Tag: splash mountain

Disney Reveals New Splash Mountain Reimagining Concept Art and New Details

Last year, Disney Parks announced Splash Mountain – at both Disneyland park in California and Magic Kingdom park in Florida – will be completely reimagined and inspired by the fan favorite Walt Disney Animation Studios film, “The Princess and the Frog,” and now they are releasing new details.

Disney recently revealed a new piece of concept art and story details for the planned ride revamp, teasing a new journey set to unfold after the film’s final kiss scene. Along the ride, guests will follow Tiana (voiced by Anika Noni Rose in the film) while she plots a one-of-a-kind Mardi Gras celebration with Naveen (Bruno Campos) and Louis (Michael-Leon Wooley) in tow.

The new “The Princess and the Frog”-themed ride will conclude with “the ultimate Mardi Gras party.” “Because if Tiana is throwing a party, it is the ultimate Mardi Gras party,” said Charita Carter, a senior creative producer for Walt Disney Imagineering, who is leading the team on the project. Carter shared new details on the attraction in a video Disney released as you can see below:

“Original music inspired by songs from the film will bring guests into the story,” Disney states, and riders will follow the princess as they “encounter old friends and make new ones along the way,” preparing for the city’s famous spring celebration.

September 3, 2021
Disney Says the Inclusion Update to Splash Mountain “isn’t the last”

Disney Parks revealed earlier this year that a plan was in place to re-theme Splash Mountain from its current Song of the South incarnation to something designed after The Princess and the Frog, and now Disney has announced there are more inclusion changes coming to the Parks in the future.

Disney Parks, Experiences, and Products Chairman Josh D’Amaro revealed durring a virtual conference by the IAAPA that the redesign of Splash Mountain is now being put on the fast track.

Not only that, more changes or additions to the park are planned that will foster inclusion. D’Amaro said the Princess and the Frog update “isn’t the last. There will be more to come”

For decades the Disney company has based its employee training around the “four keys.” Those have been safety, courtesy, show, and efficiency. Earlier this year, a fifth key was added, inclusion.

The transition of Splash Mountain is one element of this new focus on inclusion. The ride’s current theme, while not explicitly…problematic, from a race perspective, is related to a movie that has some serious problems in that regard, and the redesign to The Princess and the Frog was clearly chosen not only because it works thematically, but because that film features Disney’s only African-American Princess character.

November 22, 2020
Petition Calls for Splash Mountain to be Re-themed to Black Panther Instead of Princess and the Frog

Shortly after a petition hit the internet, Disney announced back in June that it was re-themeing Spash Mountain to the 2009 Disney Princess animated movie The Princess and the Frog and now another petition is gaining traction asking for the classic attraction to be themed to Black Panther, in honor of the late Chadwick Boseman.

Black Panther actor Chadwick Boseman passed away in September following a private four-year battle with colon cancer.

Titled “Redesign Splash Mountain to Black Panther in honor of Chadwick Boseman,” the petition has gained more than 3000 signatures. You can read the petition’s official description below:

This is to petition to change Splash Mountain to Black Panther. Disney has announced to change Splash Mountain to Princess and the Frog, but in recent news encourage them to redesign splash mountain to Black Panther theme in honor of Chadwick Boseman.

Splash Mountain currently stars the animated characters from Song of the South, the 1946 film long criticized for stereotypes of “spiritual” black men and its seemingly nostalgic view of the antebellum South.

The current re-themeing plan is inspired by the all-time favorite animated Disney film, “The Princess and the Frog.” The story picks up after the final kiss where guests will join Princess Tiana and Louis on a musical adventure – featuring some of the powerful music from the film – as they prepare for their first-ever Mardi Gras performance.

According to the Disney Parks Blog, the idea for re-theming the 1989 thrill ride started over a year before the announcement and quite a bit of planning has gone into the reimagining so it’s not clear how much Disney will listen to the call.

October 10, 2020
VIDEO: Guests Evacuate as Splash Mountain Ride Vehicle Submerges into Water

Splash Mountain at Disney World made news recently after it was decided that the attraction would be re-themed to Princess and the Frog, but now its making headlines again as guests claim they evacuated the ride moments before their boat sank into the water.

Twitter user @skyelaringrsoll, wrote Sunday that guests stepped out of the ride once it started sinking, and that a cast member allegedly told them they “should’ve stayed in the boat.”

The tweet includes a 6-second video showing the empty boat under water. Take a look below:

so we got out of our boat because it was sinking while we were stuck there and the disney world employee decided to tell us that we should’ve stayed in the boat but it went under as soon as we all stepped out… nice #DisneyWorld #splashmountain #MagicKingdom #disney not okay???? pic.twitter.com/15zMnP1wgX
— sky💫 (@skyelaringrsoll) August 3, 2020

“So we got out of our boat because it was sinking while we were stuck there and the disney world employee decided to tell us that we should’ve stayed in the boat but it went under as soon as we all stepped out,” the tweet reads.

In the video you can hear someone saying, “Do you see the boat?”

Another person is then heard responding, “I understand that, but this is a safety matter.”

Earlier this year, another attraction at Magic Kingdom took on water unexpectedly mid-ride. Guests while riding the Jungle Cruise in Adventureland took to social media to document their experience after their boat suddenly began taking on water.

August 3, 2020
Disney World Guest Falls in Water on Splash Mountain at Magic Kingdom

Splash Mountain is back in the news again, but this time because a guest fell in to the water of the Magic Kingdom attraction during an evacuation.

The ride had been shut down and cast members were escorting guests off of the attraction when one guest made an unexpected splash.

TikTok user @_parkerdanielle shared a video last week of herself falling in while she tried to capture video of the attraction on the way out. Take a look a the video below:

@_parkerdanielle
this would only happen to me… SO embarrassing. ##disney ##magickingdom ##disneyworld ##LetsFaceIt ##splashmountain ##MoreHappyDenimDance
♬ original sound – _parkerdanielle

Its seems as the the guest was not seriously injured and made light of the incident captioning it, “CEO of falling into the water on Splash Mountain.”

Disney recently announced Splash Mountain will be re-themed to “Princess and the Frog” and many guests have been trying to get one last ride on the attraction before it changes.

July 22, 2020
OFFICAL: Disney’s Splash Mountain to be Re-Themed to the ‘Princess and the Frog’

Splash Mountain will be getting a makeover at Walt Disney World’s Magic Kingdom in Central Florida and Disneyland in California.

Splash Mountain currently stars the animated characters from “Song of the South,” the 1946 film long criticized for stereotypes of “spiritual” black men and its seemingly nostalgic view of the antebellum South.

The new theme is inspired by an all-time favorite animated Disney film, “The Princess and the Frog.” The story picks up after the final kiss where guests will join Princess Tiana and Louis on a musical adventure – featuring some of the powerful music from the film – as they prepare for their first-ever Mardi Gras performance.

According to the Disney Parks Blog, the idea for re-theming the 1989 thrill ride started over a year ago but the change also comes at a time when racial tensions are at a high.

A petition calling for the re-theme went viral earlier this month.

“Disney parks should be a home for all to enjoy regardless of race, age, whatever your background may be,” the petition said.

June 25, 2020
Petition Calls for Splash Mountain to be Re-themed to ‘Princess and the Frog’

Fans are calling on Disney parks to re-theme its popular Splash Mountain ride based on a nearly 75-year-old movie that has long been criticized for racist themes.

A petition posted on Change.org asks Disney to remove all references to its 1946 film “Song of the South” from Splash Mountain.

The petition says the movie “steeped in extremely problematic and stereotypical racist tropes.” The petition suggests Disney should re-theme the ride around “Princess and the Frog.” Tiana, the main character in the film, is recognized for being Disney’s first African-American princess.

The petition had more than 8,000 signatures as of Thursday morning. The petition’s current goal is set at 10,000 signatures.

Disney has been distancing themselves from the movie for quite sometime now. The movie, set on a plantation after the Civil War, is not included on the new streaming service Disney Plus. And former Walt Disney CEO Bob Iger, now executive chairman, says it won’t ever be.

“I’ve felt as long as I’ve been CEO that ‘Song of the South’ — even with a disclaimer — was just not appropriate in today’s world,” Iger said in March during a shareholder meeting. “It’s just hard, given the depictions in some of those films, to bring them out today without in some form or another offending people, so we’ve decided not to do that.”

The call for change comes as the country continues to hold discussions surrounding racial injustice in the wake of George Floyd’s death in Minneapolis police custody.

June 12, 2020
Man Banned from Disney World After Holding Trump 2020 Sign on Splash Mountain

A man who several weeks ago was banned from Disney World after hanging a huge Donald Trump 2020 banner in the Magic Kingdom has been banned — for a second time.

Disney officials took away Don Cini’s annual pass back in September, after he posted a video of him waving a Trump 2020 banner over the Main Street Train Station. Disney reconsidered the position and allowed him to come back to the parks with the stipulation that he would not hang anymore flags.

Now his latest political antics have gotten him banned — again. And this time permanently. Cini was captured holding a Trump 2020 banner on Splash Mountain. After, the ride picture came with more than the usual decorative boarder. This one came with a note from the Orange County Sheriff’s Office saying that Cini trespassed and his conduct is not welcomed on Disney property.

Cini says that after taking the picture, he was escorted off property and he is now banned from all Disney World properties, including the theme parks, resorts, and Disney Springs.

A picture of Don Cini’s latest guerilla style political support shows him riding down Splash Mountain with a “Trump 2020” sign and on Expedition Everest, he held a “Keep America Great” sign.

We spoke with Cini and asked him if he thought it was worth it. He said, “Yes, because I shouldn’t have been trespassed.” Cini is currently meeting with attorneys to find out what options are available to him. “I didn’t expect them to trespass I just wanted to get the picture,” Cini said.

Disney has now permanently revoked his annual pass, which he says he had for 24 years. Disney’s park rules state that, “the usage of any flag, banner or sign to incite a crowd” is prohibited.

November 13, 2018