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See The Light

If Beastly Kingdom is to breathe life into the imaginary creatures of myth, then it must recognize a world of two extremes. Imaginary creatures come in all shapes and sizes, some good and some evil. So return to the entry bridge of Beastly Kingdom, back when we were staring down that sinister path.

© Disney.

Instead, glance to the right and you’ll see a very different sight: Greek temples, lush gardens, bubbling pools of crystal water, and fields of flowers. The other half of Beastly Kingdom takes a much more light-hearted approach to mythology. This second half of the land would have two featured attractions.

In those Grecian temples would be a family dark-ride themed to Walt Disney’s 1940 hit Fantasia, and specifically the Dance of the Hours segment featuring ballet-dancing hippos, crocodiles, and ostriches. Besides the thrill-packed DINOSAUR, Animal Kingdom had no dark rides, and this fanciful family affair would perform a sort of “Small World” duty in the park – musical, simple, and beautiful.

Could you find your way through the Labyrinth to the Unicorn's Grotto? © Disney.

The pièce de résistance of Beastly Kingdom would reside at the rear of the land, accessed through those gardens and across the bubbling streams. A massive, beautiful, sprawling hedge maze would be host to Quest for the Unicorn, an interactive walk-through that challenged guests to find and awaken five golden idols scattered through the maze.

Awaken the Griffin for a clue toward the Unicorn's whereabouts. © Disney.

Each would contribute one piece of a code for unlocking the beautiful plant castle at the far end of the maze where, as its title describes, a very rare encounter with a Unicorn in an underground grotto (think, Paris’ Dragon’s Dungeon on a lighter note) would be the final piece of the experience – a simple, fun, and visually stunning experience from beginning to end with an unforgettable photo opportunity and the chance for kids to really make decisions and piece together clues.

© Disney.

What Happened?

As for Beastly Kingdom? It was always intended to be the hallmark of Animal Kingdom’s “Phase II” expansion, certain to open soon after the park itself. In the mean time, Camp Minnie-Mickey was hastily constructed with a few meet-and-greet huts and a small theater of bleachers for a show that repurposed old parade floats (which just so happened to be a rousing fan-favorite). Camp Minnie-Mickey feels very temporary because it was meant to be.

But Beastly Kingdom never materialized.

The group of Imagineers battling to bring Beastly Kingdom to life were cut to the quick when the dismal opening of Disneyland Paris made Michael Eisner wary of any large-scale investments. Beastly Kingdom was simply too grand. The Imagineers responsible for the concept were so fed up with Disney's cost-cutting ways during the '90s, they took their plans up the road to Disney's biggest competitor – Universal Orlando.

Something familiar appeared at Universal's Islands of Adventure. © Universal.

And when then-CEO Michael Eisner toured Universal’s Islands of Adventure shortly after its opening, he was said to be very surprised by one particular island in the park’s arsenal: a section of The Lost Continent was called “Merlinwood,” containing a dragon-themed roller coaster around a decripid castle, a Medieval village, and a Unicorn-themed family coaster... All seemingly related to the Beastly Kingdom that he had so recently axed from Animal Kingdom’s opening day lineup. (That alone made Beastly Kingdom’s construction unlikely, lest Disney be seen as a copycat, even if all of those rides were now repurposed as part of Universal's Wizarding World of Harry Potter.)

We're so enamored with the story of how Disney accidentally designed then unintentionally destroyed Universal Orlando's best themed land ever, we wrote about it in its own in-depth entry, Lost Legends: The Lost Continent. Make the jump there to find out even more details about Beastly Kingdom and its transformation for Universal.

Conclusion

Animal Kingdom finally received an “imagined” creature with 2006’s Expedition Everest roller coaster – overseen by an animatronic Yeti – and will, like it or not, add a few more fantasy creatures when PANDORA – The World of Avatar finally opens where Camp Minnie-Mickey once stood in 2017.

Pandora - The World of Avatar will occupy the space once reserved for Beastly Kingdom. © Disney.

So when Disney fans bellowed about Avatar, it wasn't just that they find this land – based on a PG-13, controversial, and “long-forgotten” 20th Century Fox film – to be an unwise choice. It’s also that they know what that land was supposed to be occupied by: a beautiful, reverent, fresh, and original land that fulfills Animal Kingdom’s dedication and message.

For our part and just for fun, we took some time to imagine seven lands that make more sense at Animal Kingdom than Avatar does. Check out that feature and let us know...

What do you think? Does the idea of Beastly Kingdom get you more excited than Pandora? Or do you see the merits of this new alien land and its impressive, beautiful iconography? Could Pandora be like Cars Land – something Disney fans protest on the basis of its film-roots, but then lovingly accept once they see the beautiful final product? We’ll find out in 2017...

 
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Comments

I think adding a mythical element to AK is a great idea (unicorns, dragons, Griffins, etc) and could still be done. Having said that, with 3 more Avatar movies on the way over the next decade, it seems to be a pretty good idea for Disney to add Pandora to the park. If done correctly, the spectacle of the attractions and the surrounding areas could help boost attendance for AK long after the movies are forgotten.

Everytime I visited Animal Kingdom, I asked employees about Beastly Kingdom, sometimes they didn't know anything about the project and other times they said "yeah, it's in process, maybe in 2 or 3 years the construction will begin"... I'm not fan of Avatar and it's something that will not attract me to visit the park, but I will be there for 2017, so I hope to be surprised.

Islands of Adenvtuee one of the most impressive parks on Earth? Really? I see Harry Potter (great) and Spider-Man (really great) surrounded by a bunch of mediocre rides and shows.

In reply to by Visitor (not verified)

Not islands of adventure, the lost continent... Two very different areas of universal Orlando... The lost continent was where the Sinbad theater will is, the talking fountain, and mythos restaurant suit currently

I like Avatar but Beastly Kingdom sounds soooooo much cooler. And no matter what Universal ever does, though i like them too, the Disney Park wouldve been sooooo much better!

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