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Credit: DisneyThe D23 Expo is off and running; however, with Disney making so many announcements last week and with no park panel, Disney fans were concerned that there wouldn’t be any major Disney Parks announcements this year.
That all changed this afternoon when, during a panel titled “Creating the Happiest Place on Earth,” Disney announced a significant change coming to the Carousel of Progress at Disney World. The ride, which has Walt Disney’s fingerprints all over it, will now have Walt in the attraction.
Disney announced that a new Walt Disney animatronic will be coming to the Carousel of Progress at the Magic Kingdom. The addition of Walt to the attraction is part of a “major refurbishment” coming to the Disney World version of the ride.
Beyond the addition of Walt to the Carousel of Progress, Disney added, “There are still plenty of additional details to be revealed, including what John, Sarah, and the rest of the family are up to.” This could potentially mean an additional scene set in the future or an additional scene set in the present.
Disney teased that the updated Carousel of Progress would include an introduction from the animatronic Walt Disney, saying, “You’ll be able to catch a brand-new introductory scene and hear from the legendary man who never stood in the way of progress — Walt Disney.”
Like many of last year’s D23 Expo announcements, Disney left out most of the project’s significant details, including a timeline for when the Carousel of Progress would close and the updated version would reopen.
The attraction from the 1964 World’s Fair was updated in 2022, when the characters in the final scene received a new wardrobe. Before that, it was updated with the standard refurbishment in 2016. However, this latest update sounds like the first complete overhaul of the attraction since its inception.
Disney has already created one Walt Disney animatronic for Disneyland’s 70th Anniversary, so bringing one to Disney World seems like the logical next step. However, with many diehard fans willing to lie down in front of construction crews to save the Carousel of Progress, we’ll see how Disney fans take this news.
What do you think of Disney’s proposed update to the Carousel of Progress? Let us know in the comments.