5. Indiana Jones Adventure (1995)

The attraction, which debuted as Indiana Jones Adventure: Temple of the Forbidden Eye, is an enhanced motion vehicle dark ride that was made for the Disneyland Park in Anaheim by George Lucas and the Disney Imagineers after the success of Indiana Jones Epic Stunt Spectacular! It’s in many ways a bigger production than their previous effort.

A lot of concepts for the attraction were considered, such as a walk-through adventure, high-speed mine car adventure and a Jungle Cruise. Ultimately they settled on a dark ride, and when it launched special guests attended its debut including George Lucas, then-Disney CEO Michael Eisner, Dan Aykroyd, and Carrie Fisher. The thing that made the Indiana Jones Adventure extra special, though, was that an original story was developed for it about the Temple of the Forbidden Eye, giving fans who attended Disneyland an exclusive addition to the legacy of Indiana Jones.

6. American Idol Experience (2009)

The attraction was announced on February 7, 2008 by previous American Idol winner Jordin Sparks during the Season 7 finale of the show. At the time, it was pretty much a no-brainer for Disney, even though American Idol is not a Disney property. It had a huge following at that point, reaching at least 10 million television screens every week.

The grand opening included Idol icons like Ryan Seacrest, Paula Abdul and creator Simon Fuller. Since Season 7 The American Idol Experience has been promoted by winners of the American Idol, appearing in commercials and proclaiming "I'm going to Disney World!”. But, of course, as interest waned in American Idol the attraction became less relevant, leading to Disney World closing it as recently as Auguyst 30, 2014.

7. Pandora - The World of Avatar (2017)

Like it or not, Avatar is gracing/invading Disney World’s Animal Kingdom. That’s despite the fact that Avatar is owned not by Disney but by James Cameron and 20th Century Fox. How did it happen? You can thank/blame The Walt Disney Company’s chief executive officer Bog Iger, who proposed the idea to Cameron of a land based on Avatar’s alien world Pandora.

On September 17, 2011, a long-term exclusive deal was struck between Disney, Cameron’s Lightstorm Entertainment and 20th Century Fox. The deal was made public on September 20 on the Disney Parks Blog. Attractions include the chance for guests will learn to fly with a mountain Banshee and a boat ride attraction showcasing the native fauna and flora of Pandora.. Expect Avatar Land sometime around 2017. It might not feature the characters everyone wants, but the land certainly has potential. 

What do you think about attractions not featuring Disney characters? Are they good for the parks? Bad for the parks? Share your thoughts in the comments below!