Disney World Replacing Rivers of America or Muppet*Vision 3D Would Be a Mistake
Rivers of America photos by Garrett Martin. Muppet*Vision 3D photo courtesy of Disney.
The other shoe dropped two days after Disney’s news-filled theme parks panel at D23. One of the new expansions coming to the Magic Kingdom at Disney World, based on the Cars franchise, would replace two opening day attractions: the Liberty Belle riverboat and Tom Sawyer Island. In addition the entire Rivers of America would be drained and filled in to make room for Mater and Lightning McQueen.
On top of that, the following day Drew Taylor of The Wrap reported that Muppet*Vision 3D might be closing, too. The Grand Avenue section of Disney’s Hollywood Studios, which includes the Muppet*Vision theater and the Muppet-themed PizzeRizzo restaurant, is reportedly one of two possible locations for that park’s upcoming Monsters, Inc. land. (A West Coast version of Muppet*Vision closed permanently in 2014, and many have feared the original in Florida would inevitably follow it, too.) Its end isn’t as definitive as the Rivers of America’s, which was officially announced by Disney itself, but Muppet*Vision’s fate is apparently very much up in the air as Disney weighs where to stick Monstropolis.
Anybody who knows how Disney operates knew not to get too excited about D23’s announcements until they revealed exactly where the new additions would be built. Despite the oft-repeated Walt Disney quote about Disney World having “the blessing of size,” new additions at Disney World often replace something that already exists. Sometimes it’s an improvement—I’m sure many miss the audio-animatronic dinosaurs of Ellen’s Energy Adventure at EPCOT, but that amazing Guardians of the Galaxy coaster is definitely more popular than Ellen DeGeneres and Bill Nye from the mid ‘90s hyping up the oil industry. Other times, though, it’s simply Disney doing a quick fix on something that wasn’t even broken, or replacing an original concept with intellectual property, like ditching the Maelstrom for a too-short Frozen ride, or swapping out the Great Movie Ride with a (really fun) Mickey Mouse attraction that could’ve easily gone elsewhere in Hollywood Studios. Even with all the land they own in Florida, and all the unused space they’ve openly speculated about building on in the Magic Kingdom, Disney announcing as many new rides as they did at D23 confirmed that at least some existing attractions would be closing.
The Muppet*Vision news immediately spawned a campaign to save the show, which, beyond being deeply entertaining and the only real Muppet representation in the parks, is also the last project Jim Henson worked on before dying unexpectedly in 1990. Losing Muppet*Vision 3D would be a huge loss, not just of a great, hilarious attraction that is the best way to escape the heat at Hollywood Studios, but also of a piece of cultural history, as the final work of one of the 20th century’s greatest popular artists.
We shouldn’t overlook the Rivers of America, though, or the Liberty Belle riverboat. Their confirmed closure hasn’t received nearly the outcry that Muppet*Vision has, for understandable reasons; it’s not home to beloved and underutilized characters, it doesn’t have the historical significance of Muppet*Vision, the Liberty Belle is not an especially popular ride, and major Disney fans who travel to both Disneyland and Disney World know they can still see the original version of this concept at Disneyland. Far more than just a boat ride will be lost if the Rivers of America is drained, though—including, most crucially, part of the Magic Kingdom’s very essence.
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
- Should You Stay at Walt Disney World's Swan and Dolphin and Swan Reserve Resorts? By Garrett Martin December 19, 2023 | 12:00pm
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-