Everything We Learned at the 2024 D23 Expo Disney Parks Panel

The time of the wicked has arrived.

Disney The classic villain has his own theme park at the Magic Kingdom in Orlando, Florida.

The company first hinted at the possibility of a hostile takeover at the last D23 Expo in 2022. A range of “blue sky” projects under considerationbut it is not certain whether it will be realized.

While the prospect of exploring beyond Big Thunder Mountain has fans salivating, its lack of physical presence has many wondering what exactly Disney is doing to compete with the upcoming opening of the Universal Studios Epic Universe.

The answer was revealed Saturday night at the company’s Experience Showcase at the Honda Center in Anaheim, California.

“As we sit here at the Honda Center, we see the Imagineers hard at work,” Josh D’Amaro told the cheering crowd. “Everything we’re about to share with you is in active development … that means the dirt is moving. It’s not blue skies.”

Disney’s theme parks, part of its experiences business, have long been the company’s best-performing unit, especially during a period of turmoil at cable networks and a decline in cable advertising revenue. In recent quarters, the theme parks have provided stability as Disney adjusts its entertainment business to changing consumer habits after the pandemic.

However, in the most recent quarter, Disney’s domestic theme parks in California and Florida Consumer demand slowed and inflation rose. The company expects this flat attendance situation to continue in the coming quarters.

Still, Disney remains optimistic about its experiences division, which includes theme parks, cruise ships and hotels. The company has pledged Investing $60 billion in the next 10 years to create experiences — which is a key part of its strategy to keep theme parks fresh and relevant amid competition.

About 70% of the funds will be used to build new experiences at domestic and overseas theme parks and cruise ships. The other 30% will be used for technology and infrastructure development, including the maintenance of existing attractions.

On Saturday, Disney fans got a glimpse at where that investment is going, with the help of some big names.

Rita Ora took the stage to sing “Trust Me” from “The Jungle Book” to announce the new Villains Land coming to Magic Kingdom. At Magic Kingdom, Villains Land is under construction. This new area of ​​the park will include two major attractions as well as shopping and dining.

“So, you poor unfortunates, get ready,” D’Amaro quipped.

As part of the announcement that parts of Frontier Land in Florida will be redecorated with elements from the movie “Cars,” Shaboozey performed the song “Life Is a Highway” live at the Honda Center.

D’Amaro told the crowd that this area will be different from Disney California Adventure and will be built in the wilderness. It will have an E-ticket attraction, a thrilling off-road rally, and a more family-friendly ride. Construction is expected to begin in early 2025.

D’Amaro noted that this expansion of the Magic Kingdom is the largest expansion the park has ever seen.

At Hollywood Studios, Disney is preparing to build a land centered on “Monsters, Inc.” Billy Crystal, the voice actor of the one-eyed green monster Mike Wazowski, took the stage to introduce the new land to the people present.

Crystal sang “If Not For You” and received a standing ovation.

The park will have a major attraction where visitors can ride a suspended roller coaster and experience a thrilling “laugh factory” ride. Audiences cheered for the new rides. D’Amaro said construction of the park will begin next year.

Animal Kingdom’s Tropical America, which will feature an Indiana Jones attraction set inside a Mayan temple, is set to open in 2027. Ke Huy Quan appeared on stage with D’Amaro to introduce the new ride and reminisce about his debut role in “Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark.”

“Josh, I have to ask you, are there going to be snakes there?” Quan joked.

D’Amaro said construction will begin in the fall, and guests will be watching to see what new stories the Orlando attraction will bring.

As part of Tropical America, Disney is creating Puebla Esperanza, which means the Village of Hope. Here, Disney is building Casita Madrigal in “Encanto” and will open an attraction centered on Antonio, a character with the magical gift of talking to animals. The Casita has animated the house furniture, allowing guests to tour the house and enter Antonio’s jungle room.

The area will also feature a new carousel featuring wooden sculptures of animals from classic Disney stories.

D’Amaro revealed Saturday that the world of “Avatar” is coming to Disney California Adventure. The area will feature a new attraction inspired by the second film, “Water Way.”

“The design of our new land is inspired by the second film, ‘The Way of Water,’ as well as the upcoming ‘Fire and Ash,’ and future ‘Avatar’ films,” Ari Rubinstein, global executive managing creative development for Walt Disney Imagineering, said at Saturday’s presentation. “The scale and level of the land will be commensurate with these epic stories.”

The park will also feature a “Coco” attraction that follows Miguel through the Land of the Dead. It will utilize state-of-the-art audio-animatronics, just like in Recently renovated Tiana’s Bayou Adventure. It also draws inspiration from the iconic Haunted Mansion and Pirates of the Caribbean rides. The company is set to break ground in 2026.

Deadpool appeared on stage and mocked the Disney parks, including the animatronic dragon that caught fire at Disneyland last year, and D’Amaro.

The company later revealed that the Avengers campus will nearly double in size with the addition of two new attractions. The first attraction, called “Avengers Infinity Defense,” will take guests on an adventure to stop Thanos from using stolen portal technology. Guests will help defend iconic locations such as Asgard, Wakanda, and New York City.

The second attraction, the Stark Flight Lab, where visitors will learn how to fly like a superhero, is set to begin construction next year.

The company also announced that Tiana’s Bayou Adventure, a revamped version of Splash Mountain, will open Nov. 15. The Walt Disney World Resort version of the ride opened in June.

Disneyland Paris’ World of Adventure theme park will add a new “Lion King”-themed area, featuring a Pride Land-themed waterslide attraction. The previously announced “Frozen”-themed land will open in 2026.

A new thrilling Spider-Man-themed roller coaster is coming to Shanghai.

“It’s going to be a high-energy roller coaster with lots of thrills,” said Scott Trowbridge, senior creative executive at Walt Disney Imagineering.

The Hong Kong park will also add a new Spider-Man thrill attraction in the Stark Expo area.

Tokyo will debut a new nighttime blockbuster in September called “Reach for the Stars,” which will feature characters from Big Hero 6, Up, and Marvel superheroes.

Disney’s cruise line is expanding massively. In addition to the five ships already sailing around the world and four ships currently in production, Disney will add four more ships between 2027 and 2031.

D’Amaro invited the band All-4-One to perform “This I Swear” to announce the arrival of the four new ships. Disney’s cruise ships will soon have 13 different destinations.

“Disney Cruise Line has always been a top choice for families because it offers something for everyone,” D’Amaro said. “Expanding our fleet will allow more people – in more parts of the world – to enjoy the experiences at sea that only Disney can offer.”

Disney also used Saturday’s event to introduce its Invested $1.5 billion in Epic Games.

D’Amaro was joined on stage by various creative leaders from the companies, including Jennifer Lee of Walt Disney Animation, Pete Doctor of Pixar, Kevin Feige of Marvel and Dave Filoni of Lucasfilm, to share several upcoming collaborations with Epic Games and Fortnite.

Disney live-streamed the segment on “Fortnite,” and more than a million people watched the livestream, D’Amaro said.

Lee revealed that Disney animated characters will be appearing in the game this fall, including Cruella, Hook, and Maleficent. Doctor added that Pixar’s The Incredibles will also be joining the cast, including Frozen, Elastigirl, and Mr. Incredible.

For Lucasfilm, Filoni said new Star Wars characters will be revealed next week, including IG-11 and a Grogu back ornament. Filoni also revealed that he and Jon Favreau are working on a story about the Mandalorian and Grogu for the Smugglers Run attraction at Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge.

Marvel has been working with Epic since 2018, and there’s more to come. Feige said many fans discover Marvel characters through Fortnite and then go on to read comics and watch Marvel Cinematic Universe content. Next week the game will launch a new event centered around Doctor Doom. On Saturday night, D23 attendees saw a trailer that included a number of new special weapons, including Captain America’s shield and Peewee’s version of Wolverine.