Disney’s Hollywood Studios theme park is in a state of transition, during which some spaces that have gone LONG unused are finally being dragged into the park’s future!
Welcome to Hollywood Studios!
Some of these buildings date back to the park’s original Disney-MGM Studios days, meaning that they are nearly 40 years old at this point.
Voyage of the Little Mermaid
A Little Mermaid show has been a staple of Hollywood Studios since 1992. Voyage of The Little Mermaid debuted on January 7th of that year in the park’s Animation Courtyard, and featured an abridged version of the film’s story that utilized a mix of live actors, puppets, special effects and laser projections on the auditorium walls and ceilings to mimic being underwater. This original version of the show ran until 2020, closing along with the rest of Walt Disney World at the onset of the COVID pandemic and never reopening. In December of 2023, Disney confirmed that a new version of the show entitled The Little Mermaid – A Musical Adventure would replace the original in the same theater.
The original Voyage of the Little Mermaid
According to Disney, The Little Mermaid — A Musical Adventure will keep “the lively puppets, props, and scenery center stage. But new to this production, get ready to be dazzled with new digital puppetry and jaw-dropping effects.” Disney also confirmed that “cutting-edge digital imagery motion capture” would be used to recreate several characters, including King Triton and Ursula.
©Disney
See the newly updated The Little Mermaid — A Musical Adventure signage in Hollywood Studios in our video below.
Studio 1 Company Store
A remnant of the once-planned Muppet Land that was meant to surround Muppet*Vision 3D, the Studio 1 store was once the home base for Muppet merchandise in the park. Like the original Little Mermaid show, the Studio 1 store never fully reopened following the pandemic (though it has been used for some rare special events).
Stage 1 Company Store
The building, which dates back to the park’s earliest days, is scheduled to be torn down as part of the transformation of the former Muppet Courtyard area into the upcoming Monstropolis Monsters, Inc. land.
©Disney
Sunset Showcase Theater
The Sunset Showcase Theater housed the Light McQueen’s Racing Academy show until October 2024, However, it won’t remain so for much longer as May 27th will see the opening of Disney Villains: Unfairly Ever After. The new show will be a “spellbinding show with moving music and a most memorable finale—where you help decide who has been treated most unfairly” entitled Disney Villains: Unfairly Ever After.
Sunset Showcase
Star Wars Launch Bay
Yes, this one is a cheat as Star Wars Launch Bay is still open, though you might not be able to tell most days. To add insult to injury, the walkthrough attraction takes up the space previously used by the Magic of Disney Animation Tour. As much as we love Star Wars, there absolutely has to be something better to do with this space.
Launch Bay
As Hollywood Studios continues to evolve, more and more of the park’s original infrastructure will likely either be completely retrofitted or demolished to make way for future attractions. Stay tuned to DFB for more on the park’s evolution.
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I won’t belabor disappointment over what’s happening to Muppets Courtyard. Hopefully Monstropolis will be great, and the Muppets will get other features at the parks. Star Wars Launch Bay has (or did have) a great Disney Visa photo program. SWLB also had a great ticketed dessert/fireworks event in the past – great interactions and photo ops with rare characters like Stormtroopers, Droids, and Jawas. BUT. I would love to see something better with more appeal go into this huge space. (And hopefully the DVRC photo op could be moved somewhere else – maybe in the disused entrance to the Starcruiser.)
I wondered where the animation tour used to be, I remember watching previews of return to Neverland there a long time ago.
So what ARE they doing with the star wars launch Bay?
I think saying these are replaced is stretching it a bit. 😉