Disney Rumors for March 2025
This month, I’ll kill one rumor that crops up every few years.
Then, I’ll discuss confirmed and potential changes to various Magic Kingdom roller coasters.
We’ve got some fun stuff in the latest edition of Disney Rumors!
Here We Go Again
Universal Studios just confirmed that Universal Horror Unleashed will debut on August 14th, 2025.
Photo: Universal
And you’re probably thinking, “What in the world does that have to do with Disney Rumors?”
Source: Universal Studios
Well, Unleashed is about to become a permanent installation at AREA15 in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Some people believe that The Walt Disney Company has viewed this project as a threat.
Photo: Universal Studios
So, they expect Disney to keep up with the Joneses by building something in Las Vegas as well.
For those of you who have been following Disney for a while, your first thought is probably, “Here we go again…”
Photo: Madison Square Garden Company
I’m right there with you as I feel like I’ve had to write rumor killers about Disney in Vegas on umpteen occasions.
This one is uniquely topical, though. If you perform a search for Circus Circus Hotel, Disney autofills as a result.
Photo: Universal
That’s happening due to a hot rumor among the locals that Disney will purchase and repurpose the former Circus Circus Hotel.
I can always tell that a Disney story like this has gone viral when friends start asking me about it, and that’s what’s happened here.
The Rumor and Rumor Killer
Wikipedia
Even Fox 11 Los Angeles mentioned the possibility before acknowledging that the rumor had been debunked.
While you may not believe me or Fox 11 about this topic, I feel confident you’ll trust Casino.org.
Hotels.com
It’s their business to know what’s coming and going in Vegas. And they sound just as tired of this story as I am. Here’s the quote:
“It feels like we just shut down this idiocy five months ago because we did.
SFGATE
Only it wasn’t Circus Circus that the Walt Disney Company was supposedly purchasing just because the Las Vegas casino resort markets itself to children.
It was Excalibur just because it resembles Cinderella’s castle.”
Casino.org
Tell us how you really feel, author Corey Levitan. I get it, my friend. I’m over this nonsense as well.
Levitan and the staff at Casino.org dutifully did their jobs in tracking down the source of this rumor.
Welcome sign at Las Vegas, Nevada, United States of America. Las Vegas, USA – September 27, 2018.
Then, they posted this rebuke, which busted me up because it’s so cranky-funny.
“We don’t know about you, but we like to get all our Las Vegas news from Facebook posts that can’t even spell their subjects (“Circus Cicrus”) correctly. This post received nearly 6K likes and 1.5K shares, by the way.”
Photo: MGM Resorts
Some say that sarcasm on the internet rarely works, but here’s proof that they’re wrong.
In short, a few thousand people fell for a clear clickbait post on Facebook, which recently changed its content policies.
Photo: CES
In the process, Facebook became more susceptible to misinformation, and that’s what happened here.
Prove me wrong, “Circus Circus” fans!
As an aside, Disney may well add a new experience at Las Vegas, just as Universal has.
There’s just no sign of it happening in the short term. MickeyBlog will obviously update you if that ever changes.
Disney and Vegas really aren’t the best mix, though.
Big Thunder Mountain Sadness
Our theme park reporters recently updated you on a major story unfolding at Magic Kingdom.
Disney construction teams removed the roller coaster track from Big Thunder Mountain Railroad.
I realize that’s shocking, but Disney reporter Scott Gustin posted video of the removal, which is contained in the above link.
In last month’s Disney Rumors, I referenced this anticipated change as part of the Villains Land construction.
Park officials will reclaim some of the space on the back end of Big Thunder Mountain.
To do that, Disney must alter the tracks a bit for the roller coaster, a process that explains the ride’s extended sabbatical.
Big Thunder Mountain Railroad closed on January 6th but won’t reopen in calendar 2025.
So, make no mistake on the point. Disney is rebuilding this ride from the ground up, which bums me out.
Photo: Disney
We’re probably losing one of the most fascinating bits of Disney trivia.
In case you weren’t aware, doctors have proven that the Magic Kingdom roller coaster can shake loose kidney stones.
Here’s a video of Mr. Cheezy Pop passing a kidney stone at this park after having failed at Disneyland:
For whatever reason, this trick only worked at Magic Kingdom, and those tracks are gone now. So, I think it’s over.
Photo: Omelete
Anyway, the changes at Big Thunder Mountain Railroad reflect a much-needed first step toward the construction of Villains Land.
The project is advancing at a faster pace than I’d projected with my initial timeline.
Photo: Disney
This recent filing suggests that Disney wants this place done by 2030.
Last August, I stated, “Before starting on Villains Land, Disney must build out the area that lies beyond Big Thunder Mountain. It’ll take a while.”
Well, that’s already happening. So, I consider this project well ahead of schedule.
And the Hot New Rumor
That brings us to something else percolating among Disney insiders.
Some folks have noticed that Disney is changing Tomorrowland and particularly Space Mountain at several international parks.
I feel like I recently stated that Disney would never consider this at Magic Kingdom, the original version of Space Mountain.
While I cannot find a confirming link, I’m pretty sure I did…and I may be waaaaay wrong on this one.
Photo: Tron Lightcycle/Run
I’d thought Disney just finished its modernization of Tomorrowland with Tron Lightcycle / Run.
The new roller coaster’s exterior, an illuminated canopy, redefines the skyline of Tomorrowland at Magic Kingdom.
However, Disney officials apparently aren’t ready to stop there. They’ve got their eyes on something bigger.
As I mentioned during a recent Disney Rumors update, park planners wanted to save some announcements for Destination D23.
That’s the Walt Disney World version of D23 later this year, and it should have Walt Disney World news.
Well, changes at Tomorrowland, including the internal redesign of Space Mountain, would qualify.
And yes, that’s the hot rumor of the moment. Disney apparently won’t change the iconic exterior of Space Mountain.
The interior, on the other hand, could receive the same makeover Big Thunder Mountain Railroad is currently getting.
Last Day at Big Thunder Mountain
Presumably, that change would start once Big Thunder is back in operation.
I doubt Disney wants two roller coasters simultaneously offline at the world’s most popular theme park.
Big Thunder Mountain Railroad
Still, I’m hearing enough about this rumor that I’m confident it’s at least under discussion.
I know what I’m about to say is blasphemous, but speaking as someone whose back hates Space Mountain, I think this change is long overdue.
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Feature Photo: Disney
