Disney News

Category: News

  • Disneyland Power Outage Shuts Down Multiple Attractions

    Disneyland Power Outage Shuts Down Multiple Attractions

    A power outage shut down about a dozen attractions in Disneyland in Anaheim Wednesday, a company spokesperson said. This left many guests stranded on rides for long stretches, including the Monorail and “It’s a Small World.”

    According to Disneyland Resort representative Elva Rubalcava, the power was has been affected in Toontown and Fantasyland. Guests who were on rides when the power went out were escorted off by cast members, she said. However they are not being asked to leave the areas.

    She said there has been an issue with a transformer, and that teams were working on restoring power. The company does not have an estimated time of when power will be restored.

    Around 1pm (PST) on their twitter feed, the company said Disneyland Park was only accepting guests for re-entry, while Disney California Adventure Park remained open.

    The power outage comes as Disneyland, decorated for the Christmas season, is expected to see holiday crowds. According to multiple media reports, power has returned for some rides but some remain out.

    As of 2:34pm (PST) some power has been restored and some attractions have reopened. Disney is still working to restore the power as soon as possible.

    UPDATE: Power has been restored at Disneyland as of 4 p.m. (PST)

  • ‘The Last Jedi’ Blasts Past $800 Million Worldwide Box Office

    ‘The Last Jedi’ Blasts Past $800 Million Worldwide Box Office

    The second weekend may have seen a dip in Star Wars: The Last Jedi earnings, but the force is still strong with this film. The newest instalment to the Star Wars saga is blasting past $800 Million at the box office worldwide.

    On Christmas Day the film earned approximately $27.5 million from North American theaters with the international release raking in $14.8 million more.

    The Last Jedi is now the third highest-grossing film of 2017 in the U.S. It’s currently lands just behind Wonder Woman and Beauty and the Beast. It should be noted that it has reached that third place ranking in less than two weeks.

    Already the 28th-highest of all time its 11-day domestic total is at $400 million, the film is poised to crack the $1 billion worldwide threshold for sure as it is set to open in China on Jan. 5.

    With $800 million worldwide at the end of Christmas, “Star Wars: The Last Jedi” already ranks as the 71st-highest worldwide grosser of all time. It is also had the second highest opening day total bringing in $104 million. It’s the second highest opening day for a film in U.S. history and once again second only to “The Force Awakens”

    With many moviegoing folks on vacation for the holidays the film should finish 2017 strong. Despite recent criticisms, many film reviewers praised The Last Jedi as “the best since” Empire Strikes Back.

    Those believing that interest in Star Wars is on the decline “I find your lack of faith disturbing.” While The Last Jedi is below The Force Awakens totals it’s still far ahead of Rogue One numbers. The film’s plummeting audience score on Rotten Tomatoes has been a little suspect too with an alt-right group recently taking credit for using bots in a concerted attack against the Rian Johnson-directed movie.

    It really seems that much of the criticisms of the film are coming from a small minority of fans as the calls for The Last Jedi to be deleted from history seem to be landing in the silence of space. In the end the box office tells the story and right now these numbers are looking pretty good.

    Directed by Rian Johnson, “Star Wars: The Last Jedi” picks up where “Star Wars: The Force Awakens” left off. It stars returning cast members Mark Hamill, Carrie Fisher, Adam Driver, Daisy Ridley, John Boyega, Oscar Isaac, and Andy Serkis. New stars include Kelly Marie Tran, Laura Dern, and Benicio del Toro.

  • Alt-Right Group Claims Credit For ‘Last Jedi’ Low Audience Scores

    Alt-Right Group Claims Credit For ‘Last Jedi’ Low Audience Scores

    Star Wars: The Last Jedi has been getting mixed ratings from critics and fans. These are not the ratings you’re looking for if you are Rian Johnson or Disney for that matter. But now we may have an answer behind some of the low ‘Last Jedi’ audience scores.

    Initially scores on sites like RottenTomatoes.com were great with a “fresh” rating opening weekend. Early on it had 96 percent positive reviews from top critics and is still holding strong with a 93 percent, according to the aggregator. Soon after the audience score numbers began to plummet beyond what even the most conservative of Star Wars fans might believe.

    With more than 118,000 users weighing in and a “luke” warm audience score of 55 percent it became quickly apparent that there was a large divide between critics’ reactions and general audiences. Now after a post, from a Facebook page called Down With Disney’s Treatment of Franchises and its Fanboys, the reason for the declining score may have an answer.

    The page claimed responsibility for tanking the Rotten Tomatoes audience score for the latest “Star Wars” film, stating that they used bots in a concerted attack against the Star Wars Film.

    According to a report from The Huffington Post they sent a direct message to the page Tuesday and talked with the page administrator for a bit. Responding almost immediately, he explained that he’s upset with “Star Wars” producers for, “among other things,” introducing more female characters into the franchise’s universe.

    Throughout the course of their conversation, the self-identified member of the “alt-right” claimed that Poe Dameron (played by Oscar Isaac) is a “victim of the anti-mansplaining movement,” that Poe and Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill) are in danger of being “turn[ed]” gay, and that men should be reinstated as rulers of “society.”

    The latest installment in the “Star Wars” franchise has earned overwhelming praise from movie critics which prompted managing editor Erik Davis from Fandango to exclaim that he’s never seen a film earn a Certified Fresh stamp so quickly.

  • Kim Kardashian Gets $100,000 Worth of Disney Stock For Christmas

    Kim Kardashian Gets $100,000 Worth of Disney Stock For Christmas

    Everyone loves to receive a little Disney magic for Christmas, but can you imagine getting $100,000 in Disney Stock under the tree?

    If you wanted to give someone a nice Disney related gift, I can’t think of a better stock-ing stuffer for Christmas.  Kim Kardashian was surprised by her husband, Kanye West with $100,000 worth of Disney Stock this Christmas and the reality TV star now actually owns a little piece Disney.

    Disney Stock

    She was also gifted a number of other blue chip stocks from Kanye, but the 920 shares of Disney by far stands out as the most magical!

    Sharing the news on her Instagram story, the Keeping Up with the Kardashians star, told her followers, “Okay, so for one of my Christmas presents from Kanye he gives me this little box with a Disney Mickey toy”.

    Disney Stock

    The toy just a little teaser to her actual gift as she revealed that the small Mickey Mouse wasn’t her only present.

    Kardashian West’s gave us a peak at her stock certificates including the one for The Walt Disney Company stating the reality star had received “a gift from her husband” of 920 shares to the company that is valued at approximately $100,000.

    While stocks might be an untraditional Christmas gift, it’s better than a sack of coal and Kardashian clearly loved her present from West because she captioned the video “best husband alert!”

    Kanye gifts Kim with stocks 💰 🎁 #kimkardashian

    A post shared by Kim Kardashian Snapchats 🍑 (@kimksnapchats) on

  • The Internet Lights Up Over Magic Kingdom Christmas Crowd Complaints

    The Internet Lights Up Over Magic Kingdom Christmas Crowd Complaints

    Reaching capacity on Christmas Day, Walt Disney World’s Magic Kingdom temporarily closed its doors to some guests. Disney’s closure had guests burning mad, but it’s the Christmas Crowd sizes that set the internet on fire.

    Disney made the announcement on their twitter feed at 12:30pm stating that the park would reopen by 5:30pm. It was actually only closed for fifty minutes as they posted at 1:20pm that all “Walt Disney World Parks were open again to all guests”, but the crowds remained packed all day.

    It was only a phase B closure so basically only guests not staying on property who had a one-day tickets were not allowed to enter.  “Imagine traveling to Disney for the holidays only to be told you can’t enter magic kingdom because it’s packed to capacity.” one twitter user posted. It definitely conjures to mind some images of the Griswold’s family road trip to “Walley World“.

    Some guests inside the most magical place on earth guest took to social media to air their frustrations over the crowds. Take a look below at what they had to say with some guests going so far as to say it was “unsafe.”

    Really it’s very typical for Magic Kingdom to fill to capacity on Christmas and should be expected. And a 50 minute closure isn’t that long in retrospect.  But the initial disappointment for some folks is understandable.

    It’s definitely something that’s worth experiencing at least one to cross off the bucket list and with a few good tips you can alleviate some of that crowd frustration. A few of the easiest ways to avoid some of the crowds is to get there right when the park opens and do as much as you can, make an advance dining reservation at a nice sit restaurant for lunch or early dinner and consider ending the night viewing the fireworks from one of the nearby resorts.

  • Disney World Park Capacity and Closing Phases Explained

    Disney World Park Capacity and Closing Phases Explained

    Disney World parks can hold a lot of people, but certain times of year are so busy that they have to throttle the crowds coming into the parks as they approach full capacity. Here is Disney World’s Park Capacity and Closing Phases Explained.

    Here is a breakdown of Walt Disney World’s Capacity Closing Procedures.

    Phase A Closing

    No admission of guests with one day tickets, and no admission of guests even with FastPass+ reservations unless they have one of the following:

    • WDW Resort Guests, including The Four Seasons Resort, Swan, Dolphin or Shades of Green, Hotel Plaza Boulevard hotels arriving by bus (Best Western Lake Buena Vista Resort Hotel, The Buena Vista Palace, DoubleTree Suites by Hilton Hotel, B Resort, Wyndham Lake Buena Vista Resort, Hilton), Golden Oak residents and guests.
    • WDW Premier Passport, Annual & Premium Passholders
    • Guests with Park Hopper tickets re-entering or crossing over from another WDW Theme Park
    • Guests with Memory Maker
    • Guests with dining reservations
    • Magic Kingdom Guests with reservations for Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique, Harmony Barber Shop or The Pirates League.

    Phase B Closing

    No admission of guests with one day tickets, and no re-entering or crossing over from another park unless they have one of the following:

    • WDW Resort Guests, including The Four Seasons Resort, Swan, Dolphin or Shades of Green, Hotel Plaza Boulevard hotels arriving by bus (Best Western Lake Buena Vista Resort Hotel, The Buena Vista Palace, DoubleTree Suites by Hilton Hotel, B Resort, Wyndham Lake Buena Vista Resort, Hilton), Golden Oak residents and guests.
    • WDW Premier Passport, Annual & Premium Passholders
    • Guests with Memory Maker
    • Guests with dining reservations
    • Magic Kingdom Guests with reservations for Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique, Harmony Barber Shop or The Pirates League.
    • FastPass+ reservations and is a WDW Resort hotel guest.

    Phase 1 Park Closing

    Guests with ‘Magic Your Way’ base tickets, or a ‘1-Day 1-Park Ticket’, Guests without an admission ticket, and Cast Members using Main Gate & Silver Passes will be turned around at the parking lot booths.

    Phase 2 Park Closing

    Admission is limited to:

    • Disney Resort Guests (including the Walt Disney World Swan and Dolphin, and guests arriving by bus from the Hotel Plaza Boulevard hotels)
    • Annual, Premier and Premium Annual Passholders
    • Guests with Hopper tickets coming from another park
    • Guests re-entering the park
    • Guests with dining reservations
    • Magic Kingdom Guests with reservations for Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique or The Pirates League
    • Guests using Walt Disney World Resort Transportation will be admitted.
    • Guests with pre-purchased 1 day Magic Kingdom tickets

    Phase 3 Park Closing

    Admission is limited to:

    • Disney Resort Guests (including the Walt Disney World Swan and Dolphin, and guests arriving by bus from the Hotel Plaza Boulevard hotels)
    • Annual, Premier and Premium Annual Passholders
    • Guests with dining reservations
    • Magic Kingdom Guests with reservations for Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique or The Pirates League

    Phase 4 Park Closing

    Closed to all guests.

    All four Disney World theme parks have reached some level of closure in the past. As the most visited theme park in the world, Magic Kingdom is the park most likely to experience capacity-based closures during busy times of year. Due to its size, Epcot is the least likely to close, and has not done so in recent memory. Hollywood Studios and Animal Kingdom rarely close, but their smaller capacities still make them more likely to close than Epcot.

    To be specific, Magic Kingdom closes, on average, around 6 days per year. New Year’s Eve and July 4 are always two of them, often getting up to a Phase 3 closure. Two to four other days during Christmas week can be expected each year as well, although those rarely go above Phase 2. The years where Easter week falls during late-March or early-April can also see closures due to the Easter break/Spring Break overlap.

  • Magic Kingdom Closed After Reaching Capacity

    Magic Kingdom Closed After Reaching Capacity

    Christmas Day is always super busy at Magic Kingdom as crowds descend on the most magical place on earth. And as expected the park has temporarily closed after reaching capacity Monday.

    Magic Kingdom is currently at a Phase B capacity closure. Disney announced that no new guests will be admitted to the Magic Kingdom until 5:30 p.m. at the earliest.

    UPDATE: All Walt Disney World Parks are currently open to all guests as of 1:20pm.  Keep checking back as they could easily reach capacity again.

    Epcot, Hollywood Studios and Animal Kingdom all remained open to additional guests so those are always a great place to spend some time while your waiting for some space to open back up at Magic Kingdom.

    “Barring unforeseen circumstances, we anticipate Magic Kingdom will reopen by 5:30 p.m. today,” Disney said on its Twitter feed.

    For details on closures, check out our complete list and breakdown of Walt Disney World’s Capacity Closing Procedures.

     

  • BREAKING: Magic Kingdom’s Mayor of Main Street USA Passes Away

    BREAKING: Magic Kingdom’s Mayor of Main Street USA Passes Away

    Some very disheartening news is coming in this Christmas Eve that will break the hearts of countless Cast Members and guest alike. The larger-than-life Mayor of Main Street, U.S.A., the Honorable Christopher George Weaver has passed away.

    He is everyone’s favorite politician and his inimitable spirit will be greatly missed at the Magic Kingdom.

    Many mornings he has presided over the Magic Kingdom Welcome Show just before Rope Drop. After the park opens, you would often find him wandering around Main Street, USA, greeting guests, signing autographs and posing for photos.

    Mayor of Main Street Christopher George Weaver

    He been greeting guests with smiles and laughs for many years.  He was a pleasure to meet and so glad I got that chance on many occasions over the years.  Our thoughts are with his family and loved ones during this difficult time.

     

     

  • Disney Cruise Line Employee Pleads Guilty to Embezzling From Disney

    Disney Cruise Line Employee Pleads Guilty to Embezzling From Disney

    In connection with his scheme to embezzle more than $275,000 from the Walt Disney Company, a former employee aboard the Disney Wonder cruise ship pleaded guilty to one count of wire fraud in San Diego federal court Thursday.

    The 32-year-old, Renan Dias Da Rocha Gomes, a Brazilian national, admitted that from at least October 2015 through Oct. 27. 2017, he was employed aboard the Disney Wonder as a merchandise host and assigned to work in the merchandise store.

    Gomes admitted to obtaining money through his access to the VeriFone payment system in order to embezzle funds from Disney for his own personal gain.

    He made about $275,000 in unauthorized charges to Disney’s bank account, Gomes admitted. While working aboard the Disney Wonder he would load the value of the funds onto Disney gift cards according to his plea agreement.

    From April 23 through May 7 of this year, he spent about $37,700 of the embezzled funds for his own personal benefit by taking his family on a Disney World vacation Gomes also admitted.

    Gomes said while on vacation he used the gift cards with the embezzled funds to pay about $8,200 in lodging, $29,500 on food, beverages, merchandise and entertainment expenses.

    Gomes will be required to repay The Walt Disney Company the total amount of funds he stole which the company was unable to recover As part of his plea agreement.

    Gomes remains in custody pending his next court appearance on March 9. Federal agents boarded the Disney Wonder ship after it made port in San Diego Harbor in October and arrested him.

  • Accused Disney Stroller Thief Caught Thanks to Social Media

    Accused Disney Stroller Thief Caught Thanks to Social Media

    A woman accused of stealing a stroller from Disney World and attempting to sell it online has been arrested by deputies with the Orange County Sheriff’s Office. The stroller belonged to a family visiting the park and was filled with their belongings.

    Along with their stroller the victims, Dave Diaz and his family, lost a child’s car seat, diaper bag and toys that they reported stolen at the Magic Kingdom on Sunday night. Altogether the stolen property totaled more than $1000.

    Amanda Poyner, 24, was charged with a second-degree felony for allegedly dealing in stolen property.

    According to investigators the Diaz Family went on the “Little Mermaid Ride” and when the got back to where they had left their stroller, they discovered it was gone. The family was devastated and has been chronicling the events on social media throughout.

    The story has a happy ending though as the family’s stolen items were returned after detectives were able to locate them online at sites like Facebook Marketplace and LetGo. Detectives used a fake Facebook account to message the seller and set up a meeting to buy the stolen goods Wednesday morning.

    The Diaz’s were able to provide serial numbers for their stolen goods and the case was pretty much open and shut.  They are just happy to have their belongings back and Diaz says “This is a story about how the cast members at Magic Kingdom went above and beyond to try to fix a problem that was never their problem to fix in the first place.”