D23 2026 Reactions and Thoughts

D23 2026 has dropped a mountain of Disney Parks news, and we're breaking it all down on this episode of Disney My Way!

We cover the HUGE announcements coming to Walt Disney World. And we also go around the world with the latest news from Disneyland, Disney Cruise Line, Disneyland Paris, Tokyo, Hong Kong, and Shanghai.

Which announcements have us excited? Which ones have us scratching our heads? And what does all of this mean for the future of Disney Parks?

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Transcript

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What's up, Wayfinders, and welcome into Disney My Way, episode number two hundred and twenty one. My name is Lightning Lane Cut Chow. And on today's episode, I'm sharing with you my reactions to everything that was announced at the Parks panel at D23. It's gonna be a great time, so let's go ahead and dive on in. I only hope that we never lose sight of one thing that was all started by a mouse. So D23 2026 has officially come and gone. And this is always a weekend that Disney fans look forward to. And for Disney Parks fans in particular, we always look forward to the Parks panel. And you know, this was a year that we kind of knew wouldn't be as much splash announcements as the one two years ago because there were so many big things announced at the last D23. But even despite that, I feel like there were still some really big things that were brought up at the Parks panel this year, even in just the updates of things that are worth talking about. And you know, this year's Parks Panel, I feel like from social media that I've seen and on TikTok, you know, which I know is also social media, but you know, I know that you know, there's been a lot of hate on the parks panel in a lot of ways because it was like, wow, you know, really this is a whole bunch of nothing. But like, also we kind of knew that this year wouldn't be nearly as exciting as two years ago, right? But you know, what I said in my predictions episode was go into it with kind of some lower expectations, but still expect some things to drop. And I think we got that. And so I feel like the Parks panel overall was a success. And I love the fact that Disney actually live streamed it on Disney Plus this year so I could watch it, you know, and have a good view of it instead of you know trying to find somebody on YouTube live streaming it and trying to hop on board. So I did appreciate that it was live streamed this year. I think, you know, in the future I could do without some of the extra pieces that they added into it, you know. I get that because you know it's on Disney Plus, you probably want to up it a little bit, but you know, just some of the performances, you know, they weren't bad. It's just they were extra things, and I just wanted to get through the announcements. So, you know, that was kind of really my only complaint for the evening. But I I still love that we had access to it. I think that's something really fun, and something I would love to see more of with future D23s, but we can get to that when we get to that because I know that you all want to both recap and maybe hear for the first time if you didn't watch the parks panel, what the announcements were and what my thoughts are on them as we move forward into the future of the Disney parks all over the world. So we're gonna dive into that as we go through them. You know, we're gonna go through basically international parks, Disney Cruise line, the you know, Disneyland and Walt Disney World. We're gonna go through all of that. And as we do, if you are watching on YouTube, because I am making a YouTube video for this episode just because I feel like it's warranted, there are gonna be some graphics up on the screen. And these graphics will have kind of some bullet points of what was announced, maybe some little minor details uh included with that. The one thing I want to say though is if you are watching on YouTube, first and foremost, welcome. We're glad you're here. But on these graphics, they're gonna have some opening dates for some reason with them. Chat GPT helped me make the graphics just because I didn't have a whole lot of time to sit down and make them myself. And for some reason, chat put on opening dates for some of these things that we do not know opening dates for. So if you're watching along, don't pay attention to the opening dates on the graphics, just go by what I am talking about and what I am reading. So we're gonna go ahead and dive on in. And the first one we're gonna talk about is Disney Cruise Line. Just because I feel like Disney Cruise line didn't have like the biggest announcements to give in the world this year. Now, that does not mean it was not important, but it's just it was very baseline. And I did feel awful for the lady giving the Disney Cruise line portion of the panel because for some reason the way they organized it, they had Cruise Line going much, much later in the night than they normally do, and there was no energy for her, and she was begging for people to react to some of these things, and she was just getting absolutely nothing, and I felt awful for her. But you know, there were still some announcements to be had, and the first one was about the Disney Believe. This is a new cruise ship that will be setting sail pretty soon, sometime within the next year or so. And now we got some details on what to expect with the ship. So Moana is gonna be the character that is featured in the grand hall of the ship. Tinkerbell is gonna be on the bow, and then Buzz and Woody are gonna be on the stern. So if you don't know, every Disney Cruise line ship on the back usually features a character, you know, and the name of the ship. And so I think on the last, one of the last ones they made, you know, it was Tangled, riding, you know, the name of the ship on the back. And so this time it's gonna be Buzz and Woody, and they're gonna have crayons and they're gonna be coloring in the name of the ship on the back, and it's called, of course, the Disney Believe. So that is very exciting that we got some character details for that. A lot of excitement about the Believe joining the current Cruise Line fleet. But then also the other kind of big announcement for Disney Cruise Line was a new ship class. So basically how she explained it was that this newer fleet that they have been releasing ships through the last couple of years, those are a little bit smaller than the original kind of cruise line ships that Disney Cruise Line first launched. In this new class of ships that are about to come in, they're kind of uh in between. So they're not as big as the OG ones, but they're not as small as the newer ones. And so they're gonna kind of fit right in the middle there, and it's gonna be kind of cool because with that, it will allow Disney Cruise Line to send those ships to new destinations where they'll have new experiences in all of those types of things. So that's really cool. Now, the first ship in this class is not gonna launch until I think around 2029 or so, is what kind of the timeline is looking like. But that is awesome that they're gonna be able to kind of mix things up. You know, not that I feel like a cruise is ever the same every single time you go, but this will definitely encourage people to keep coming back to Disney Cruise Line to experience something new every single time they want to book, you know, book a cruise, basically. So they're gonna be able to sh to shake things up every single time that they do. So that was really cool to hear, but that was the Disney Cruise line portion of the panel was talking about those two things. So some cool stuff coming for Disney Cruise Line, even if the uh the crowd did not quite react like it was a big deal, but it is a big deal. And now we're gonna move on to our international parks. So this is Tokyo, Disney, Disneyland, Paris, Hong Kong, Disneyland, and Shanghai Disney Resort. Now, the problem with these announcements were that they were kind of scattered all over the place. That was something else I didn't love about the parks panel this year. I felt like normally they kind of group all of the announcements with whatever park that they're talking about or whatever experience they're talking about. I felt like this year it was very scattered, kind of all over the board. And so trying to organize all of them into their individual parks is was something that I knew we needed to do. But at Shanghai Disney, they are getting a Spider-Man land. And this is super cool because this is going to be the first land dedicated to Spider-Man entirely at, I believe, any of the Disney parks. So this will be super cool. You know, they're gonna get some new Spidey attractions, including a Spider-Man coaster, they'll have Spider-Bots, the Worldwide Engineering Brigade, or Web for Short technology featured there. That is going to be super cool. And they showed a couple of you know concept art pieces on the Spider-Man roller coaster. It looks like it's going to be awesome. I'm really pumped about that coming to Shanghai. It honestly gives me even more of a reason to want to go visit that park. I've already heard it's incredible, but I definitely want to go to Shanghai now in the next couple of years to experience the new Spider-Man land. It looks like it's going to be a ton of fun. But then as we move on over to Hong Kong, they're also getting some more Avengers content. They are getting some Avengers Pavilion updates and expanded Stark Expo, which let me just say this: it's already super cool that they get the Stark Expo at the park, but you know, we'll keep moving on. They're going to get a new Avengers attraction, they're going to get a new Quinjet landing platform, a new Avengers research testing labs, and overall, just more new Marvel experiences. And so obviously that's a big deal. You know, like they that's just stuff that they can't really do, like at Walt Disney World, just because of the weird rights agreement that they have with Universal. Me and our good friend of the program, Savannah, we were actually, you know, texting back and forth during the parks panel, and that was one thing that we talked about. Like, Savannah was like, why can't we get all this stuff? And it's like, yeah, it's that weird rights agreement with Universal, where like for some reason on the East Coast, we can't use all these characters, but like on the West Coast with Disneyland, they could use them if they want to. You know, it's just a weird rights agreement for the theme parks, and we just have to live with it. Now we can get some type of Marvel content at Walt Disney World, it's just it can't be with kind of the premier Marvel characters. So that's just, you know, the interesting thing that we have to deal with. But it's cool in a way, though, that Hong Kong and Shanghai can get those types of attractions because that just again gives you a great reason to travel and to go there and experience them for yourselves. So I think that is one of the cool things about it is that they do get those things, so we can go over there and experience them. But, you know, I do wish we could get some more Marvel stuff at Walt Disney World from time to time. But Tokyo Disney also got some cool announcements at the D23 panel this year. They are getting a new version of Space Mountain called Space Mountain Earth Rise. This is going to be a part of a Tomorrowland reimagining for them. And it's going to focus on Earth's beauty and humanity's future. This looks super cool from the concept art and from like the drone footage and the models that they showed at D23. This looks like it's going to be spectacular. I mean, just from the visual of the outside of it, it's probably the most unique looking Space Mountain I have ever seen. And again, it just makes me want to go to Tokyo so that I can go there and see it for myself. Like it's it's that cool to look at visually. And I'm excited about kind of the new storyline with it too. You know, I think that's one of the fun things about Space Mountain is that, like, you know, we've seen Star Wars come to Space Mountain before, like in the U.S., and I believe it also may be at Paris for a moment. You know, Star Wars has been featured on Space Mountain. You know, the Space Mountain in Florida, which you guys know is not my favorite, but during the parties, you know, the Halloween party and the Christmas party, you can do different stuff. Turn all of the lights off and play Halloween music or play Christmas music with Christmas lights going off throughout your ride. Like, there are so many different things that you can do with Space Mountain storyline-wise. It's really neat to see what the Imagineers kind of keep coming up with for these versions of Space Mountain. And this is no different. Like, this is going to be really cool when it launches. And again, I cannot wait to see it when it's done. And I hope to go to Tokyo at some point to see it firsthand. But for now, Space Mountain Earthrise is pretty much all the details we have on it, but it is going to be spectacular. So I can't wait to see how that develops. And then Tokyo is also getting a Wreck It Ralph attraction called Sugar Rush Suite Rescue. So this is about Ralph and Vanelope going into the Sugar Rush game. There will be a Ralph Animatronic featured in the ride. That should be really cool. But other than that, I can't really remember what this game is going to be. Or what this, sorry, what this um ride is going to be. I can't remember if it's going to keep like the Buzz Lightyear type aspects where it's like maybe like an arcade shooter type game, or if maybe they're going to go a completely different direction with the Sugar Rush thing and make it like the Mario Kart ride type thing that they have at Epic. I can't remember what direction they're going with. I'll try to look it up real fast. But, you know, I just know that this is cool that they're getting a, you know, they're getting a Wreck-At Ralph ride for them to experience. Like, that is that is super um, that is super cool. Like, I wish we could get a Wreck at Ralph attraction. Uh, and and I know Savannah was um also texting me in a little disappointed that this was not coming to you know the U.S. parks, that this was going to once again be for Tokyo Disneyland. But yeah, I can't see any details on what it's going to be, but I'm sure it will be a phenomenal ride, no matter what. So, yeah, so they are getting a new Sugar Rush Suite Rescue ride for Tokyo Disney. And once again, gives me a great reason to go over there and ride it since we don't have one. But now we move on to Disneyland Paris. And Disneyland Paris got some big announcements this time around. So we know that there are some new Lion King things coming to the Disney Adventure World Park over in Paris. And one of them is a Flume attraction where you will go through the story of the Lion King and Simba's journey from Cub to King. They even showed some new art where you see Scar featured in it. And basically, you just got to think it's like Tiana's or Splash Mountain going through the story, animatronics, all that stuff in a log ride. So super cool that they are getting that. It looks like it's going to be fantastic. I also love that they're basing this off of the animated film, not the reimagined version, the quote unquote realistic version that was released in 2019. They are basing all of this off of that OG film. So I do love that. It's going to make the animatronics just pop a lot more. And it's going to be, it's going to be really cool. But I do get a little bit jealous sometimes because I just I can't help but think that something like that would be amazing over at Animal Kingdom. But again, kind of like what I was saying with the Avengers stuff, you know, it is cool that Paris is getting this because that is a park that has had a lot of struggles throughout its time, especially Adventure World, which used to be Disney Studios, which was considered to be the weakest of all the Disney parks in the world, not just at Paris. And it's cool that they're getting something that people are looking forward to. So I will gladly let Disney Adventure World have that and go to Paris and experience it myself instead of, you know, dreaming and hoping that it comes to Animal Kingdom. But I do get a little bit jealous sometimes with that. I'm not going to lie. But Disneyland Paris, it was not done just at Lion King for them. Their Space Mountain is also getting a redo. It is going from Hyperspace Mountain to, I'm not going to be able to say the name, but it is going to be Space Mountain. And basically, it is the original Jules Verne storyline that was there when it first opened. So their Space Mountain at Disneyland Paris was originally based off of Jules Verne and in particular the journey to the moon. And so that storyline is going to be coming back. The original score is going to be coming back, and they're just basically going to be plussing the ride. And I love that because I felt like that version just was so Disneyland Paris coded. I mean, it was just it was perfect for that part. And I'm sure Disneyland Paris goers are super excited that that version is coming back. I know I'm pumped about that version coming back. I've never even been there to experience it, but again, it makes me want to go there and ride it because I've heard how cool that version is. So truly, truly excited about that uh Space Mountain update for Disneyland Paris as well. Again, I think there's just a lot of cool stuff coming to the parks internationally, and I think the future of them is all really, really incredible. So cool stuff announced for the overseas parks, but the fun didn't stop there because we also got some big announcements for Disneyland in California and Walt Disney World. And we're going to start with Disneyland. So for Disneyland, it kind of started early on. Pretty early into the panel, I believe. They announced the entertainment that would be returning to Disneyland Park. Of course, Disneyland just finished up the 70th anniversary. So with that came some new shows, some returning favorites like Paint the Night and stuff like that. But it was announced that the original World of Color show will be coming back to California Adventure, which I think is great because the version they had for the 70th was it was good, but it was not like that classic version that I think most people fall in love with. So I'm glad the OG World of Color is coming back. The Remember Dreams Come True fireworks show is also making a return to Disneyland Park next year in 2027. And then the most jealous I've ever been in my life is when they announced that the Magic Happens parade will also be coming back in 2027 at Disneyland. Now we knew that that was going to happen, but that is considered one of the best parades that Disney has to offer. And unfortunately for Lane or for Lightning Lane, Cachow, I didn't get to see it when I went to the 70th, but I did get to see Paint Tonight, which was cool. But I really want to see Magic Happens. I think that's such a cool parade. So super jealous that they're going to get that back, but good for them because it's a great parade. And I'm excited that just magic happens is returning. Because I know that sometimes when those parades go away, you never quite know what the future of them is going to be. But that was all of the kind of the entertainment that's coming back. And then, of course, there's some new stuff coming to Avengers Campus at California Adventure as well. So you got Avengers Affinity Defense, which is going to be that new e-ticket attraction coming to Avengers Campus. You got the Start Flight Lab, which I kind of forgot that they were getting that, to be completely honest, until they talked about it. I was like, oh yeah, I forgot they were getting the Start Flight Lab at Avengers Campus. And then, of course, this expansion that they are bringing to Avengers Campus is basically going to double the size of Avengers Campus. And the way that they described it was that there would be no more cutoffs between Radiator Springs and Avengers Campus. It's going to be wide open for people to get back and forth. No, you know, delays or workarounds or walk arounds. Everything's going to be connected, which is cool. But I'll say this Avengers Affinity Defense does look like it's going to be pretty spectacular from the set designs to all of the actors that are involved. Involved in it. It seems like it's going to be a really good attraction. It does. I don't it's going to be hard to judge whether it really is like an e-ticket level one until it actually kind of debuts. But it does feel like it's on its way to being a very, very good attraction, especially for California Adventure and for Avengers Campus. I think that's going to be a really big ride for them to get. Now, I will say this, it is kind of a bummer that, like, we've known that they were going to add an e-ticket attraction to Avengers Campus for a long time. And it still is going to be like in 2028 before this opens or something like that. That's still a long time to get there. I know basically at this point we're in August of 2026. So it's really more like not even like a year and a half. But of course, knowing Disney, 2028 does not mean January of 2028. Probably means like November of 2028 or something like that. And same with the Stark Flight Lab. Like, that also looks like it's going to be a really fun attraction. And I think that's going to be another kind of welcome addition to Avengers Campus. We'll take some of the heat off the Spider-Man Web Blasters ride, you know, as another attraction to kind of eat some people. Um, but even that one is also not expected until like 2028. And again, it's not like the biggest deal in the world, but it is something of like, okay, I was kind of thinking that would be maybe more like late 2027 or something like that, considering, especially with Affinity Defense. Again, we know how long they've been planning to add an e-ticket attraction to that part, especially at Avengers Campus. So I don't know. But, you know, it is going to be exciting once that is all kind of unveiled and ready to go. But then also something that I know a lot of people are looking forward to is the new Coco Boat Attraction also coming to California Adventure. So obviously, we got a big announcement at the entertainment panel on Friday of D23 that Coco 2 is going to be in production now, and that's going to release in like 2029 or something. So there's still several years before Coco 2. But now we kind of learned a little bit more about the ride. The ride is going to take place, you know, kind of between the two films. So it's not directly tied to the original Coco, and it's not really kind of tied to the new Coco. It is kind of right there sandwiched in between, which is cool. That means it's going to be something worthwhile, you know, no matter when you go and ride it. You know, just because it's between the two, you know, that might be cool for people that are watching the first Coco for the first time before going to see the second one. Oh, they can see what happened in between. And I think that will always be something cool for that part. And then, of course, like, you know, one thing is I I was really hoping they were going to announce an opening timeline for this. I don't believe they did. I thought it was supposed to be 2027, but maybe I was wrong. You know, but I know they are already underway on working on this attraction and getting the space cleared out for it. So hopefully that will be kind of something that comes sooner rather than later. But the Cocoa boat ride, I think, is definitely also going to be something that adds a lot of value to California Adventure because California Adventure suffers a lot from the same thing I think Hollywood Studios has, where like there's a lot of big rides. You know, you've got a lot of your big e-ticket rides, like Guardians of the Galaxy, Mission Breakout, and Credit Coaster, and you know, oh, you know, Radiator Springs Racers, how can I forget about that one? But it feels like when it comes to the smaller rides, like the rides that just keep you at the park, kind of help you to stay there, to stay occupied. Things like Pirates of the Caribbean, Hot Amansion, they don't really have those types of rides at California Adventure or you know, Hollywood Studios. So to get a ride like Coco in, where it is a boat ride, and it's gonna just kind of be something to eat people and just send people through and a kind of a constantly going attraction, I think is gonna be really, really good for that park. So that was awesome to hear. And then, man, towards the end of the night, right before they were saying the goodnights, I was kind of sitting there going, man, it was a good panel. You know, it was a good panel. They they updated us on stuff, dropped a few Easter eggs and some nuggets throughout, you know, that was good. And then they hit us with a double whammy right at the end of the night that was like, holy smokes. That that is incredible. And the first one is maybe not a big deal on the surface, but it is a huge deal for Disneyland, the OG park, and that's a full reimagining of Tomorrowland. So Tomorrowland at Disneyland, you know, when I went back last summer for the first time in a long time and saw it, it's a lot of wide open space with not really a whole lot going on in it, and it looks a little bit kind of dated and just like it's seen better days, and so this is actually like a really exciting announcement because the possibilities of what can come with this are endless. And they did mention that you know there could be a possibility of some new attractions coming. They did talk about, you know, potentially kind of opening things up a little bit because, you know, I did say there's a lot of empty space, but it's not like an open space, you know, it's like there's lots of walls and things up around throughout it. You know, the people mover track kind of gets in the way, which the people mover also has not ran there in a long, long time because Michael Eisner made a mistake, tried to put a high-speed attraction on it, it broke the track, all that stuff. But there's a lot of buzz and excitement for what this tomorrowland update could bring to Disneyland as a park. And I really do believe that that is something that that I'm happy for our Disneyland friends that are there all the time because that's something that's really cool. And I'm looking forward to see what they do with that Tomorrowland. And kind of the other thing about it is they're actually pushing forward to try to get Disneyland's Tomorrowland done before the 75th anniversary of Disneyland. So think about it. We just wrapped up the 70th, which went a little bit over a year, you know, of celebrating. So really, it's only like four more years until the 75th. So they are really pushing to try to redesign Tomorrowland before that 75th anniversary. And not only that, they're prioritizing this over the addition of that avatar experience at California Adventure. So this is a really big deal for the parks part of the company right now to get this done. They are making it a big priority, which I think is really cool that they are focusing so much on that. And that kind of brings me to this with Disneyland. While I was disappointed that we didn't get like any details at all on like, you know, you know, the avatar experience was like not talked about at all. Like they were just like, and avatar's coming in the future. Like, what does that mean? Like you we literally didn't get anything about Avatar at California Adventure. Well, that was like disappointing, and like again, the timelines kind of being later than I kind of thought. I think the Disneyland portion of the parks panel was kind of the first little glimmer to me of maybe a changing philosophy within Disney. And look, I know that maybe this is just all fan service at D23. You got all the biggest Disney fans in the world gathered in one place. Not everybody, of course, but you got a lot of them there. You know, everybody's excited for this parks panel to begin with, everybody's pumped to hear about, you know, all the things that are coming in the future for the parks and all that stuff. So maybe, yeah, some of it is just fan service to try to get everybody pumped and leave with a smile on their face. But it really does feel like, and Savannah talked to me about this too, it really does feel like that they are taking into consideration now more than ever exactly what the fans want to want to see at the parks. Josh DeMaro even made a comment when they updated the Millennium Falcon Falcon Smugglers Run that, you know, fans liked it, but they didn't love it. And it seems like DeMaro kind of understands where things are with Disney Parks fans, and it really seems like the new guy in charge of the parks, I forgot his name, but it seems like they really know that parks fans have not been happy with the way things have been recently, and it feels like they're really making an effort to kind of plus that up and improve that quality. So I really do think you know that this is something that is gonna be really exciting for the future of the parks, not just at Disneyland, but also at Walt Disney World and beyond. So I feel like we're potentially entering kind of a newer era where they are actually gonna take into consideration what the fans of the parks do really want rather than just the bottom line and the dollar. Again, maybe that's just me, you know, drinking the Kool-Aid with the glass half full. But I'd rather do that than be a consistent pessimist saying stuff like, oh, this is just fan service. They're not doing any of this, you know, that the parks are just gonna continue to suck, they're gonna rip away everything and all the magic. I don't want to be that guy. I want to be the guy that's excited about the future, and that that is already giving me a glimmer of hope, how much just a priority they're making tomorrow land at Disneyland. That is, that's so much of a bigger deal than I think people realize. So, yeah, I love that Disneyland portion that we got, all the news we got for Disneyland at this parks panel. I think it really opens the door for so much. And now what we're gonna do is I'm gonna take a quick break, just a really quick break, and then we're gonna wrap up by talking about the Disney World portion, which featured some big, big things. So hang tight, and I'll be back in just a second. Well, if you didn't know already, one thing that we love here at Disney My Way is the Magic Candle Company. They are incredible. They have taken some of your favorite Disney park and resort scents, and they've turned them into all types of products from candles to hand soaps to room sprays, whatever it is you're looking for, your favorite scent is available at magiccandlecompany.com. And the best part is if you use the code DMW at checkout, they are gonna give you 15% off your order. That's right, just by using the code DMW at checkout, you're gonna get 15% off your order. So why wait? Head on over to magiccandlecompany.com today or use the link in the show notes below and get your first magical order in today. So Walt Disney World also obviously got some big announcements at D23 this year, and actually, all four parks were represented this year at D23 in terms of announcements, which was fantastic. That was actually something I predicted that Epcot, after years of not being talked about, was gonna be brought up at this one. And boy oh boy, was I right about that. But we're gonna start with Animal Kingdom because obviously Tropical Americas is coming down the pipeline here, and it honestly should still be slated to kind of open in 2027. I know the graphics are gonna say that something's opening in 2026, Indiana Jones, but that's not correct. That's not happening this year. But sometime in 2027, I believe we're supposed to get the opening of Tropical America. So this is all supposed to be happening really soon. But we did, I mean, start off the night again. It just caught me off guard sometimes when they made some of these announcements. They just did the opening number, they were just kind of starting to get into the night, and the new Parks president looked at Neil Patrick Harris and he said, Neil, you know, I can't help myself. I've got a secret that I've got to share now. And then you heard this huge roar that if you're a Parks fan, you know the roar. If you're a Walt Disney World goer, it's the Yeti from Expedition Everest, and they made the announcement that they are going to fix the Yeti. So the Yeti animatronic is going to be repaired and fixed up, and it will start to move once again. Now, the timeline for this was not announced, but what I've kind of talked to people about, just that are Parks fans that came up and talked to me about it since it happened. Basically, what I think is gonna happen is they're gonna wait for Tropical Americas to open, and they're gonna let Indiana Jones and Encanto get going, and then they're probably gonna close Everest for a while, fix up the Yeti, probably do some track maintenance, and then just reopen it a little bit down the road after that. So I don't think this is happening right now because everybody was like, what's Animal Kingdom gonna be like when they shut down, you know, Everest? And it's like they're not gonna do that right now because then there would be no reason to go to Animal Kingdom. Again, there was no timeline given, but that's just what I'm kind of logically putting together is that this is not something that's gonna happen right now. This is gonna be once Tropical America gets opened and settled. That's when we're gonna get some details on this whole refurbishment for you know Expedition Everest. But I want to add this because there's a lot again of these pessimists, you know, glasses half empty type people on Twitter, you know, ranting and raving, going, y'all think they're gonna fix the Yeti. This is just gonna be a brand new animatronic. They're just gonna slap a band-aid over all of this. And then it was confirmed by people that talked to people at Disney that no, in fact, it's not a new animatronic. It's going to be the same Yeti. They are just going to fix it up. So, first and foremost, haha to all of you haters out there. Sorry if that was a little mean, but it's just I get so tired with these people being negative Nancy's about park stuff on Twitter all the time. But it is going to be the same Yeti, the original Yeti, they're just going to make it to where it can move again. But I'll also say this: even if it was a new animatronic Yeti there, who cares? Because it hasn't worked in years. It hasn't worked in like almost 20 years. Like, if it's a new animatronic and it actually works and it doesn't fall apart, great. You know, like why wouldn't you be excited about that? You know, like that's where my confusion with all that even happened in the first place. Is like, why are you hating on them if they make a new animatronic Yeti? Like, at least it would work, you know? And the rumors, too, of like, you know, them having to rip out the mountain and stuff, that's not true. They're gonna be able to take the Yeti out and fix it and put it back in with no structural whatever. Joe Rhody showed shut those rumors down like four years ago. So it's not gonna be something that's so overly complicated. That was just something that you know got spread around at some point, and it's not true. So just know that it will be a fix that will be able to happen pretty easily. They're not gonna have to take apart like the ride or anything. So it is going to be cool when it happens again. So I'm excited that the Yeti will be fixed up because I don't think I ever have been on Everest when it worked. So I'm really pumped about that. I I think that's gonna bring a lot of life. Now, of course, we also got updates on Indiana Jones and a Kanto. So Indiana Jones, we know, is gonna be called The Myth of the Jade Serpent, which is a bit of a mouthful, if you ask me. It's a brand new story with new scenes, and the super exciting part about this is that Harrison Ford, for the first time ever, is going to be the actual model of Indiana Jones for this attraction. So in the past, I guess they've had some problems with this, but Harrison Ford was not the actual model for like the animatronic Indiana Jones over at Disneyland in California for that ride. He was not that. I don't even think he's the voice of the animatronic over there, but he is fully involved with this one. They made it very clear multiple times that this is not a redo of the one in California. This is a brand new story where we're going into a Mayan temple and we're gonna see a lot of the Mayan culture reflected and things like that. Like, it's going to be a really cool attraction. Like, I was very impressed with this. Like, when they started talking about it, I couldn't help but just be very, very impressed. I feel like they're putting a lot of thought and a lot of work into this one, and man, it's gonna be it's gonna be awesome. And that jade serpent actually looks like low-key, really terrifying. So I don't know how it's all gonna be at the end result, but I think it's gonna be a fantastic attraction. I really do, and it's definitely gonna up the thrill factor at Animal Kingdom. This one. I I think it's gonna be great. And then, of course, we got some more you know, looks into Encanto as well. And I'm not thrilled about the name, but it's Antonio's Fiesta Day Encanto. I only say that I wish it was just Fiesta Day Encanto. Like, Antonio, like, I don't know, like I get it, his gift is talking to animals and stuff, but it's just one of those things for me of like, I don't know how many people are just gonna walk in going, oh, Antonio, yeah, we know that guy. Like, I think it would just be a lot easier if it was Fiesta Day Encanto, but that's just me. But of course, the big news is that they got all of the actors and actresses to come back record lines for the attraction. Um, we also learned from Concept Art that you're gonna kind of go throughout the house. So it's gonna be a trackless ride where you sit and kind of just explore the house, which is gonna be super, super cool. Like, I am so pumped about that. This is a perfect ride for that trackless technology. And it looks like at one point you're gonna go up some steps in the casita, like, wild. Like, I am so excited about this attraction. Like, I really do feel like this is gonna be, I mean, just as a whole, Tropical Americas is just gonna be such a big time upgrade from Dino Land USA that it's not even funny. Like, it's going to be so, so good. They also did show off the new carousel that is coming to this area, and it also looks so cute with all the different Disney characters that they're using as the characters that you'll ride on instead of a typical horse or something like that. Like, you're gonna actually be able to ride like Bambi or I'm trying to think Pumba, you know, on the carousel. So that's gonna be really cool, and I'm excited to see how that turns out. Now we didn't get any details about like the restaurant coming to it, but there is gonna be a restaurant coming to it as well from the original pitch, at least. And so I am excited about what that is going to bring um to Animal Kingdom. I'm trying to decide where we go next, and I think the next thing that we're gonna go to next is Epcot. I really kind of wanted to save Epcot for last, but it's like there's really only one thing that's really that's like super exciting for Epcot. But um Epcot got an announcement that Spaceship Earth would be getting a reimagining. So this was something, remember, that I predicted. I I thought Epcot was gonna get some kind of an announcement, and I figured it would be something along the lines of a refurbishment or a reimagining of an attraction, or like the the play pavilion, the wonders of life pavilion, whatever you want to call it, finally getting something in there. And so kind of the first thing that was talked about very early in the night was Spaceship Earth. So a reimagining of the attraction, you'll get new scenes, storytelling, and a score. It's they the weird the way they said it's really weird. They say it's about more like human connection rather than like the history of communication. Don't know what that really means. They were very vague, also did not really. Give a timeline for this. So, again, if you're watching on YouTube, the graphics says 2027. I don't think that's true. I don't know where that timeline came from. I'll wait for Disney to kind of confirm that for me before I really put it out there in the world. But Spaceship Earth will get reimagined here in the next few years. And honestly, you know, it was supposed to have already happened. COVID kind of ruined the original redoing of it. That ride's been in such, bless it's hard. It's just been in such poor shape the last couple of years, just in terms of the track, has been so rough. So I'm glad that it's going to get kind of an upgrade and a new feel because it deserves it. It deserves it. Spaceship Earth is iconic and it deserves something like this. So I am excited about the reimagining of Spaceship Earth. I just need a little bit more detail on what exactly this new version is going to be like, but I do think it's going to be really cool. And then I talked about the double whammy that we got at the end of the night. So we got the reimagining of Tomorrowland, and then it looked like they were closing out. And then Neil Patrick Harris, the GOAT, comes back on stage and says something to the extent of, hey, you told me if I hosted this, you would bring back my favorite animatronic of all time. Turns around and he is in a Dreamfinder costume with Figment. And they made the announcement that they are going to reimagine Figment, a complete reimagination of the ride, not fixing up the current version, a complete reimagining of the ride of Journey into Imagination. And Dreamfinder will be back. I'm trying not to get emotional right now, too. I'm wearing my Figment shirt with Dreamfinder on it as I as I talk about this. This is, I mean, this is another one of those things that, again, should just give you so much excitement and hope as a Disney Parks fan. Because again, this is something that hasn't just been brought up recently, but been brought up for a long time. That journey into imagination and its current state just does not work the same as the original version did. And so the fact that they are listening and at least putting forth an effort into trying to redo this the right way is great. Again, I hate all of the negative people that are out on social media trying to down this, saying that there's no way they're going to pull this off or whatever. Look, I don't care. They are at least making an effort. You know, like they are at least making an effort. And it seems like they really are trying to put a lot of thought and care into what they are doing. So again, I don't know when this is going to happen. There's not a timeline. Ignore the, you know, any timelines that you're seeing out there. I don't know when this is going to happen, but I'm excited because they are bringing it back to the state that it should be in. And I and I think that's great. I mean, just absolutely great. Now we move on to Hollywood Studios from Epcot. And there is something with this graphic again, I'm going to have to correct, unfortunately. I don't know what this Star Wars Starfighter thing is that got put on this graphic. That was not talked about to my knowledge at D23. You can roast me in the comments if it was, and maybe I just fell asleep at that point or something. I don't remember that at all. So you can ignore that part of the graphic completely. But what we did get details on is Monstropolis itself. So, Monstropolis, we now know that we are getting Harry Hausen's as the restaurant. Got a uh some concept art and a look into that. Also, something that they just like randomly dropped in the middle of Monstropolis as they were going through, they were like, Oh, yeah, the show and Harry Hausen's and pig pizza. And I went, hold on. What? Like, can you resay that? Pig pizza, I guess is what they said. And like, there's apparently they're gonna keep that same pizza restaurant that was pizza planted and pizza pizza rizzo and make it a pizza restaurant again. I don't know. It wasn't like they didn't go into any details about it, but they just they just said it like we all knew about it. So yeah, I am really, really excited about that. Like that is going to be hopefully an upgraded, you know, quick service restaurant there, but I am excited about just the fact that we're gonna get another quick service. I was a little not nervous, but I was curious about that. Like, what is going to be, you know, in this in this new area? Are they gonna keep that or are they not? You know, like that was and I also don't know about the uh about the store that used to be there too, if it's getting ripped out or whatever, but we do know that that is coming. We also know that the Doors Coaster is continuing to be worked on right now. The cool part is you know, we're gonna get lifted 40 feet off the ground in like four seconds and then like immediately launched into the door vault. Like that's freaking hype. And then we got details about the show. So the show that is coming to Monsters Inc. Clan, unfortunately, it is not going to be called put that thing back where it came from, or so help me. I was a little sad about that. Like you guys know, that's that's what I wanted it to be called for a long time, but it does seem like this is going to be a really cool show. It actually is a show that features a first for Disney Park history because Randy Newman, who has composed a lot of songs for Pixar over the years, has written an original song for this show called Welcome to Monstropolis, which is also the title of the show. So this show will be in the Glob Theater. And basically, Mike and Soly are going to be the hosts of the show, Soli, of course, and his personality has kind of been making it a small-scale production, and Mike, with his big ideas, has been making it a freaking huge production. So, you know, you got two contrasting styles, but it's going to take over that old Muppet Vision 3D theater. It's going to be a very high-tech show from what they've been saying, featuring a lot of different technology throughout it. So I'm excited about that. I do think it's going to be good, even if they didn't use my idea, but it's all right. And yes, Archie's Scare Pig Pizza is going to be what is coming to the area along with Harry Hausen's. And then you'll have the Monsters University Alumni Club. So lots of good stuff coming to Monstropolis at Hollywood Studios. I'm re I really am pumped about that. Somebody asked me actually at work today about if I was excited about it. And I am. Like, yes, taking away Muppet Vision 3D was very, very sad for me and for a lot of other people. But I do think this is going to be so great because the Monsters Inc. coaster is going to add another big attraction to the park, which is really going to help the park out a lot. I know it's got a lot of big attractions, but again, with not a lot of smaller attractions around, the more attractions you can get, the better. And especially one like that where it's a door coaster and something we've been clamoring for for years. I'm excited about it. I think the show's going to be great. They sang the song at the D23 panel. It sounds awesome. I'm excited to see the show. I'm excited to try the new pizza place, to try Harry Housen's. Hopefully, that upgrades the food in the park. So I really am hoping that this whole area is just going to go gangbusters for Hollywood Studios. So that was a big deal. But now we move on to Magic Kingdom. And of course, we knew Magic Kingdom was going to be kind of towards the end of the night and kind of one of the biggest talking points of the evening. Because you got a lot of stuff going on. Carousel of Progress, which is kind of what the whole parks panel was themed around. Piston Peak, the new cars area coming to Frontierland, and of course, Villains Land. And we'll start with Carousel Progress just because that was what the whole night was kind of about. They showed some new glimpses at into the 80s scene, which will be added into the rotation. Of course, just kind of gave that it will be opening actually in the spring of 2027. So again, or sometime in 2027. I can't remember if they said spring or not, but they will be opening it up not too long. So really it's it's not going to take them a whole lot of time to kind of redo this. But I was stunned, I won't lie, with the announcement of who is going to be the main voice actors for the father and the mother throughout this new experience. For the mother, we've got hold on. Let me go back to my text messages with Savannah here because I mean we were going crazy like the whole time. But it I know, well, actually, so I'll start with the father because I'm trying to look at the mother's name right now. I can't, I get these two. Oh, Brian Cranston is gonna be the dad, which is awesome. I love Brian Cranston, I think he is amazing. Loved him and Malcolm in the middle. Like, I think he will play off that energy so great. And then Jamie Lee Curtis will be the mom. So, you know, I'm not surprised that they went after some bigger name actors for this just because that's kind of the new Disney MO with a lot of stuff. But wow, that that definitely caught me off guard. I didn't think we were gonna get that announcement at this D23, but yeah, Brian Cranston and Jamie Lee Curtis are gonna be your new uh father and mother voices for the Carousel of Progress. And again, that will be opening sometime next year in 2027. So I really am pumped about what about that. And and look, that was something near and dear to my heart too. But that is a show that I've always thought should kind of evolve with the times, and so I'm excited to see what this new version will bring, especially with a new Walt Disney animatronic coming into it as well. So, and in case anybody gets this confused, because I watched a vlogger at Disneyland say this, this is not the same Walt Disney animatronic that's at Disneyland in California. That is that's completely false. These are two different Walt Disneys at two different times in their life. The Walt Disney at Disneyland, from my knowledge, is like the Walt Disney, like, you know, that's doing interviews about Disneyland on TV and stuff. And this Walt Disney is like working at the world's figure and like kind of going through those types of things. So two completely different Waltts at two different very stages of life. They will be similar, yes, but they're not the exact same animatronics. So don't fully believe that, but excited about this new version of the show. And then, of course, we got Piston Peak News where we talked about what is coming there. We know that there's going to be two new attractions, and one of them is gonna be family friendly, and it's gonna be pretty much like rides you've seen kitty rides everywhere, but it's gonna have a giant animatronic of that, like she's a bus or something like that in Cars 3, I think. But anyway, so that will be fun to go through. But then, man, this new attraction coming to Piston Peak, like the big premier attraction that's kind of like a new version of Radiator Springs Racers. This thing is gonna be off the chain. Like, I I really am impressed with what they're doing with this because it's not just a reskin of Radiator Springs Racers or Test Track. Like, this thing is gonna go up and down on bumps and things like that. Like, it's gonna be awesome. Like, it really is. And they were saying they are excited to see it at night because you're gonna go up to like the top of this mountain thing, and it's gonna have like fake snow that will like glisten and stuff in the moonlight. Like, it's gonna be crazy, and I really am excited to see it in action. I really am. Like, I think this is gonna be a really fun addition to the park. And again, I know I'm probably talking a lot of really glass half full right now, but it's just it's one thing for them to say it, you know, and like one thing for them to announce it. It's another thing to start to see these ideas form and to hear the imagineers that are actually working on it talk about it. You're not just listening to the parks, the head parks guy talk about it, which I did appreciate that this year. They brought in imagineers, they brought in people involved with the projects to talk about them because you heard the excitement in their voice. They could give you the details that like a Josh DeMaro in the past, or like um whoever this new parks president is, they don't know all of those details as well as the Imagineers working on them do. And so, like to hear the excitement in their voice, to hear how pumped they really are about all this, yeah, that gets me like over the moon excited about what's coming to Magic Kingdom with Cars Land. So, or with Piston Peak, sorry, I gotta start remembering to call it that. But Piston Peak, the two rides that are going there, especially the E-Ticket one, that is gonna be awesome. And then we wrap up with Villains Land because we do have it confirmed now that it is going to be called Villains Land. And a lot of people had a problem with that. Look, I think it fits in with the rest of Magic Kingdom. You've got Frontier Land, you've got Fantasyland, Adventure Land, Tomorrowland. What's wrong with Villains Land? Like, I don't think there's it's simple, it's to the point, you know exactly where you're going. Like Villains Land, I think is a great name. But we now know that we are gonna get a maleficent roller coaster. So that is gonna be in the works, a very high-speed coaster from high intensity coaster from what they're saying. Super pumped about that. But then they talked about the other ride, which this was the biggest speculation for what this other ride would be. And it is going to be a like a magic mirror dark ride where you go through the catacombs of like the evil queen's castle, and the magic mirror is talking to you about all these different Disney villains and stuff like that. Oh, the concept art made it look like a boat ride. It's since been confirmed that it's not gonna be a boat ride, it's going to be a dark ride. But either way, I am pumped. That was something that I thought should be the other ride because you can't give rides to every single villain. There's not enough space there to do that. But if you can give me a ride where we go through and highlight some of the best villains throughout Disney history, well, I'm on board with that. Like, I am definitely on board with that. So the two rides that are coming to Villains Land, I am absolutely pumped about. They also kind of gave you some lore about when you enter Villains Land, kind of what the storyline behind that's gonna be. I really like that. The only thing that disappointed me about the Villains Land portion is that we didn't really get into what the dining and shopping and stuff like that is really gonna be like, or if there's gonna be any other kind of entertainment. I know they couldn't, they probably couldn't share everything that they're doing, but I kind of expected a little bit more. And there was also, again, no timeline. So last time I'll probably say this on this video and podcast, but ignore the opening in 2020 or in 2030 thing on this graphic because there is no timeline. There is no timeline with this right now. But I am excited about Villainsland overall. I just wish we knew what that was. And then they also brought out freaking Glenn close to reprise her role as Cruella from the original like 101 Dalmatians live action movies, and she was saying something about them giving her some kind of Cruella ride or something like that. Like that came out of left field. So I don't even know if that's real or if that's just something they were doing for laughs and giggles. I don't know. It was a very kind of awkward part of the night, but it was cool to see Glenn Close come out though and say that. So, all in all, the Disney World portion of the parks panel just one made so many of my dreams come true with Dreamfinder and Figment and all that, but also again, it just gives me so much excitement about the future of the parks. And I hope by talking about all these things and kind of sharing my thoughts on it, that you are getting more excited too. Look, there's always going to be reason to doubt, especially with how Disney has been under ChayPeck, and kind of even once Iger came back, it still really wasn't as squeaky clean as a lot of people were hoping for. But I but I really do believe that with Josh Samaro, a parks guy at the helm, with a new team running the parks and all that stuff, maybe we are gonna re-enter a new era of the Disney parks now where we can get back to genuine excitement and just great things happening at the parks. That's what I'm really hoping for. And look, you know, the thing is, is tomorrow and all them, they're gonna have to prove me wrong at this point. Like, they are the bar is like, you know, kind of high right now coming out of D23 for me on my expectations. They're gonna have to be the ones that lower that bar for me. You know, CHPEC, you know, and Iger, if they were the ones running this thing, I don't know. I would have been a little bit more skeptical, probably for sure. But I really do believe that with this kind of new group, that maybe we're heading back in a better direction. So, and I hope you all think that as well. But I want to know your thoughts, what you were pumped about from D23. So you can hit us up. We have our fan mail button in the show notes description if you are listening to this on your podcast. If you're watching on YouTube, you can leave it in the comments below. But hey, make sure to like, share, subscribe wherever you get your podcast from. If you're watching on YouTube, hit that subscribe button. You can also follow us on Instagram at Disney MyWay Podcast. I would love to interact with you guys there and again swap ideas and big dreams you have for the Disney parks right now, following D23. And then if you'd like to support the show, our magichandlecompany.com as well as our fourth wall. Links are in the show notes below. So go ahead and check those guys out as well. And if you'd like to support the show, we great greatly appreciate that. But that is all that I have for this one. Thank you guys so much for following along. I hope you guys have a magical rest of your day. And I'll talk to you again real soon.