is coming. Thanks for the update.

[dnickels]

If true this would be great! Anything that moves towards the money being invested in actual rides / attractions / shows rather than a ticket on our wrist is the kind of thing that a theme park needs to do in order to keep people coming back. Fingers crossed this will actually get done.

[VWL Mom]

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If an attraction is not in that company, it’s not going to last. And yes, that even includes Muppet Vision 3D ...

[Ian]

I'll miss Muppet Vision simply for the nostalgia factor, but let's be real ... that attraction is SO dated from a technology perspective that it's to the point where it interferes with your enjoyment of it.

If, in fact, this is a $3 billion project that basically means they're building a whole new park. Very significant.

[Fangorn]

If, in fact, this is a $3 billion project that basically means they're building a whole new park. Very significant.

True - very significant. And overdue.

So we have $1Billion "ear"marked for DLR and $3Billion for Studios/Hollywood Adventure. As long as we're on a spending spree, how about throwing in an extra Billion or two and give Epcot some significant love? It needs more than just a warm hug. Although I'll gladly accept the replacement of Journey into (the lack of) Imagination as a start.

Steve

[DonaldDuck1117]

Just read this on another site as well. Hoping all the rumors turn out to be true and Disney does it right. If they do the robots Studios might even challenge MK for attendance. Challenge, I said.

[Sylvia]

Many attractions that are favorites of many guests will disappear. Change may not always be good if it destroys so much of what is important to so many guests.

[Altair]

How long to complete, 10 to 15 years? They might as well just shut down the park and finish as quickly as possible.

[LittleDreamer]

Since they have no desire to close the park I wonder if they are going to do this in two phases or try to one shot it. I could imagine right side (Pixar) going first. Close LMA and construction. Then left size possibly closing Muppets and Indy and build over that.

[Disney Doll]

Bring on the change! I grew up when this park made it's debut, and I'm now 35. That's a long time and so many of these attractions have not stood the test of time. This is awesome as far as I am concerned.

[Fangorn]

They could easily do it in one fell swoop - if they really wanted to. And without actually closing the park. The four attractions mentioned that are staying (assuming that's true) are all in the 'core' of the park. TOT and RNR (along with Fantasmic) are all on Sunset Blvd. GMR and TSMM are close to each other in the center of the park. They could keep Hollywood Blvd, the main hub (at least most of it), Sunset Blvd and the access to TSMM open. Everything else is laid out in a giant horseshoe around this core. Close off the Eastern side of the hub (Indy/Star Tours) and close off Animation Courtyard on the West. You're left with a much smaller active park, but one that contains all the principal attractions. Leaving them to do whatever they want with the remaining 65-70% of the existing park land. Even more it they actually expand the overall footprint.

Whether they will do something like that or not, is another question. I've seen far too many major projects - construction, implementation, etc, take far longer than necessary because management didn't have the guts to "inconvenience" people for 2 years. Instead, they "do it in stages" and in the long run spend more money and "inconvenience" people for 5 years. Most of us learned as children that the best thing is to just rip off the Band-Aid quickly. Painful, but short lived.

I'm hoping, that with the layout of Studios, they'll see the wisdom of getting it all done quickly.

Steve

[Tekneek]

I am glad they are doing something with all this money. I cannot say that I am immediately excited about what will come, but I'll have an open mind about it. For me, personally, dumping The Muppets completely will make it a challenge for me to come back. However much I like Star Wars, I like The Muppets about 2 or 3 times as much.

At the end of the day, the key is putting in compelling experiences that challenge the guests a little bit (doing more than copying attractions from other parks or feeding them Frozen at every turn - aka hitting the easy button) and will be maintained as if it just opened (do not ever pull a disco Yeti again) until the day they close for good. Dumping in attractions from other parks may be cost effective in a way, as many guests don't go to the other parks and do not care about the details, but Disney should aim higher.

$3 billion sounds like a lot, but I'm only cautiously optimistic. If it is true that they will simply copy the Indiana Jones attraction from Disneyland, that's not very impressive. I had hoped we had moved beyond simply copying attractions.

[Wilderness guy]

Add me to the list of those glad to see this. Hollywood Studios has always been my least favorite park - we could do all we wanted to do is half a day or less. I'll be sad to see the Muppets go. Yes, there is the nostalgia, but from a guest perspective, the 3-D technology was actually better (to my eyes) than most of the other 3-D attractions. That said, I welcome the change.

[Yungbuck73]

Great info, Ian. Glad the studios is getting an influx of $.

[Maleficent_vf]

Even though I love Muppet Vision (it's one of the only reasons we've gone to DHS in recent years), it is dated and I'm okay with it going away. I just wish they would keep the Muppet presence in the renovated park. It seems like they could come up with something given that they are a Disney property...

[DisneyGiant]

Even though I love Muppet Vision (it's one of the only reasons we've gone to DHS in recent years), it is dated and I'm okay with it going away. I just wish they would keep the Muppet presence in the renovated park. It seems like they could come up with something given that they are a Disney property...

Agree 100%. I would hope that they could replace Muppets in 3D will something "Muppety."

[IloveJack]

This park has become our half-day park. We'd much rather spend our time in AK. So I am very happy to hear this! I might get really sad if Prime Time Cafe disappears, though.

[Tekneek]

Agree 100%. I would hope that they could replace Muppets in 3D will something "Muppety."

There is a sentimental attachment, given that Jim Henson was involved with it. I would hope that they would find a way to capture the spirit of Jim in any replacement attraction they might have. It is good for the current Disney company to not have any sacred cows, but surely they can keep this property involved in their parks.

[azcavalier]

Count us in as very excited for the changes. I too love the Muppets, and would hope that they would keep a Muppet presence in the park (or another park...but I don't know where else they would fit).

Even if they just copy the Indiana Jones ride from DLR, I welcome it. I have been to DLR once, back in 1996, and I loved that ride. I cannot wait for it, copy or not, to open at DHA.

That article/post didn't even mention the new "flex stage" or whatever it is that they're building next to ToT. I'm hoping that it will house a show that is a version of the one I just saw at Tuacahn in southern Utah called Disney's When You Wish. If you want to hear more about it, check out my post on it over in the "Musicals" section of the Intercot boards.