Indiana Jones Epic Stunt Spectacular Returns!

Walt Disney World has announced that Indiana Jones Epic Stunt Spectacular and other entertainment will return to Hollywood Studios and Animal Kingdom in the coming weeks and months. In this post, we’ll cover the details and what else you might expect from live entertainment for the rest of this year and in 2022.

Disney’s announcement begins by recapping the atmospheric entertainment that resumed on October 1 with the start of the Walt Disney World 50th Anniversary Celebration. Early birds at Magic Kingdom are now starting their day with “Let the Magic Begin” on the Cinderella Castle Forecourt Stage, and the park has welcomed back the ragtime piano player at Casey’s Corner on Main Street.

Over at Epcot, World Showcase travelers are dancing to the Canadian rhythms of Alberta Bound, laughing at the antics of Sergio in Italy, and experiencing the majestic percussion of the Taiko drummers of Matsuriza in Japan. We saw all three over the weekend–including Matsuriza multiple times–and they brought back a fantastic energy to World Showcase…

Next week at Disney’s Animal Kingdom, guests visiting Asia can once again enjoy the music of Chakranadi. Along with them, Kora Tinga Tinga returns to the streets of Harambe in Africa. Animal Kingdom’s Tam Tam Drummers will come back to Africa in early November 2021.

At the resorts, performers will also soon be captivating guests strolling along the waterfront at Disney’s BoardWalk Inn (date TBD). And as previously reported, Yeeha Bob will perform his wacky piano antics starting October 14 in the River Roost Lounge at Disney’s Port Orleans Resort — Riverside on the date that hotel reopens.

At Disney’s Hollywood Studios, two big ‘spectaculars’ are poised to return this Christmas season. “Disney Movie Magic,” the cinematic nighttime spectacular celebrating Disney’s live-action film legacy will return to Grauman’s Chinese Theater on November 7, 2021.

When this projection show resumes, it will feature a new sequence from Disney’s epic adventure, Mulan. Presumably, this addition has been in the works for a while–and probably would’ve debuted at the end of last March had…well, ya know…not happened.

No word yet on whether this will replace or supplement the “Wonderful World of Animation.” As you might recall, these were two of three very similar nighttime projection shows that played at DHS pre-closure, with the main one being Star Wars: A Galactic Spectacular.

No word yet on that, and also no word on “Jingle Bell, Jingle BAM!,” the centerpiece Christmas-time nighttime spectacular at Disney’s Hollywood Studios. We haven’t heard anything one way or the other, but it wouldn’t surprise us in the least if “Jingle Bell, Jingle BAM!” does return–from what we understand, Walt Disney World is still trying to make a holiday push.

Speaking of which, mark your calendars for December 19, 2021. That’s the date when the cast and crew of “Indiana Jones Epic Stunt Spectacular” will bring back all the comedy and thrills of that action-packed show.

Walt Disney World ends the announcement with this: “We are incredibly grateful to our cast and guests for the patience you’ve demonstrated as we presented modified forms of some entertainment while continuing to work through the details required to resume others.”

While no details are provided, it’s our incredibly strong suspicion that Indiana Jones Epic Stunt Spectacular will be among the modified productions. Now, before you go grousing about budget cuts or cost-savings, it’s our understanding that this actually is about a mix of health safety–and Disney’s hands being tied.

Back when we posted What’s Returning & Not Yet Back at Walt Disney World in 2021-2022, one topic discussed was entertainment timelines. There, we mentioned that one big obstacle for some shows is the Actors’ Equity Association, the union that represents performers at Walt Disney World–and far beyond.

The Actors’ Equity Association (AEA) has created onerous standards for the resumption of many productions all around the country. The “standoff” between Disney and that union has been an ongoing and contentious issue throughout reopening, with posts last fall (here and here) discussing what was happening at the time.

We further elaborated on all of this in commentary to the recent announcement that a “Reimagined” Finding Nemo Musical is Coming to Animal Kingdom. Nothing has changed since then. We do not fault Walt Disney World for modifying these productions–it’s not about saving money. What we do fault the company for is not doing it sooner, bringing back entertainment Cast Members faster and giving guests more to do at DHS.

Suffice to say, the union’s requirements are why some shows that have returned are being presented in modified form—sometimes with fairly awkward changes and physical distancing that doesn’t really suit the stage shows. (Beauty and the Beast — Live on Stage is a good example.)

The same will likely be true of Indiana Jones Epic Stunt Spectacular. I’m not privy to any insider information here, but I’d anticipate some of the closer-contact scenes to be cut from the show, as well as all audience participation. It’s not that it costs less money to not bring guests on stage, or for performers to do solo acts than hand-to-hand combat…it’s about appeasing the AEA.

Interestingly, there were rumors shortly before Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge opened that Indiana Jones Epic Stunt Spectacular would receive new and replaced scenes, plus the removal of its “working studio” premise that no longer makes sense in the current incarnation of the park.

At the time, the plan was for Indiana Jones Epic Stunt Spectacular to go dark for a lengthy period of time last year and this year, with the reimagined show debuting just in time for Walt Disney World’s 50th Anniversary celebration. Well, the “going dark” part of that plan did come to fruition, albeit not as intended…let’s see if the rest happens. (I doubt it.)

Ultimately, it’s great to hear that Indiana Jones Epic Stunt Spectacular is returning, and this calendar year (barely, but it counts). As we indicated a few weeks ago, our expectation is that any entertainment that isn’t back by October 1 probably won’t return until 2022, if ever. Based on this announcement and rumors we’re hearing about other atmospheric acts for the holiday season, we were (thankfully) wrong about that.

To reiterate, our expectation is that Festival of Fantasy Parade will be the next big thing to return in early 2022. That’s not a “rumor,” but rather, something we’re surmising from the fact that Magic Kingdom will have parade performers from Mickey’s Once Upon a Christmastime Parade, and it’ll probably make sense to move them to Festival of Fantasy after that ends. Having even more ready in time for spring break 2022 is also logical. Again, zero inside information here–just going with what seems plausible in light of what has and has not happened to date.

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YOUR THOUGHTS

What do you think about Walt Disney World’s announcement of Indiana Jones Epic Stunt Spectacular returning to Disney’s Hollywood Studios? Disappointed that more entertainment hasn’t returned already despite the crowds and prices? Hopeful that Walt Disney World still has some “surprises” up its sleeve and more is back by Christmas 2021, or do you agree that 2022 is more likely? Will you be attempting to visit Walt Disney World this year, or are you waiting until more is normal? Do you agree or disagree with our predictions? Any questions we can help you answer? 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!