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3. The Magic Kingdom

Image - fortherock, Flickr

With the completion of New Fantasyland, you’d think Disney would be done updating this park for the most part. However, I think it’s safe to say that’s not the case. Despite the fact that there are seemingly other pressing needs on the Walt Disney World property (cough*Epcot*cough), there’s no way Disney will put its crown jewel on mothballs.

So, in looking for potential growth areas at the Magic Kingdom, one spot sticks out above all the rest: Tomorrowland.

Clearly, Disney desperately wants to do something with Tomorrowland, but hasn’t a single clue exactly what that something is. They likely were hoping that Brad Bird’s Tomorrowland film would be a runaway success, giving them an excuse to overhaul this area as a tie in. That didn’t happen, and so we seem to be moving on to plan B.

Image - Atiq Nazri, Flickr

Here’s the thing about Tomorrowland as it stands today: The only untouchable attraction is Space Mountain. In terms of its status as a headlining attraction, its near-constant wait times, and its iconic status visually, it would be tough to remove this attraction. But everything else in the area is fair game –even beloved attractions like the Tomorrowland Transit Authority PeopleMover and the Carousel of Progress likely could be altered or moved (Disney probably will never get rid of the Carousel of Progress, but if this area were to be overhauled, it could presumably be updated and make its way to Epcot).

And so, while it’s hard to say exactly what will be coming to Tomorrowland, it’s fair to say that, come 2025, the Tomorrowland Speedway and Stitch’s Great Escape will either be long gone or confirmed to be on their way out as part of a grand Tomorrowland overhaul on the scale of New Fantasyland. Even Buzz Lightyear’s Space Ranger Spin might not be entirely safe, considering it is in need of a renovation anyway, and interactive attractions such as Toy Story Mania and the forthcoming Millennium Falcon ride over at Star Wars Land are set to pass it in terms of technical capabilities. Universal’s not slowing down any time soon, so if Disney needs another massive project, Tomorrowland is the place to do it.

Other than Tomorrowland, the only other big change come 2025 will likely be in Adventureland. At D23, we finally got confirmation that a new dining location would be opening in the area, themed to the Jungle Cruise. And, along with this news, we learned that Disney has greenlit a Jungle Cruise film starring none other than Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson.

Image - lorenjavier, Flickr

And it’s here that Disney’s new film strategy becomes clear: Beloved Disney rides that are in need of refurbishment are getting the film treatment first, and then will be rethemed to fit the new films. Clearly, this playbook worked wonders for Pirates of the Caribbean, and we’re thinking Disney’s itching to try it again. It didn’t quite work with Tomorrowland, but it’s clearly a strategy worth looking into.

Thus, if Disney’s Jungle Cruise film is as successful as they’re hoping it will be, expect the Magic Kingdom attraction to be rethemed to match up with that universe – and expect to see the Rock involved. And, if that works, look for more Disney attractions to become films (probably starting with the Haunted Mansion – we’ll just pretend the Eddie Murphy version doesn’t exist).

Ultimately, the Magic Kingdom of 2025 will look much as it does today. Its recent development with New Fantasyland, the Hub Expansion, and the Jungle Cruise restaurant means that it likely won’t go under the knife again for a while, but when it does, Tomorrowland will be the first thing changed. It’s probably not that bold of a prediction, but considering we’re looking into the future, it’s only fitting that the futuristic area of the park gets an overhaul.

4. Disney’s Hollywood Studios

Image - christiantlambert, Flickr

Disney’s Hollywood Studios was the star of the show at D23. At long last, we got confirmation that this park would be getting a multi-billion dollar overhaul that will see it transformed into the most immersive theme park environment this side of I-4. In the past, Disney has been reluctant to have themed lands tied to specific film franchises, but with Universal demonstrating just how successful that model can be with its Wizarding Worlds, it’s finally time for Disney to give it their own spin.

By 2025, we’ll be piloting the Millennium Falcon at Star Wars Land...

Star Wars Land concept art

Star Wars Land concept art

...and riding a Slinky Dog roller coaster at Toy Story Land.

Toy Story Land concept art

Slinky Dog roller coaster concept art

We now know this for certain. What we don’t know are the specifics of these lands, and what the heck Disney’s gonna do with the rest of the park.

Image - tjung, Flickr

Eyeballing it on a map and using our best guesses, Toy Story Land and Star Wars Land are only really taking up a third of the park’s area. Another third of that area is taken up by Hollywood and Sunset Boulevards and attractions like the Rock 'n' Roller Coaster, the Tower of Terror, and Fantasmic. Those probably aren’t going anywhere.

But, there’s still that other third. What is that for? This, potentially, is Disney’s end game for Disney’s Hollywood Studios: They want Marvel.

It’s clearly killing Disney that they can’t have the Avengers, their highest grossing film franchise, in their theme parks in Florida. If you aren’t aware, before Disney purchased Marvel, that company sold its theme park rights east of the Mississippi to Universal for use in Islands of Adventure. That agreement holds into perpetuity, meaning Universal holds the theme park rights to Disney’s own characters – and it isn’t giving them back.

Now, in response to this, Disney clearly has decided to build an equally popular cinematic universe featuring characters they do have the theme park rights to: Star Wars. And, now we know, those characters are coming to Disney’s Hollywood Studios. But that doesn’t mean Disney has forgotten about Marvel, nor does it mean they’ve given up.

Iron Man Experience concept art

At Hong Kong Disneland, Disney is opening a Star Tours-style simulator attraction themed after Iron Man. With a version of Star Wars Land also heading to Disneyland, and with it confirmed not to be replacing Tomorrowland over there, it seems plausible that the Disneyland version of Star Tours will eventually be turned into something else as it wouldn’t make sense to have Star Wars attractions in two areas of the park. Likely, this is where Iron Man will make his appearance in a U.S. Disney Park. But, that still leaves Orlando as the gaping omission.

By 2025, we’ll have a resolution to this mess – likely with Disney paying Universal some large sum of money and letting them keep partial rights to the comic book versions of the characters. And, ultimately, that means Disney will go ahead full steam on bringing Marvel to Walt Disney World – presumably in that extra bit of land at Disney’s Hollywood Studios. It probably won’t be open by 2025, but it may have been announced, and we’ll know what form it will take.

In a shocking turn of events, Disney’s Hollywood Studios will be one of the most magnificent Disney parks a decade from now. It’ll be a far cry from the half-day park it is now...and it won't be called Hollywood Studios any more. We'll have to wait and see what new name Disney has in store for us.

 
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2025... just in time for the public to tire of Marvel characters and they run the movie franchises into the ground. Great timing.

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