Three Walt Disney World Theme Parks Will Expand Soon

We’ve had a few days to reflect on the happenings at the 2024 D23 Expo.

Frankly, some of the stunning reveals left us breathless. They were so dramatic that a few of them were hard to process.

Now that we’ve had time to consider Disney’s announcements, we can discuss how they will impact future park visits.

Three Walt Disney World theme parks will change soon. Here’s what we know about each one.

Disney’s Animal Kingdom

Frankly, we didn’t learn as much as I’d expected about Animal Kingdom.

I say this because Disney focused exclusively on the confirmed update, which is the Tropical Americas.

Park officials shared no hints about any sections of Animal Kingdom despite rumors about other possible projects.

In fact, one of them, The Lion King ride, ended up at Disneyland Paris instead.

Why did that happen? There’s an art and a science to these D23 announcements.

Announcing one often steals the thunder from another unless they’re both stellar.

So, Disney emphasized the project it has officially announced, the Tropical Americas.

The first important aspect of this discussion is the timeline, with the themed land slotted for 2027.

Park officials described the project as occurring in phases but didn’t provide specifics.

However, panel participants explicitly stated that fans still have time to ride DINOSAUR before construction begins this fall.

There was no indication that DINOSAUR would close immediately after construction, though.

Instead, Disney focused on the details of the Tropical Americas, including the upcoming Indiana Jones ride.

This experience will place Doctor Jones in an entirely new setting as he explores a pristine Mayan Temple.

Local whispers suggest a mythical creature lives in the deepest part of the temple, and Indy wants to see that for himself.

While a new Indiana Jones ride is welcome news, the real star of this area will be Encanto.

Guests will explore an entirely new location, the Village of Hope.

One of the visual highlights here will be a carousel with wood-carved animals.

But the real star will be Encanto’s casita! Yes, the dark ride here will invite you inside Casa Madrigal!!!

Let’s just say that ride will be popular.

Disney’s Hollywood Studios

I don’t really rank surprises at D23, as they’re to be expected.

Still, there’s one rumor I’ve been tracking for a while that somehow made perfect sense yet still seemed implausible.

Park officials have recognized the park issue I casually reference in WDW wait time articles.

Hollywood Studios suffers from an odd imbalance; it’s top-heavy.

A few years ago, Disney boldly breathed new life into the park by adding Toy Story Land and Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge.

Now, some of the park’s most popular attractions, ones that often require hour-long waits, reside in adjoining themed lands.

The “problem,” if you can accurately call it that, is the overwhelming demand for these attractions.

Park guests spend lots of time standing in line because Hollywood Studios consists of many E-ticket attractions.

Since those rides are must-do options, they experience congestion.

So, even though Hollywood Studios has expanded twice recently, it still needs more…and now it’ll get that!

Monstropolis is coming soon, although we don’t know where yet, which has upset many Disney fans.

Management appears to be fighting over where to put the new Monstropolis, but that’s just history repeating itself at Hollywood Studios.

To improve such a small, storied park, sacrifices must be made, as we witnessed with the closure of The Great Movie Ride.

If that attraction isn’t above the fray, nothing is. But that’s okay!

We shouldn’t bury the lede here. An entire themed land based on the Monsters, Inc. franchise is coming soon!

Even better, Disney will finally build the long-rumored Monsters roller coaster.

This inverted coaster will mimic the chase scene at the end of Monsters, Inc., one of the most iconic Pixar moments ever.

Also, parts of this kid-friendly land should be set inside, unlike the largely outdoors Toy Story Land.

Magic Kingdom I

Disney saved some of the biggest announcements for Magic Kingdom.

Both reveals earned tremendous applause from the crowd, as they should.

Since 2012, East Coast Disney fans have gazed with envy at Radiator Springs, one of the greatest Imagineering feats ever.

Park officials spent more than $1 billion creating that themed land and its epic attraction, Radiator Springs Racers.

One day soon, Magic Kingdom will add its own answer to Radiator Springs, something that fans believe is long overdue.

Importantly, we’re not getting an entire themed land for Cars, though.

Instead, Disney will construct a Cars section at the current Frontierland, thereby sparing an important part of Disney history.

So, the Cars representation at Magic Kingdom will vary significantly from the one at Disney California Adventure.

Disney will build two Cars attractions at Frontierland, one of which will be family-friendly.

This experience should be akin to Luigi’s Rollickin’ Roadsters and Mater’s Junkyard Jamboree in that it’ll skew young.

The other attraction will probably be the Walt Disney World equivalent to Radiator Springs Racers, only this one will be off-track.

Due to the setting of Frontierland, Mater and other Cars characters will leave Radiator Springs to explore the badlands.

A rally race will provide the setting for this thrill ride, with the guest experiencing pitfalls like geyser bursts and mudholes.

Until/unless Disney says otherwise, you can and should think of this experience as the “15 years later” update to Radiator Springs Racers.

That’s a tantalizing proposition, isn’t it? So, that’s two formerly exclusive Disneyland Resort attractions potentially receiving better updates at Disney World!

Magic Kingdom II

Finally, we have the biggest reveal of all, the ones fans have begged Disney to do for decades now.

The Villians themed land is coming to Magic Kingdom! It’ll be the anchor experience at What Lies Beyond Big Thunder Mountain.

For many years now, reports have indicated Disney plans for an entire theme park dedicated to Disney Villains.

Some current and former Imagineers have directly refuted those reports, indicating that they never existed.

I suspect it’s a matter of semantics, as Disney could have easily pulled from the Beastly Kingdom plans that never came to fruition.

Still, the conversation doesn’t matter now anyway because we’re getting one!

Disney heard the feedback from fans and recognized an incredible business opportunity.

So, a Disney Villains land WILL happen, and while we’re early in the process, park officials at least know the broad strokes.

“The new land will encompass all your dreams- er, nightmares. The space will be home to two major attractions, dining, and shopping on an incredibly twisted grand scale.”

Remember that when Disney says “attraction,” that doesn’t necessarily mean a ride.

In this scenario, I suspect that it will, though. Disney Villians will sell many vacation packages.

Thus, Disney is incentivized to build the best possible themed land.

Plus, if Villains Land makes Dark Universe look inferior, so much the better…

This experience is likely the furthest from opening, but who knows?

Disney may go fast since it would earn the financial rewards more quickly…but I doubt that.

The timelines of Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge and Pandora – The World of Avatar appear more reasonable.

This is Disney’s biggest project as of now and should be treated as such.

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