Epic Universe Helped Bring In Record Tourism Taxes To Central Florida

In May 2025, tourism taxes in Orange County Florida (where both Universal Orlando Resort and Walt Disney World are located) were the highest they'd ever been for that particular month of the year. That also just happened to be the same month that Epic Universe opened. Now, the Orlando Sentinel reports that the tourism tax numbers for June are in, and they came to $33.7 million. That's also a record for the month of June.

Of course, the one major difference between the May-June period in 2024 and 2025 is the existence of Epic Universe. So the new park is being given the credit for the record numbers. Combine this with the fact that Universal’s parent company, Comcast, reported a nearly 20% increase in theme park revenue compared to last quarter, and it looks like Epic Universe is off to an incredible start.

Disney Experiences Had A Record Quarter Despite Epic Universe Competition

One might assume that success at Universal Orlando Resort must come at the expense of Disney Parks, but nothing could further from the truth. Many have been focused on the success of Epic Universe, but some big news came during Disney’s last quarterly earnings call. It was at that time that the House of Mouse announced that the Disney Experiences division, which includes the theme parks and Disney Cruise Line, had a record quarter. More specifically, the division posted revenue that was up 10% to $6.4 billion.

While that revenue could have come any number of places, it was specifically the domestic parks -- Disneyland and Walt Disney World -- that drove that growth, with both attendance and per capita spending increasing.

There's been a lot of talk in regard to the notion that Walt Disney World would suffer financially due to EU's opening. Such an idea comes from the assumption that vacationers who might have otherwise have visited Disney would instead choose Universal in order to experience Epic for the time. However, history shows that’s not usually how it works. Actually, new attractions frequently draw fans to both resorts.

Epic may have drawn more tourists to Florida, and those tourist tax numbers certainly indicate that it did exactly that. But, once those tourists got to Orlando, many of them apparently decided to visit both Disney and Universal.

Needless to say, Epic Universe is clearly a hit, and vacationers are flocking to it. (Look no further than Monsters Unchained's recent milestone as evidence of that.) All in all, it's important to acknowledge that this is great news for Universal, but it's not the only corporation that's benefitting.

While I’ve only been lucky enough to spend a single day at Epic Universe so far, that one day delivered one of the most incredible theme parks I’ve ever seen. As a mega-fan of themed entertainment and classic cinema, my favorite land in the park has to be the Universal Monsters-inspired Dark Universe. It has one of the best rides at all of Epic Universe, and boasts countless references to the classic Universal horror movies.

Dark Universe is technically set decades after the events of the movie Frankenstein, and the attraction The Frankenstein Experiment: Monsters Unchained introduces Dr. Victor Frankenstein’s granddaughter, Victoria, as the central character. However, the original Doctor from 1931's Frankenstein is seen via portrait in the ride’s queue. Chris Frisella, Executive Producer for the Dark Universe land recently told SFX on CinemaBlend that the team actually pulled out and dug through nearly 100-year-old contracts to be absolutely sure they had the rights to use the likeness of actor Colin Clive. He explained:

While the fact that Universal Pictures is over 100 years old is something I am consciously aware of, I’m not sure I ever considered that somewhere the company still has paperwork from that long ago. It’s blowing me away to think about some people digging through those documents in order to find the contract and verify what it said. Congratulations go to the lawyer who worded the contract in such a way that almost a century later Universal would be able to use Colin Clive’s likeness at a new theme park in Florida.

While Universal was welcoming visitors to its backlot as early as 1915, the Universal Studio Tour only celebrated its 60th anniversary last year. The rest of the Universal Studios Hollywood theme park came much later. There was certainly no way to know how Universal might want to use an actor's likeness decades later.

As with any theme park, it’s the little details that elevate the experience from something good to something great. A portrait of Dr. Victor Frankenstein that didn’t look like Colin Clive just wouldn’t have been the same. It's far from the only callback to the original Frankenstein that can be found in Dark Universe.

It was a somewhat lucky break that the contract gave Universal the rights to his likeness, I expect Universal would have gone to Clive’s family to try and get the rights if the contract didn’t already grant them, but the same thing would have been necessary if the contract simply couldn’t be found, which feels like the more likely result of trying to find a document after almost 100 years.

The fact that Dark Universe’s Victoria Frankenstein is canonically the granddaughter of the doctor from Universal’s original Frankenstein gives the already incredible attraction some extra weight. Monsters Unchained is the best attraction at Epic Universe, according to many, and these little details only make it better.

Disney World’s Dedicated Minnie Van Service Is Nice, But You Get What You Pay For

As posted on Twitter, starting this week guests staying at Disney World’s Deluxe level resorts will have access to dedicated Minnie Vans, the special Lyft vehicles decorated in the colors of Minnie Mouse, for direct transportation to and from Orlando International Airport. Get ready to pay for it, though, as it will set you back $199…each way.

$199 each way is pretty steep, especially since a standard ride share to or from MCO is going to cost you significantly less. A quick look at Lyft as I write this indicates I could pay for both directions for about half this price.

That said, this is part of Disney Signature Services, so you’re going to be getting more than just a ride from the airport. This service was available to all Disney World hotel guests pre-pandemic, and has been available to guests staying in Club Level rooms at Disney World resorts up until now. While the exact list of additional services is not publicly listed, previously riders got additional snacks and drinks, and each vehicle came with up to two convertible car seats. This is something that not all ride share vehicles have, but something families visiting Disney World will often need.

Maybe the feeling is that, if you’re already paying for a Disney World Deluxe resort, another few hundred bucks may not make you blink. I’m more of the opinion that if you’re already paying for a Deluxe Resort, a few perks that don’t cost so much wouldn’t be so bad. Even for what you get, it’s just not a small amount of money, and it really makes me wish the old Disney’s Magical Express was still around.

Disney’s Magical Express Lived Up To Its Name

It feels like a million years ago since Walt Disney World ran the Magical Express. The bus service was free to anybody staying in a Disney World resort. And in addition to a dedicated bus to take you to your hotel, the service would pick up your bags at baggage claim for you and deliver them to your room.

It was an incredibly convenient offering that you not only didn’t need to pay for, but it meant you could actually save money since you wouldn’t need to rent a car or pay for other transportation if you were spending your whole trip on Disney World property. It potentially gave you a reason to do just that.

The Magical Express was discontinued in 2022. Mears, the bus company that ran the service on behalf of Disney, now runs a similar service out of the same terminal, but it isn’t free, usually doesn’t go directly to your resort, and doesn’t include the baggage service.

If you can afford it, the Minnie Van service sounds great. A personal, dedicated ride to the airport in a Disney-themed vehicle sounds like a great way to start and end your trip. For what it costs, I certainly hope it’s something special.

I didn’t think there was a way he could be improved from his cinematic debut in The Fantastic Four: First Steps. However, leave it to Walt Disney Imagineering to prove me wrong thanks to his debut as part of everything new to Disneyland including a very practical improvement. What was once done with CGI has now been achieved with science and engineering, as this bot’s got the ability to actually roll around Anaheim’s entertainment destination like he did in First Steps! See for yourself:

As Executive R&D Imagineer Josh Gorin explained in the clip above, this Fantastic Four family member is fully able to roll around on a practical eight-inch sphere. What’s more, he has the ability to “measure his position, orientation, and movement 250 times a second.”

Once again, the WDI team has made something so seemingly simple possible, thanks to modern technology. This feels like an achievement on the level of Avengers Campus’ animatronic Spider-Man “stuntman,” as it helps bring the fantastical world of Marvel Studios to life.

Unfortunately, ol' Herbert is only going to be at Disneyland for the time being, as indicated in the video above. At the same time, the fact that he even exists gives me hope for a scenario shared by my colleague Dirk Libbey; in which a dream Fantastic Four overhaul of Tomorrowland could take place. If they can bring H.E.R.B.I.E into our world, what’s next?

A revamp of the Peoplemover where every car looks like one of those colorful mini-cars we saw in the end credits? A Test Track-style attraction, but with the Fantasticar? Maybe that fateful space mission that mutated Reed Richards, Sue Storm, Ben Grimm, and Johnny Storm can be recreated, a la the opening season “Rocket to the Moon” attraction Disneyland once held?

I know it's a bit much to think about when dialing back down to the fact that H.E.R.B.I.E. can "merely" roll in a theme park environment. However, that's exactly the sort of thing that Disney magic is built on. Something small can become an even greater achievement, with tomorrow always just a dream away.

My mind could spin the possibilities for hours, days even; which is partially thanks to having seen The Fantastic Four: First Steps three times. While we don’t know when the movie will be available for Disney+ subscription holders, we do know you can still catch it in a theater.

You're gonna need that experience under your belt if you truly expect to roll with H.E.R.B.I.E. in the real world. Trust me from personal experience, the more you listen to his dialogue, the better you can understand him!

Stitch Is Apparently A Fan Of KPop Demon Hunters

A video on TikTok recently went viral from a recent guest at Disney World who was confused to see Stitch dancing at Magic Kingdom’s Tomorrowland, not to a song from the Lilo & Stitch soundtrack, but to “Soda Pop,” one of the songs off the soundtrack to Kpop Demon Hunters.

It may seem strange, but the whole thing is still pretty amazing. I mean, everybody else is dancing around to the music of KPop Demon Hunters, so why should Stitch be left out? I love this video. The only problem is the small child who wants to meet Stitch, but has to be moved away so they don’t get accidentally knocked over by the dancing character. I hope the kid got to say hi later.

I haven’t even had a chance to watch KPop Demon Hunters yet, but my daughter is as obsessed with the soundtrack like everybody else, so I know the music well. If we’d been there, we would have been dancing along with Stitch to be sure.

Both the original post and the comments are seemingly blown away by the fact that Stitch is dancing to this particular song. While the music has been insanely popular for months, the simple fact that Disney doesn’t own this particular IP makes it an odd choice. You wouldn’t necessarily expect Disney World to give any space to music they don’t own when there is so much Disney music that could be used instead.

Disney Parks Actually Use Non-Disney Music All The Time

While a certain amount of cognitive dissonance at seeing Stitch dance to “Soda Pop” is to be expected, it’s actually not all that unusual for Disney Parks to use popular music they don’t own for entertainment like this, even when it runs up against IP that is arguably directly in competition with Disney.

Over at Disney California Adventure, when The Mad T Party Band used to perform, one of the songs that was in the setlist for a long time was Pharrell Williams’ “Happy,” a song that was written for the second Despicable Me. I’m sure a lot of people thought of the Illumination Animation movie when that song played, even though they were standing in the middle of the Disneyland Resort.

And who knows, at the rate at which Disney continues to buy things, maybe they'll end up owning KPop Demon Hunters, and then they can dance with Stitch at Disney World every day.

One cool thing about opening a theme park is there’s going to be a lot of firsts. For example, there was only one official Epic Universe opening day. There was only one night the carousel lit up for the first time, and only one guest who can say they scooped up the very first mac & cheese cone. Universal will doubtless continue hitting more cool milestones as the brand new theme park gets explored by new fans every day, but my favorite milestone so far has to do with Monsters Unchained: The Frankenstein Experiment.

Gregory Hall, the Creative Director at Monsters Unchained in Dark Universe, recently opened up about one big achievement the ride can say it nabbed. That feat would be none other than hitting 1 million riders. In a tweet celebrating the momentous occasion, he showed off the excellent operations team, and shared why the ride is so special two months in. Take a look.

Gregory Hall also shouted out the team a bit further, commenting underneath, ‘Big shoutout to the awesome operations team” and also responded to the recent rumors the pre-show on the ride (with its impressive Frankenstein animatronic) was not working, specifically sharing, "preshow is working bro.”

While CinemaBlend's theme park expert Dirk Libbey would say the best ride at Epic Universe is the Ministry of Magic attraction, I beg to disagree. For me it’s The Frankenstein Experiment all the way. C’mon, it’s set in maybe the best land in the park, and it’s an absolutely remarkable ride achievement, with 14 animatronics that pop out when least expected. (and have some pretty realistic movements). And it doesn’t even make one nauseous like another similar Universal ride!

Later in the thread, Hall confirmed Monsters Unchained: The Frankenstein Experiment was the very first ride to hit 1 million riders in the new theme park. It makes sense. The queue for the Darkmoor-set ride is one of the most efficient within the park, and it's also the sort of ride you want to try again and again. So more riders plus more desire to ride obviously equals a successful milestone story.

Again, as someone who adores this ride, it's really cool to see it get this moment to shine just a couple of months after the park has officially opened. If you're heading to the new park soon, even if you're a little afraid, don't be scared away from this awesome adventure. But do take a look at the tips and tricks I'd wished I'd known before exploring Epic.

Walt Disney World’s Magic Kingdom is, by attendance, the most popular theme park in the world, a title it has held for a very long time. Having said that, while it is a destination that everybody who loves theme parks should visit, it’s rarely at the top of anybody’s list of best theme parks in the world or even best Disney theme parks in the world.

Tokyo DisneySea, the second gate of the Tokyo Disney Resort, is at the top of my theme park bucket list, as it is frequently ranked among the top, if not seen as the absolute best, theme park on Earth. This reputation is something that has clearly gotten out, as an Instagram post has gone viral showing that attraction wait times at Tokyo DisneySea are pretty rough compared to domestic parks.

The reel from Inside the Mouse shows all the major attractions at Tokyo DisneySea, with nothing running under 100 minutes, and Anna and Elsa’s Frozen Journey running an absolutely brutal 180 minutes. The ride is part of the newest addition to Tokyo DisneySea, Fantasy Springs, which explains the long wait, but doesn't make it any more palatable.

While rides like the Frozen attraction and Rapunzel’s Lantern Festival are exclusive to Tokyo, others are available to experience at Disneyland or Walt Disney World. For example, Toy Story Midway Mania is an identical ride at DisneySea in Tokyo, Disney’s Hollywood Studios in Orlando and Disney California Adventure in Anaheim. As I write this, the attraction has a 90-minute wait in Florida and a 45-minute wait in California. Both are still significant, but far below Japan.

Other attractions, like Soarin and Tower of Terror, are among the Disney Parks attractions that are done differently in other countries, but are similar experiences. As of this writing, Soarin’s 160-minute wait in Japan is matched by 40 minutes in California and 35 in Florida. The Tower of Terror in Florida, the one that most closely resembles the Japanese version, only has a 40-minute wait as I write this.

While two-hour wait times certainly aren't unheard of at Walt Disney World or Disneyland, there have been some epic Disney World wait times over the years, I don’t remember a time I saw them happen on every attraction at once like this. It’s a clear indication that Tokyo DisneySea is wildly popular. It takes a lot of people to make that many attractions have waits like that all at once.

There’s a reason for that, because it’s widely believed that Tokyo Disney Resort gets the best attractions from Walt Disney Imagineering. The resort is run by the Oriental Land Company, not Disney, and as such, the company’s attention, and more importantly, its finances, aren’t split between multiple entertainment ventures.

It does put the 45-minute or hour-long waits that I tend to avoid in perspective. Maybe they’re not so bad after all. While I hope one day to visit Tokyo DisneySea, and will wait in whatever lines I need to in order to experience the attractions, maybe this means I need to plan to spend more time at Tokyo Disney Resort. That’s not a bad thing.

Ever since it was announced Epic Universe would get a land full of Universal’s classic monsters (the same monsters that make regular appearances during Halloween Horror Nights), fans have wondered if Epic Universe might become part of HHN. Ahead of the upcoming print edition of SFX Magazine, Universal Orlando Resort Creative Director Lora Sauls opened up to SFX on CinemaBlend about whether such a thing might happen. While she didn’t discount the possibility, she also made it clear it it's not on the roadmap right now. Sauls said…

It certainly makes sense to let Epic Universe “breathe.” The park is brand new, and thousands of people are showing up every day to experience the park in its “normal” mode for the first time. You want to give people a chance to take in everything that’s there now before jumping in and changing things around.

And Halloween Horror Nights in 2025 is shaping up to be an incredible event on its own. With houses dedicated to Fallout, Five Nights at Freddy's, and Terrifier, and even a WWE house, this year's event is setting a high bar.

That said, the opportunity to bring together Dark Universe and Halloween Horror Nights seems too perfect to ignore forever. As great as HHN is, there’s only so much that can be done to transform Universal Studios Florida, a traditional theme park most of the time, into a haven of horror for a couple of months. Dark Universe is built to bring the scares. And being able to experience something like Monsters Unchained, one of the best rides at Epic Universe, alongside other HHN events, would be amazing.

While there’s no guarantee in this statement that anything related to HHN will ever happen at Epic Universe, it also doesn’t shut down the idea entirely. It’s rare for anybody in the theme park world to ever say “never” to anything, because minds can always change, but to me, this feels much more like a case of waiting for the right time to pull the trigger.

The only question is how long Universal will want to let Epic “breathe.” Could we see something HHN-related as early as next year? It might come down to simple attendance numbers. If Epic Universe continues to see enough new guests every month that HHN isn’t seen as a necessity, we could see things remain as they are for the foreseeable future.

Epic Universe has some of the most advanced theme park attractions ever created. Harry Potter and the Battle At The Ministry and The Frankenstein Experiment: Monsters Unleashed have specifically seen some significant downtime now and then. While unexpected downtime for theme park attractions is far from uncommon, Epic Universe is perhaps seeing more of it than most. That’s not surprising considering everything in the park is so new, but fans have their own “theory” as to what the problem is.

How Wizarding World Wands Are Being “Blamed” For Epic Universe Downtime

While there are numerous reasons why a theme park attraction might go down unexpectedly, the “rumor” that has been circulating among fans at Epic Universe of late is that it’s all due to magic spells gone awry. One of the lands at Epic is based on the Wizarding World of Harry Potter, after all, so lots of guests are wandering the park with their own magic wands. The Harry Potter movies have certainly shown us what sort of damage untrained wizards can do.

It’s certainly an entertaining theory if nothing else. And it turns out that Epic Universe Team Members are getting in on the fun.

The Funny Way Universal Team Members Are Responding

One of the details that has come along with the shift in theme parks toward IP-specific lands is that the people working in them become part of the experience. A ride operator isn’t simply a ride operator but a person from the world the theme park land represents, doing a job from that world.

This has led to some thematically appropriate interactions regarding the story about errant bmagic causing attractions to go down. Disney Dining recently mentioned an experience they had with a Epic Universe Team Member who, upon seeing the wand, asked if they had been causing any problems with attractions because…

It’s a minor thing, but as is often the case, attention to detail is what sets a good theme park and a great theme park apart. These sorts of interactions, be they with costumed characters or just general Team Members, can really make an experience feel special, and that’s all the more important if there are issues with other parts of the theme park experience, like attractions being down.

This might have been an individual Team Member making a comment on his own, but it could have also been something that Epic Universe has decided it's going to lean into with fans. It wouldn't be the first time that an in-joke at a theme park that was started by fans became something more official.

Certainly, this isn't a joke that I expect will need to become a long-term thing. As Epic Universe's attractions continue running, random downtime will become less common, the park's ability to fix things, when necessary, will get faster. Still, maybe watch where you point your wand, just in case.

2025 has been a great year for Disney World, especially for people like me who love Disney World lounge. That's because we’re getting not one, but two new locations to take a load off and grab a bite. Epcot’s Spaceship Earth lounge Geo-82 opened earlier this year, and today Disney World announced that the new Pirates of the Caribbean lounge, Beak & Barrel, will open at Magic Kingdom on August 29.

Along with the announcement, the lounge’s menu has been released, which includes a cocktail called Plunderer’s Punch. It is, of course, a rum-based drink, but more importantly, it’s served in a pirate skull mug that is absolutely awesome.

This mug looks super cool. From the image, it appears to be quite sturdy, and it comes with rum, so I see no downside. Where has the rum gone? With me.

Not only will I feel like a pirate drinking this one at the Beak & Barrel when I buy it, but I look forward to feeling equally piratical every time I drink from it in the future. This one will be coming home with me.

Just like Disney World has an endless number of popcorn buckets or sippers that you can buy along with a snack, lounges all over the resort have special drinks that are served in a souvenir mug. They’re honestly a great way to kill two birds with one stone and get both the food or drink you were going to get anyway, as well as a souvenir from your trip.

While I rarely feel the need to buy every popcorn bucket I see, I’ve had to stop myself from transforming my entire collection of beverage glasses into Disney World and Disneyland souvenirs. I mean, why would I want to drink out of anything other than a glass that reminds me of the most magical place on Earth?

To be fair, everything else on the menu at Beak & Barrel looks and sounds as amazing as this mug. I don’t see a drink on the menu that I wouldn’t want to try. I guess I'll be visiting more than once. The food looks equally tasty and also unique. Kraken’s Catch, a cold salad complete with octopus tentacles, looks especially interesting.

Beak & Barrel is set to open at Magic Kingdom on August 29, with reservations opening up on August 14. I don’t know when I’ll be making my next trip to Disney World, but Beak & Barrel reservations will absolutely be on my to-do list. I'll see you at the tavern.

A trip to Disneyland or Walt Disney World is expensive. With ever increasing ticket prices alongside hotel rooms, food, and travel costs, it’s all a significant investment. On top of that there are numerous add-ons like Lightning Lanes that, while they might not be required to visit a place like Disney World, are still seen as necessary.

However, one Disney parks fan site on social media, Seconds 2 Go At Disney, thinks there’s one place where fans can absolutely save their money, popcorn buckets. While popcorn buckets have become incredibly popular both at theme parks and movie theaters, the fan site suggests that this is one place where people can save their money. Because as cool as many of them look, there’s little point to them after the trip is over.

Considering how popular Disney World popcorn buckets are, it’s no little surprise that the response to the social media posts was significant. The buckets have become popular not simply as occasional purchases but many people have become collectors. The popcorn bucket stans replied to the reel on Facebook by pointing out different ways the buckets do get use after purchase, either as display decorations, or as continuing their purpose as popcorn holders. Comments included…

• Umm excuse me… I will buy a popcorn bucket every time I go lol. They line the top of my kitchen cabinets
• We put the kids popcorn in it on movie nights.
• All of ours are halloween ones so we use them as halloween decorations
• Our next home will have a wall dedicated to popcorn buckets!

The popularity of popcorn buckets cannot be understated. People have stood in lines for popcorn buckets that were longer than the lines for many attractions. One certainly hopes that people who want them that badly have some sort of a plan for them for after a trip is over. Even if you simply plan to return with the popcorn bucket on a future trip, some of them are going to take up significant luggage space.

While I think a lot of Disney World and Disneyland popcorn buckets look pretty amazing, the thing that keeps be from buying them is quite frequently this same question of what to do with them after the fact. The small number of buckets I own are on display for people to see, but I only have so much space for that sort of thing. If I were to keep buying them, a bunch would ultimately find their way to the back of the closet or donated.

Some people may think popcorn buckets are an ultimate waste of money, that certainly appears to a minority opinion. A lot of people love them and it certainly doesn’t look like Disney Parks will need to worry about people not buying them anytime soon.

Disneyland is the happiest place on Earth, but apparently, for some people, the joy that comes from fun rides and great vibes just isn’t enough. As much has been said about Disney Adults, they are adults after all, and anybody who has been in the theme park world for any length of time has certainly heard stories of people getting up to…adult activities on theme park rides. It turns out actor Dave Franco is one adult who has done just that.

Dave Franco Reveals He Had Sex On Pirates Of The Caribbean

Franco, who stars in the new well-reviewed film Together, recently appeared on the Call Her Daddy podcast, where host Alex Cooper asked him what the wildest place he had ever had sex was. The actor revealed an event, at an undisclosed time in the past, where he got a little freaky on one of Disneyland’s classic attractions. He said…

Franco is certainly right that Disneyland attractions have cameras everywhere. Having said that, I’d be more concerned with the other people riding on the attraction. Even if they were in the back seat of the boat, the next boat isn’t that far behind, and the people in the front would certainly have been able to see what was going on.

And while Dave Franco and his unnamed partner may not have gotten busted by Disneyland Cast Members, that doesn’t mean that he didn’t still give them a show. While Cast Members will often get on a loudspeaker to shut down any inappropriate activity, they don’t always do that, though even in the dark, they can see everything. I'm not aware of people being banned from Disneyland for this particular activity, but it's certainly possible, so people should beware.

People Having Sex On Disney Parks Rides Is Far From Uncommon

A quick glance at Reddit reveals plenty of stories from both people who have attempted amorous encounters on Disneyland rides, people who have witnessed such things, and the Cast Members who had to deal with it. If nothing else, it confirms that even if you don’t think anybody saw you having sex on the Haunted Mansion, people absolutely did.

Pirates of the Caribbean does appear to be a popular choice for those looking to get busy at Disneyland. It makes some sense. The ride doesn’t have a lap bar or any other seat restraint, and it’s also the longest ride at Disneyland, giving you the most time to do whatever it is you’re going to do. Though it's also one of the best rides at Disneyland, and you're going to miss a lot about it if you're...otherwise engaged.

That said, please don’t have sex at Disneyland. I have to get on that ride after you, and I don’t even want to think about what the previous rider was up to.

And so when Jon Favreau was seen by @DisneyScoopGuy in the Disneyland Resort esplanade yesterday, it wasn’t necessarily a newsworthy occurrence. Except that he had an entire crew with him, which meant he wasn’t just there for fun and to get lunch at Disneyland's exclusive Club 33 that celebrities always get to visit and I can only dream of. He was working.

My initial assumption was that Favreau was on hand to film a prerecorded message for next month’s Destination D23 event. The Disney Fan Club event will have a presentation updating fans on the future of Disney Parks, and the Iron Man director might have been planning to give fans a peek at the upcoming Mandalorian update to Millennium Falcon: Smuggler’s Run or even the Stark Flight Lab at Avengers Campus, given his connection to both franchises.

However, it turns out he was there for a very different project. In addition to everything else the actor and director is doing for Disney, he’s also producing an upcoming Disney+ series about Walt Disney’s original hit character, Oswald the Lucky Rabbit, and that’s seemingly what’s shooting at Disneyland right now.

Disney+'s Oswald The Lucky Rabbit Series Is Seemingly Filming At Disneyland, And Kathryn Hahn Is On Board

Earlier this year, it was announced that Jon Favreau would produce a Disney+ series about Oswald the Lucky Rabbit that would blend animation and live-action. Beyond that, we had no real details, but based on other images snapped by guests visiting Disneyland yesterday and today, it seems that at least part of the series is taking place at Disneyland Resort, and also that Agatha All Along’s Kathryn Hahn is co-starring in the series.

As a lover of all things Disneyland, a student of Disney history, and a fan of Kathryn Hahn and Jon Favreau, I am absolutely loving this. Considering its popularity and existence for 70 years, surprisingly few movies or TV series have ever actually filmed inside the park, outside of the nearly required “ABC sitcom family visits Disneyland” episode that nearly every show has. It will be quite cool to see it on screen when the series finally debuts.

The fact that the “real” Oswald will seemingly visit Disneyland would seem to indicate the show could be going for some sort of Who Framed Roger Rabbit-style story that sees Oswald as a cartoon actor in the real world. Oswald himself is a character who can often be seen across the esplanade at Disney California Adventure. It will be interesting to see if that’s actually referenced in the show.

Considering that a previous attempt at a Disney+ Oswald series was cancelled, the fact that filming is seemingly happening is great news, as it means this project will almost certainly see the light of day. The production crew is back at Disneyland today, as production appears to be continuing. I’m now very excited to learn where in the park filming is happening and what other stars might be involved in the new show.

The Fantastic Four, alongside H.E.R.B.I.E. are now making appearances inside Tomorrowland at the Disneyland park. There’s also a new nightly projection show taking place on the facade of Space Mountain. It’s a much warmer welcome than most Marvel characters get at Disneyland, limited to simple character appearances at Avengers Campus. That, along with the movie itself, has led some, like YouTuber Offhand Disney, to believe that even more is planned for Disneyland’s Tomorrowland thanks to Marvel’s First Family.

I can fully get behind this idea, as it’s one I suggested myself. Several months before it was announced that the superhero team would debut at Tomorrowland, and not Avengers Campus, I wrote that Tomorrowland was the right place for the Fantastic Four. The retro-future aesthetic of Fantastic Four: First Steps was a perfect fit for the similar design of Tomorrowland.

It’s not difficult to see the inspiration behind the look of Earth-828 in The Fantastic Four: First Steps. In addition to seeing Tomorrowland’s influence, there are elements of the 1964 World’s Fair, a major turning point in the history of Disneyland and Walt Disney World. That in turn inspired Walt Disney’s concept for Epcot, his city of Tomorrow, which in turn inspired the eventual Epcot theme park. Things would come full circle if Fantastic Four inspired a cosmetic update of Tomorrowland.

Tomorrowland requires such an update. While the attractions are largely fine, there are a couple of significant needs. Autopia is still awaiting the promised electric vehicle upgrade. More importantly, the Star Wars Launch Bay building, the original home to the Carousel of Progress, hasn’t had much purpose since it ceased being the Innoventions building in 2015. While a recreation of the Baxter Building with a Fantastic Four attraction is probably too much to ask for there, something new is needed.

Beyond that, a bit of a cosmetic update to give Tomorrowland a look that says “retro-future” and not simply “retro” would really benefit the land. Also, any excuse to include Michael Giaccino’s excellent Fantastic Four score in the Tomorrowland music loop (a perfect complement to his amazing Space Mountain ride music) would be welcome.

Disney has a major fan event, Destination D23, coming up next month. We will certainly get an update on all the new attractions coming to Walt Disney World and Disneyland during the weekend. If something big is planned, the reveal could come as soon as the event.

A new TikTok video is going viral, which shows Shrek getting more than a little gross at Universal Studios Hollywood. To be fair, that’s entirely in character for the Ogre, but things get so out of hand that even Donkey has to admit Shrek is going too far when he goes full “smell my finger.” Check it out.

I’ve never been a big Shrek fan, and honestly, this isn’t doing a lot to change my mind. From rubbing his rear on the stanchion of the queue to smelling it and then asking guests to smell his finger, the whole thing is just wrong. The assembled crowd can’t believe it, and you can even hear the voice of Donkey telling Shrek that before the ogre wanders off and things return to normal.

Even the Universal Studios Hollywood Team Member in the video is pretty disgusted with Shrek. To be fair, he’s probably the guy whose job it is to clean up after the ogre. There's probably some serious disinfectant needed on that queue.

While this isn’t exactly my type of entertainment, a lot of people were certainly laughing throughout Shrek’s little performance. And to be fair, Shrek needs to do something in order to compete with his friend Donkey. Donkey is an animatronic character that is voiced by a live performer, so he can react to what's happening around him and to what people say to him.

Donkey is routinely one of the more entertaining characters at Universal Studios Hollywood and Florida. Donkey frequently pokes fun at guests as the character seems to be aware he’s in a theme park. When people wear Disney gear to Universal, Donkey will often give them a hard time, and the people tend to love the modern humor, which has always been a staple of the Shrek movies as well.

Even though we haven’t seen a new Shrek movie since 2010, the characters have remained popular at Universal’s theme parks. Shrek and Donkey are front and center when you enter the recently updated Dreamworks Land at Universal Studios Florida. With a new Shrek movie set to be released next year, the popularity of these characters will likely only increase.

Needless to say, on my next visit to Universal Studios Hollywood, I won’t be touching the queues anywhere near Donkey’s location. I can’t be sure how clean they are.

Universal Studios in Orlando, Florida recently opened a brand new park called Epic Universe. As promised, the park is chock full of fun, with epic rides and attractions that live up to the park's name, and some stand-out animatronics that must be seen to be believed. What some fans recently saw, though, was black smoke, which looked like it was emerging from the fan-favorite Dark Universe section of the park. However, this was not an intended effect, and there was a simple explanation for the smog.

The smoke that seemed to be coming from the Dark Universe was seen in a video posted to X. As theme park aficionados probably know, this area centers around classic movie monsters like the Mummy, the Invisible Man and Frankenstein’s Monster. This effect seemed to hammer home the dark and mysterious aesthetic of this particular park section and its featured attraction, Monsters Unleashed: The Frankenstein Experiment. You can see a video of the smoke below:

It actually wouldn’t be out of the realm of belief that this smoke was intentional by Universal. There's legitimately a windmill that catches on fire periodically within the Dark Universe, so I could understand if park-goers attributed the smoke to that. It's possible that attendees thought something had gone terribly wrong with the windmill but, of course, that's all just an assumption on my part.

However, the theoretical scenario laid out above was far from the actual case. NBC’s satellite network, WESH Orlando published a report that confirmed this thick black smoke wasn’t actually coming from the Dark Universe at all. In actuality, it was coming from outside of the park, where two tour buses caught fire at the Universal Resort's bus depot. The fire department responded quickly, and the flames were swiftly extinguished. There was severe damage to both buses but, tespite that, thankfully, there were no injuries reported.

It's not uncommon for fires to break out at theme parks for one reason or another, and they can make for truly distressing situations. I'm just glad that no one was ultimately hurt during this recent situation.

However, I still have to admit that the black smoke would’ve been a spooky effect had it been intentional by the theme park. Someone on X even joked that Universal was electing a new Frankenstein, which I found funny. It added a new dimension to the term “Dark Universe” and intrigue about what Universal could be planning for this park area. Of course, as the area continues to expand, let's just hope that any smoke that park attendees see is all part of attractions.

The Dark Universe is currently open within the new Epic Universe in Orlando, Florida, so check it out if you're able. Epic Universe lives up to the hype, and is one of the most exciting new theme parks in years.

Such a moment was caught by TikTok user @ParksideWithHolly! Capturing the aftermath of two boats colliding on the track, what you're about to see truly feels like something you’d see in a Jurassic Park movie. That's even before reading the caption included, which suggests the trouble ahead:

The good news is that this actual shipwreck didn’t hurt anyone, and everyone actually got to continue the ride. So the real world stakes of this cruise scenario basically amount to little more than call for more than Jurassic Park River Adventure’s usual maintenance. Think of it as the aquatic version of a VelociCoaster rollback!

Which means we can really dig into why this joke is so funny to Universal Studios Florida parkgoers, as well as anyone who’s been diving into the Jurassic Park Universe through their Peacock subscription.

For those of you unfamiliar with the Jurassic Park River Adventure, the classic replica of Universal Studios Hollywood’s Jurassic Park: The Ride involves a cheeky Parasaurolophus accidentally knocking you off course. While adorable, this beast is responsible for sending you, the park guest, into the Raptor Containment Area - which is not the best place to be, seeing as various carnivores are running rampant in this storyline.

That’s exactly where the ride was held up (roughly 02:43 in the clip below), as confirmed by others in the comments section of the post in question. To see where things go after that point (or to enjoy the official ride video of the Jurassic Park River Adventure), take a look below:

Stopping short of the Raptor Containment Unit or not, this sort of incident should have been rewarded with, at the very least, a chance to meet Universal Parks fan favorite Dolores the Aquilops - star of the new film Jurassic World Rebirth! It doesn’t look like she’s out in Orlando just yet, so if you’re riding the Jurassic Park River Adventure - be warned. Meanwhile, audiences around the world can meet Ms. Dolores in theaters, as Rebirth is still in its theatrical run.

As part of Disneyland’s 70th anniversary, the park dropped a new popcorn bucket of Mickey Mouse. What sets this one apart from all the others is that it talks, and more specifically, can respond to you when you talk to it. I’ll admit, something about this talking popcorn bucket wasn’t sitting right with me. It felt strange. It felt wrong. It felt creepy. I hadn’t been able to put my finger on it until I saw this post on Twitter, which pointed it out.

For the last two years, Universal Destinations and Experiences has sold a Chucky popcorn bucket during Halloween Horror Nights. The doll bucket also talks, in much the same way that the Mickey bucket does. I’m pretty sure this is the reason I’ve found the Disney bucket unsettling. I’ve been subconsciously concerned that Mickey might kill me in my sleep. There's a reason I don't own the Chucky popcorn bucket either.

It’s hard not to see the similarity when they’re standing side by side like this. The two buckets look so much alike that it’s probable they were designed by the same company. Chucky might even have been the base design, simply modified from that to look like Mickey Mouse. Most of the studios go to the same place to get popcorn buckets for their films, and while we don’t know where Universal or Disney get their popcorn buckets, it's likely they all are going to the same suppliers.

Both products are, at the end of the day, popcorn buckets. They're designed to do nothing more insidious than provide you with a snack. When you talk to one of them, it says happy, fun things, while the other threatens to kill you. And both of them are smiling. Since one of those smiles isn’t exactly friendly, it’s easy for the other smile to feel the same way.

While I have seen some Disney Parks popcorn buckets I love, talking Mickey just isn’t doing it for me. I’m sure this won’t be the last talking popcorn bucket from Disney or Universal. I hope that as more are designed, they find new ways to differentiate them visually, otherwise they might all look like Chucky. That’s great for Halloween, but the rest of the time, maybe a different look would be better.

We'll have to wait and see if the Chucky bucket returns for Halloween Horror Nights in 2025. If so, Mickey may need to watch his back.

So that’s what I did first thing when I woke up this morning. Overall, the new POV experiences are solid, but when I was “riding” Tiana’s Bayou Adventure, I had an experience that felt a little too real because the attraction wasn’t fully functional.

Tiana’s Bayou Adventure Audio-Animatronics Are Not Fully Functional On Disney+

It’s not uncommon when going on any theme park ride for it not to be fully functional. Things break down, and so sometimes animatronic figures are broken, or other effects may not be working. However, I wasn’t expecting that to be the case for a POV available to stream directly on Disney+. And yet, that’s exactly what I found.

The audio-animatronic of Tiana during the finale party sequence is standing stock still. Her eyes and mouth appear to be moving, but her arms and body should be moving around as well, and they’re not. The POV camera is clearly working to avoid drawing attention to this.

The audio animatronics on Tiana’s Bayou Adventure, at both Disneyland and Walt Disney World, have already built up a reputation as unreliable. It’s far from uncommon to be on the ride and have one of them not working. It’s just a bit wild that this POV was put up if that was the case.

Another Disney Parks POV Got Fixed Before The Ride-Through Went Live

Last month, for May the Fourth, the first Disney Parks POV features were added to Disney+, and that included a full ride-through of Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance. One of the features of that ride that had been broken for a long time, large cannons that move in front of the ride vehicle, had been repaired shortly before the ride went on the streaming service. It’s unlikely this was a coincidence.

And yet, the same care wasn’t given to Tiana. It’s a bit disappointing, to say the least. Tiana is a great ride, even when it’s not working perfectly, but it’s obviously best when everything is functioning as intended.

Considering I just got back from seeing Disneyland's new Walt Disney audio-animatronic, the most advanced and impressive creation of its type, I know just how incredible these figures can be. Whatever the reason that fixing this couldn't be done before, I certainly hope that this gets replaced down the road with a new version with a functioning Tiana, even if that might not be the case the next time I go on the ride.

Walt Disney: A Magical Life, which opens to the public on July 17, the 70th anniversary of Disneyland’s opening day, will debut a short film about the life of Disneyland’s creator, but more importantly, it will debut an audio animatronic figure of Walt Disney himself.

Walt Disney Has Come Home To Disneyland

Disneyland is the only Disney Park where Walt Disney actually stood inside. As such, it’s fitting that a show like Walt Disney: A Magical Life debuts there, though after seeing the full show, I won’t be shocked if it makes its way to other parks around the world.

The full presentation begins with a short film, a new version of One Man’s Dream, which can be seen at Disney’s Hollywood Studios. The new film is narrated by Disney CEO Bob Iger. His voice, along with Walt’s own words, takes us through the man’s life, from his birth in 1901 through the early development of Walt Disney World.

After that, however, the curtains open fully and the screen rises. We enter a version of Walt Disney’s office, and there is the man himself, leaning up against his desk. He speaks to us in his own words. The monologue comes from multiple interviews and TV appearances Walt made over his lifetime, but it’s been cleaned up so that it sounds like it’s all coming from the same man at the same time.

Walt Disney Is A Huge Leap Forward In Audio-Animatronics

In recent years, we have seen some incredible steps forward in audio-animatronics, but we haven’t seen anything like Walt Disney. With the exception of the most recent President of the United States, most of the new audio-animatronics we’ve seen in attractions are based on animated characters or other fictional creations. There’s a lot of leeway when it comes to transforming them into real things. For Walt Disney, there was little to no margin for error.

At one point, Walt, who begins the performance leaning against his desk, shifts to a standing position. At the end of the show, he leans back against the desk. These are movements we simply don’t see from this sort of figure.

But it’s the way he moves that is what’s truly impressive. Anybody who has seen footage of Walt Disney from the old Disneyland TV series will recognize the way he moves his hands and the glint in his eye. These things have been recreated so well that the whole thing feels right.

Walt Disney Imagineering worked with the Walt Disney Family Museum in San Francisco to get as many details about Walt right. The rings on his fingers are replicas of the ones he really wore. The hands wearing those rings come from a bronze cast of Walt’s real hands. Even the suit fabric is the real thing.

It’s Not A Perfect Walt Replica, But That Might Be A Good Thing

As much as the Walt Disney animatronic gets right, is everything perfect? No, not really. At least from my perspective, the face mold, while close enough to clearly be Walt, still doesn’t quite look right. Still, I’m not entirely convinced this wasn’t by design.

My biggest concern walking into Walt Disney: A Magical Life was that the audio-animatronic would throw us into the depths of the uncanny valley. I was afraid that Walt might look so real that it might become disconcerting, the same way that “realistic" computer animation can be simultaneously impressive and mildly terrifying.

The fact that Walt Disney doesn’t look exactly like Walt might actually be a good thing. Perhaps if he looked more like the version we know, he would be too real, and the audio animatronic character would be more creepy than comforting.

I watched the A Magical Life presentation twice, and while the first time I really noticed the way the face doesn’t quite look right, the second time it bothered me significantly less. There was no way this show was going to be perfect, and if the face mold is the most significant sacrifice, the show is in good shape.

As somebody who is a big fan of Walt Disney. I had high expectations for the show, but a perfect life like Walt wasn't part of that. The animatronic simply needed to portray his essence, and in that, it was successful.

Walt Disney Is The Perfect Addition To Disneyland

Despite the fact that the audio-animatronic Walt Disney might not be perfect, Walt Disney: A Magical Life is still an incredible addition to Disneyland Park. As you enter Main Street U.S.A., guests will now find themselves as close to Walt Disney as they’ll ever be able to get. On one side of the square is the firehouse, where Walt Disney would sleep when he spent the night inside the park. On the other side is the Opera House, where Walt Disney: A Magical Life will be running for guests.

If the timing is right, I can’t imagine a better way to start a day at Disneyland than seeing Walt Disney himself. That said, the show will be using a virtual queue when it debuts.

Walt now shares a stage with Abraham Lincoln. Over 60 years ago, Walt led a project to create an audio animatronic of the 16th President because Walt himself was a great admirer of Lincoln, and he wanted future generations to know him, to understand that Lincoln was real, and to understand his importance.

Walt Disney may not have had a major impact on global politics, but he had an absolutely titanic impact on global culture. I would argue Walt Disney is as important a person as Abraham Lincoln. The hope is that Walt Disney: A Magical Life will do for modern audiences what the Disneyland show did for people decades ago, show us that Walt Disney was a real man.

Both Disneyland and Universal Studios Hollywood have ticket offers available this summer at Costco stores. A post on Threads that has blown up shows just how they compare. The Disneyland offer is only for a 3-day ticket, while the Universal deal is for a Season Pass, and yet, the Disneyland ticket is significantly more expensive.

The prices alone are enough to make you swallow your tongue and be sure that nobody has stolen your wallet. The Disneyland ticket is almost three times that of the Universal Pass. We knew Disneyland was expensive, but seriously?

Disney Parks pricing has been rising at a pretty incredible rate in recent years. We see annual increases like clockwork. Wall Street analysts have suggested Disney Parks pricing is out of hand, and even Disney CEO Bob Iger has admitted price hikes in the past were too aggressive, but none of that has stopped the increases from happening.

Comparing Disneyland Resort And Universal Studios Hollywood

Universal Studios is much smaller than Disneyland Resort, so at the end of the day you fully expect it to be a cheaper ticket than Disneyland. But seeing a season pass be that much cheaper than three days at Disneyland is going to make anybody considering a theme park vacation wonder just what in the world is going on.

Of course, there are a few details that should be pointed out. As you might notice, the Universal Pass mentions “over 180 days” of fun, because there are significant blackout dates on the pass being offered. An actual USH pass with no blackout dates goes for about $600 right now.

Still, a $600 annual pass looks pretty affordable compared to a $450 pass for 3 days at Disneyland. However, it should also be said that the Disneyland ticket includes a dining card and the line skipping Lightning Lane Multi-Pass, perks not included in the Universal pass. More importantly, includes Park Hopper access, because the Disneyland ticket isn’t for a single theme park, as the Universal pass is, but for two, Disneyland and the underrated gem Disney California Adventure.

Both Tickets Are Honestly Good Deals

While these details may make the price discrepancy less stark, there’s no argument that Disneyland is significantly more expensive. The ultimate question is whether either ticket is “worth it” in the eyes of potential guests. And to be fair, compared to standard ticket prices, both deals are absolutely worth it.

The Universal Season Pass at Costco is $10 cheaper than the standard “California Neighbor” pass offered by the park, and the one at Costco has about 30 more available dates, Everything that the Disneyland Costco deal is offering would cost you somewhere around $650 at standard pricing, so that’s a pretty solid savings.

With a major Disneyland expansion getting underway, we can be sure that prices will only continue to increase. Of course, Universal Studios Hollywood is also getting a new attraction in the Fast & Furious: Hollywood Drift roller coaster. It should be pointed out that the Universal Season Pass at Costco expires next April. The new coaster doesn't have an opening date yet, so it's unclear if the pass might get you a ride on the park's newest attraction.

July is only half over, but if there’s anything hotter than the weather outside, it’s the list of new content coming to your favorite streaming platform. From blockbuster movies to new and returning series, and even a bit of Disneyland fun to throw into the mix. Here’s a look at what’s not to miss on streaming this week.

Jaws Movie Collection July 15 (Netflix)

For the first time in 50 years, it’s the summer of Jaws. The movie that is often called the first summer blockbuster celebrates its 50th anniversary this year, and while there is a great new documentary about the film you can also find streaming on Hulu, if you just want to watch the original, it’s available with a Netflix subscription this week. The sequels will also be available, if you feel like you really need to watch them.

The Summer I Turned Pretty, Season 3 - July 16 (Prime Video)

The Summer I Turned Pretty has been a winning coming-of-age drama and one of the most popular series for those with a Prime Video subscription. The good news for fans is that Season 3 begins this week. The bad news is Season 3 will also be the final season, so you won’t want to miss any of it.

Star Trek: Strange New Worlds, Season 3 - July 17 (Paramount+)

Of all the new Star Trek content that we’ve received since the launch of paramount+, i don’t think it’s too controversial to say that Strange New Worlds is the best of it. The pre-Kirk Enterprise, led by Ansel Mount as captain Christopher Pike, has been equal parts throwback and reinvention of the franchise and so I’ll be using my Paramount+ subscription to watch Season 3 as soon as it arrives this week.

Disneyland Resort POV Walkthroughs - July 17 (Disney+)

July 17 marks the 70th anniversary of the opening day of Disneyland. Most of us won’t be able to be there in person to celebrate, but if you have a Disney+ subscription, the streaming service has the next best thing. A whole host of POV walkthrough videos will arrive on the service, allowing you to virtually feel like you’re doing everything from riding Pirates of the Caribbean to watching fireworks. The full list of videos is:

• Pirates of the Caribbean
• Indiana Jones Adventure
• Radiator Springs Racers
• Incredicoaster
• Haunted Mansion
• Tiana's Bayou Adventure
• Cars Land
• Pixar Pal-A-Round
• Big Thunder Mountain Railroad
• Jungle Cruise
• Soarin' Around the World
• Avengers Campus
• Hollywood Land
• Main Street, U.S.A.
• Mickey's ToonTown
• 70th Celebration Nighttime Spectaculars

Untamed - July 17 (Netflix)

At this point, it seems like there’s a new mystery drama available streaming every week, and while many of them may have big stars, few if any are set in such beautiful places. Untamed stars Eric Bana as a man investigating a death in Yosemite National Park. Sam Neill and Rosemary DeWitt fill out the cast.

The end of July is going to be big with movies like The Fantastic Four: First Steps hitting theaters, but streaming won’t be taking things lying down. It will have its own big releases, including the long-awaited Happy Gilmore 2 from Adam Sandler.

Our Theme Park Expert Dirk Libbey Was Shocked To Find Out He’s In Love With Harry Potter And The Ministry Of Magic

While Dirk Libbey and I agree on a wide swathe of things when it comes to theme parks, he is not a huge Harry Potter guy. He didn’t grow up with the books in the same way my millennial soul did, and I also went with him one time to the Wizarding World of Harry Potter and (unlike Tom Felton) I couldn’t even get him hyper on board even with butterbeer. So, I was absolutely shocked when he ranked all the Epic Universe rides and Harry Potter and the Ministry of Magic came up as Number 1.

He loved the opening into the cavernous space at the Ministry of Magic and the intricacies of the queue. However, above all, he loved the mix of screens and natural components on the ride and had a blast following the cast taking on Umbridge on this unique journey.

As a huge Potterhead myself, naturally, I thought I would agree this was the best of the best the new park would offer. Was I in for a surprise...

I Was Shocked To Find Out Monsters Were My Vibe

Unlike my well-esteemed coworker, I am a huge Harry Potter fan, and also a big fan of Harry Potter and The Escape From Gringotts, a ride which shares some of the same hallmarks as the new Battle At The Ministry Of Magic Ride at Epic Universe. Both rides feature some OG Potter cast members and utilizes interactive components in the queue as well as screens on the actual ride, though the delivery and experience is very different.

With this in mind, and knowing the queue itself was a transformative experience for some Potter fans, I fully expected this to be my ride. Yet when I walked through the doors at Darkmoor, my expectations changed drastically. Both Monsters Unchained: The Frankenstein Experiment and Battle At The Ministry of Magic are indoor rides with unique ride mechanisms, but I truly love the storyline in The Frankenstein Experiment. It's so fully fleshed out, I'd like to see it on the big screen.

I also love all the little details with the animatronics, including the one surprise fans get if they are stuck in the loading room with Frankenstein for longer than expected.

Couple that with the fact I love all the practical effects, and I even enjoyed the KUKA-Arm technology this time around! To be honest, the latter absolutely makes me feel sick every time I ride Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey, so I was really nervous going in, but there's a new thing to look at every single time I've been on the ride.

Anther cool thing about the practical effects is they are still eerie even if they aren't moving quite how we expected or something is messed up. It's the perfect type of ride with a solid queue and not super long wait times, as well.

The whole Dark Universe portal works. I wouldn't have considered myself a Dark Universe girlie before I entered the land, but in a surprising turn of events, it wasn't Harry Potter or How To Train Your Dragon that stuck with me in the days after I said goodbye to Epic Universe.

The Moral Of This Epic Universe Story?

Every year, we cover Halloween Horror Nights, and every year I bow out as my expertise tends more toward romance, serialized TV, or animated films. Now that I’ve been on Monsters Unchained: The Frankenstein Experiment, I feel I’ve been depriving myself of an awesome experience. Perhaps this year is the year to cut loose and try something new.

I guess the point I’m trying to make is that Epic Universe is not at all what I expected based on ride descriptions, ride types, and themes. Opening myself up to new experiences turned out to be the best thing I did in the parks.

Ultimately, neither Dirk nor I had the same experience, nor did we expect to like some of the attractions we loved the most as much as we did. But I think that's the thing that is most attractive about Universal Orlando's theme parks: it has something for everybody. In truth, something different may tug your own heartstrings, and that's cool, too.

Collectible popcorn buckets have been a thing at Disney and Universal theme parks for a long time, and just like the ones at the movie theater, some popcorn buckets are incredibly creative, some popcorn buckets are beautifully themed, and some popcorn buckets are simply adorable. And then there’s the new Jurassic World Rebirth bucket at Universal Orlando Resort, which is adorable, but I’m not sure it should be.

The new Jurassic World: Rebirth popcorn bucket is a cute little T. Rex with big jaws that open and close, so you can fill its mouth with popcorn. It’s actually a great popcorn bucket, but it’s weird that it’s being marketed as a Jurassic World: Rebirth bucket because those dinosaurs are much more terrifying and realistic-looking than this very cartoonish character. It would be great on a shelf next to the recent Super Nintendo World Bob-omb bucket, not so much a more thrill-seeking dinosaur movie.

The actual Jurassic World: Rebirth popcorn bucket, found in theaters, features a dinosaur incubator that is a little bit more realistic-looking, which I think just makes more sense for this particular movie. It’s just a strange choice to go with a bucket that’s supposed to be specifically tied to the movie release and then have it not really fit with the aesthetic of that film.

This is not to say I don’t love this popcorn bucket on its own merits, because it’s actually perfect, just for a different theme park. I could see this exact popcorn bucket being sold at the Universal Kids Resort set to open in Texas next year. That park will have a Jurassic World land, which is designed to be more family-friendly, and there, a cartoonish T-Rex popcorn bucket makes all the sense in the world.

It will not shock me at all if this popcorn bucket returns when Universal Kids Resort opens, it wouldn’t even shock me if this bucket was actually designed specifically for that park, and is simply being used now because it’s ready and will likely sell more than a few buckets based on Jurassic World fans excited by the new film.

Either way, while I’m not sure it’s a great Rebirth bucket, it’s a fantastic Jurassic World bucket if you want to pick it up. And if this one doesn’t work for you, don’t worry, there are certainly plenty more on the way.

If you’re a runner and a Disney fan, then you’re likely at least familiar with RunDisney. The organization sets up running events, from 5Ks to marathons, that allow people to run in and around Disneyland and Walt Disney World. Each race has a theme, and many fans like to dress up according to the theme. If you’re considering doing so for Disney World’s Winnie the Pooh-themed Springtime Surprise 10K next year, Disney World has one request. Please wear pants.

I almost died laughing when I saw this post from an online friend, Theme Park Twitter’s Pinapple Princess, Victoria Wade. One has to simply assume that if RunDisney has to tell you that you need to wear pants, it’s because previously there was a problem with somebody not wearing pants. Adults can often get up to shenanigans at Disney Parks that aren’t exactly family friendly, but hopefully we can all agree to keep our pants on, yeah?

Winnie the Pooh is one of a surprising number of animated characters that don’t wear pants. In the case of Pooh, it actually makes more sense as he is canonically a stuffed bear, not a real one. But one can certainly imagine that if somebody tried to Disneybound as Winnie the Pooh, they may have difficulty figuring out how to dress their lower half.

Disneybounding is the practice of dressing up in clothes that, while not technically a costume, evoke a particular character through colors and styles. It's especially popular on Dapper Day, an unofficial event at Disney Parks that sees guests dress in their best as they walk the parks.

Kids wearing costumes in Disney Parks is generally allowed, but rules can be a bit more strict for adults as Disney doesn’t want people confusing a guest for a Cast Member. Disneybounding was born as a way to give Disney Adults a way to dress up.

Disneybounding has become quite popular at the RunDisney races, as most of the people who participate in them, at least based on my limited exposure, are more often Disney fans who don’t mind running than they are runners who just decided to do a Disney event.

If you’re all concerned about a lack of pants in the 10K run, the 5K version of Springtime Surprise is themed to Zootopia, which is getting a sequel later this year. Those animals tend to wear pants, except for the nudists, of course.

The news about the partnership between Universal and WWE comes from Fightful Select, which reported that talks about this collaboration have been ongoing for the past year (via WrestlingInc.com). The wrestling organization is expected to have a presence at the event when it kicks off in late August, and I think it would be a no-brainer to have it heavily themed to Wyatt's career for a couple of reasons.

Bray Wyatt Is The Scariest Modern Wrestler In WWE History, And Has Plenty Of Interesting Lore

Before his untimely and sudden passing, Bray Wyatt was the official "boogeyman" of sorts for the WWE roster. He was charismatic and skilled enough in the ring to hold a top spot near the main event scene for years, and he captivated audiences with not one, but two distinctly different personas.

Whether Universal and WWE would decide to highlight the "Man In The Woods," a backcountry cult leader who had an obsession with the supernatural entity Sister Abigail, or "The Fiend," the concentrated rage and violence of Wyatt split between his happier, almost Pee-Wee Hermanesque self, there's no going wrong. Any and all of these would make for great a Horror Nights feature.

As a longtime wrestling fan, if you told me I had a chance to experience the insanity that was Bray Wyatt and John Cena's WrestleMania 36 match firsthand, I'd buy a ticket immediately. This kind of haunting chaos is why I'd much sooner see an attraction built around him rather than someone like Undertaker, assuming, of course, his loved ones are ok with his likeness being used in such a way.

The Wyatt Sicks Can Appear At The Parks, Giving Them More Importance Outside Of The Ring

Another big perk of having A Bray Wyatt-centric attraction at Halloween Horror Nights is that it gives the Wyatt Sicks something to do. The faction, led by Wyatt's brother Bo Dallas (Uncle Howdy), was created as a tribute to the wrestler, but the WWE has seemingly struggled to find storylines for them to participate in.

The faction is starting to ramp up once again with matches on SmackDown, and I think having them be part of the star attractions at Halloween Horror Nights would be a huge boost to their run.

I also like the idea of the Wyatt Sicks being mascots of sorts for the WWE's presence at Halloween Horror Nights, as it seems like Alexa Bliss is on her way to joining them. Bliss is a spectacular wrestler who played a big role in Bray Wyatt's late run, so it would only make sense to include her in on the fun as well.

Now, I don't necessarily expect these superstars to be taking weekends off and appearing in person at the parks on a regular basis, but if the Wyatt Sicks plus Bliss were involved, there's certainly a way for at least one of them to be present on select nights throughout the entirety of the run in August through early November. Halloween Horror Nights is already hyped enough in the theme park world, so I can only imagine what featuring a chance to meet a WWE superstar would do for ticket sales.

For now, we can only speculate and wait for official word from the WWE on whether it's partnering with Universal and what the plan is for Halloween Horror Nights. I'm excited to hear more details, and hopefully, some way for Wyatt to be honored, even if it's not completely centered around him.

Walt Disney: A Magical Life is set to debut at Disneyland in just over a week, on the 70th anniversary of Disneyland's opening day. The attraction has set off no small amount of controversy as many, including some of Walt Disney’s own family, aren’t so sure about making him an attraction in the park that bears his name. While I’m certainly waiting to see how the attraction turns out (nobody has seen it yet), I’m excited for the potential. And now I’m excited by the attraction poster, which looks beautiful, and I think I’ll need to buy it.

The video posted to Instagram shows Disney artist Jeremy Fulton go through his process for designing the attraction poster for Walt Disney: A Magical Life. Disneyland attraction posters, even for new rides and shows, still use classic design that makes them look like they could have been created decades ago; it gives them a timeless quality that makes them almost always look special.

I especially love the easter eggs that are shown off in the poster. The hidden Mickey and the classic Opera House house header are cool, but I especially love that the hands with the pointing fingers are actually designed based on Walt’s actual hands, which is the sort of attention to detail that nobody would ever notice.

I love attraction posters, and I’ve had to stop myself from spending all my money and wallpapering my office with them over the years. I want them all, and yet, because I so frequently can’t decide which is my favorite, I’ve never actually bought one. This one may change that.

I think Walt Disney: A Magical Life could turn out to be something truly special, not to mention technologically groundbreaking. If it really works, if the audio animatronic is life-like enough, without entering the uncanny valley, if Walt’s words are chosen well, without being cheesy, Walt could have the same impact today that Disney’s own Abraham Lincoln audio animatronic had decades ago.

Disneyland is currently celebrating its 70th anniversary. It's already an incredible event even without the addition of Walt Disney himself. How he will look, and what he will say is an intriguing question, one I can't way to be able to answer myself. One thing we do know is that the poster looks awesome.

But that’s not all. A day after the Rivers of America closed, Disney World announced a big change coming to an opening day attraction. On July 17, the classic earworm of a song “It’s a Small World” will be updated on the attraction of the same name to include the third verse Richard Sherman wrote before the iconic songwriter passed away.

It’s A Small World’s New Third Verse Is Coming To Magic Kingdom

It had previously been announced that on July 17, the 70th anniversary of the opening day of Disneyland, "It’s a Small World" would be updated to include the extra verse that Richard Sherman wrote to the song he and his brother Robert had originally composed for the 1964 World’s Fair. Today, Disney Parks confirmed the same change would be made, on the same day, at the Walt Disney World version of the attraction. The verse goes like this…

Say what you will about “It’s a Small World” as a song and the way you can’t get it out of your head, but the message of the tune is truly beautiful. It’s a special song about how the people of the world have more that unites them than separates them, and the extra verse, written by Sherman shortly before he passed away, simply reinforces that idea.

I can’t imagine even the most ardent Disney World traditionalist taking issue with this change. The rest of the classic attraction remains; nothing is being taken away, and even the addition comes from the same source as the original song. This is in sharp contrast to the other major change that is already underway.

Work On The New Piston Peak Land Has Already Started On Tom Sawyer Island

The Rivers of America and Tom Sawyer Island saw their last days of operation yesterday. As of this morning the raft to the island as well as Liberty Belle Riverboat, are closed, and workers have already been spotted on the island, meaning Disney World is wasting no time in beginning the transformation of the area into Piston Peak, a new area that will be themed to Pixar’s Cars franchise.

On top of that, a brand new land will be built adjacent to Frontierland and Liberty Square, a land dedicated to Disney Villains. We have few details about that land, and we don’t know when work will actually begin, but it is expected to either be concurrent with the Piston Perak work or begin shortly after that area is completed.

With not only a major part of Frontierland closed, but most of Dinoland U.S.A at Disney's Animal Kingdom and the Muppet Courtyeart at Disney’s Hollywood Studios also closed, there are a lot of changes set to come in the next few years. Walt Disney World is going to look very different in a very short period. Not everybody will embrace every change, this much is clear.

Since nothing can be done about the change, I choose to look forward to what is to come at Walt Disney World, even if I there is part of me bummed out by what is being lost.

To me, change is inevitable, but that doesn’t mean there are no emotions revolving around theme park changes when they do happen. Some fans are feeling those feels right now, and have been taking to X (formerly Twitter) to soak “in the views” before the river closes for the final time.

Many feel sentimental about what fans will be missing without the “wow” factor that was the Rivers of America attractions, including the boat and the island, in the parks. I think that speaks to the nostalgia people have about going to Disney World across spans of years or even decades. After one X user wrote about the "timeless" nature of the attraction and how losing it will lead to the loss of some of its most "kinetic appeal" another fan responded:

Some fans are still really salty about the impending loss of the attraction, which opened when Magic Kingdom first let parkgoers in back in 1971. One particularly upset post garnered some eyeballs online, and also inspired comments like “Excellently expressed sentiment,” and “The best ones come straight from the heart.”

Happy 4th of July to everyone except the jerks that decided to remove the Rivers of America.

Others are still pleading for the imagineering powers that be to walk back their upcoming plans, which include bringing the popular Pixar series Cars to the Magic Kingdom. Given the ride is set to officially wrap today, I think we're a little far down the river with new plans at this point, but this sentiment does speak volumes about where some Disney World parkgoers are at.

There have been a lot of changes at Florida theme parks lately, between the opening of Epic Universe, the closure of Muppet-themed attractions and now the loss of Rivers of America and Tom Sawyer Island. Some of these closures have been for attractions, photos spots, and even restaurants that have been in the parks for years. It's easy to see how there is emotional attachment for stuff that even the most frequent parkgoers are skipping a fair amount, because at one time or another, most of us did get on the river boat or explore the man made cave.

But there is reason to be excited about the changes around Frontierland. A new chapter will be opening -- maybe not super soon, but soon enough -- and hopefully it will allow new generations to make precious memories. But if you're lucky enough to be in the parks today, perhaps consider making one final stop on the river.

Thor: Ragnarok director Taika Waititi recently posted pictures from a recent trip to Disneyland Paris, and he clearly had an absolute blast. He was in full “Disney Adult” mode as he went with some friends, but did not bring his kids. In fact, in the post, he specifically asks, “Please nobody tell my kids,” as they will obviously get upset that Dad went without them. Hopefully, the kids don’t follow Dad’s Instagram.

Waititi looks great with the Mickey ear sunglasses, the ear band and the Sorcerer Mickey hat all piled on top of each other. He’s dancing around the park, smiling at everything, getting pictures with Disney Princesses and just generally having a blast.

As a fellow Disney Adult, who has kids, but who frequently visits theme parks without them, I fully endorse this message. I also don’t tell my kids when I’m going to Disneyland or Disney World most of the time because it will only upset them. If they do find out, I have to bring them something.

I know the term "Disney Adult' is used as a pejorative, but most of those people cosplay as athletes to watch other people play sports, so I don't know what they're on about. Some of my best friends are Disney Adults, and now I want Taika Waititi to be one of them because he looks like a fun dude with whom to hang around Disneyland. He could probably also get me into Club 33.

And say what you will, but Disney Parks have no problem whatever with "Disney Adults." Disney World recently opened a lounge where nobody under 21 is allowed. Clearly the park doesn't mind if the kids stay home. The adults are the ones with the money.

I love my kids, and I’ll take them to Disneyland too whenever I can. That said, I’ve been a fan of theme parks since long before I had kids and have gone as an adult without my kids many more times than I have gone with them. There’s a lot to be said for not waiting in a line with somebody who doesn’t have as much patience for waiting, or not having to skip an attraction because somebody isn’t tall enough to go on it.

And to be fair, Disneyland Paris is one resort I would absolutely want to visit without my kids, at least the first time. I’ve never been there, so I’d want to be able to explore it at my leisure without needing to worry about kids. Also, being a lover of great food and great Disney Parks food, and with it being Paris and all, my kids probably wouldn’t appreciate most of the food I would want to eat. Maybe when they’re older.

For reasons passing understanding, the Splash Mountain war of 2020 is still being fought. This comes five years after the decision was made to retheme the attraction and a year after Tiana’s Bayou Adventure opened at Walt Disney World. Some people are still salty that Splash was replaced and have continued to argue the replacement was a bad move, while others, myself included, have argued that Tiana’s Bayou Adventure is a great ride in its own right.

However, a recent interaction on Twitter regarding this topic broke down into a discussion about wait times. One person pointed out that Tiana’s Bayou Adventure still has one of the longest wait times at Magic Kingdom, indicating it’s clearly a popular ride that people want to ride. The response was that wait times are not a fair metric of popularity, and the bigger issue is that “Disney builds new attractions to get guests in the park” and that TBA did not succeed by this metric.

Wait Times Are Not The Best Determination Of A Ride’s Popularity, But They Are A Determination

To be fair, the initial point -- that wait times are a bad metric to determine popularity -- isn’t wrong. There are a lot of facts that determine an attraction’s wait time, many of which are simply a function of the type of ride that you’re dealing with, the number of guests it can accommodate and how quickly it can be unloaded and then loaded with new riders. The Finding Nemo Submarine Voyage at Disneyland tends to have long wait times, not because people love it, it's hardly the best ride at Disneyland, but because it's a very slow ride to load.

Having said that, wait times are certainly one indication of how popular a ride is. People have to be willing to wait in the line in the first place, otherwise there would be no line at all. If people are willing to stand in a line that’s 45 minutes or an hour long, when that time could be spent doing anything else, including waiting for something else, it means there is interest. People want to ride it.

Nobody Goes To Disney World To Go On One Ride

The broader point here is also true. Disney absolutely builds new attractions to get people into the park. That goes without saying, but a brand new attraction, or in the case of Tiana’s Bayou Adventure, an updated old one, isn’t meant to sell an entire vacation on its own. It’s an incremental improvement, designed to make a trip that much more enticing. It's there to give you another reason to come.

Just like there are a lot of factors that create wait times, there are a lot of factors that determine whether or not people are going to spend money on a Walt Disney World or go on a Disneyland vacation. With that in mind, I can firmly say no single ride is responsible for that. I can't imagine people were spending thousands on a Disney World vacation in 2018 specifically to ride Splash Mountain.

It may be true that few, if any, people are booking Disney Parks vacations specifically to ride Tiana's Bayou Adventure, but I’m not sure that’s any different than most attractions. If you’re a particular fan of a specific Disney franchise or a particular type of ride, a new attraction that hits your fandom may be enough to get you to visit on its own. However, for most people, it’s the totality of the experience.

Disney Parks are incredible places with so much to do that no one thing deserves all the credit, or all the blame, for your experience. If you're looking for one ride to make or break your entire trip, you're missing out on everything else there is to do.

Having seen the video myself, I have to agree with the same sentiment that commenters have been throwing into the comments section of this post. I mean, how do you not get a lifetime Disneyland ban after jumping ship and mixing it up with animatronics that debuted in 1967? That’s exactly what happened in a TikTok video that made the rounds.

Don’t worry, because as you’ll see in the footage included below, a Disney Cast Member actually escorted this person away before they could do any damage:

From where I’m standing, this Pirates-flavored incident is definitely worse than when a guest swam in Epcot’s World Showcase lagoon, but isn’t as bad as any of the many physical brawls at Walt Disney World or any other Disney park. That doesn’t mean there shouldn’t be some sort of consequences though, which means it’s time to cue the upset fans calling for that ban through this sampling of comments:

• “Wtf, there’s a lifetime ban!” - @reebles79
• “Goodbye Disney properties for the rest of their days” - @just_steferz
• “Why do people spend so much money to ruin not only the experience for others but then also get a lifetime ban from Disney?” - @kellyandrews01
• “I’m starting to believe lifetime bans don’t exist anymore because why is this happening more and more?” - @sassytinaaa
• “And that’s how you never get to go to Disney ever again” - @navscoleod

Theme park fans aren’t always as uniform in their responses as these cries for banning the Pirates of the Caribbean thrill seekers you witnessed. In fact, the first thing that comes to mind is how last summer’s D23 Expo used Horizons as its park panel’s branding, which left fans feeling a certain way. (You do not toy with people's feelings on Disney attractions we wish still existed. You just don't!)

I guess now we can add climbing into legacy attractions to that list as well, which is funny considering Horizon’s own history of that same sort of behavior. At least no one was hurt during this trip into battle on the high seas. After all, when Pirates of the Caribbean breaks down, the pirates don’t eat the tourists.

Though I’m sure some Disneyland security professionals were hungry to give these unnamed parties a reading from Uncle Walt’s Riot Act, and rightfully so. Not only are fans inconvenienced when this happens, but the potential for unintended danger and injury are always present.

What Cressida Cowell Thinks Of The Live Action Movie

The good news is she was on hand for the opening of Epic Universe at Universal Studios recently. As the stars took a break from riding the new rides, I was able to ask her about her favorite How To Train Your Dragon moments. I wasn’t sure what she’d say, but she seemed tickled pink about the relationship between leads Mason Thames and Gerard Butler, whom she calls Gerry.

She revealed to me she'd actually cried when she'd seen the movie on the big screen, and got candid about the moments that stood out when she saw them play out. This squares with our How To Train Your Dragon review, which noted the emotional nature of the film. For her, though, it was "personal."

Ultimately, How To Train Your Dragon is a story about a father and a son, and the son coming into his own among the pressures of the community his father is in charge of. But there's honestly a more sentimental reason these moments were so standout for Cressida Cowell.

Cressida Cowell Based How To Train Your Dragon On Her Own Childhood

The Isle of Berk may connect its lore to Scandinavia and Norway specifically, but when Cowell was writing her novels, she was actually using her own childhood experiences to craft the narrative, which I'd never realized. As a child, she'd head from London to the islands of Scotland, and that's where her mind kept returning when she was writing the books.

I'd never known that Gerard Butler's performance as Stoick the Vast was so personal to the author, but it's easy to see now why scenes between Mason Thames and Butler were so emotional for her. It's been years since her last island adventure, but it's clear those memories hold a dear place in her heart.

The authoress previously told Coast it was quite the "Robinson Crusoe" experience to be dropped off in the wilderness like that, and it led to her fascination with nature, Vikings and dragons. In 2003, she published How To Train Your Dragon, the first in a serious of 12 books that have sold millions of copies. The first movie with Dean DeBlois came out in 2010, and has spawned streaming spinoffs, an entire section of a theme park at Epic Universe, and a new series of Live Action movies.

If you already know what I’m talking about, you’re already shaking your head in disbelief. If you don’t, you’re a very lucky human being. Needless to say, if you thought adult theme park fans were embarrassing before, get ready for it all to go to another level. As a member of the Theme Park Twittersphere put it…

Ok, Professor Leisure. Challenge Accepted.

Epic Universe’s Pizza Moon Didn’t Have Pizza Boxes

This bizarre controversy started last week when a story and a related Twitter post from Universal Parks News Today stated that Pizza Moon, the pizza place found in Celestial Park at Epic Universe and de facto best theme park pizza in Orlando following the closure of the iconic PizzeRizzo, was “dine-in only” and that the restaurant had no boxes for leftover pizza. What’s more, they would not allow guests to take their pizza outside at all.

The story claimed that to-go boxes at Pizza Moon had previously been offered, but a quick look at social media shows a lot of people asking for boxes to exist as early as the week after Epic Universe opened to the general public. So, this has been the restaurant's policy from early on, if not the very beginning.

To-go boxes are a pretty standard part of pizza restaurants, and they’re usually available in any restaurant in theme parks as well, so the lack of them was certainly odd. This is especially the case considering Epic Universe has the Helios Grand Hotel attached to it, and some might want to take pizza back to their rooms.

Pizza Moon Now Has Pizza Boxes

But our long national nightmare is now over, because a post from Orlando Informer, as seen in the post above, confirms that as of at least June 24, pizza boxes are available at Pizza Moon. It also specifies that the boxes were “manufactured prior to the park opening.”

This is where things get increasingly controversial, and also silly, as the “manufactured prior to the park opening” comment would seem to be specifically meant to make it clear that the existence of boxes today has nothing to do with any articles last week. Those responsible for the article are, of course, claiming credit for having brought boxes to Pizza Moon by drawing attention to the issue.

If we take the Orlando Informer statement at face value, then it seems boxes were made earlier, and simply not available for some unclear reason. I reached out to Universal Orlando Resort for comment, but have not heard back. I'll update this story if that changes.

Even if we assume boxes weren’t in production until later, a lot of people were asking for boxes on social media, and one assumes a lot more were doing it in person, so it’s possible those requests, and not a single news article, were responsible for getting boxes made. Or maybe it was an angry Twitter post. Does it actually matter?

The good news for all involved is that now, for whatever reason, you can get a pizza box at Pizza Moon. The bad news is you now know the saga of Pizza Moon’s pizza boxes. I am so, so sorry.

Disney World is about to have three major construction projects underway at the same time. We also got confirmation earlier this month that the first phase of DisneylandForward, the massive resort expansion, will be starting later this year. This is certainly wonderful news for any fan looking toward the future. However, this almost certainly means that an update that’s desperately needed on both coasts is likely years away.

Disney World And Disneyland Resorts Are Focused On The Future

As of this writing, there are construction walls up at both Disney’s Hollywood Studios and Disney’s Animal Kingdom as each has entire lands going through transformations. DHS is losing Grand Avenue, aka the Muppet Courtyard, to make way for a Monsters, Inc. land. DAK is saying goodbye to Dinoland U.S.A. and gaining a Tropical Americas land that will include attractions based on Encanto and Indiana Jones.

Meanwhile, Disneyland Resort is looking to replace its entire entrance area, while also seeing an Avatar land replace most of Disney California’s Hollywood Land, and a new Coco ride go into Pixar Pier. And none of that even touches on the massive expansion to both DCA and Disneyland park that we know is coming. When it’s done, Disneyland Resort may not even be recognizable.

All this is great. I’m as excited as anybody to see all the cool new Disney World attractions, the brand new Downtown Disney at Disneyland, and whatever else is on the way. The next decade is going to be an embarrassment of riches, but it’s somewhat ironic that the future looks so bright, considering that the land once dedicated to the future is the one that may be waiting a long time for its own update.

Tomorrowland Needs Help At Both Disneyland And Magic Kingdom

With so much being built, it seems highly unlikely that significant resources will be given to updating any of the classic castle parks, beyond what's already been confirmed for Magic Kingdom, which is frustrating because Tomorrowland could use some love. Magic Kingdom’s version is starting to show its age, and Disneyland especially needs real help.

Tomorrowland has typically been a difficult land to keep up to date, as tomorrow always eventually arrives. What was first designed to be futuristic eventually becomes old and dated. This is the problem both Tomorrowlands are having; most of the attractions are decades old at this point, and with the exception of the recent Tron: Lightcycle Run at Magic Kingdom, none of them feel “futuristic” with a modern eye.

You can't have a land dedicated to "tomorrow" feeling like it was made yesterday. New attractions could help with this, but honestly, Tomorrowland needs a new look. A design tweak to the land as a whole could make it look more like a future that we might imagine today, or potentially, something more timeless, that might have a longer shelf life.

There have been numerous rumors over the years of plans to revamp Tomorrowland at Disneyland, and while it seems there likely have been plans made at various points, the revamp kept getting pushed back. At one point, there were rumors of a Space Mountain update based on Pixar’s Lightyear. Perhaps if Lightyear had been a hit, we would have seen the trigger pulled on the idea, but the movie flopped hard, and nothing happened.

With another core Magic Kingdom land undergoing a major overhaul for the next couple of years, with the Frontierland Piston Peak project, which will likely be followed in short order by the already announced Villains Land expansion, it seems all but certain nothing else major will be happening in that park until that work is done, which could be five or more years from now.

At Disneyland, things don’t look much better. While there are no construction plans for major updates inside the existing Disneyland park, the expansion of the entire Disneyland Resort will likely be so significant that it will take up all focus. Of course, DisneylandForward is a 10-year plan, which means it could be a decade before Disneyland has the resources to do any major updates to Tomorrowland. Could it really be another 10 years before Tomorrowland gets any major updates?

Could The Fantastic Four Save Tomorrowland?

Of course, there is one possible way that Tomorrowland, at least at Disneyland, could see its much-needed facelift sooner rather than later. While every indication thus far is that the DisneylandForward project is specifically focused on expansion, there’s really no reason it couldn’t have a Disneyland land update folded into it. If the resort sees a reason to invest, it will, and it might, later this summer.

Next month will see the release of Fantastic Four: First Steps, and a few months back, I suggested that, assuming the characters would be brought to Disneyland Resort as happens alongside most MCU films, rather than bringing the superhero team to Avengers Campus, the Fantastic Four should be brought to Tomorrowland. The retro-future aesthetic of the film takes a great deal of inspiration from the same sources that inspired Tomorrowland, so the two fit together quite well.

Well, it was announced shortly after I wrote that, that the Fantastic Four actually will appear in Tomorrowland when they arrive at Disneyland alongside the movie on July 25. If these characters are well received and if, unlike Lightyear, Fantastic Four is a box office hit, which so far seems likely, perhaps we could see Tomorrowland’s update incorporated into the current plans.

Tomorrowland needs help. It needs to be done, and it needs to be done soon. As great as all the new additions will be, the parks as a whole will be lesser if there are parts of them that don’t feel as new and exciting. I certainly hope Disney Experiences has some of that $60 billion earmarked for Tomorrowland, and I hope they’re planning to spend it sooner than it would seem.

If you’ve been to Walt Disney World, then you’ve seen the various ways one can get around the resort property. There are buses, boats, the popular Skyliner gondolas, and of course the famous Disney World Monorail. It’s clear that a lot goes into moving people around Disney World, though until now I had no idea just how big Disney World’s transportation system really was.

Disney World Has One Of The Largest Transportation networks In The Country

This week, Walt Disney World released a lot of information about its free transportation on property that really shows you just how big Walt Disney World really is. It’s all broken down in a great infographic that shows how Disney World compares to public transportation throughout the U.S.

Some of this information isn’t too surprising if you think about it. Of course, Walt Disney World’s Monorail is the largest monorail network in the U.S.. Despite Walt Disney’s best efforts, the monorail never received mass adoption as a transportation system, and the few that exist outside of Orlando are very small.

The fact that Walt Disney World has more watercraft than the Staten Island Ferry, or that the bus system as the 13th largest ridership of any bus system in the country, shows that while Walt’s vision of Epcot may not have been built as he’d hoped, Walt Disney World is essentially a functioning city. It even has a complete dumpster fire of a local government, like so many other cities.

But on the subject of buses. If Disney World has 424 of them, why does it always seem like I spend half my time there waiting for one?

So, Why Can’t I Ever Get A Bus?

While there are lots of ways to get around Walt Disney World, the most common is by bus. Buses are the only way to get to Disney’s Animal Kingdom and the only transportation method that stops at many of the Disney World hotels. As such, you’ll find yourself waiting for them a lot.

And I feel like I must be waiting for them more than anybody else because anytime I need to leave a theme park to go to my hotel, it seems like there’s a bus going to every hotel but mine. Sometimes a bus will stop for one hotel more than once while I’m still waiting for the first one to stop for me. That said, I still haven't had a chance to use the Disney World bus schedule in Google to try to manage the interminable wait.

I tend to avoid taking a Disney World bus whenever I can simply because I hate waiting for them. Other methods, like boats or the Skyliner, might not even be faster, as they're often less direct, but at least they are a bit entertaining. Taking the Disneyland Monorail from the Contemporary Hotel was heaven.

But even that’s not all. In just about two months, we’ll see the opening of Universal Horror Unleashed. The brand-new experience will bring a permanent version of the theme park’s popular Halloween Horror Nights event to Las Vegas. Universal seems quite certain it will be a hit, as a second Horror Unleashed location was just announced for the Midwest.

Universal Horror Unleashed Is Coming To Chicago

Universal Destinations & Experiences says a second Universal Horror Unleashed location is now slated for Chicago, Illinois. The building will be located at Chicago Avenue at the former Tribune Distribution Center. No opening date was given for the new location, but the first Horror Unleashed was announced in January 2023, and will open on August 14, 2025. If we give the new location a similar timeline, we’re looking at an opening in late 2027 or early 2028.

Clearly if Universal is ready to commit to a second Horror Unleashed location before the first one has even opened, the company must be pretty confident that the first one will be a hit. There’s little reason to doubt that Halloween Horror Nights is the marquee event at Universal Studios Hollywood and Florida. People love what Universal has been able to do to create terrifying themed attractions. For many, the only thing bad about HHN is that it ends.

With Universal Horror Unleashed, guests will be able to experience the thrills and chills any time. The Vegas location will open with houses dedicated to Universal Monsters, Texas Chainsaw Massacre, Exorcist: Believer and the popular original concept Scarecrow: The Reaping. The houses are designed to be replaceable over time, so even if the Chicago location opens with houses identical to Las Vegas, which honestly seems unlikely, they may have changed somewhat by the time it’s ready to open.

Universal’s Fast Expansion Is Great News For the Themed Entertainment Industry

I’m not a particularly big horror fan personally, so Horror Unleashed isn’t really my bag. That said, I’m incredibly excited that Universal Horror Unleashed is already expanding. Seeing Universal expand its global footprint so quickly means more people will have access to high quality-themed entertainment, which could, in turn, lead to competition, more options and more locations.

Horror Unleashed in Las Vegas will be part of Area15, a massive themed entertainment venue which is home to offerings as diverse as Meow Wolf’s mind-bending Omega Mart and the excellent John Wick Experience, which puts you in the world of Keanu Reeves’ perfect assassin.

Earlier this year, Universal Studios ran its first Fan Fest Nights, an event similar in structure to Halloween Horror Nights, but using non-horror IP, like Star Trek, Back to the Future and Dungeons & Dragons. I wonder if Horror Unleashed continues to be successful, similar locations not based on horror are also possible.

With two locations down, and a lot of the country, never mind the world, left, will there will be even more Universal Horror Unleashed locations built? We'll have to wait and see.

And if there’s one castle in all of the Disney Parks that might be the most beautiful one to get married in front of, it may be Le Château de la Belle au Bois Dormant, aka Sleeping Beauty Castle at Disneyland Park at Disneyland Paris. Unfortunately, the location has a rough history. It has been the home of failed proposals before, and now a recent wedding planned at the park went in an absolutely wild direction after what looked to be something potentially disturbing has possibly turned out to be some sort of social media stunt, and not the fun Mr. Beast renting Disneyland kind of stunt.

At Least Four People Were Arrested Following Disneyland Paris "Wedding"

BMFTV (via The New York Post) reports that $150,000 was spent on a lavish wedding at Disneyland Paris that was set to be held early on Saturday morning, before the park opened for normal business. 300 guests were in attendance, and a string quartet was on hand to provide music. It all looked to be a very standard, if very expensive, wedding.

However, alarm bells went off after Disneyland Paris security discovered that while the groom was a 22-year-old British man, the bride was a nine-year-old Ukrainian girl who reportedly looked “scared and confused” just before the ceremony was set to begin. Disneyland called French authorities, and at least four people were arrested in the aftermath.

The Whole Thing Now Appears To Have Been A Stunt

However, what initially looked like it may have been some sort of crime, and the weirdest thing to happen at Disneyland Paris since somebody got naked and high, is now looking slightly less creepy, though no less bizarre. It appears the entire wedding, which, again, cost somebody $150,000 they’re probably not getting back, was some sort of social media stunt.

Days before the “wedding,” an online ad had been placed looking for extras, and 200 adults and 100 children responded and arrived at the park for the event. Based on the statement of at least one of them, they had no idea what they were going to be part of until they arrived.

In fact, it was one of the people recruited for the stunt, a 55-year-old Latvian national who had been hired to play the bride’s father, who initially alerted Disneyland Paris’ security once he realized what was going on. He and the woman hired to play the girl’s sister were two of those arrested, alongside the man who was the "groom" and the mother of the nine-year-old girl. The “groom” and the “sister” are both reportedly still in custody and have been charged with “fraud and breach of trust.”

Disneyland Paris has been widely praised for the way staffers handled things once they knew what was going on. Needless to say, this entire story is wild, and there’s sure to be more details that haven’t been revealed yet as we begin to understand just why all this happened, and just what the punishment for it all will be.

While I would say nothing topped my full day at Super Nintendo World at Epic Universe, the Tron Lightcycle Run was next up on my highlights for a weekend in Orlando. It was cool to live out my dream of riding a lightcycle ever since I saw Tron: Legacy in IMAX, but I have some notes about the rest of the experience that I think are worth highlighting to point out some major issues with this attraction.

Tron Lightcycle Run Is A Brutal Uphill Walk

Typically, when I'm looking at rides, the queues are the first thing on my mind. After all, it's the thing you're going to spend 95% of your time in. I had my eye out for what the situation was as I made my way uphill to my cushy lightning lane. I kept looking as I trudged uphill, sweating quite a bit because June in Florida is a misery most wouldn't endure if it wasn't home to the most magical place on Earth.

I'm like midway through this uphill jaunt and thinking, "Ok, we have to be close now," but we just keep going. I'll admit, after a long day walking around Magic Kingdom, my sore feet might have had an impact on the trip to the top, but I swear it felt like we were climbing to the peak of the highest point of the area.

The upside to this long climb is that when you do finally reach the actual queue for Tron Lightcycle Run, there's a bathroom and water station waiting for you. If only I'd known that at the time, I would've brought my water bottle, but it was in a parked stroller all the way back at the bottom of the hill. Keep in mind I did this weeks ago, and the memory is still fresh. That said, I know Disney can't really do anything about this, I just feel like people should mentally prepare for it before riding, is all I'm saying.

The Ride Is Egregiously Short

Tron Lightcycle Run features easter egg to the movies, though I'd forgive you if you didn't happen to notice it. The ride is egregiously short, and I know some might know that going in, but I don't think that resonates until you're deep in the trenches in the queue with too much time invested to hop out. I only witnessed that secondhand, as I was in the lightning lane, so I didn't have to bust out my Disney+ subscription and binge The Simpsons while I waited to ride.

From start to finish, Tron Lightcycle Run is a minute flat. Sure, it's a thrill ride that goes from zero to sixty, but when you're only locked in for a minute's time, all that time trudging up the hill and waiting in line starts to add up. It makes me realize just how intense those Lightcycle battles are, and how skilled you have to be not to just crash and burn immediately when riding one.

Jokes aside, I do think it's worth considering the ride time when trying to decide how much time you want to invest waiting in line. Sure, it's one of the only thrill rides in Magic Kingdom, and I don't imagine we'll see many more hit the park when looking at upcoming attractions planned. Just take it into account and plan accordingly, so you dont' waste a whole day waiting on a short thrill.

There Should Really Be A Tutorial On The Safety Harness System

Tron Lightcycle Run is a one-of-a-kind experience, and one of the more exciting roller coaster experiences I've had in my life. That said, there's a bit of a learning curve to the whole thing, and that's learning how to put on the safety harness when it's finally your turn to ride. Given the wait for the ride and just how quickly it goes, it's something riders should have a heads up about.

For those that have yet to ride, you step over the lightcycle and fit your legs into grooves positioned on either side of the bike. After that, you're encouraged to push forward on the handlebars, which then brings down the back harness that will lock you in place for the duration of the ride. It's a bit hard to control, and if you mess it up, you could have a bad time.

Take, for example, my brother-in-law, who went full force into the push and ended up plastering his torso to the bike with no chance to give himself any room to move up further. Fortunately, I saw this go down and decided to ease on my push and slightly lean forward while not becoming fully parallel with the bike like he did. The strategy paid off, and the harness was secured in place, and I didn't feel wildly uncomfortable for the ride.

I can't stress how important it is to get this part right, because when we rode Tron Lightcycle Run, getting off the ride took longer than the actual ride itself. I didn't have any issues with how I sat, but my buddy who sat behind us was complaining about hip soreness the next day after riding. It wasn't so terrible that he wouldn't ride it again, and I only bring it up to illustrate just how important it is to figure out how you're going to sit on this thing before you're locked in. Like I said before, you only get one chance to do it!

All that said, this is just my experience, which may help you prepare accordingly, and you should have a good time on Tron Lightcycle Run. If you're headed to Disney World anytime soon, it can be found in Magic Kingdom in Tomorrowland, right where the Tomorrowland Speedway used to be.

When the small version of Amity Island was built for the tour, it originally included the actual boat, the Orca, that was used in the famously troubled production. In the new documentary Jaws @ 50: The Definitive Inside Story (available next month with a Hulu or Disney+ subscription) Steven Spielberg revealed that he used to enter the boat just to sit and remember the difficult production, and sometimes he would cry. Spielberg said…

The story of the filming of Jaws is one of the most famous in Hollywood history. The production on Martha’s Vineyard took a great deal longer and cost a great deal more than was ever intended. Spielberg revealed elsewhere in the documentary that he had a panic attack during production and had nightmares for years afterward as a result.

The accomplished director says he “had nothing to cry about.” The movie was the biggest hit in the history of film, clearly all the hard work was worth it. Still, the experience clearly took a toll on him. He simply wasn’t able to move on from it. It seems that spending time back on board the Orca helped a great deal. Speilberg continued…

It’s unclear just how long Steven Spielberg visited the Orca. I now have to wonder if he might have been sitting on the ship the first time I ever rode the Studio Tour. It’s heartbreaking to think that he might have been there, struggling with the emotional weight of the film that would ultimately start him on the path as one of the most successful directors of all time.

Eventually, the Orca on the Studio Tour deteriorated to the point that it needed to be removed. A replica now sits in its place. On my next trip through the Studio tour i'll be looking at that replica and thinking about the original boat. It turns out it held even more history than we knew.

Living with the Land is a favorite attraction at Epcot for a lot of people. It is also a unique attraction in that the boat ride has no restraint system, and no on-board Cast Member, meaning riders have to be on their best behavior. Unfortunately sometimes they are not, as guests showed in a TikTok that’s gone viral, revealing somebody getting out of the water.

Somebody Took A Swim On Living With The Land

According to the information in the post, it seems the rider dropped his phone into the water, and then, in an attempt to get it back, seemingly fell into the water himself. The video captures him getting out of the water and then racing back to get back on his boat.

This was, by any measure, an unwise move. And while I completely understand the panic that would ensue if I dropped my phone in Living With The Land, you just need to let it go and then inform a cast member when you get back to the loading area. Then buy rice.

This is far from the first time that we’ve seen anybody, intentionally or not, jump off Living with the Land. If this keeps up, we’re going to see restraints added to the ride, which would be frustrating as it would remove a lot of the relaxing vibe from a great attraction. But that’s not what really has me upset.

Please Do Not Damage The Living With The Land Greenhouse

What has me absolutely livid, probably more than is justified, is watching the guy kick up all that sand as he runs back to his boat. This is an act of vandalism on a pristine Greenhouse that otherwise looks perfect for every visitor because it’s designed to look that way.

As one commentator on the video points out, even guests doing the “Behind the Seeds” tour aren’t allowed to step on the sand because of the possibility of contaminants from their shoes negatively impacting the ecology of the space. Signs are telling you not to touch anything for just this reason.

Epcot has changed a lot over the years, but Living with the Land has been there since the Disney World park opened. While Test Track is about to open its third iteration, Living with the Land has remained largely unchanged for 40 years. It’s got a peaceful vibe that can’t be matched by Disney World’s popular thrill rides.

Many commenters assumed the guy was banned from Disney World for this little stunt, though it’s unclear if that happened. Based on comments in the video, it seems he was able to exit the attraction without attracting security, though Disney World does a pretty good job of keeping tabs on people throughout the park, so it’s possible he was picked up later.

Universal's Epic Universe is now open to the public, and whether you think it's a Disney World killer or not, there's no denying it's a great theme park once you visit. This is especially true if you're a longtime obsessive Nintendo fan like me, and just got to take your daughter to experience the wondrous Super Nintendo World in person.

I can confirm it's even more glorious than videos and photos do it justice, and I spent a whole day in the land riding rides, looking for popcorn buckets, and just having an absolute blast with my seven-year-old. That said, I think I also learned some keys to maximizing the experience, and I'm hoping to pass them along to others ahead of their trip so that they make the most out of their time in the park.

The Power-Up Band Is A Must

I'm a frugal guy, so when it comes to the "bells and whistles" of the theme park experience, I'm gonna pass more often than not. For example, I decided not to get the express pass for me and my daughter, but I'll get into that more in the next section.

Because I'm frugal, I also passed on the opportunity to get a Power-Up Band (against the advice of CB's Jessica Rawden) for myself, but I absolutely understood the reason for getting one for my daughter. Most of the appeal of the park is feeling like you're in an actual Super Mario Bros. video game, and unless you have the band, you're going to miss out on the appeal of that experience.

And trust me, I can understand the pain of paying for a Disney Magic Band that offers less functional value than an actual Magic Band, but all that goes out the window the first time you get to or see someone else hit a question block for a coin. It's a feeling that never gets old, and there are so many other neat things to do with it when you get inside. There's an "underground" experience where you traverse the underbelly of the Mushroom Kingdom, and use it to unlock cool easter eggs along the way.

Plus, if you're someone who enjoys achievements, the band collects digital stamps and rewards for all the various accolades you collect while spending time in the park. We weren't able to complete everything in a full day there, so there is a reason to hold onto it in case you return in the future. Additionally, I've seen the band also functions as an amiibo if you own a Nintendo Switch, so store it in a safe place if you do purchase.

You Can Do The Park Without An Express Pass, But If You Have Plans Elsewhere You Should Splurge

As I'm sure readers know, the Orlando experience is not cheap. A day at the hottest new theme park in the area, with a day at Magic Kingdom at Disney World the following day, was making my wallet weep. Not to mention, I already paid for the premier pass for Magic Kingdom, so I figured I could skimp on getting an Express Pass to ride the three rides at Super Nintendo World.

The original plan was to run through Super Nintendo World, check out some of the other parts of the park that others I work with raved about, and then get out by dinner time to meet up with family who didn't tag along. In the seven hours I was in the park, we spent all of it in Super Nintendo World, and a good deal of that time was spent waiting to ride Mario Kart: Bowser's Challenge, Yoshi's Adventure, and Mine Cart Madness.

If you're trying to see the whole park, I think the express pass is the way to go. I also say that if you're looking for comfort, because full disclosure, those lines can be long and rough on a summer day. I will say the full queue for Mario Kart: Bowser's Challenge is mostly indoors and air-conditioned, and full of easter eggs, so if you have to wait in line, it's so refreshing and fun to do so.

I wish I could say the same for Yoshi's Adventure, as outside of some artwork and music from Nintendo Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island, you could breeze through it and not miss much. I would say the same for Mine Cart Madness as well, as even the great soundtrack of Donkey Kong Country 1, 2, and 3 music was not enough to make up for having to be out in the blazing sun for a bulk of the wait. Bottom line, if you need comfort or are on a tight schedule, spend the extra money on the Express Pass.

Be Prepared For Things You Want To Be Unavailable

Going into Epic Universe, I had one objective in mind. I was going to leave with a souvenir Donkey Kong mug that came with a purchase of the DK Crush Float at The Bubbly Barrel. I dreamt of that mug for weeks, and all the things I might drink out of it. Hell, I was planning on splitting the float with my daughter while we waited in line for Donkey Kong: Mine-Cart Madness. By the way, that roller coaster is as incredible as it looks, though way more intense and scary for a seven-year-old than you might think by watching the videos of it online.

Unfortunately, when I arrived, The Bubbly Barrel's machine was not working. A bummer, to be sure, and on top of that, I was unable to purchase the souvenir cup without even getting the float in exchange. It's wild to say I would've actually done that, but considering I couldn't buy it in the gift shop, I was left with little other option than to ask.

It wasn't the only thing I was disappointed to leave without when I finished my day at Epic Universe. I also had my heart set on getting a Bowser shirt with a neon logo, but was unable to track it down when I ventured through the merchandise store. I ended up buying a Donkey Kong drinking glass, which I still really love, but couldn't help but be disappointed that I left with neither of the things I'd wanted.

All this to say, Super Nintendo World was absolutely filled to the brim with people when I was in there, and I don't imagine it'll be any less crowded anytime soon. There's only a limited amount of merchandise available, so I wouldn't suggest setting your heart on grabbing any one piece of anything until you're there and can assure you'll get your hands on it. Also, even when the machine is working, that line at The Bubbly Barrel is super long, so be prepared to wait if you want that mug like I did.

Overall, I'd have to say that Epic Universe was a real joy, though I do hope to see more of it overall the next time I get to visit. Be sure to check it out, and take heed of my tips about Super Nintendo World if you're looking to have the best time possible.

Of all the new attractions heading to Disney World in the coming months, I may be most excited about this parade. The floats we’ve seen under construction look incredible even before they’ve been lit up. The musical score that fans have been teased with is beautiful. However, this morning, Disney World revealed a few new details about the upcoming parade, and one of them has me really excited, because it turns out the parade will have a positive effect on Magic Kingdom's hours of operation.

Disney: Starlight Means Magic Kingdom Will Be Staying Open Later

Today, Disney World revealed that when Disney Starlight begins on July 20, it will run two times nightly, with one parade starting at 9:00 PM and a second getting underway at 11:00 PM. This second start time is particularly important, because it means that Magic Kingdom itself will remain open at least until then, a full hour later than the park is traditionally open.

If I have one significant gripe with Disney World parks, and really all the major Orlando theme parks, it’s that they close too early. With a normal close time of 10:00 PM, Magic Kingdom is actually one of the parks that stays open the latest, with the rest of the Disney World parks closing at 9:00 PM. Disney’s Animal Kingdom is currently closing as early as 6:00 PM. It's a travesty considering that Pandora: The World of Avatar is especially lovely at night, if you’re lucky enough to see it.

Disneyland Resort is Open Much Later Than Walt Disney World

Anybody who has spent any time at Disneyland Resort knows how nice staying open later can be. Disneyland Park regularly stays open until midnight, while also opening earlier than the Orlando parks usually do. You really can spend all day in the parks if you’re so inclined, and I usually do.

The fact that Magic Kingdom will be staying open later, starting July 20, and for the foreseeable future, is fantastic news. It means you can stop to watch the new parade during its early slot, and get that time back when the park remains open for another hour. And, if parades aren’t your thing, you just get more time for the stuff that you’d rather be doing. Parades are a great time to go on popular rides, as the long Disney World lines are usually shorter.

There are some caveats in the new schedule. Disney Starlight won't run at all on nights when Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween party is happening in the fall, and it's a safe bet the same will be true when Mickey's Very Merry Christmas party takes place during the holidays.

Disney Starlight has no confirmed end date; it will run for months and could conceivably run for years to come. Hopefully, this schedule will remain in place for as long as it runs, and Magic Kingdom closing at 11 PM will become the norm. If we’re lucky, the rest of the Disney World parks will follow suit and add an extra hour (or more). The more time one can spend inside a theme park, the better.

“Almost Spit Out My Coffee” Is One Way Of Reacting To This Disneyland Breakfast Bill

I have to hand it to John Tolkien, a.k.a. “@jrockandrollt,” the family man at the center of our story. Posting on X about his viral breakfast bill, you can see the full bill (with tip) and try not to scream "ECONOMY!" after. Take a look:

There is no judgment here for Mr. Tolkien, especially from a writer who wanted to surprise his wife by paying for her PopMart order a couple weekends ago… and didn’t know what he was getting himself into. Thankfully, that result wasn’t anywhere near almost $1k on breakfast, but game still recognizes game at the House of Mouse.

I’d bet A Goofy Movie Popcorn Bucket that some of you readers' jaws dropped like the Genie from Aladdin when seeing a breakfast of such a “healthy” price tag. But before we truly freak out, perhaps we should take a look at what a “Princess Breakfast” entails, and break down those costs a little more.

Disneyland’s Princess Breakfast Isn’t Cheap, But It Also Looks Pretty Spruce

Let’s get down to brass tacks, shall we? Per the official listing for Disneyland’s Princess Breakfast, the entry cost per person (minus tax and gratuity) is $142 per person. Now if we’re talking Mickey Mouse Dollars here, that could cover most, if not all, of the cost for a ticket to Mickey’s Not-So-Scary Halloween Party. Per Tolkien on X, that total accounted for two kids and three adults.

So on pricing alone, I’d be out faster than a Shark Tank investor being pitched drinkable air. However, if you take into consideration that this is a Disney Princess meetup with a three-course breakfast, it might not seem as bad. If you’re curious about what the dad had for his main course, John Tolkien shared a snapshot of that deliciousness as well:

As someone who enjoyed the comforts of a steak-based Disney breakfast while visiting the Tron Lightcycle/Run, Mickey and company don’t skimp on the beef. But weighing a character breakfast with getting premiere access to rides and special events feels like a no-brainer – especially with Disney’s insane line times continuing to be an issue.

In the end, I have a lot of sympathy for this Disney Dad. He may have missed the price tag, but he isn’t complaining about the experience, and he did it for one very important reason: to give his family a fun time. So long as any park visitor can justify the spend to their budget, and walk away with memories that have them smiling, can it really be that bad? No matter how you answer that question, just do not ask your wallet.

10 total houses are coming to Florida, with eight set for California, not to mention numerous other spooky attractions and ghoulish entertainment. There's a lot planned for Halloween Horror Nights 2025! Here's everything we know about the event so far, along with the juiciest rumors.

Confirmed Universal Studios Florida Houses

Universal Studios Florida remains the marquee location for Halloween Horror Nights. With 10 houses to fill alongside numerous scary zones and other attractions, bigger is sometimes better. Here’s what we know about USF’s event this year.

Terrifier

The Terrifier franchise has become one of the most popular modern horror franchises, which makes its inclusion in Halloween Horror Nights not that shocking. What does make its inclusion surprising is that Terrifier is known for being one of the most gory and gross horror franchises, meaning fans may be in for one of the most visually terrifying houses ever.

Fallout

The first announcement of the year is usually the most exciting, and this year was certainly no exception. Fallout was an incredibly popular video game franchise for decades before becoming a hit streaming series (available with a Prime Video subscription). Now, the Fallout series has inspired an HHN house, and though it isn’t necessarily viewed as a straightforward horror franchise, the post-apocalypse certainly has its moments of gnarly gore and freaky characters. No matter how scary it is, fans of the franchise will be excited to visit the Wasteland.

Jason Un1v3rse

Horror movie slashers are a staple of Halloween Horror Nights, and it’s rare that we don’t have a year without the likes of Leatherface or Michael Myers. This year (on Friday the 13th, 2025, no less), the company revealed that Jason Voorhees would be making his return to HHN. Jason Universe, or Jason Un1v3rse as it’s being stylized, will take guests to Camp Crystal Lake, where rather than simply seeing a single Jason story unfold, we’ll get some of the best moments from the entire Friday the 13th franchise.

El Artista: A Spanish Haunting

The first original house announced for Orlando will be set in a country manor in 19th-century Spain. It will tell the story of a tortured artist who moves into the house to discover art that comes to life and possesses him. By the end, he will likely be a truly tortured artist.

Hatchet And Chains: Demon Bounty Hunters

Last year's HHN featured the house Slaughter Cinema 2, which included a fictional B-movie about demon bounty hunters. Now, fans who wish that movie were real will get their chance to go inside it as Hatchet and Chains: Demon Bounty Hunters is now a house all its own.

Dolls: Let's Play Dead

Plenty of horror movies have shown just how creepy dolls can be, and that's when they're small. In Dolls: Let's Play Dead, the guests become the size of dolls and are hunted by tortured toys.

Grave Of Flesh

Most HHN houses try to kill you. In Grave of Flesh, it seems the story is that you're already dead. Unfortunately, the worst isn't over, as you're now in the underworld and being hunted by all manner of unspeakable creatures.

Galkn: Monsters Of The North

One of the great things HHN does is find scary monsters from other cultures and introduce them through houses. Galkn: Monsters of the North takes an old Norse monster you've probably never heard of, and makes you wish you still hadn't.

Five Nights At Freddy’s

Five Nights at Freddy’s is a franchise that fans have wanted to see at Halloween Horror Nights for a long time, and with the upcoming Five Nights at Freddy’s 2 movie hitting theaters this Halloween season, now is as good a time as any. While the fact that something FNAF related was coming to HHN this year was announced early on, it was only recently that a full house was confirmed.

WWE Presents: The Horrors of The Wyatt Sicks

Potentially the most intriguing house of the year will see Universal partner with WWE to bring its horror-themed family of freaks, The Wyatt Sicks, to Halloween Horror Nights. The house will feature the current cast of terrifying weirdos but will also honor the legacy of Bray Wyatt, the man who started the Wyatt Family, and will include his alter ego, The Fiend, the first time the character has been used since the death of Bray Wyatt.

Confirmed Universal Studios Hollywood Houses

Universal Studios Hollywood isn’t as big as the park in Florida, so its HHN event doesn’t quite measure up. That said, USH traditionally gets eight houses, with several exclusive to the California park to make up for the smaller number. On top of that, this is the only place to get the Terror Tram, which is always a highlight. Here’s what we know about HHN at USH in 2025.

Terrifier

The Terrifier franchise will come to HHN in Hollywood as well as Florida. Elements from all over the franchise, including Art the Clown's Funhouse and a terrifying Christmas area, will both appear.

Fallout

Fallout is traditionally set on the West Coast, so it’s only right that the Fallout HHN house has a home in California as well as Florida. The story of Lucy McLean and the Ghoul will be highlighted here, along with all the RAD roaches and Deathclaws the Wasteland has to offer.

Jason Un1v3rse

Jason Voorhees will terrorize campers on both coasts when the Jason Universe HHN house opens at Universal Hollywood. It will be interesting to see how similar the two houses are. Even when HHN places the same house at both parks, they aren’t always exact replicas. Back when The Last of Us came to HHN, it was felt by many that the Hollywood version was noticeably better than Florida's. And since Jason Universe will be pulling from the entire Friday the 13th franchise, it’s at least possible that each house could get full set pieces from entirely different movies.

Monstruos 3: The Ghosts Of Latin America

The first Monstruos HHN house back in 2023 was a massive hit and widely regarded as the best house at Universal Studios Hollywood that year. Last year, that house made its way to Orlando, while a sequel house appeared in California. Now, the trilogy will be completed with three terrifying monsters, La Llorona, La Muelona, and La Siguanaba.

Five Nights At Freddy’s

The Five Nights at Freddy’s house confirmed at Universal Studios Florida is also happening at Universal Studios Hollywood. One thing that's unclear at this point is if the houses will take their inspiration primarily from the newer films or the video games the movies are based on.

Scarecrow: Music By Slash

Guns 'N' Roses guitarist Slash has partnered with Halloween Horror Nights to provide original music for the last six years in a row and 2025 will be no different. This year his full score will back a story of mother nature wreaking vengeance on homesteads via terrifying scarecrows.

WWE Presents: The Horrors of The Wyatt Sicks

The Wyatt Sicks will be coming to Universal Studios Hollywood as well as Florida. WWE fans who are also theme park fans, and there are a lot of those people, are sure to love this one. If the house is done well, knowledge of professional wrestling should not be required.

Final House?

One house remains to be officially announced for Universal Studios Hollywood's Halloween Horror Nights. If it were any of the already announced houses in Florida, the announcement would likely have already come. This means whatever is left will be something you'll only be able to experience at the California event.

Terror Tram (Theme Unknown)

Of all the HHN activities at Universal Studios Hollywood, the one that no other park, including other Universal parks, can ever hope to imitate is the Terror Tram. This is where the iconic Universal Studios Backlot Tour is transformed into a horror experience. We know the Terror Tram will be back, but its theme this year is still a mystery. Last year saw multiple Blumhouse IPs come together, and the current rumor is we could get an updated version of that idea.

There's a lot more left to be revealed for Halloween Horror Nights in 2025, so be sure to check back in here as more details emerge from the darkness.

We recently saw what one of the ride vehicles on the coaster will look like, as Universal unveiled a coaster version of Dominic Toretto’s iconic Dodge Charger. However, as an eagle-eyed fan pointed out on social media, that apparently won’t be the only Fast & Furious muscle cars to make an appearance, as the vehicles in the simulation video are also versions of cars driven by your favorite Fast & Furious characters.

One of the vehicles in the still appears to be misidentified, as it’s not Dom’s RX7 that is seen in the first Fast & Furious film, but actually Han’s RX7 that was featured in his debut appearance in Fast & Furious: Tokyo Drift. Still, it’s pretty cool that whatever car you end up in, you’ll be riding in something that raced through the streets of a Fast & Furious movie, as you race down the roller coaster track.

It should be said that the Fast & Furious: Hollywood Drift video is only a simulated look at the ride, and as such, it’s not confirmed that all the ride vehicles will look exactly like they do in the video. The only ride vehicle that has been officially unveiled is the Charger. Still, it’s likely that these vehicles either are or were the plan for the coaster design, and if anything changes, it will likely be replaced by another Fast & Furious car fans know and love.

This is great for a number of reasons. The most in-demand spot on any roller coaster is the front. That’s not likely to change here, both because the front of a coaster is always more fun, and because the front vehicle will be the most famous car in the Fast & Furious franchise. However, there will be other fans who will want to ride in another specific vehicle, like maybe Brian’s Skyline, or who simply want to ride in all the cars throughout multiple rides. It makes each vehicle worth riding, though there will surely still be a much longer line for the front seat.

Hollywood Drift will be Universal Studios Hollywood’s first outdoor roller coaster. It will be a truly unique experience, using state-of-the-art technology, a creative use of the space at the park, and a franchise that is so tailor-made for a roller coaster, it’s still hard to imagine it’s only just happening now. The ride is expected to open in the late spring or early summer of 2026.

Getting to go on a ride in “B-mode,” when parts of an attraction that are not vital to operation are not functioning, is just annoying as hell. You end up in a weird in-between place where you get to have the experience, but still don’t get the full experience. At Universal Studios Florida, one of my favorite attractions, CineSational: Symphonic Spectacular, has been running in its own version of B-mode for months, as the drones have been missing from the show, but as of last night, CineSational is sensational once again.

Universal Senior Director Michael Aiello posted the final moments of last night's CineSational show with the words “We’re Back” as drones formed the Universal Pictures logo. Last night’s show was the first time drones have been part of CineSational since December. An accident at a non-Universal drone show in Florida seemingly gave the resort pause on using drones themselves, but it appears everything is back to normal.

I honestly feel bad for anybody who saw CineSational any time between the end of December 2024 and earlier this week. CineSational is a fantastic nighttime show that combines music, water effects, fireworks, projection mapping, and drones, and without any one of those elements, the show is simply not the same.

Drones have become a popular addition to nighttime shows at several theme parks. Walt Disney World ran a brief drone show at Downtown Disney last year, but it is no longer running, making Universal's the only one of its kind.

It’s the way those elements come together that makes CineSational truly special. I’m still wowed by the way the show recreates Back to the Future by using a projection-mapped image of the clock tower, a collection of drones that take the shape of the bolt of lightning, and then have the clock tower explode with fireworks. That sequence just isn’t as magical without the drones.

There are probably a lot more people visiting Universal Orlando Resort right now compared to last summer, thanks to the opening of Epic Universe. I’m glad the crowds arriving will get the full CineSational experience. Even with all the rides at Epic Universe, CineSational is still one of the top attractions at the entire resort, but only when you get to experience all of it.

It’s a fantastic new addition to the streaming service, as it gives fans the ability to get that little taste of Disneyland even when they’re at home. At the time, given the fact that “Disney Parks POV” had its own logo, I wondered if that might mean more walkthrough experiences would be released. Well, there’s some really good news on that front, because a lot of new walkthroughs are on the way -- though I do still have a question.

Disney+ Is Celebrating Disneyland’s 70th Anniversary In A Big Way

July 17, 2025, will mark the 70th anniversary of the opening day of Disneyland, and Disney+ will celebrate the occasion by dropping 16 different POV walkthroughs of different Disneyland Resort experiences to the streaming service. They will include some of the resort’s biggest rides, like Pirates of the Caribbean and Haunted Mansion as well as some absolute vibes like Main Street U.S.A. The complete list includes:

• Pirates of the Caribbean
• Indiana Jones Adventure
• Radiator Springs Racers
• Incredicoaster
• Haunted Mansion
• Tiana's Bayou Adventure
• Cars Land
• Pixar Pal-A-Round
• Big Thunder Mountain Railroad
• Jungle Cruise
• Soarin' Around the World
• Avengers Campus
• Hollywood Land
• Main Street, U.S.A.
• Mickey's ToonTown
• 70th Celebration Nighttime Spectaculars

There is some great stuff here, including 70th Celebration Nighttime Spectaculars. Considering the inclusions of those events, it means fans could get the Wonderous Journeys fireworks show, the new World of Color: Happy show, the show-stealing Tapestry of Happiness, and the iconic Paint the Night parade all available to watch on Disney+ whenever we want. Those alone make paying for a monthly subscription worth it, in my eyes.

However, I have one big question, because one of these new additions is causing me to break out in a cold sweat.

Just Which Version Of The Pixar Pal-A-Round Is Being Released?

The complete list of walkthroughs headed to Disney+ is basically a compilation of Disneyland Resort's greatest hits. Pirates of the Caribbean, Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, Soarin' Around the World, and Jungle Cruise are all incredible, and I'll be running them as background music to my life as soon as I can.

The Pixar Pal-A-Round, however, is an odd inclusion. It’s a massive Ferris wheel found at Disney California Adventure, so it's something of a park staple. However, I need to know which version of the ride we’re going to get, Swinging Gondolas or Non-Swinging Gondolas?

If you have never had the displeasure, I am here to tell you that the Swinging Gondolas of the Pixar Pal-A-Round is the worst ride at Disney California Adventure. The gondolas swing back and forth as the Ferris wheel goes around, but there’s no restraint or handle on the inside, meaning guests have a tendency to swing wildly. People have even had panic attacks on the ride. It’s awful.

So, should we get a video of the swinging gondolas from a POV perspective, people with motion sickness issues could likely throw up in their living rooms.

To be fair, the Non-Swinging Gondolas are a much more peaceful ride, and riders do get some nice views of Disney California Adventure from the top of the Ferris wheel. I’m guessing that’s what we’ll get when these walkthroughs hit Disney+ on July 17. At least, I really hope so.

Universal Studios Japan just debuted a brand-new popcorn bucket for its Super Nintendo World. It’s a “Bob-omb,” the anthropomorphic explosive device from the Mario games that looks like the classic cartoon version of a bomb, that might raise a few eyebrows when trying to get it through airport security.

I mean, I have no idea what airport security would think if they saw this go through an X-ray machine. It might only scan as a hollow piece of plastic, but if anybody gave it a serious look, I can imagine some security officials having questions. It doesn’t look like a “real” weapon, but certainly the TSA could still take issue with it based on how other people might perceive it if they saw it. If the TSA can take issue with "thermal detonator" Coke bottles, then a "bomb"-shaped popcorn bucket is absolutely fair game.

As somebody who was mildly worried I might have an issue when I brought my Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge lightsaber through airport security, I honestly might get nervous trying to transport this. Of course, if I was too nervous, that might be when security would get concerned.

This may be one of the best popcorn buckets ever devised. First off, it looks perfect as a “real” version of the Bomb-omb, which was introduced in Super Mario Bros. 2. However, it’s also functional, as it makes for a simple receptacle for popcorn, and is even round, which is going to make cleaning the thing a lot easier.

The only problem with the Bob-omb bucket is that right now, it’s only available at Universal Studios Japan. That park had the first Super Nintendo World, so it’s not surprising that it debuted the bucket. That said, we now have two Super Nintendo Worlds in the U.S.: a small one at Universal Studios Hollywood and a much larger version at the brand-new Epic Universe park at Universal Orlando Resort. One imagines that if the popcorn bucket proves popular, the design will make its way stateside.

Currently, the only popcorn bucket available at Super Nintendo World on either coast is themed to Mario Kart. While it looks cool, I would buy the Bob-omb bucket in a second, even if I were going to have some explaining to do to get it home.

This morning, Disney World announced that the reimagined Test Track will reopen on July 22. When that happens, the ride that’s been around for over 25 years will debut its third unique design. We got our best look yet at what the actual new ride will look like in a pair of videos, and I have to say, I like what I see so far.

This looks really cool. A visualization of modern safety technology in your car looks particularly sweet lit up like this. We see a recreation of a normal-looking street transform into thousands of light nodes; it’s all quite impressive.

A lot of Disney World fans were actually excited that Test Track was closing to be reimagined. That's because a lot of people didn’t love the second iteration of the ride. However, I honestly didn’t mind Test Track 2.0 all that much due to the fact that I wasn’t that big a Test Track 1.0 the first time around.

The original Test Track from 1999 was a simulation of automobile testing. With that, guests took on the role of crash test dummies on a course designed to test an automobile’s capabilities. This included putting the ride vehicle through tight turns, sudden stops and a high-speed thrill section.

The second version of Test Track, which debuted in 2012, was more focused on automobile design. Guests were given a chance to design their own vehicle in the queue, and that machine was then put through various capability tests on the track. The new ride mostly took place in the dark and had a simulation feel similar to Tron (though without the Daft Punk soundtrack).

As somebody who didn’t love the first two versions of Test Track, I honestly hadn’t been concerned with the new version all that much, but I’m enjoying what I’m seeing so far. In addition to the cool lights, another video posted to Instagram shows how the ride will focus on the “pleasure of driving,” including recreating outdoor environments inside the ride.

Ok, Test Track, you got me. I’m now officially excited for the reopening on July 22. Epcot has always been my favorite park at Walt Disney World, and now it looks like it may actually get even better. Here's hoping this refurbished ride proves to be as exciting as it appears to be.