Fan Reaction to Disney Villains Land Piqued The Company’s Interest
With Disney putting the final touches on TRON Lightcycle / Run, Imagineers are already hard at work dreaming of what Disney will do next.


Credit: D23
At the D23 convention last September, Disney Parks chairman Josh D’Amaro showcased concept art for a Moana and Zootopia land at Disney’s Animal Kingdom, and an Encanto/Coco land for the Magic Kingdom.
A Fan-Favorite Concept
Of all the concepts shown to the audience, the idea that generated the most buzz from the crowd, however, was a land dedicated to Disney’s villains. In fact, the crowd reaction was so enthusiastic, that it piqued Disney’s interest.


Photo: Scott Gustin
When discussing D’Amaro’s D23 presentation, Imagineer Chris Beatty explained to Entertainment Weekly that Imagineering is always working on the future of Walt Disney World.
“We’re dreaming every day about what could be next at Walt Disney World. We just wanted to give you a peek at some of the amazing things that could be coming. It’s changing every day. It’s exciting. I think Josh was really trying to get across that spirit of creativity, of what could be next. Of innovation of the possibility of what could be is still alive and well at Disney and Imagineering,”


Photo: The Walt Disney Company- Josh D’Amaro (Chairman; Disney Parks, Experiences and Products)
Disney Takes Note
While the concepts shown at D23 were not intended to highlight concrete plans for the parks, Beatty admits that the company took note of fans’ reactions to the Disney villain land.
“[The villains concept] got pretty good applause,” he admits. “We took note of how loud the applause was when we announced that.”
While I doubt that Disney will construct a multi-million dollar land based on one audience’s reaction, it is both interesting and refreshing to hear that Disney is taking fans’ feedback into consideration.
An Open Future
With only the Journey of Water and Tiana’s Bayou Adventure left on the horizon, it seems likely that Disney will announce a new Disney World project soon. Whether or not that project will be Disney Villains land, however, remains to be seen.