13
As many of you probably already know, with the constant running of attractions, many Disney animatronics, unfortunately, tend to have occasional technical difficulties.
In fact, just within the last few months, Inside the Magic has reported the Jose animatronic fell over at the Gran Fiesta Tour at EPCOT, the Avatar animatronic, Big Toe, was temporarily removed from Na’vi River Journey in Animal Kingdom, the Elsa animatronic and the Olaf animatronic at Frozen Ever After were experiencing difficulties, and one of the pirate animatronics reportedly fell over at Pirates of the Caribbean at Magic Kingdom.
Now, it looks as though another animatronic has toppled over at one of the Magic Kingdom attractions — Splash Mountain.
According to Twitter user @MagicalNewsLIVE, the fishing goose had completely fallen over sometime earlier today. Check out the video here:
SPLASH MOUNTAIN ANIMATRONIC FALLEN OVER! #wdw #magickingdom pic.twitter.com/QnBthrrmMg
— MagicalNewsLIVE (@MagicalNewsLIVE) October 12, 2020
Related: Fan Says Glitching Disney Animatronic Represents 2020
Back in June, Disney announced (after a petition coincidentally made its rounds on the Internet) that the classic theme park attraction Splash Mountain would be rethemed to the 2009 Disney Princess animated movie The Princess and the Frog.
Disney’s official announcement for the retheming of Splash Mountain from June reads:
Today we are thrilled to share a first glimpse of a project Imagineers have been working on since last year. Splash Mountain – at both Disneyland park in California and Magic Kingdom park in Florida – will soon be completely reimagined. The theme is inspired by an all-time favorite animated Disney film, “The Princess and the Frog.” We pick up this story after the final kiss, and join Princess Tiana and Louis on a musical adventure – featuring some of the powerful music from the film – as they prepare for their first-ever Mardi Gras performance.
Tiana is a modern, courageous, and empowered woman, who pursues her dreams and never loses sight of what’s really important. It’s a great story with a strong lead character, set against the backdrop of New Orleans and the Louisiana bayou. In 1966, Walt himself opened New Orleans Square when it became the first new “land” added to Disneyland park, so it feels natural to link the story and the incredible music of “The Princess and the Frog” to our parks.
The voice of Princess Tiana and Tony Award-winning actress, Anika Noni Rose, shared, “It is really exciting to know that Princess Tiana’s presence in both Disneyland and Magic Kingdom will finally be fully realized! As passionate as I am about what we created, I know the fans are going to be over the moon. The Imagineers are giving us ‘The Princess and the Frog’ Mardi Gras celebration we’ve been waiting for, and I’m here for it!”
The approach to retheming or “plussing” attractions (as Walt Disney referred to it) begins with Imagineers asking the question, how can we build upon or elevate the experience and tell a fresh, relevant story? It’s a continuous process that Imagineers are deeply passionate about. And with this longstanding history of updating attractions and adding new magic, the retheming of Splash Mountain is of particular importance today. The new concept is inclusive – one that all of our guests can connect with and be inspired by, and it speaks to the diversity of the millions of people who visit our parks each year.
Charita Carter, the senior creative producer leading the project at Walt Disney Imagineering shared, “Like Princess Tiana, I believe that courage and love are the key ingredients for wonderful adventures. I am delighted to be a part of bringing this fun-filled experience to our guests.”
For Imagineers, change is rooted in a tradition set by Walt Disney who encouraged new innovations, new ideas, new scenes and current storytelling. And the experiences they create can be enjoyed by guests who visit our parks from all over the world.
As part of the creative development process, conceptual design work is well underway and Imagineers will soon be able to conduct preliminary reviews and develop a timeline for when the transformation can start to take shape.
Stay tuned for more!
Have you ever seen an animatronic topple over at one of Disney’s attractions? Let us know in the comments below.
If you want to visit Walt Disney World or Disneyland on your next family vacation, but aren’t sure where to begin planning, then don’t hesitate to reach out to our friends over at the Authorized Disney Vacation Planners at Academy Travel for a free quote.