10) The Emperor's New Groove
The film that brought Disney 2D animation into the next century is nowhere to be seen in the parks. As our correspondent found, there was an attraction planned for Disney's Hollywood Studios in the early 2000's based on the film The Emperor's New Groove. A simulator type attraction, Kuzco's Groovy Getaway would allow guests to help Llama Kuzco break into the palace and transform back into a human. It was to include a roller coaster-type sequence into Ymza's laboratory, and even had a special effect were guests transformed into different animals.
The problem was that a simulator attraction already existed in the park (Star Tours) as well as a 4-D show (Muppet-Vision). This alone did not shelf the project, as duplicating attraction technology has never stopped Disney before. Imagineers were not sure if the film's presence would have a lasting impact on the park. They wanted to have an attraction that could have at least a ten-year staying power. Ultimately, Who Wants to Be a Millionaire - Play It! was built in its place.
9) The Fox and the Hound
The Fox and The Hound Adventure was a dark ride planned for Fantasyland. Guests would board jalopy ride vehicles and ride through every memorable scene from the movies. The animatronics were advanced for their time, and were scheduled to debut as the first A-100 figures with the new "compliance" technology. Imagineers really wanted to preserve the emotions of the film and recreate them in the attraction.
The downfall of the concept was that Imagineers were too successful in preserving the emotions. After putting together show pieces in an empty soundstage and playtesting the attraction, Imagineers found that riders were incredibly sad for the remainder of the day. Riders wouldn't even eat anything until at least the following day. For the sake of food and beverage sales, the attraction was never built.
8) Lady and the Tramp
As guests requested more and more experiences based on the famous films, Disney turned away from rides and searched for new ways to retell the tales. One of the earliest concepts was a Lady and the Tramp Italian eatery. Based in Fantasyland in the Magic Kingdom, the experience would have added originality to the dining offerings at the park.
While the entire experience was set indoors, the dim lighting gave the atmosphere a nighttime setting. The kitchen for the restaurant would have the facade of an Italian bistro, and the actual dining room was set "outside" in an alleyway. The most popular offering would be the Spaghetti For Sharing, with extra long noodles for guests to recreate the famous scene from the movie.
Unfortunately, this only appealed to honeymooners and other couples. Vacationing friends and families had no interest in a restaurant with a romantic atmosphere. Disney is no stranger to guests that do not do proper research on experiences, and the company decided that the experience was not worth the guest relations paperwork.
7) Bambi
Another dark ride planned for Fantasyland was Bambi's Great Journey. Like the other classic Fantasyland dark rides like Peter Pan's Flight and the defunct Snow White's Scary Adventures, Bambi's Great Journey would take guests through a linear retelling of the film.
Though the film is regarded as a classic, the attraction was not on the drawing board for very long. No matter how the show script was written, it was difficult creating the meadow sequence without terrifying children.
6) The Princess and the Frog
Another eatery for Magic Kingdom, Tiana's Palace would have opened in Adventureland near the meet and greets. Though scaled back from the film's version of the restaurant, Tiana's Palace would be situated in the New Orleans swamp and feature authentic Cajun cuisine.
The issue arose that Walt Disney World was essentially built on a swamp, and that the ecosystem associated with swamps would be a part of the restaurant naturally due to the location. Theming is nice, but no one wants to fight mosquitoes while eating lunch.
5) Jungle Book
One of the first plans for Asia at Disney's Animal Kingdom was a roller coaster named King Louie's Tumbling Temple. Quite similar to Indiana Jones et le Temple du Péril at Disneyland Paris and Raging Spirits at Tokyo DisneySea, the attraction was to be an Intamin Looping Coaster based around the King Louie's temple scene of the film. The experience would begin with a dark ride portion in which the trains would actually dance with the dancing animatronics, resulting in the whimsy of the coaster. The trains would then ascend a lift hill and spiral, swoop, and loop around the temple.
Ultimately, the demise of the attraction was in the hands of an unnamed Disney executive. The unnamed executive determined that Kali River Rapids would be a much more enjoyable experience, elaborating that there is a much bigger market for river raft rides than coasters.
4) Pocahontas
One concept that was looked at recently was Colors of the Wind, an Intamin Spillwater attraction based on the film Pocahontas. The attraction was set for Disney's Hollywood Studios near the Animation Courtyard, and would make the attraction the park's first water ride. Guests would board large "canoes" and travel through various scenes from the movie, culminating in a grand waterfall finale.
Budget constraints ultimately shelved this project. At first glance, the concept seems like a terrific idea. The issue was the waterfall finale. Imagineers wanted an authentic-looking waterfall for non-riders to admire. To construct a full-scale 80-foot waterfall with all surroundings, the attraction would need a footprint the size of a small theme park land, not to mention a budget of around $200 million. Imagineers decided that Fantasyland expansion was probably a better use of money.
3) Tangled
Speaking of the Fantasyland Expansion, one of the earliest proposals was for a small section dedicated to Rapunzel. The original planned called for three major locations to be represented: The Kingdom of Corona, The Snuggly Duckling Restaurant, and of course, a walkthrough of Rapunzel's Tower.
The Tangled section was replaced by other ideas in the re-imagined New Fantasyland. In a first, it was actually the fans that silenced this idea. Fans argued that three locations that are not geographically near each other in the Tangled universe cannot be near each other in the park, and should be appropriately spaced apart. Imagineers succumbed to demands when they could only produce 134 examples of where these inaccuracies have been implemented.
2) Beauty and the Beast
Also planned for the original Fantasyland Expansion, Beauty and the Beast was to receive its own attraction. Imagineers wanted to install a trackless dark ride stateside after a successful installation of Pooh's Hunny Hunt at Tokyo Disneyland. The attraction would take guests around Belle's village and, for the majority of the ride, Beast's castle.
1) Lilo and Stitch
In a shocking discovery, there is not a single attraction based on the 2002 hit film Lilo and Stitch. There are a few mockups in The Disney Files with renderings of possible attractions, including a concept for a circular theater experience, but none of those concepts came to fruition. Beyond a few appearances and promotional items, the characters of the film cannot be seen anywhere in the parks. It's a shame that the lovable Lilo, Pleakley, Jumba, and of course the always adorable Stitch do not have their own attraction.
The ideal location for a Lilo and Stitch based attraction would be Tomorrowland, on the site of the old Alien Encounter show. Sadly, that area has been vacant for some time. We hope Imagineers can write a solid show for that area, and we plan to watch that space in the future.
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