The final day of the 2022 D23 Expo started off with a panel all about everything new and exciting coming to the Disney Parks around the world over the next few years. There was a lot- a lot- of news, but let’s first take a look at all of the announcements for the Disneyland Resort in Anaheim, California!
Josh D’Amaro (Chairman, Disney Parks, Experiences and Products)
Disneyland Park
Galaxy’s Edge
To kick off the Disneyland part of his presentation, Disney Parks, Experiences and Products Chairman Josh D’Amaro welcomed Executive Producer and Disney Legend Jon Favreau to the stage to share some news that was originally teased earlier this year at Star Wars Celebration.
Starting this mid-November, fans will finally be able to meet the Mandalorian himself, Din Djarin, and the much-beloved Grogu in Star Wars’ Galaxy’s Edge. Favreau shared that they’ve actually been working on bringing these characters to Batuu since even before the COVID lockdown! Lots of hard work went into making sure the costume looked as good as it does on screen as it will in the parks. And little “Baby Yoda” Grogu looks amazing as well.
D23 Expo
Din Djarin and Grogu will join a growing number of characters on Batuu and further expand the area’s “timeline”. Fans can also now meet Boba Fett and Fennec Shand, who debuted this past May, alongside Rey, Kylo Ren, Chewbacca, and others.
Mickey’s Toontown
Elsewhere at the Disneyland Park, Mickey’s Toontown is getting ready to reopen with a new ride and a refurbished look.
Debuting in early 2023 will be the Disneyland version of Mickey & Minnie’s Runaway Railway. Built especially for the Disneyland Resort, this version of M&MRR will have nods to many of Mickey’s classic cartoons and moments throughout the years.
Alongside the new-to-Disneyland ride, Toontown will reopen with new and expanded play areas for families of all ages. And, yes, concept art snoopers: Donald’s Houseboat is fine! Just… crashed into the pond at Goofy’s House!
Tiana’s Bayou Adventure
Debuting in late 2024 at Disneyland and Walt Disney World, the retheme of Splash Mountain is nearly here! Picking up where The Princess and the Frog left off, the ride is set in New Orleans in 1927. Tiana is hosting a party, but something is missing. So, she goes to find new friends to invite to the party!
Imagineers shared new concept art for the ride, including a gorgeous look at how the Bayou Adventure will light up at night. They also discussed how they’ve taken many research trips to New Orleans to make the ride feel as authentic as possible to the city and its culture.
Carmen Smith, Charita Carter, Ted Robledo, Josh D’Amaro (Chairman; Disney Parks, Experiences and Products)
In Disneyland, it was teased that new shopping options are coming very soon! After the panel, the Disney Parks Blog shared more details. On September 20th of this year, Eudora’s Chic Boutique Featuring Tiana’s Gourmet Secrets! Tiana’s mother, Eudora, is a talented dressmaker and is partnering with her daughter to open this shop to sell “accessories to create and serve masterful Orleans-style cuisine and more”!
Several of the movie’s original cast will return to lend their voices to the new attraction. Anika Noni Rose as Tiana, Bruno Campos as Naveen, Michael-Leon Wooley as Louis, and Jennifer Lewis as Mama Odie. Music will also play a huge part in the attraction!
As a special surprise for the audiences watching both in person and at home, Anika Noni Rose performed “Almost There” and “Dig A Little Deeper”. She was joined by other Disney performers and it sure seemed like everyone there was having a lot of fun!
Anika Noni Rose (Center)
Disney, however, did not share when both Splash Mountains will be closing to allow Imagineers to get to work on this new attraction.
There’s a little more news for the Disneyland side of the resort, but more on that in just a bit…!
Downtown Disney & Hotels
Downtown Disney will soon see over a dozen new stores and restaurants open as the resort expands! Many are yet to be announced, but Josh D’Amaro shared that Din Tai Fung and Southern California favorite Porto’s Bakery and Café will be coming soon to Downtown Disney. Fans at the D23 Expo Parks Panel were treated to a pastry from Porto’s after things wrapped up!
Announced earlier in the year, more details were shared at the D23 Expo Parks panel about the Paradise Pier Hotel’s Pixar transformation. Now to be known as Pixar Place Hotel, the hotel will take inspiration from many Pixar movies. This will include a Finding Nemo inspired splash pad area for the younger kids (and kids at heart, I’m sure).
Also shared on the Disney Parks Blog is the addition of another Southern California favorite, Great Maple. The restaurant, which features “upscale comfort food with a twist” will have a flagship location inside Pixar Place Hotel.
In addition, the runDisney races will return to the Disneyland resort in 2024!
Disney’s California Adventure
Avengers Campus
To kick things off for the DCA side of the resort, Josh D’Amaro welcomed Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige onstage to talk about the future of Avengers Campus. While thanking the fans for embracing the new land and talking about what’s happened so far, D’Amaro and Feige were interrupted with a call from MCU actor Mark Ruffalo.
Ruffalo talked about how the color pallet at Avengers Campus seemed “limited” with a lot of red and blue… so why not add some green? And adding some green they are!
Hulk, Kevin Feige (President, Marvel Studios), Josh D’Amaro (Chairman; Disney Parks, Experiences and Products)
As part of the previously-discussed “Project EXO“, Disney has been working on ways to bring larger-than-life characters to their parks and now they have their first one debuting at the parks: The Incredible Hulk! Or, perhaps more accurately, “Smart Hulk” in his Quantum Suit from Avengers: Endgame.
The character made his debut on stage at the D23 Expo Parks panel, delighting the audience as he spoke with D’Amaro and Feige. The Hulk will be meeting with guests at Avengers Campus for a limited time, starting next week.
As the Hulk left the stage, that wasn’t the end of the news for Avengers Campus. Originally slated as a ride that would take guests into the middle of a battle in Wakanda, the brand-new “E Ticket” 3rd attraction will now be tying into the bigger story of the Marvel Multiverse.
Concept art for the ride was released showcasing many heroes from all sorts of corners of the multiverse and multiple points of even the main MCU’s timeline! Just to name a few, there’s MCU Spider-Man, the Spider-Man from the upcoming Disney+ series Spider-Man: Freshman Year, Daredevil, Moonknight, Thor, Steve Rogers Captain America, Sam Wilson Captain America, Captain Carter, America Chavez, two versions of the Hulk, She-Hulk, and many, many more.
The ride will center around a battle with “King Thanos”, a Thanos variant created especially for this story in Avengers Campus. This is a Thanos who won, and the Avengers are teaming up across the multiverse to stop him.
No timeline for this attraction was given at the D23 Expo Parks panel, but I’m sure we’ll hear more soon. And we’ll make sure to update you as soon as we do!
Big Hero 6
In an announcement that caught many by surprise, Josh D’Amaro announced that soon the Pacific Wharf section of Disney’s California Adventure will be transformed into San Fransokyo, the main setting of Marvel and Disney Animation’s Big Hero 6!
It’s still early days for this project, but guests will soon be able to meet Baymax and enjoy new food and retail locations in this reimagined area.
I do wonder if a name change will be coming for DCA soon… Much of the “California” part of “California Adventure” is slowly disappearing… Hmm!
100 Years of Wonder
Next year, the Disney Company’s 100th Anniversary celebration will kick off at the Disneyland Resort starting in late January. All of the parks will join the celebration, but Josh D’Amaro said that the “heart” of the celebration will be at the Disneyland Resort. And WOW does it kick off in a big way!
In late January, the Disneyland Resort will be getting TWO new nighttime spectaculars.
Over in California Adventure, a new version of “World of Color” will debut, “World of Color- One”. In the concept art for the new show, new-to-“World of Color” characters are shown- Mirabel Madrigal from Encanto, Moana, and more! “World of Color- One” will feature the new original song “Start a Wave”.
Over at the Disneyland Park, a brand-new fireworks show will debut: “Wondrous Journeys”. The nighttime spectacular will feature moments and characters from all 60 of the Walt Disney Animation Studios films. Much like previous shows, “Wondrous Journeys” will utilize the projection-mapping systems to bring Main Street USA, Sleeping Beauty Castle, the “it’s a small world” façade, and the Rivers of America to life alongside the fireworks. Those at the D23 Expo Parks Panel alongside those watching the livestream at home were treated to a beautiful live performance of the show’s anthem “It’s Wondrous”. Performers were joined on stage by characters from all corners of Disney.
Also announced at the D23 Expo Parks panel was the long-awaited return of the “Magic Happens” parade. “Magic Happens” will re-debut in Spring 2023 after the COVID lockdown forced the brand-new parade to shut down just weeks after its initial run.
D’Amaro also teased new platinum-inspired decorations around the resort and outfits for Mickey and Minnie as they join in the 100th Anniversary celebration. Other entertainment will also pop up around the Disneyland Resort, with more details to be announced soon!
Stick with Temple of Geek as we bring you more news and exciting announcements from this year’s D23 Expo!
