Why You Should Be Excited About Disney’s Future
Three years ago today, Disneyland Park wasn’t open.
I stated on several occasions throughout the pandemic that it was both a metaphor and a statement of fact.
The Happiest Place on Earth wasn’t accepting guests throughout 2020 and early 2021. Joy was off the menu.
Four years ago today, nothing was open. We were barely a month into a global pandemic, as fear ruled the day.
Fast forward to 2024. The change in mood is palpable as Disney plots its next course.
Here’s why you should be excited about Disney’s future.
The Changes That Already Happened
I view the pandemic as the most evil thing that ever happened to Disney.
Pandemic-related concerns forced Walt Disney World to close for months and then operate at half-mast for nearly three years.
Disneyland Resort suffered an even worse fate, as it remained closed for more than a year.
On multiple occasions, I wrote articles about the rare instances when The Happiest Place on Earth closed for a day.
Suddenly, every day was like that, creating a kind of fugue state for fans where all times blurred together.
Not coincidentally, the parks faced an uncertain fate, which led to some questionable decisions.
Most importantly, then-CEO Bob Chapek negotiated a contract with Florida’s government.
Disney would move many Cast Members to a new headquarters in Lake Nona, Florida.
That group included Walt Disney Imagineering, which created instant, intense resistance.
Some left the company, while others admitted they were only staying until such a time as Disney forced them to move.
Imagineering lost good people like Kevin Lively, and it allowed a living legend to walk when Joe Rohde “retired.”
Many suspected that this particular firing was a lot like quitting after security had already escorted you from the building.
Around this time, Disney hired an outsider, Barbara Bouza, to head Imagineering.
While Bouza’s resume is immaculate, people within the building felt strongly that a career Imagineer should lead Imagineering.
Last year, Bruce Vaughn returned to Disney, and everyone knew what that meant, including Bouza, who just gracefully exited.
Once again, the Imagineers are in charge of Disney’s theme parks, which Walt Disney wanted.
It speaks volumes about Chapek that he could screw up something so obvious.
Thankfully, Josh D’Amaro just fixed his former boss’s mistake. Now, we can move on…
The Changes Happening Now
Early in April, Disney filed the most important Magic Kingdom paperwork in 50 years. I’m not even joking.
Disney has planned the biggest expansion in Magic Kingdom’s history, making it the most important project since the park opened.
Based on early reports, these changes will dwarf (no pun intended) the New Fantasyland changes from more than a decade ago.
Disney will show theme park enthusiasts what lies beyond Big Thunder Mountain.
That’s an idea that Disney Experiences Chairman Josh D’Amaro has already broached.
At the 2022 D23 Expo, D’Amaro suggested that guests would encounter several familiar faces in this space.
Specifically, when the expansion opened, D’Amaro indicated that we could live out the Day of the Dead as seen in Coco.
Imagineers even suggested we could ride an Alebrije like Dante while exploring the realm.
We also learned of a magical house guests could explore. Yes, it’s the Casita from Encanto!
Finally, Disney teased an entire area where its most famous Villains congregate.
While D’Amaro couched all these projects as blue-sky ideas, Disney used that D23 event as a litmus test.
The crowd responses proved emphatic enough that park officials sought to move forward with this plan.
Now, Disney has done that by filing the paperwork. While we still don’t know how much of what Disney said was real, who cares?
Any of those three park additions would dramatically enhance the appeal of Magic Kingdom, the world’s most popular theme park!
Similarly, Disney’s Animal Kingdom just confirmed that the switch from DinoLand USA to the Tropical Americas will happen soon.
After years of being stuck in neutral, Walt Disney Imagineering has switched into overdrive!
What We Should Expect
In a parallel article, I’ve calculated what I consider a reasonable timeline for Disney’s upcoming expansion projects.
Here are a few things to remember as you imagine Disney’s future.
The first is that the announced plans won’t play out as expected.
Budget cuts and updated ideas reflect a standard part of theme park expansion, at least at Disney.
Imagineers dream big and dare even bigger. Sometimes, the theoretical proves impractical.
Also, budgets are a thing. I’ll write another piece soon recounting several instances of financial shortfalls leading to disappointment.
But this is the optimism piece! You should be excited about Disney’s future!
While I think Disney did itself a disservice by tethering expansion to a number like $60 billion, the reality is that the parks will improve.
In many instances, they’ll improve dramatically, starting with changes coming to Disneyland Resort.
Presuming that a vote goes well next week, DisneylandForward will have accomplished its goals.
At that point, Disney will have guaranteed in writing in a binding agreement that $2 billion in new experiences will come to Disneyland.
Contrast that to where the park was three years ago at this time!
Similarly, Walt Disney World will improve at least two parks with near-immediate expansion.
The Emerging Strategy
In fact, that may be Disney’s new pattern in America.
For the past decade, Imagineers plussed Disney California Adventure, EPCOT, and Hollywood Studios.
Over the next decade, they’ll add to Magic Kingdom and Animal Kingdom, plus something at Disneyland Resort.
By adopting this approach, Disney is guaranteeing that all its parks get dramatically better within a 20-year period.
So, half the parks you love will improve substantially over the next few years!
If that doesn’t get you excited about Disney’s future, you and I are VERY different people.
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