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Credit: Disneyland ParisIf you tuned into the D23 Expo this weekend, you’ll have undoubtedly heard about the long-awaited announcement of a Disney Villain park expansion coming to the Magic Kingdom at the Walt Disney World Resort. However, Disney park guests might already have an opportunity to experience the new land before construction begins.
An expansion like this will truly push Disney’s designs and gift for immersion into overdrive, especially if that concept art is anything to go by. As Disney’s greatest villains prepare to storm the Magic Kingdom, many have already made the first attack.
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The concept of a villain park inspired by the likes of Maleficent, Hades, Captain Hook, and Scar has been in the air for years, and only recently did Imagineers confirm their interest. Even though Josh D’Amaro formerly announced it only a few days ago, Disney has been subtly experimenting with darker and more villainous experiences since roughly 2019.
Playtesting the Disney Villain Park
Anytime Disney does anything new at the parks, the Imagineers will slowly integrate whatever they are testing into dense areas where guests can interact and observe. Similar to how Imagineers tested the cute droids at Hollywood Studios in the footage above, Disney Imagineering has been doing something similar for the villains, but on a much bigger scale.
Per Entertainment Weekly, Josh D’Amaro truly set expectations high when he made the following announcement at D23,
“This land will be home to the villains that you know and those that you loathe, which means happily-ever-after might feel like a distant dream,” he continued. “It will have two major new attractions, dining, shopping, and so much more fiendish fun for you to explore. This is storytelling on a grand scale that only Disney can deliver, so, be prepared, you poor unfortunate souls. It’s going to be a fearless new vision for what a Disney experience can be.”
An entire park area dedicated to the villains will require a lot of environmental storytelling. Just as the Imagineers crafted entire worlds like Galaxy’s Edge, The World of Avatar, and the various countries at the EPCOT World Showcase, so too have they given some of Disney’s best and worst villains their own evil environments.
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What some fans might not know is that these experiences are currently in production, long before the official park expansion even breaks ground at the Magic Kingdom. Disney has been playtesting with the villains for years under Disneyland’s Oogie Boogie Bash.
It’s Our House Now
Halloween is where the villains all come out to play, it’s been that way for decades. However, the Disneyland event has been growing more and more elaborate. The exclusive Character Meet and Greets are to be expected for any Halloween celebration, but giving them their own areas and environments is certainly going the extra mile.
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However, one of the more recent additions might be the smoking gun that pointed to the villainous park expansion all along. It’s one thing to mix and mingle with Disney’s batch of baddies, but what about getting pulled directly into their world?
The Villain’s Grove at California Adventure transforms the Redwood Creek Challenge Trail into a haunting journey into the lairs and lands of some of the studio’s most sinister entities. Environments like the Queen of Hearts’ garden and Maleficent’s forest of thorns are to be expected, but the addition of Frollo’s Sanctuary and Scar’s Elephant Graveyard is guaranteed to chill any brave soul venturing into the fog.
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What was billed as a seasonal event at the happiest place on earth might have actually been a sneak preview of the villainous fun to come as unwitting guests got their trick-or-treating done, and Disneyland is bringing both the grove and the Meet and Greets back for another season.
Starting select nights in August, Disneyland’s Oogie Boogie Bash kicks off the Halloween season with more eerie action. Who’s to say Disney Imagineering won’t repeat the same formula this year?
The Walt Disney World Resort isn’t immune to a villainous influence either, as characters like the Evil Queen, Maleficent, and Cruella DeVil have already appeared as roaming characters at the Magic Kingdom. How long will it be before they get their own Villains Grove experience?
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Speculation aside, we won’t truly know until Disney or Disney Imagineering makes another announcement. Fortunately, we might not have to wait much longer before the villains are a permanent park staple.
What are you hoping to see from the new Villains Land? Let Inside the Magic know in the comments down below!