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2020 may be over, but the pandemic continues to loom over everyone’s minds. Due to the ongoing pandemic — and the continued health and safety protocol in place at Disney Parks and Resorts — Disney has digitally added face masks onto an old commercial for Disney Springs. Let’s take a look at the video and dive into why Disney might have made the decision to do this.
We have previously reported that Disney was adding face masks to Guests on ride vehicles who might have taken their masks off during the ride, or they had fallen off while riding. Then, Disney decided to stop doing that practice shortly after.
Related: Cast Members Use Disney Magic to Enforce Face Masks
Most recently, Disney has added face masks to a commercial through the use of CGI, likely so that the commercial better fits the current state of Walt Disney World Resort and reflects the current policies at Disney Springs during the pandemic.
Here is a Tweet from Disney fan and reporter DSNY Newscast that shows a side-by-side comparison of the commercial with and without face masks added.
I know this may not be that interesting but just noticed that Disney has added CGI Face Coverings to their existing Disney Springs commercial from last year.
Bet they wish it was this easy to get ALL guests to wear face coverings properly at Springs ? pic.twitter.com/u7OBP0Q3VW
— DSNY Newscast (@DSNYNewscast) January 1, 2021
The commercial, which is a year old now, is in promotion of Disney Springs, the shopping and dining district located on Disney World property. Unlike at the Walt Disney World Resort theme parks, Guests who want to visit Disney Springs do not need to purchase a ticket, and they do not need a reservation. However, the same face mask and social distancing rules still apply.
So, now the big question is why did Disney do this? While Disney has not given any official word, I think the answer is pretty obvious. Face masks and social distancing will continue to be in place across all of Walt Disney World in 2021. Therefore, it is likely better for a commercial to reflect the current policies and procedures of Disney World so as not to cause any confusion.
Could they have filmed a new commercial? Sure. Does this save time and money instead? Yes. Yes, it does. Disney has made commercials since the pandemic, but this is a simpler way.
Here is the original commercial, which debuted in January 2020:
And here is the edited commercial for 2021:
So what do you think about the CGI face masks? Let us know in the comments!