Avatar Experience Coming to Disneyland
Disney CEO Bob Iger announced that Avatar is coming to Disneyland Resort. This post shares everything we know so far (which is not very much) plus commentary and rampant speculation about what this could mean. (Updated April 3, 2024.)
The original announcement came during a Walt Disney Company earnings call. During that, Bob Iger reported that Walt Disney World, Disneyland, and Disney Cruise Line did particularly well, with Disney Parks, Experiences and Products revenues for the quarter increasing 21% to $8.7 billion.
Iger went on to say that he’s “very, very bullish” on the future of Disney’s theme parks. “We have learned that when we invest in increasing capacity, with Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge being a good example of that and Pandora a great example of that, we can grow our business,” he continued. Iger indicated that if you look at the results when Pandora – The World of Avatar was built in Disney’s Animal Kingdom, the year-to-year growth numbers in terms of the number of people who visited were “stunning.”
With regard to the new Avatar experience coming to Disneyland, here’s what Iger had to say:
James Cameron’s Avatar: The Way of Water, which will be one of the most successful films of the quarter, became the fourth biggest film of all time globally with close to $2.2 billion earned in the box office to date. The global polarity of this film will result in the creation of more opportunities for fans to engage with the franchise.
They have been doing well at Walt Disney World’s Pandora: World of Avatar, as well as in theaters globally and on Disney+, the first film is delivering very strong numbers. Today I am thrilled to announce that we will be bringing an exciting Avatar experience to Disneyland. We will be sharing more details on that very soon.
Avatar represents yet another core franchise for the company and as you have seen, time and time again, we have a unique way of leveraging creative success.
Since this, Bob Iger and other Disney Parks leaders have repeatedly mentioned an Avatar addition coming to Disneyland Resort. They have almost always referred to it as an Avatar “experience” and not once as an attraction or land. This may seem like a distinction without a difference, but in Disney vernacular, it’s crucial.
April 3, 2024 Update: During the Walt Disney Company’s Annual Meeting of Shareholders ‘sizzle reel,’ CEO Bob Iger shared the above first look at concept art of the Avatar experience that’s possibly coming to Disneyland Resort.
“We’re thrilled about many potential new stories that our guests could experience at Walt’s original theme park, including the opportunity to embark on all-new Avatar adventures with a visit to the world of Pandora,” Iger said. “Our Imagineers have been hard at work dreaming up what guests might expect.”
This art suggests that the Avatar experience is actually a Pandora land (which Iger let slip last month), and will feature a boat ride along with immersive environments that are similar to and different from the incarnation of the land in Animal Kingdom at Walt Disney World. Which makes sense given Disneyland’s unique space constraints and the release of additional film(s) since the Animal Kingdom incarnation of the project. With that said, this is still an early concept exploration and only one angle of the land/experience.
During this same parks segment, Bob Iger also addressed DisneylandForward and indicated that it’s in the final phase of approval and will go before the full Anaheim City Council later this month. The DisneylandForward proposal was approved by the city’s planning commission last month by a 5-1 vote, and now is almost certain to receive a rubber stamping by the full Anaheim City Council. We’ve commented in the past that DisneylandForward’s approval is a necessary prerequisite to Disney revealing full details about the Avatar experience (see commentary below). Simply sharing this art suggests that Disney is confident the proposal will be approved.
Nevertheless, Iger used some wiggle words to preface the showcasing of the concept art (we didn’t catch them all, but he did call this a “creative inspiration” for the land, which seems noteworthy). We assume a press release is incoming to clarify what, exactly, this concept art represents and more. This is a developing story, so stay tuned!
For now, what follows are previous updates from March and earlier about this ever-evolving story of an Avatar experience coming to Disneyland Resort…
March was another month that brought another substance-less tease about the Avatar experience at Disneyland Resort of 2024. Speaking today during the Morgan Stanley Technology, Media & Telecom Conference, Disney CEO Bob Iger had this to say:
“We have one Avatar-based land, Pandora, in Florida. We’re going to put a second one in California. That doesn’t mean we can’t put one somewhere in Asia or somewhere in Europe, for instance.”
It should go without saying, but the second one in California would be at Disneyland Resort. The theoretical lands in Asia would be at Shanghai Disneyland or Hong Kong Disneyland (not Tokyo Disney Resort) and the one in Europe would be at Disneyland Paris. I would be shocked if Pandora is cloned internationally, but then again, I never thought it’d be cloned domestically. What’s that old saying? Never bet against James Cameron.
The big news here is that Bob Iger has switched from calling it an Avatar experience to an Avatar land. The two terms have very different meanings in theme park vernacular and, as discussed below, Iger is careful with his words and knows the difference. So if he’s calling it a land, it means that the concept has ‘evolved’ to that and it is what’s currently being planned.
However, with how Disney has been doing things lately, this is not cause for excitement just yet. The company has made a lot of ‘non-announcement announcements’ in the last few years. They’ve talked a big game about what they might be planning on doing, shared blue sky daydreaming sessions, and concept art for potential expansions. Thus far, none of that has come to fruition–or even started construction. So this could be more of the same.
Another possibility is that this is all contingent upon DisneylandForward. We strongly suspect that the last D23 Expo and Destination D23 were light on announcements for Disneyland because the company was withholding its plans as a bargaining chip with the Anaheim City Council over the DisneylandForward land use proposal, wanting to force the city’s hand a bit and give residents more of a reason to support that initiative.
There still isn’t really any “there there” to DisneylandForward, but at least Disney has now committed $2 billion to theme park expansion if DisneylandForward is approved. That’s not nothing! Our semi-educated guess is that Imagineering is now working on two parallel Pandora projects–one if DisneylandForward is approved, and another if it isn’t. The land version only happens if DisneylandForward is approved. There’s no space for the full land if it isn’t. In which case, it will be an Avatar experience.
We also know that Avatar producer Jon Landau, who was also heavily involved with Pandora at Walt Disney World, has been collaborating with Imagineering once again. Earlier in 2024, Landau shared the above photo on Instagram with the caption: “Had a great day at Walt Disney Imagineering talking about the future.”
Prior to that, the last update on the Avatar experience came late last year during the International Association of Amusement Parks and Attractions (IAAPA) Expo. An Imagineer remarked offhand that the Avatar experience coming to Disneyland Resort will be at Disney California Adventure.
However, this was quickly ‘corrected’ by a representative from Disney, who stated that no announcement about a location for the Avatar experience had been made on behalf of Disneyland Resort. Meaning that whatever was said (or wasn’t) was not an official announcement. Again, my guess is that there are two parallel Pandora projects, and which one happens depends upon DisneylandForward.
While there are other possibilities for where the Avatar experience could go at Disneyland Resort (see commentary below), the odds-on favorite is Disney California Adventure. Last summer, the company cleared out Stage 17 in Hollywood Land, which is an enormous venue in a part of the park that really needs new life injected into it.
This would be for the version of the project that is not the full land–the fallback option should DisneylandForward fail. Stage 17 offers sufficient space for an interactive and immersive environmental exploration, like Avatar: The Experience in Singapore. Disney has been exploring experiential exhibits, and looking for the right vehicle for its own way of entering that niche.
If it’s not the full Pandora: World of Avatar land, our strong suspicion is that the Avatar experience coming to Disneyland Resort is an adaptation of Avatar: The Experience from Singapore (it’s right in the name). If not and it’s going to be something more, the Hollywood Backlot and its sound stages offer the most viable location for whatever this is going to be.
Basically, our bet is that an Imagineer accidentally let slip that the Avatar experience is going to be in DCA, forgetting that the company hadn’t already revealed as much. Wanting to make a splashy announcement, Disney walked that back with the caveat that whatever was said was not said on behalf of the Disneyland Resort. Phew.
Prior to this, an article by D23 offered Avatar actor reactions to the announcement, with most offering what I can only assume is feigned excitement for the addition at Disneyland Resort. Here’s a representative quote from Bailey Bass, who plays Metkayina clan member Tsireya in the film: “I am over the moon about the Avatar expansion to Disneyland [Resort]! As a huge Disney fan and fan of the Avatar rides in [Walt] Disney World, I am so excited for Avatar fans to be able to experience the world of Pandora at Disneyland. I cannot wait to see what the Avatar and Disney team creates. I already know it’s gonna be awe-inspiring, jaw dropping, and magical.”
The rest are more or less the same idea. The D23 piece goes on to indicate that although specifics about the Avatar experience remain under wraps, it “promises to be as amazing as those found at Walt Disney World Resort.” The article also quotes James Cameron, who said he was “thrilled to talk with Bob Iger about additional opportunities for people to step into the wondrous world of Pandora.”
Added Jon Landau, partner and COO of Lightstorm Entertainment and producer of the Avatar films, “Together with Disney’s Imagineers, and with future Avatar films already in production, we’re excited about where we might be able take future guests.”
Some Disney fans have seized on the line that the Avatar experience at Disneyland will be “as amazing” as the one at Walt Disney World, concluding that this means it’ll be Pandora. We’d stop well short of that.
Read in full, this article is clearly a puff piece, meant to generate excitement among fans without actually saying anything. There’s nothing necessarily wrong with it–D23 is a fan club and its role is maintaining momentum among Disney enthusiasts. This is in furtherance of that. Saying, “you might want to temper your excitement, because this is not going to be as good as Pandora at Animal Kingdom” would not serve that purpose and would be at odds with the article as a whole.
What’s more noteworthy, in my view, are the stealth edits that were done to the article. Originally, the article headline said “Pandora Coming to Disneyland Resort.” That was updated to “Avatar Experience Coming to Disneyland Resort.” Likewise, at least one actor quote was changed from mentioning Disneyland to “Disneyland [Resort].” The insistence on using “Disneyland Resort” could be a weird vernacular thing, or it could be deliberate–because this Avatar experience is not coming to Disneyland [Park].
Even more interesting than this article is what happened in the “background” at the same time. Disney announced that Bruce Vaughn is returning to co-lead Imagineering. Vaughn was the co-head of Imagineering during development of the original Pandora – World of Avatar, and could be returning for his project management expertise on that.
What follows is our original commentary about the Avatar experience coming to Disneyland…
Before getting too excited, it’s important to note that during the earnings call Bob Iger was very deliberate in calling this a new Avatar experience coming to Disneyland Resort. Not a new Avatar attraction or Pandora – The World of Avatar, and not coming to Disneyland Park.
As we’ve pointed out countless times in the past, Iger is a master wordsmith who is great at sticking to the script, and also is cognizant of what different terms mean. (For example, he got the name of “Pandora – The World of Avatar” correct, rather than calling it “Avatar Land” or “The Theme Park in Florida With Blue Alien Sex Cats By Jimmy C.”)
If this were Chapek, we wouldn’t be parsing words–he wasn’t as on-message and fumbled with words all the time. In Chapek-speak, “Avatar Experience” could mean everything from a new blue churro to an entire 3rd gate.
However, since this is Bob Iger, our guess is that ‘experience’ was chosen purposefully because this is not a new attraction or land, but rather, something else. What is anyone’s guess. It could be a new Meta Quest VR game in Downtown Disney, an overlay of the Boudin Bakery Tour, walkaround mech suit dude in Pixar Pier, or build-a-banshee shop.
Obviously, some of these possibilities are jokes. While an Avatar Experience (like a Meta Quest VR game) replacing the old ESPN Zone in Downtown Disney makes a ton of sense, even that feels a bit on the small side to tease on an earnings call–and Bob Iger ended up mentioning this Avatar Experience twice. Once at the beginning of the call in the quoted part above, and again while answering an analyst’s question at the end.
Given that and the consequential nature of this call as Iger’s first back as CEO–one detailing cost-cutting, restructuring, and his big ambitions for the future–it seems unlikely that Iger would’ve drawn attention to an addition to Disneyland Resort unless it’s something of consequence.
That’s doubly true given how well Avatar: The Way of Water has performed and James Cameron’s reputation as a demanding perfectionist. I don’t think he’d be particularly satisfied with an Avatar-themed bread tour. With that said, I’m struggling to come up with other ways Avatar could fit into the existing theme parks and lands at Disneyland Resort. Perhaps a nighttime spectacular or projection show?
Maybe a reimagining of Hollywood Land that successfully shoe horns Avatar in without making it the fully-fledged (and thematically incongruous) Pandora – World of Avatar? There are currently several empty buildings in the backlot, and these could be converted into Avatar experiences to increase capacity. (One of the stated goals of Iger and D’Amaro, per the earnings call.)
If the intention is quickly increasing park capacity, similar possibilities involve utilizing existing spaces. Another prime piece of real estate is the Innoventions building in Tomorrowland. That is essentially flex space, and although it has a DVC lounge, that only takes up a small portion of the building.
One potential issue with all of these concepts is getting James Cameron on board. Again, he’s a perfectionist. Longtime fans might recall that there were considerable delays between the announcement of Pandora – World of Avatar for Walt Disney World, and commencement of construction.
The rumors at the time suggested that Cameron and his insistence on high-quality attractions played a role. It’s thus difficult to see him getting on board with using ugly, abandoned buildings as a showcase for the Avatar franchise. Who knows, though. Imagineering’s R&D lab has a lot of cool concepts, and if they could reskin one of those to be the Na’vi, maybe that would work.
One out of left field reimagining idea that I really like is an overlay of Grizzly Peak. Well, I don’t actually like the idea–I love Grizzly Peak and don’t want to see this happen–but I think it makes sense and is a viable overlay.
Modeled after Northern California’s National Parks, this area is largely forest and is enough of a blank slate that the Na’vi could be weaved into Grizzly Peak relatively easily. Soarin’ could be redone to have an Avatar-based film (although the idea of the attractions is similar, it could not be the same as Flight of Passage) and Grizzly River Run could have Na’vi Audio Animatronics and other stuff added.
It’s a highly imperfect solution, but it seems the most sensible out of the available options if Imagineering is going to embark on a permanent reimagining. Disney California Adventure is now essentially a ‘studio park’ second gate anyway, so a forest of Pandora theme would likely be deemed close enough.
Accordingly, it is also possible that this is a new themed land or attraction that expands one of the existing parks. We don’t want to foreclose that possibility based on semantics. After all, Bob Iger did bet big on Avatar – The World of Avatar several years ago and he was also behind the acquisition of 20th Century Fox. Moreover, based on his social media posts, it seems like Iger has a personal affinity for Avatar and James Cameron.
Avatar: The Way of Water is a rousing success, with James Cameron (yet again) proving his haters wrong while filmgoers soil themselves in delight while enjoying the sequel. With a half-dozen or so sequels already announced, it seems like Avatar is a bona fide franchise that is strategically important to Disney in the long term. While the media continues to hammer on (and be wrong about) Avatar’s lack of cultural impact, the movies have been huge hits that’ll continue to rake in billions at the box office.
If this “Avatar Experience” coming to Disneyland Resort is a new attraction or land, it would make sense for this expansion to occur at Disney California Adventure. We doubt that the remaining expansion areas in Disneyland are sufficiently large for an Avatar area or attraction.
Another possibility is that an Avatar area could be part of the actual plan for DisneylandForward. The possibilities of DisneylandForward are really exciting. However, it’s really all about paving the way for future developments of an uncertain nature by giving Disney more autonomy over land use by relaxing the DRSP. Up until now, Disney has essentially been saying, “give us authority to build whatever we want, then we’ll tell you what, if anything, we’re going to build.”
Attaching concrete plans for Pandora – The World of Avatar to a new gate might make DisneylandForward more compelling, and increase the likelihood of its approval. That seems pretty far-fetched, but there aren’t a ton of other great/interesting options, and that would give DisneylandForward momentum.
Ultimately, it’ll be interesting to see how this plays out. Based on their recent public statements and interviews, it’s pretty obvious that CEO Bob Iger and Parks Chairman Josh D’Amaro have big plans for future development at the domestic parks. This is something we cover at length in Bob Iger Wants to Build Big Expansions at Walt Disney World and Disneyland. It’s pretty clear that major things are on the horizon. The questions are what and where, and it would seem that “Avatar” and “Disneyland Resort” are two of the vague answers.
I’ve gotta admit, I was initially skeptical that this would amount to an actual addition of substance (or permanence), but I’m becoming increasingly convinced that’s the case. I wouldn’t be the least bit surprised if whatever happens occurs in phases, with a temporary “experience” leading up to the debut of a large-scale land, with both being announced simultaneously at the 2024 D23 Expo in Anaheim. We’ll continue monitoring this developing story and provide updates and analysis as more details are revealed, so stay tuned!
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Your Thoughts
What do you think of Disneyland Resort getting an Avatar Experience? What form do you expect this ‘experience’ to take? Think it’ll be an attraction, clone of Pandora – The World of Avatar, Boudin Bakery Bread Tour overlay, or something else entirely? Do you agree or disagree with our assessment? Any questions? Hearing your feedback—even when you disagree with us—is both interesting to us and helpful to other readers, so please share your thoughts below in the comments!
I bet $1 that it’s going to be “The Avatar Experience” walkthrough that is currently in Singapore through June. https://avatartheexperience.com/
I wish that they would put a pandora in disneyland because more people can afford to go to disneyland than disney world.but that is there decision but would that be better for the people?but whatever it is the people will love it
Autotopia and the sub ride already have water and have a lot of land to use
I would like to see a Tron ride in Tomorrowland or the parking lot behind Carsland instead of Avitar. Shanghai and WDW both get Tron and Anaheim never gets the good stuff. Tron is a fantastic ride.
Terrible idea!!! I just visited the Avatar area at DWAK and was not impressed. Rides are just meh and same goes for the movies.
There’s a new show coming to the Hyperion Theater. Maybe it’s Avatar-themed.
Yeah…The Smurfs!
I heard it’s actually “Hercules” to tie in with the live action movie version.
Aren’t they actually casting for a new show in DCA ? Could it be an Avatar musical in the Hyperion ?
I just hope they don’t duplicate the rides they have in Flordia AK. I just feel like it’s the easy way out to duplicate a ride that is in the same country. At least “plus”/”alter” them so they are a little different from each other. While I really like Avatar land, especially at night, I’m just so so on the rides. The river ride is way too short. I’m wondering if they will take out Autopia and take over the Innoventions/Mission to Mars building. So much of Tomorrowland is not used. Maybe an interactive show at the theater that is by IASW? I just really wish we could get something new and fresh. I would love to have a couple of rides that encompassed each other. Looking at you Indiana Jones and the Lost Expedition.
They could use the old Muppets 3-D theater for an experience.
Hell, re-theming Splash to this would’ve been better and make a LOT more sense than something for Tiana in a non-existent mountain in the bayou state. Still dumb to ruin Splash though, period.
I haven’t seen the second movie, so I cannot comment on it. But speaking of James Cameron, have you seen Future Man series? Some really funny stuff…
Tom, I read an article a few minutes ago that referenced a follow-up question on the after-hours analyst call that implied that Iger confirmed that this new “experience” would not be replacing existing capacity. I read that as a sign that this would not result in a Grizzy Mtn overlay, for example. I guess it could replace the Innoventions building since nothing is happening there currently, but I wonder if a whole new land/attraction is gaining traction based on that statement? I don’t know why he would be discussing it so much in a very public earnings call, then answering follow-up questions on it unless it is relatively big. But then, I could be completely wrong. I would be disappointed given the excitement over the announcement if this is simply a temporary walk-through exhibit/experience in the ESPN Zone building or something similar…
So that’s not exactly what Iger said, but it’s what he implied. I’ve updated the bottom of this post with his closing comments from the Q&A: https://www.disneytouristblog.com/disney-loses-subscribers-still-beats-expectations-theme-parks-up-21/
Basically, it sounds like Iger wants to find ways to increase capacity by expanding the parks–and he used Pandora as an example of how this was a huge success at Animal Kingdom, while also mentioning (again) that Avatar is coming to Disneyland. Iger did not say that Pandora is coming to DLR–just something Avatar.
So this doesn’t necessarily mean that the Avatar experience at DLR will expand capacity, but it’s implied. Why else would he mention it in response to that question?
Got it! Thanks for the clarification. I guess we’ll know soon enough… (or in a few years 😉
Nooooo… Just No!
I really hate Avatar! Come on – give us something Disney, Pixar or upgrade Avengers Campus more!
I would bet on some sort of “Festival of the Na’vi” taking place at DCA where they sell food and merch themed towards Avatar and that’s it. Would fill in some of that time between Food & Wine and Festival of Holidays.
I’d never bet against an excuse to sell more overpriced food and drinks…but I don’t think this is it. (If they want to do a summer festival, the Marvel movies seem more logical–not that that matters.)
Would a new Pandora-themed tunnel for the train as it comes around from “it is a small world” count as an experience?
Yeah, it could. I have a hard time seeing major, marketable enhancements to the railroad, though.
My first thought would be in the Autotopia/Nemo area; even cutting into the Star Wars Launch Bay. The only problem with that would be sight lines and the idea that they’re basically gutting TomorrowLand for Avatar. A multi-tiered reimagining of that area with an Avatar water feature/ride incorporating the lagoon along with an E-Ticket ride would be pretty cool; particularly if they made it different from Pandora in Animal Kingdom. That was one of my very few gripes about Galaxy’s Edge. They could have kept the ride systems the same in both parks but given us two different planets/overlays.
Using some or all of that space certainly makes sense, and will happen eventually. My hope is that it’s for an expansion/update to Tomorrowland, though.
I could see Launch Bay getting a temporary transformation into an Avatar experience, though! That’s wasted space that could help improve capacity and would be a relatively quick turnaround.
Submarine Voyage would work well, especially given the work that went into the underwater world of the sequel.
The subs are too low capacity for anything new/popular. Whenever the Finding Nemo Submarine Voyage ends, I’d expect a new attraction and ride system to replace it entirely. I just hope the lagoon stays.
There is few different places I can see Disney re-theming. 1) Hollywood land in DCA. Disney continuously keeps taking California out of DCA so this would not be surprising in my opinion. Also the Hyperion theater has been empty since Covid or pre/Covid. 2)Disneyland’s Tomorrowland. I feel it has been slowly dying for awhile. The only thing is space mountain and buzz lighter are there. 3) Experience overlays as you already mentioned.
All good ideas!
An mini Pandora land inside an enclosed building, so its always night. Maybe in the old Carousel of Progress area? One can dream.
They definitely need to do something with that building beyond just the DVC lounge!
I’ll admit, when I saw your headline my immediate reaction is “HOW DO THEY KEEP FINDING MORE SPACE?”
I’m praying for that bread tour. Just Blue Sex Cats baking bread with Baymax.
“Blue Sex Cats baking bread with Baymax.”
Live stream this on Disney+ and next quarterly earnings call there will be 100 million new subscribers, easily!
Grizzly River Run overlay? Redwood Challenge Creek overlay? Enough room to convert Soarin’ to Flight of Passage? Seems obvious for the last decade that they have no qualms dismantling as much of the original California theme as they deem fit. If anything, the current grizzly bear/forest theme may last because it blends pretty well into the Grand California Hotel.
This is, sadly, a great thought. I’ve updated the post itself to address this possibility. Thanks for sharing!
Could it be a projection on small world like the “we don’t talk about Bruno.” Projection? This seems to have been one way they have already proven themselves able to successfully incorporate something new, relatively quickly . .
I like the nighttime spectacular idea, but I think this is too small (by itself) to merit mentioning on an earnings call. I also think it’d be odd to project Avatar stuff onto IASW, but maybe that’s just me. Either way, good thinking!