D23 Announcements 2024: My Opinion and Concepts on Beyond Big Thunder, Monsters Inc and the Future of WDW

 D23 Announcements 2024: My Opinion and Concepts on Beyond Big Thunder, Monsters Inc and the Future of WDW

Hello readers,

I know it has been a while, but a lot has been occurring in terms of rumors within the parks and  NEW attractions being announced at  WDW(Walt Disney World). As a scholar of Transmedia Studies(the study of Franchises and their conversion across mediums including Theme Parks, Video Games, Books ,TV and Film) I have been caught off guard as a critic of the Disney Parks. I recently was caught off guard by the announcements of Cars Land coming to Magic Kingdom and Monsters Inc coming to Disney’s Hollywood Studios(DHS). While I can see why Imagineering is pushing for these attractions to be created. Fans appear outraged by the locations.In this article I aim to discuss these controversies and how Disney can aim to succeed and successfully move these lands into WDW as it is today. 

Cars Land

Possibly my biggest hot take from D23 was the announcement of Cars coming to Magic Kingdom. While this is exciting news, for many, I would argue that it is in fact not something fans want and is a jerk reaction to Disney’s competitor Epic Universe(opening in 2025). I love Magic Kingdom as do many fans, but with the recent retheme of Splash Mountain and Country Bear Jamboree, Disney is facing a major issue. When it was announced, that Disney would be creating this new Cars themed land, it was announced that Tom Sawyer Island and the Rivers of America will be demolished, destroying what is left of old Frontierland that has been in the parks since Day One. Cars, is a franchise that is popular amongst fans, and arguably would fit the mesa’s background of Big Thunder Mountain, however they are sacrificing frontierland for the sake of this expansion, that no one asked for nor do we need. 

It is my opinion and the opinion of other fans I have spoken with, to not destroy the Rivers of America, to make way for this new land due to the risk of destroying Frontierland, for the sake of competition. Cars Land doesn’t need to be at Magic Kingdom, and while on Paper it sounds like a good idea, it will inevitably destroy the already butchered frontierland, as it is today. 

Villain’s Land

On the flip side, I am not opposed to giving more land to the Villains Land Concept, if its entrance is placed as mentioned in my previous Villains Land article, where the Tangled Bathrooms currently stand. In between It’s a Small World and The Haunted Mansion’s Show buildings, Avoiding Frontier Land entirely. We want pure expansion not Demolition for the Sake of Expansion. As fans of the Parks it seems (at least with those I have spoken with) that we would prefer an expansion that doesn’t take away from what currently exists similar to what New Fantasyland was and not what is being proposed beyond Big Thunder Mountain in this current state. Disney should still expand, but do so without draining the Rivers of America. 

I would argue further that rather than building Cars, give more attention to Villains Land, incorporating more than just two villains into the land and perhaps rather than having two attractions in Cars Land and two in villains land create four brand new attractions and experiences in a larger expansion of Villains Land without the need to sacrifice beloved Day one attractions designed by Walt and the original Imagineers, for WDW, in the name of competition with Epic Universe, as fans will love that Disney respected the timeless lands of Disney past and looked towards creating a great big beautiful tomorrow.

Monsters Inc Land

Moving over to DHS, I believe there is a solution to the Monsters Inc Land Debacle, as fans of the Muppets Franchise were outraged when it was proposed that Monsters Inc would Replace the current Muppets Location. As per a previous article I wrote in regards to my concept for Muppets Land, Disney has the opportunity to build in their still large and unused backlot of DHS, from back when it was still a movie and television studio. As I would still move muppets to this backlot area and retheme Rock N Roller Coaster Featuring Aerosmith, to Featuring the Electric Mayhem and build an entire Muppets theme land in the backlot behind the coasters current show building, I would also demolish Star Wars Launch bay and utilize it as the new entry way into Monsters Inc Land that could then circle back into Muppets Land on the West side if the Park. this would all sit on what is currently Theater of Stars to its intersection with Cypress Drive and will move as far east to showbiz Blvd, where the terrible Cars attraction Lightning McQueen Racing academy currently sits.

 I only argue this as I stand by my thoughts of building this land separately and then closing down the current Muppets area and moving it to expand Star Wars Galaxy’s Edge which can connect Star Tours to Galaxy’s Edge, but this only works if Disney makes the current Backlot available and accessible through the means of Muppets Land(as mentioned in a previous Article) and Monsters Inc. 

Animal Kingdom’s Replacement for Dinoland USA

Possibly the only item not mentioned at D23 this year on this list is the announcement of the Latin America’s/South American land announced at previous D23 expo to replace Dinoland USA. I have done some thinking in regards to how Disney can Keep Dinosaur, and still update this land. Disney doesn’t need to do anything with Dinosaur, as it isn’t connected to Dinoland USA, or rather it doesn’t need to be. 

My thought is to build this new land around Dinosaur, allowing it to live on as a beloved attraction and then to demolish the rest of Dinoland USA, to bring Encanto into this land, as Indiana Jones doesn’t make sense in Animal Kingdom no matter how you spin it. For all we as fans care Disney can retheme Dinosaur to make sense to exist in Latin/South America, because Dinosaurs existed 165 million years ago who's to say, that they didn’t exist in this area of the world. All we need is a small retheme to the attraction’s outer area and possibly to the inside of the current museum and preshow, to exist within Latin America, but this Attraction doesn’t need to change at all while the land around it is changed  for the better.

Conclusion

There is my two cents on the new announcements coming to WDW in the next few years, perhaps with a little bit of creativity these ideas can contribute to Disney to the betterment of WDW for fans of all ages for the future to come, thank you for reading and stay tuned for more, theme park concepts and articles.