What if animatronic Walt were wired for Disney World, too?
When the smoke cleared after the recent D23 announcements, Walt Disney World ended up with several notable developments. Orlando’s parks eventually will gain a villains land, two “Cars” attractions, a “Monsters, Inc.” land, rides based on “Encanto” and “Indiana Jones” scenarios, a “Mandalorian” update for a “Star Wars” ride, a nighttime parade and more.
Not too shabby, but it takes steam away from those folks who cry, “Be fair to Florida.” I’ll admit that when Disney execs started talking about the “Monsters” land, I assumed it would be in a far-flung theme park, perhaps Paris or Shanghai.
One item that local park watchers might be envious of is the full-size animatronic figure of Walt Disney that will be installed at Disneyland for a new show titled “Walt Disney – A Magical Life.” It debuts in 2025, Disney says.
“It’s like that light-bulb moment,” said Simon Veness, a travel writer and guidebook author. “Of course, there should be a Walt animatronic that needs to be in every Magic Kingdom park in the world tomorrow.”
At Disneyland, wired Walt will be in the park’s Main Street Opera House, which also remains home to “Great Moments With Mr. Lincoln.” That show is a descendant of the company’s early animatronic efforts on display at the 1964 World’s Fair in New York.
“The majority of people today don’t really know who Walt was, so let’s start re-educating them,” Veness said.
At Disney World, the most obvious visual tribute to the company’s founder is the Partners statue near the base of Cinderella Castle at Magic Kingdom, where he holds hands with Mickey Mouse, and the Walt the Dreamer statue, which features a sitting Walt, that is looking toward the American Adventure at Epcot. The latter was unveiled last year.
At Disney’s Hollywood Studios, a walk-through attraction named Walt Disney Presents shows off dozens of images of the man plus historical displays and a film about his life titled “Walt Disney: One Man’s Dream.”
Disney’s name is all over the parks, including in the titles of two Magic Kingdom attractions, Walt Disney’s Carousel of Progress and Walt Disney’s Enchanted Tiki Room. But there has been restraint when it comes to his image. Maybe that would be stepping too deep into cultish territory?
“The fact that they’re actually now doing it for Disneyland suggests that they know what they’re doing, and they’re not scared of it,” Veness said.
We don’t know yet what the Walt figure will say in the new Disneyland presentation. It could, in theory, be tailored to other locations.
“I would love just five minutes of Walt telling me about the Florida Project in animatronic form,” said John Saccheri, owner of BigFatPanda.com website that covers Disney World and other attractions.
“I guess maybe one day we’ll get it if it’s popular over there,” he said. “I look at One Man’s Dream, and I look at Epcot, and I just think it would have been perfect here, especially because our parks have his name – Walt Disney World.”
(It all comes together moment: The original animatronic Abraham Lincoln figure from the World’s Fair is on display at Walt Disney Presents at Hollywood Studios.)
Saccheri said a friend suggested that the animatronic Walt be incorporated into Carousel of Progress.
“Do you know the first room you get in where they just show you a sign, and it tells you Walt loved this?” Saccheri said. “Could you imagine if that first room was Walt standing up, talking to you about how much he loved Carousel of Progress?”
I’ve heard other suggestions, such as animatronic Walt built into a scene of Epcot’s Spaceship Earth, along the shores of Magic Kingdom’s Jungle Cruise or assuming the role of John, lead character in Carousel of Progress. (Animatronic Walt could talk about horseless trolleys, the wonders of electricity, John Cameron Swayze but then inadvertently burn the turkey.)
Oh, but what if the Walt figure gets smoky like the animatronic animal in the recently revived Country Bear Musical Jamboree? See, it’s easy to get carried away.
Saccheri remains in favor of the new Walt.
“I think Walt would have gotten a kick out of it. I do,” he said. “I think he would have laughed at it himself.”
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