Theme parks are always going to change and update, but you can be sure that whenever changes happen, or are even simply hinted at, people are going to have strong feelings. And considering that the most recent big Walt Disney World rumor is that one of Magic Kingdom’s original lands, Friontierland, could be on the chopping block, there are some very strong opinions.
Last week, a rumor was started by theme park YouTuber Mickey Views that claimed that Walt Disney Imagineering is planning a major retheme at Magic Kingdom that would essentially eliminate Friontierland from the park, replacing it with a version of Disneyland’s New Orleans Square, as a way to incorporate the new Tiana’s Bayou Adventure better, and to allow for a Princess and the Frog themed restaurant similar to the one that is currently being built at Disneyland. As one might expect there are people that don’t love the idea.
If its bad news for Country Bears, I’m against it.
There are many questions about what would happen to the other existing Frontierland attractions, like the Country Bear Jamboree and Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, attractions that would fit no better in a New Orleans-themed land than Tiana’s Bayou Adventure would fit in Frontierland. Indications from the initial rumor are that these attractions would survive, but might get some facade retheming.
And while certainly, not everybody loves the idea, there are those that do. We know that an area of undeveloped space on the other side of Big Thunder Mountain is going to be part of a future Magic Kingdom expansion, and so big changes are already coming to this corner of the park, so adding this change as well might make a lot of sense.
This seems like a pretty good bet! If that "Beyond Big Thunder Mountain" plan comes to fruition, I fear BTM could be rethemed.
Of course, even if the existing attractions don't get completely replaced, this would still mark one of the biggest changes to Magic Kingdom that we’ve ever seen. Frontierland was one of the original lands conceived for Disneyland and Magic Kingdom, so the idea of it no longer existing is inconceivable to many. Even among those who might like the new plan, this seems like a long shot.
no way in hell this is true but we can dream
When Magic Kingdom was designed it was given Liberty Square, a land dedicated to colonial America, rather than New Orleans Square in large part because the actual New Orleans isn’t that far from Orlando. Pirates of the Caribbean was never intended to be built in the park for this reason. However, fans ultimately wanted the attraction, and so they go it.
Putting an entire New Orleans-themed land in Magic Kingdom seems a bit odd for all the same reasons that PotC was originally overlooked. Of course, now that the park will have both Pirates and Tiana’s Bayou Adventure, it’s maybe not crazy that we could see a land constructed that brings them together.
It would make more sense for this bit to be an extended portion of Adventureland, allowing the bypass bridge to connect the western and eastern portions of Frontierland
Until anything is announced by Disney however, this is all still rumor and conjecture. Even if there is truth in this rumor, plans can change, so things may end up going in a different direction before a final decision is made. It’s also possible that this is simply one possible idea among several, and no decisions have yet been made. In the case of the “Beyond Thunder Mountain” pitch that was made at D23, it’s clear that no decision had been made at the time as multiple concepts were pitched and we likely won’t see everything that was suggested. Many are already upset with the changes we know are coming.
They already fucked everything up by taking Splash. Remove everything for all I care. BTMR can go too!
With Tron: Lightcycle Run recently opened, and Epcot’s World Celebration area on the list of Upcoming Disney World attractions opening this year, we’re very close to seeing all of Walt Disney World’s work that was started pre-pandemic finally completed. Once that’s done we will likely be let in on what’s next for the parks, and we’ll learn if this is all just a wild rumor or something we will actually see.
