Disney is set to remove a slew of potentially problematic and offensive items from its theme parks.
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The Walt Disney Company made several surprising announcements at its D23 event in August, giving fans updates on a variety of projects and confirmation that work had already started on several new experiences. These announcements did not stop at theme parks, with Disney confirming two Frozen sequels and a third installment to Pixar’s iconic Incredibles franchise.
Disney also shared updates on Moana 2, its upcoming live-action retelling of Snow White starring Rachel Zegler and Gal Gadot, as well as an early look at Zootopia 2.
However, for many fans, Disney’s parks panel was the main event, with the company delving into its promise of significantly updating and upgrading its theme park resorts. Disney gave guests insight into several planned overhauls for the Walt Disney World Resort in particular, with quite a few fan-favorite attractions seemingly being left on the chopping block.
Among them are Tom Sawyer Island and Rivers of America, two absolutely iconic locations in the Magic Kingdom. During Disney’s D23 event, the company announced a brand-new area would be opening at the park inspired by Pixar’s Cars series of films, which would take over the former site of the man-made river and the island.
Disney has already had great success implementing the Cars brand inside its theme parks, with Radiator Springs at Disney California Adventure often considered to be one of Walt Disney Imagineering’s best attractions.
However, Disney notably omitted sharing the location of this new expansion during its presentation, causing concern among fans. Days later, Disney would rip the proverbial band-aid off, announcing this new Cars expansion would be taking over the Rivers of America, Magic Kingdom’s iconic body of water.
With the removal of Rivers of America comes the closure of Tom Sawyer Island, a beloved yet controversial area of the legendary theme park.
Disney’s Tom Sawyer Island
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Tom Sawyer Island opened in 1973, making it one of the oldest attractions offered at Walt Disney World. This man-made island can be found at multiple Disney locations, including the original Disneyland Resort and Tokyo Disney.
Inspired by the characters of author Mark Twain, Tom Sawyer Island allows guests to immerse themselves in the world of his classic novel. The island features direct references to The Adventures of Tom Sawyer in the form of paths, caves, and other interactive structures.
The area acts as a standalone adventure set apart from the rest of the hustle and bustle of Magic Kingdom. Thus, guests need to step aboard a makeshift raft to cross the Rivers of America to get to the island. Once on land, guests are allowed to explore Tom Sawyer Island to their hearts’ content.
Disney Says Goodbye to More Guns
At the back of the island, guests will find the previously-mentioned fort equipped with canons and other weapons. This area invites guests to act out and create their own adventures, allowing them to test their shooting skills with stationary rifles, much like the now-closed Frontierland Shootin’ Arcade.
“Wander dusty dirt roads lined with tall trees, explore whirling mills, and amble across creaky suspension bridges,” states Disney when describing the island. “Navigate narrow passages amid secret mined caves and uncover a frontier fort. Along the way, follow in the pioneering footsteps of early settlers, during an era when Mark Twain and Tom Sawyer reflected a new nation coming into its own.”
Disney advertises Tom Sawyer Island as an “unforgettable expedition” into the heart of the American frontier, making it one of the most unique experiences at Magic Kingdom and the entire Walt Disney World Resort.
With the closure of the shooting arcade and now Tom Sawyer Island, Disney is seemingly saying goodbye to more weapons in the park. This move may disappoint hardcore fans, but it will likely not come as a surprise. The company has made great efforts to modernize its theme park in recent years, enacting changes on classic dark rides like Pirates of the Caribbean.
The closure of Frontierland Shootin’ Arcade came as a surprise, with Disney pulling the plug on the opening-day attraction earlier this summer.
While Disney is in the process of upgrading all of its theme parks, it’s clear that it is looking to get away from the often-violent nature of the Old West in lieu of something a little more family-friendly.
Guns and Disney simply don’t mix as well in 2024 as they used to, and as such, it makes sense that Disney would shutter an area dedicated to allowing guests to take aim at other guests.
Still, the decision to close both Rivers of America and Tom Sawyer Island has proven to be incredibly controversial, with fans sending their love for the two attractions online.
Twitter/X user SonderQuest joked about Disney taking their guns away.
Come and Take It
Come and Take It /j pic.twitter.com/jFJDOmSmDF
— SONDER QUEST (Carpal Era) (@SonderQuest) August 12, 2024
ShowcaseWishes shared an image simply of a rifle peeking out of the fort on Tom Sawyer Island.
— Showcase of Wishes (@ShowcaseWishes) August 12, 2024
MagicbandManiac shared a photo of oneof the signs seen on the island, lamenting the loss of it in the coming months.
It just hit me we’re gonna lose one of the best signs in WDW
It just hit me we’re gonna lose one of the best signs in WDW pic.twitter.com/DvefVimAPD
— MagicbandManiac (@MagicbandManiac) August 12, 2024
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The concept art (shown above) for Disney’s proposed Cars replacement for the Rivers of America and Tom Sawyer Island looks promising, revealing a totally new vision for this section of the park. Magic Kingdom’s new Cars-themed area will take guests on an all-terrain adventure through the middle of Frontierland, similar to Disneyland’s Radiator Springs Racers,
The new expansion will include two new rides, the previously mentioned off-roading experience, as well as an attraction more suited toward younger guests.
Not much information is known regarding this project, but Magic Kingdom’s new Cars area, along with the rest of Disney’s proposed theme park expansion, are all slated to be completed within the decade, ensuring interest remains high in the company’s catalog of resorts.
These upgrades don’t stop domestically, with Disneyland Paris, Hong Kong Disney, and Shanghai Disney all set to receive exciting expansions as well.
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One of the most notable and unexpected announcements was the reveal of a new log flume ride inspired by The Lion King.
The concept art (shown above) details a brand new water adventure for the Disneyland Paris Resort, taking them on a journey alongside Simba, Timon, Pumba, and the rest of the crew.
Initially, confusion surrounded the project, as Disney had made reference to the original animated version from 1994, but the concept art showed characters in their live-action version.
However, Disney eventually clarified its plans, confirming the new ride would be based on the classic 1994 version.
Despite Disney announcing a full slate of upcoming projects, the company has started and completed several projects within its theme parks already, with the Country Bears receiving a big makeover in 2024.
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The removal of Rivers of America and Tom Sawyer Island comes at a very interesting and transformative time for Disney’s Magic Kingdom theme park, with Frontierland, one of several themed lands, recently receiving its own set of upgrades.
Last year, Disney announced it would be closing the Country Bear Jamboree, an iconic attraction prominently featured throughout Frontierland. The show itself had become infamous within the Disney theme park community, being tailored toward both children and adults. The show managed to sneak in quite a few innuendos and adult jokes that made the attraction a favorite for guests of all ages.
The original Country Bear Jamboree show also made reference to guns in the infamous song, “Mama Don’t Whip Little Beauford,” which resolved with the line, “I think you should shoot him instead.”
The Country Bears had been part of the Magic Kingdom since its opening, making its closure that much harder for longtime fans and guests to swallow.
However, Disney reiterated that the bears themselves would not be going anywhere, as the company would redesign and rewrite the show to modernize the experience.
This new experience, called Country Bear Musical Jamboree, opened this summer at the Magic Kingdom. Instead of singing classic Western tunes, the Country Bears can be seen and heard singing renditions of popular Disney songs like “Try Everything” from Zootopia, “A Whole New World” from Aladdin, and “Fixer-Upper” from Frozen.
The full list of songs includes the following:
- “Country Bear Musical Jamboree” – a new original song written for the attraction
- “Try Everything” from Walt Disney Animation Studios’ “Zootopia”
- “Kiss the Girl” from Walt Disney Animation Studios’ “The Little Mermaid”
- “A Whole New World” from Walt Disney Animation Studios’ “Aladdin”
- “Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious” from Walt Disney Studios’ “Mary Poppins”
- “Fixer-Upper” from Walt Disney Studios’ “Frozen”
- “Remember Me” from Disney-Pixar’s “Coco”
- “You’ve Got A Friend In Me” from Disney-Pixar’s “Toy Story”
- “Bare Necessities” from Walt Disney Animation Studios “The Jungle Book”
- “Come Again” – an original song that debuted with Country Bear Jamboree in 1974
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With the removal of more weapons from Magic Kingdom, one has to wonder how much longer more violent experiences like Pirates of the Caribbean and Haunted Mansion will last in their current states. The former has already undergone changes to its more adult theming, while the latter has faced less scrutiny over the years.
This is not to say that Haunted Mansion is not dark or graphic. The attraction features a hanging corpse and a variety of other ghoulish and gruesome moments.
Disney halted the sale of toy guns several years ago inside its theme parks, a move that proved to be incredibly controversial. For years, guests could exit their boats on Pirates of the Caribbean or wrap up a showing of Disney’s Indiana Jones Stunt show and find themselves bombarded with a variety of toy guns and other weapons.
However, over the last decade, Disney has phased these types of items out. Swords and hook hands can still be purchased in the Pirates of the Caribbean gift shop, but rifles are long gone.
Are you excited about Disney’s upcoming Magic Kingdom changes?