Avatar-Pandora demand

[DrivenByDisney]

The movie (Avatar) itself was nothing special, other than the effects, to me. It was nothing more than Pocahontas on a different planet. Having said that. Obviously the effects, graphics, etc. were awesome on the screen and I am looking forward to seeing how Disney develops these attractions to have guests immerse themselves in that land.

From what you can see at Animal Kingdom now with the floating mountains. It is going to be really cool. Some will love it. Some will hate it and bash it, as nearly everything at Disney gets. It's all opinion and taste as all things are. I'm personally looking forward to seeing it when it is completed.

 

[bryanb]

Just to offer my worthless $0.02 on this, I appreciate that Disney needed a big franchise to counter Harry Potter (before Star Wars was announced) and Animal Kingdom needed expansion to increase visitors. I also like the conservation theme.

But aside from that, Avatar just doesn't belong in a place about animals. Not any more than Frozen ought to take over a pavilion about the real Norway. I already cynically view the idea of including "imagined" animals in AK as a thematic disconnect, but always felt that AK's theme was the most grounded in reality. Avatar is simply not a movie about animals.

 

[georgina]

I really wish Disney would've gotten the right to do a Harry Potter land.

There was a huge demand for a Harry Potter park. Idk how anyone can say there wasnt. Way more so than Avatar, Toy Story, and even Star Wars. I'm excited for all the new Disney editions coming, but Harry Potter is the bees knees

I am so glad Disney did NOT get the rights to Harry Potter - we'd probably still be waiting to see it! Universal did such a great job with the theming I can't imagine it anywhere else.

I am curious to see Avatarland, hope it is an exciting addition to AK.

 

[Quellman]

I think the fact that people were NOT clamoring for an Avatar Land shows some good direction. The WORLD of avatar (Pandora) will be a great addition to the Animal Kingdom, it will fulfill the mythological section that really never materialized, it will educate conservation, it will be imaginative, and it will also allow imagineers to creat new creatures and stories instead of being constrained to specific story lines (like they would have faced with Harry Potter. I am and have been excited for what they create.

 

[asbyrneva]

Gamora (Zoe) is actually green in GotG. The "blue chick" was Nebula played by Karen Gillan (Doctor Who). Between those and Star Trek though Zoe is a go-to for sci-fi roles it seems.

Right!

 

[Anne5555]

I'm just excited about additional rides in a Disney park. Not revamped or replacement rides, but ones that add to the total number of things to enjoy. I have not seen Avatar in years, and I would be equally happy with some other theme there, as long as the rides are fun, quality rides.

Also, I have read a comparison of plot lines for Pocahontas and Avatar, and the similarities are numerous and very amusing.

 

[Minnesota!]

I have not seen Avatar, and have no desire to.

I was angry about it at first, but now I am just happy Disney is doing something, ANYTHING in the parks. Bring on the new stuff.

 

[BuckeyeBama]

Sorry but I have to ask are you in the Potter fandom?

Yes, I stood in line for 4 hours to buy the last book with my boys and read every book to them. I have read every book at least 10 times. I am a HP fan - huge fan - but rides are not Harry Potter.

 

[dogdangling]

Im looking forward to the land, wasn't too keen on the movie but with Joe Rhode involved in the project, you know its going to be awesome

 

[DVCcurious]

I have not seen Avatar, and have no desire to.

I was angry about it at first, but now I am just happy Disney is doing something, ANYTHING in the parks. Bring on the new stuff.

Oh you've seen it. It's a rehash of any number of movies: two societies at war, a member of the "bad" society realizes his society is in the wrong and the other society is really the "just" one, so this member becomes a traitor to his own kind to help the "other" society.

So just watch Dances with Wolves and paint the native americans blue and you've seen avatar.

It's kinda like how Titanic is just Romeo and Juliet on a boat. At least for the first half.

 

[wordwitt]

I'm really excited for it. Not because I loved Avatar--although I did like it-- but because the world of Pandora is a great jumping-off-point for imagination. Disney is going to be able to create something that isn't as constrained by expectations as Harry Potter, for instance. Now I think the HP parks are absolutely brilliant, but part of the reason they're so brilliant is that they so expertly capture the details of the world portrayed in the books and movies. With Avatar Land, I think Disney can go way beyond the movie. People just aren't as diehard about it as to be offended by that. Floating mountains. Check. Light up trees. Check. Flying bird things. Check. Beyond that, it can be anything. So this sort of free range Imagineering is really exciting to me. (If it materializes into something incredible.) As for the AK connection, I can see that. Avatar was all about the connectedness of people (or people-like beings) to the planet and the animals on the planet.

I see Star Wars as having some of that same potential, but ultimately there are so many people who know the movies so well and are so passionate about them that big deviations from them probably won't be well received.

 

[wordwitt]

I think the fact that people were NOT clamoring for an Avatar Land shows some good direction. The WORLD of avatar (Pandora) will be a great addition to the Animal Kingdom, it will fulfill the mythological section that really never materialized, it will educate conservation, it will be imaginative, and it will also allow imagineers to creat new creatures and stories instead of being constrained to specific story lines (like they would have faced with Harry Potter. I am and have been excited for what they create.

I basically just said this very same thing, but you said it first.

 

[BuckeyeBama]

Oh you've seen it. It's a rehash of any number of movies: two societies at war, a member of the "bad" society realizes his society is in the wrong and the other society is really the "just" one, so this member becomes a traitor to his own kind to help the "other" society.

So just watch Dances with Wolves and paint the native americans blue and you've seen avatar.

It's kinda like how Titanic is just Romeo and Juliet on a boat. At least for the first half.

The reality - almost every movie made is a rehash of some other story, which was a rehash of an even older story. It certainly applies to every Disney movie ever made. That doesn't take a single thing away from a movie - unless a person decides to let it.

 

[Mikie]

Oh you've seen it. It's a rehash of any number of movies: two societies at war, a member of the "bad" society realizes his society is in the wrong and the other society is really the "just" one, so this member becomes a traitor to his own kind to help the "other" society.

So just watch Dances with Wolves and paint the native americans blue and you've seen avatar.

It's kinda like how Titanic is just Romeo and Juliet on a boat. At least for the first half.

The reality - almost every movie made is a rehash of some other story, which was a rehash of an even older story. It certainly applies to every Disney movie ever made. That doesn't take a single thing away from a movie - unless a person decides to let it.

LOL so true. I have a friend who always says there are only 8 original stories and they just get disassembled and reassembled like Legos. I was most amused when my 9th grade daughter was reading Romeo and Juluet and said "hey, this is copied off an episode of XYZ Disney channel show!" before she caught herself and laughed and gave the Bard his due.

 

[NotTheBatesMotel]

Is there a cult following for Avatar like there is for Star Wars, Toy Story, etc.? Not to my knowledge. My guess is they chose Avatar because of the potential for immense visual impact/theming. My husband and I saw the movie twice in theaters pretty much solely for the fact that it looked cool. After seeing the aerial construction picture the other day it hit me that the visual impact/wow factor in itself might be a reason they chose it.

 

[EricInPA]

Well, don't hold your breath on that....Actually, has there been any talk of new restaurants? Or is it still too early for that?

I believe the airplane hangar shaped building is a restaurant (not sure if TS or CS).

 

[missbrooke06]

There wasn't a clamoring for a Harry Potter land, either. That worked out fine.

Totally disagree. People started talking about it even before the Disney rumors in 2003. The Disney rumors started because Universal employees were asking their parks' CEO about meeting the Potter demand.

 

[IrishNYC]

IMO, Dinoland was an epic failure. I have never seen anyone playing the carnival games and the rest of the theming just doesn't have that wow factor that brings you back time and again.

I think part of the problem with Dinoland is that a good chunk of it is in the blazing sun. My daughter would have loved to play more carnival games and ride TS a few more times, but DH and I were ready to pass out from the heat, and it was only in the 70s and not humid. The location and decor is part of the theme, but it's not conducive to daytime enjoyment.

 

[GeorgiaHoo]

Number of weeks in the Box Office Top 10:
Avatar=14
Force Awakens=10
I don't know that it is fair to say that it quickly lost its popularity. It's just that the movie is 7 years old now. We can't pass any judgments on the Avatar franchise until the next movie comes out. It might do $2B. It might tank. We don't know. The Star Wars franchise was dead until the release of the latest movie. The previous three were received horribly by the viewing public. But the latest movie brought it all back to life. It is way too early to decide if the next Avatar movie will save the franchise or kill it.

And I saw Episode I of SW and hated it. Never bothered to see II or III. And yet, if Disney builds some cool stuff in DHS, I'll be excited.

I'm not disagreeing that the movie made a lot of money, but that movie never had the general popularity that Star Wars did. I don't think it is even close or up for dispute. Even as crappy as the recent Star Wars movies turned out to be they were still pretty successful. I don't think there is anything to kill in the Avatar franchise -- it is already dead. I'm not even sure another Avatar movie is going to be made, but we are well on our way to the 8th Star Wars movie. I can go to my local mall today and find toy stores and clothing stores selling Star Wars, but won't find a single Avatar item. I was at Disney World in October and Star Wars items were everywhere but I don't recall a single Avatar item at any store. I'm sure that will change once Avatar land opens at AK but Avatar simply isn't the cultural phenomenon that Star Wars turned out to be.

 

[GeorgiaHoo]

Totally disagree. People started talking about it even before the Disney rumors in 2003. The Disney rumors started because Universal employees were asking their parks' CEO about meeting the Potter demand.

Agreed. Harry Potter land has been hugely successful and gets glowing reviews.