Festival of the Lion King to close in January

[jcemom]

Originally Posted by TheRustyScupper

WARNING *** RUMOR *** WARNING *** RUMOR

I heard today the "probable" relo spot for FOTLK
. . . between Tucker and Safari there is a gap
. . . the theater would be tucked back (offset) into the gap
. . . this will relocate the "lion show" into Africa

WARNING *** RUMOR *** WARNING *** RUMOR

That would be great! It would make a lot more sense to have it there than in Camp MM anyway.

[mccreel]

I think the problem, for some, for Avatar is the special effects was awesome. but me personally and some people I know believe the story was week and lazy with every character a bad stereotype. We did not see it in the theater, we watched the premier on satellite. Again the special effects were great but we about had to watch it on mute because when they started talking, it ruined it. I know a lot of people liked the movie but a lot did not as well. That's the problem with Disney going with this in my opinion.

Originally Posted by DAZY3BYZ

Exactly!! I personally am excited about some new attractions coming to AK. We love that park and are excited about enjoying more great attractions there. I trust that Disney will do a great job bringing the imagination and creativity of Avatar to this new area of AK.

[DCTooTall]

Originally Posted by mccreel

I think the problem, for some, for Avatar is the special effects was awesome. but me personally and some people I know believe the story was week and lazy with every character a bad stereotype. We did not see it in the theater, we watched the premier on satellite. Again the special effects were great but we about had to watch it on mute because when they started talking, it ruined it. I know a lot of people liked the movie but a lot did not as well. That's the problem with Disney going with this in my opinion.

And in my opinion, I think it's wrong for Disney to try and remake the movie in this expansion, in part, exactly for that reason. I really don't think they are planning on doing that either because the timing of the new land is around when movies 2&3 are supposed to be hitting the theaters, And the ecosystem and environment that Cameron created for the first film (which according to reports, was much more extensive and detailed than what we actually saw in the movie) provides such an amazing opportunity for the Disney Imagineers to create a new and unique experience that will utilize what Pandora offers while simultaneously not being tied into needing to be familiar with the films to enjoy the attractions/area, as well as tieing in with the existing Animal Kingdom storylines and theming. I suspect the Conservation ideas will still be present in the AK area, but AK was designed with Conservation of the planet/resources as a primary thematic element so it won't be out of place in this new section of the park.

[debbiedoo]

Originally Posted by DCTooTall

And in my opinion, I think it's wrong for Disney to try and remake the movie in this expansion, in part, exactly for that reason. I really don't think they are planning on doing that either because the timing of the new land is around when movies 2&3 are supposed to be hitting the theaters, And the ecosystem and environment that Cameron created for the first film (which according to reports, was much more extensive and detailed than what we actually saw in the movie) provides such an amazing opportunity for the Disney Imagineers to create a new and unique experience that will utilize what Pandora offers while simultaneously not being tied into needing to be familiar with the films to enjoy the attractions/area, as well as tieing in with the existing Animal Kingdom storylines and theming. I suspect the Conservation ideas will still be present in the AK area, but AK was designed with Conservation of the planet/resources as a primary thematic element so it won't be out of place in this new section of the park.

I am not thrilled about Avatar Land either. I feel Disney could have used their great imagineers creativity for something else. IMO it was for competition with Harry potter at universal. What's going to happen in the next 10/20 yrs when another huge blockbuster hits. Look at how many classic attractions came down over the years. . I know others won't agree with me and that is ok. I feel it will be out if place with the other lands.

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[DCTooTall]

Originally Posted by debbiedoo

I am not thrilled about Avatar Land either. I feel Disney could have used their great imagineers creativity for something else. IMO it was for competition with Harry potter at universal. What's going to happen in the next 10/20 yrs when another huge blockbuster hits. Look at how many classic attractions came down over the years. . I know others won't agree with me and that is ok. I feel it will be out if place with the other lands.

Sent from my iPhone using DISBoards

As i see it the Pandora area of the park would be no more out of place in AK than Beastly Kingdom would've been. What do Dragons and Unicorns have to do with the rest of the park? (Even though they are still represented on the official AK logo and in the parking lot section names)

[jcemom]

At first I thought the Avatar project was rather stupid. Now that I've considered it for a while, I think it might work. At first, I was pretty much only thinking about the movie connection, and I haven't ever even watched the whole movie. It doesn't hold my attention long enough for me to sit through the entire thing. But now, I'm thinking about how it actually LOOKS, the foliage and the creatures, the general conservation message, and I think that could work very well at AK, if Disney does it right. I think I can enjoy the theme, the overall look of the area, without enjoying the movie.

I'm willing to at least keep an open mind and wait until I see it for myself.

[dsnygrl21]

Does anyone know a specific date as to when in January FOTLK is closing?

[DCTooTall]

Originally Posted by dsnygrl21

Does anyone know a specific date as to when in January FOTLK is closing?

Officially this is still just a rumor and Disney hasn't announced anything. As such, any dates you hear right now are going to be conjecture.

(For the Test Track Refurb, Rumored close dates even from knowledgable sources weren't entirely accurate and Disney waited until almost the last possible moment to announce it's closure.)

[fuzzlekins]

NOOOOO!!!!! The Lion King show is the best thing about AK! This really stinks b/c we're going in Feb. I couldn't care less about Avatar. Didn't see the movie and never did understand the hoopla - looked kind of dumb to me (no offense to those who liked it). Lion King is rather classic and pretty synonymous w/ AK. Avatar - not so much. What are they thinking??

[garjanjones]

Originally Posted by Twingle

Boo. We saw it for the first time this past summer, and thought it was amazing! Hopefully the close is temporary, and they'll reopen it at a later time.

My thoughts exactly.

[Planogirl]

Way too often Disney closes or changes something that's good to make room for something new. I wish that they could sometimes do both. I hope that FOTLK comes back elsewhere. It truly is an excellent show - probably the best at WDW.

[Figment1990]

REALLY not happy about this. We love FOTLK. We also do not love Avatar (politely speaking). Closing FOLTK for any reason would be sad, but especially so because of Avatar.

Hopefully it really will re-open elsewhere. What a great, high-quality show featuring one of Disney's most successful and classic movies - to lose it would be a great shame.

[gusdmh]

My family's first time at Disney World, and first show was Festival of the Lion King. And now it's being taken away for a boring movie about tall, blue humanoids vs giant robots. Not cool at all.

[Disco]

It's fitting I guess depending on whether James indeed did steal the IP for the plot or not. One stolen work to replace another...

[jmm476]

Originally Posted by gusdmh

My family's first time at Disney World, and first show was Festival of the Lion King. And now it's being taken away for a boring movie about tall, blue humanoids vs giant robots. Not cool at all.

The movie had robots it in?! Another reason to never see it and mad about Disney "partnering" with James Cameron. I dislike most of his movies that I've seen.