Multiple animatronics are not working at the DINOSAUR attraction in Disney’s Animal Kingdom months before a possible Zootopia retheme could be announced. While visiting Disney’s Animal Kingdom today we decided to ride DINOSAUR and found more than 1/3rd of audio-animatronics were not working, and some that were working exhibited limited motion. Guests riding with us even noted during the ride that the figures weren’t working.
While the attraction is actually in better shape than it was this time last year, but still remains in poor condition, possibly due to a limited budget as Disney could be shifting focus to the next iteration of the ride.
At the September 2022 D23 Expo, Disney Parks Chairman Josh D’Amaro revealed a “Blue Sky” concept for a DinoLand USA retheme that would bring Moana to the majority of the land, but also retheme DINOSAUR to a Zootopia-themed ride. While the project has not yet been given a (public) green light, Animal Kingdom will need a shot in the arm to prevent it from becoming the least-attended Disney theme park in the United States.
It’s expected that D’Amaro will announce the Moana/Zootopia DinoLand USA takeover this September at the Destination D23 event in Walt Disney World. If that’s the case, Disney will likely not want to invest too much into the maintenance of the existing DinoLand USA area before a multi-million dollar reimagining.
Potentially bolstering the possibility of a Zootopia retheme of DINOSAUR is the announcement of a second Zootopia movie earlier this year.
As always, keep checking back with us here at BlogMickey.com as we continue to bring you the latest news, photos, and info from around the Disney Parks!
I had to look up Zootopia as I had never heard of it. Zootopia…Moana…are these things really supposed to revitalize Animal Kingdom?