The Yeti is going to be fixed. The announcement was one of a handful of surprises for theme park fans at this weekend’s D23 Expo. Thomas Mazloum shared the news with more than 12,000 fans this weekend. He made the announcement during the Disney Experiences Showcase at the Honda Center, part of D23: The Ultimate Disney Fan Event. The figure inside Expedition Everest at Disney’s Animal Kingdom has run in “B-Mode” for years, lit by a strobe light instead of moving. After the initial shock of the announcement wore off, fans started asking questions. While there are still plenty of questions that are unanswered, we do have a few new details following the showcase presentation.
New Details on Yeti Resurrection Project at Expedition Everest
IN THIS ARTICLE:
- We can confirm the current Yeti figure is being repaired, not replaced
- The repaired figure will stay in its current position in the same scene
- Key questions remain about the closure timeline and how the fix is possible
The new news here is that Disney is bringing the current figure back to life. There isn’t a new Audio-Animatronics figure coming. Instead, Disney is describing this as a “fix” and that the figure is “being brought back to life”. The speculation here was a result of the concept art. Concept art, of course, is meant to convey an idea or feeling, and it really isn’t a technical drawing. In fact, there are a lot of interesting additions here that are inconsistent with the current scene in the ride. Notably, fans speculated that the yeti was in a new position. This could suggest that there is a new figure being installed. That’s not the case. The work announced was to fix the current figure, not install a new figure.
That brings us to our second tidbit. Again, going back to the concept art and the positioning of the yeti, fans thought that a new figure might show up in a repositioned spot in the same scene, or an entirely new scene. Neither of those is the case. Not only is the work to fix the current figure, but it’s to fix the current figure in the same spot that it stands today.
Questions We Still Have About the Yeti
There are two outstanding questions that I have. First, what does the closure timeframe look like? When will Expedition Everest close to allow for a fix, and how long will it be closed for? If I had to guess, it wouldn’t be until Tropical Americas is up and running, which is a question all its own. That would put an Expedition Everest closure sometime in 2028 at the earliest. I’m not sure Animal Kingdom can handle an Everest closure before Tropical Americas opens.
The second question I have is: how? How, after all these years of speculation about the Yeti and the impossibility of a repair, is this project happening? I guess the “how?” question can be applied both fiscally and logistically. I hope that Disney can answer both questions in due time.
Keep Reading
- Former Imagineer Joe Rohde on Fixing the Disco Yeti: “There Are Solutions. There Are Not Opportunities” — Rohde’s most detailed public explanation of why the fix kept stalling, tied to aligning operations across the company rather than the engineering itself.
- Expedition Everest Now Closed for Multi-Month Refurbishment, Yeti Fix Not Included — The last time the attraction closed for major work, Disney confirmed upfront that the Yeti wouldn’t be part of it, a contrast worth keeping in mind now that it finally is.
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!
BREAKING NEWS- Disney to repair broken Down ride element. 🙄