A quiet transformation has been reshaping Tomorrowland at Magic Kingdom, attraction by attraction, and Disney has never framed it as the years-long reimagining it appears to be. The land of the future has been receiving quite the capital injection for years now, and we think Disney could go even further. The theming changes started well before TRON opened. Then, the coaster anchored the land, Buzz Lightyear came back better than ever, and Carousel of Progress is on the brink of its own overhaul. The smaller projects keep stacking up, and the pattern points to something a quiet Tomorrowland reimagining at Magic Kingdom. Here’s a look back and a look toward the future.
A Quiet Tomorrowland Reimagining at Magic Kingdom
IN THIS ARTICLE:
- Tomorrowland refresh began years before TRON
- TRON to Buzz: the refresh so far
- Where Space Mountain fits, and what’s next for Tomorrowland
- Does Monsters Inc. Laugh Floor have a future once Monstropolis opens?
Sorry, Disneyland fans, Magic Kingdom’s Tomorrowland is getting quite a bit of love from Disney right now, and it may only be the beginning. To understand where we are and where we might be going, we have to look back at what’s already happened.
THE REFRESH STARTED BEFORE TRON EVER OPENED
The visual refresh was already underway years before TRON opened. The old steampunk entrance sign had been removed back in July 2019, and that September, a modern, minimalist replacement went up in its place. That same month, more of the 1990s steampunk theming was stripped from the land.
The work continued. In January 2020, additional 1994-era theming elements were removed as part of the visual refresh, and by February, Disney was painting over old theming elements with a new color palette. The following year brought another telling change, as the themed gears in the Tomorrowland pavement gave way to generic concrete in May 2021. Piece by piece, the busy 1990s look was being simplified, setting the stage for what came next.
FROM TRON TO BUZZ: THE ATTRACTION REFRESH SO FAR
That brings us to TRON Lightcycle Run. As we’ve previously covered, the coaster brought a signature, modern anchor to a land that had been coasting on 1990s aesthetics for decades. I think TRON was the payoff for everything the earlier refresh had been building toward.
What followed TRON tells the story just as well as the coaster itself did. The investment in Tomorrowland went well beyond signage and paint.
Take Astro Orbiter. As we covered in detail, the attraction closed in January 2025, and Disney removed the entire ride system rather than simply patching it up. Disney rebuilt it from scratch, gave the elevator tower a new silver paint scheme, brought back the vibrant planets, and reopened the attraction in June 2025 after a five-month effort. It even got its own retro-style attraction poster, where it had previously only appeared on a generic Tomorrowland poster. Disney poured real money into a spinner most guests treat as an afterthought, not to change how it looks, but to keep it running for years to come. That said, there is still a major function missing from the attraction that we hope Disney gets sorted out.
Then, this past year, Buzz Lightyear’s Space Ranger Spin went offline for nearly eight months. When it returned in April 2026, it had new ride vehicles, a new scoring system, a new show scene, and a new character, a support-bot named Buddy created by Imagineering and Pixar. A sleek new exterior marquee now looks like it belongs in the same land as TRON. Disney reported a 15-point guest satisfaction jump on the attraction. That’s a strong return on a single attraction.
As we reported from a recent media panel, Disney executives have described this approach as the “singles and doubles” of their portfolio strategy. Not every project is a brand-new land or a groundbreaking home-run attraction. But done right, a well-executed refurbishment keeps a classic relevant for another generation, and it enhances the guest experience in the more immediate term.
WHAT’S NEXT FOR TOMORROWLAND: THE CAROUSEL OF PROGRESS
Carousel of Progress is next in line. We’ve covered the permit activity and the August 2025 announcement that confirmed a Walt Disney Audio-Animatronic is coming to the attraction’s opening scene. But the scope here is bigger than a single figure. As we reported, all four scenes will be updated, and the original family animatronics refreshed. The attraction closes July 5, with a reopening planned for 2027.
A months-long closure for a four-scene overhaul is the kind of work Disney reserves for an attraction it intends to keep. Carousel of Progress is the attraction most tied to Walt Disney at Walt Disney World, and rebuilding all four scenes rather than shuttering the show is a clear bet on its future.
THE STITCH’S GREAT ESCAPE BUILDING
The Stitch’s Great Escape building is a tougher call. The attraction has been dark since 2018, the wait time sign was pulled in 2022, and, in recent years, the hallways were repurposed as a Cast Member break area. The building sits in a prime position in the heart of Tomorrowland and has been used as a theater-style space going back to Flight to the Moon.
Disney hasn’t said what comes next for it. Your guess is as good as mine on what goes there, though I doubt it stays empty forever. It’s one of the most valuable underdeveloped parcels in Magic Kingdom right now.
WHERE DOES SPACE MOUNTAIN FIT INTO ALL OF THIS?
Space Mountain is 50 years old and running. It has older tech in its ride vehicles and zips around on an aging track. Sitting next to TRON Lightcycle Run, it’s showing its age. Disney hasn’t announced anything for Walt Disney World’s Space Mountain, but I think a reimagining is coming. The only real question is timing.
My guess is that Space Mountain follows the Big Thunder Mountain model rather than anything more drastic. That would mean a complete track rebuild paired with some scene upgrades. The goal would be a reinvestment that buys the classic another 50 years. My hope is that we hear something soon-ish, perhaps even as early as the 2026 D23 Expo.
WILL MONSTERS INC. LAUGH FLOOR SURVIVE MONSTROPOLIS?
Which brings us to Monsters Inc. Laugh Floor. The comedy show has run in Tomorrowland at Magic Kingdom since 2007, and it’s a real crowd-pleaser. But Monstropolis is coming to Hollywood Studios, and it’s bringing the full weight of Pixar’s Monsters, Inc. franchise with it.
As we’ve covered, construction is well underway, and structures are rising. In Monstropolis, guests will be able to walk the streets of the city, and ride a technically ambitious suspended coaster through the door vault.
I think Disney faces a real question about whether that makes Laugh Floor redundant. Laugh Floor made sense in 2007, when a single show was the resort’s entire Monsters, Inc. presence. A full land changes that. Whether Laugh Floor gets a theme change, an update, or eventually transitions into something new entirely, I don’t know. But the opening of Monstropolis will bring that conversation to a head.
THE QUIETEST BIG PROJECT AT MAGIC KINGDOM
What stands out to me is how quietly Disney has gone about the Tomorrowland refresh. New Fantasyland arrived as a marquee event, rolled out over several years with a phased grand opening and a marketing campaign to match. Tomorrowland has gotten none of that treatment, even as Frontierland draws far more attention for its own overhaul next door. The changes here simply show up one attraction at a time, with no fanfare attached. The transformation has been every bit as real, just without the spotlight.
A LAND THAT LOOKS NOTHING LIKE 2019
Tomorrowland in 2026 looks meaningfully different from Tomorrowland in 2019. The steampunk theming is gone, TRON opened, Buzz came back better, and Carousel of Progress is about to get its turn. The pattern is clear, even if Disney has never called it a plan. With this much already done, the real question is how much further Disney is willing to take the Tomorrowland refresh.
OUR TAKE: Magic Kingdom’s Tomorrowland reimagining has hit the mark so far. While it’s not some massive refresh to pull the land into some futuristic vision, it does shed the 1994 visual updates that haven’t worked for quite some time. In contrast with something like New Fantasyland, the Tomorrowland refresh isn’t nearly as flashy, but it’s no less important. What remains to be seen is if Disney can stick the landing. Space Mountain needs some help. Carousel of Progress is getting a much-needed update. Stitch’s Great Escape sits empty. Oh, and we haven’t even mentioned the stuck-in-the-past Tomorrowland Speedway.
The work so far earns a passing grade, but Disney can really earn high marks if they tie up some of these loose ends and complete the vision in the next couple of years. Preferably before Villains Land opens, but the clock is ticking.
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