For a limited time starting November 5, a sneak peek of Disney’s next big adventure, the sweeping animated feature “Moana,” will be presented as part of the One Man’s Dream attraction at Disney’s Hollywood Studios, offering guests an advance look at scenes from the film. The removal of the Doctor Strange preview shuts down any hope of a character meet and greet coming, despite Disney casting for actors to portray the hero. The work inside of One Man’s Dream is likely related to some sort of new theme park model, possibly for Pandora: The World of AVATAR at Disney’s Animal Kingdom or the Star Wars & Toy Story Lands at Hollywood Studios.
This special preview of “Moana” is also currently playing at Disneyland Resort, where guests can catch the sneak peek in Disney California Adventure park at the Bug’s Life Theater, featuring a 3D presentation with exclusive in-theater effects.
Directed by the renowned filmmaking team of Ron Clements and John Musker (“The Little Mermaid,” “Aladdin,” “The Princess and the Frog”), produced by Osnat Shurer (“Lifted,” “One Man Band”), and featuring music by Lin-Manuel Miranda, Mark Mancina and Opetaia Foa‘i, “Moana” sails into theaters in 3D on November 23, 2016.
Each tree is inspired by a different Disney character or story. During this walk-through experience, you’ll wind through a lovely winter wonderland complete with a gentle snow fall, toy soldiers, singers and plenty of opportunities for photos.
Below is a list of the planned tree themes:
Mickey and Minnie Mouse
Disney Villains
“Moana“
“Beauty and the Beast“
“The Little Mermaid“
“Cinderella“
“The Princess and the Frog“
“Alice in Wonderland“
“Frozen“
“The Jungle Book“
“Mulan“
“101 Dalmatians“
“Tangled“
“Mary Poppins“
The Muppets
The Disney Springs’ Christmas Tree Trail will debut on November 11th and will run through January 8, 2017.
The painting of the rocks at the entrance to Tomorrowland is finally complete.
Stitch’s Great Escape is closed seasonally through later this month, so for now it is stroller parking…
This and That
A new Dumbo MagicBand can be found in shops around the parks.
Moana phone cases are now available through D-Tech on Demand at the Tomorrowland Light and Power Company.
You can still make a Main Street Electrical Parade MagicBand, even though it is gone now.
The banners taken down for Hurricane Matthew in Storybook Circus are coming back very slowly. Part of that is Disney is also installing new ones currently since the old set was faded from the sun.
There are still Halloween Parties left, but Disney is selling the merchandise any old time now. Kind of frustrating for those who attended, they should at least wait until all of the Parties have happened.
I did find some new ladies shirts inside Big Top Souvenirs as well.
Columbia Harbor House now has a shrimp macaroni and cheese dish.
Yum?
The Haunted Mansion
Most of the tarps are finally down at the Haunted Mansion.
The attraction exit is missing an awning right now.
The interactive queue is missing a covering as well.
PizzeRizzo – the classic family pizzeria owned by Rizzo – will open in Muppets Courtyard at Disney’s Hollywood Studios on November 18. While enjoying personal-sized pies, guests will find décor inspired by Rizzo, as well as his extended family and friends who have visited PizzeRizzo over the years throughout the two-story eatery. Be sure to head upstairs to Rizzo’s Deluxe Supreme Banquet Hall, where there’s a wedding reception already in progress; join the party and show off your best moves under the disco ball.
Disney today shared some details of the menu for the first time. Entrees are served with a side Caesar salad, and include personal-sized Pizza Pies, available in four varieties—vegetable, pepperoni, meat lovers and cheese, as well as a Meatball Sub. If you’re looking for a lighter option, the Antipasto Salad features a bed of Romaine lettuce piled high with tomatoes, Mozzarella, Kalamata olives, ham, pepperoni, salami and Balsamic Vinaigrette.
For dessert, indulge in traditional Italian sweets like Cannoli and Tiramisu. Specialty drinks will also be available, including a non-alcoholic Peach Bellini, and a Wildberry-Basil Lemonade Limoncello in addition to beer and wine for adults.
Our latest photo report brings us to Epcot where a ton of new park-exclusive merchandise can be found. It is also a time of great change for the park, with Innoventions closing, construction in Mexico, and other projects around the park starting to take shape. Let’s take a look:
Muppet Mobile Labs
Muppet Mobile Labs is now wrapping up its one month stint at Epcot. It is likely to move to Disney’s Hollywood Studios, but there has been no official word as of yet.
New Merchandise
Due to theft, limited edition pins are now being enclosed in glass cases at all store locations. This was unnecessary for the first 17 years of the hobby.
A ton of changes happened in MouseGear, with all of the merchandise being reorganized again. There is also a slew of new items for sale.
A variety of Tsum Tsum clothing is now available.
A new line of Epcot merchandise focusing on vintage logos and World Showcase was recently released. There is quite the variety of items available.
My personal favorite is this sweatshirt which features the original World Showcase logo icon with each country’s flag.
There is now a coaster to match the cup and plate featuring Spaceship Earth.
A new plush Figment hat for sale.
New shortbread cookies for sale, not sure why these are a thing but they are in most major stores now.
The Star Wars section has moved down to the other end of the store.
Moana merchandise was recently released at the parks.
The Maps of the Disney Parks book is available in MouseGear.
A new Margarita stand and a food stand are supposedly being constructed on the opposite side of the Mexico pavilion.
Walls are up on both sides leading us to believe it could be two stands.
VISA Character Meet and Greet
The new Disney VISA Cardmember Exclusive meet and greet recently opened at the Imagination pavilion. It is open daily from 1 PM until 7 (yeah, seven) PM.
Innoventions
Colortopia remains the last functioning piece of Innoventions.
The holidays are coming (yes I know what date it is, it’s located right next to this text in fact) to Disneyland, meanwhile, work continues on removing the Twilight Zone Tower of Terror and adding the Star Wars themed land to Disneyland Park. Let’s check it all out in our latest photo report from Conner Purzycki.
Star Wars Land Construction
Construction continues on the Star Wars themed land for Disneyland Park.
Above is one of the tunnels that will lead guests into the remote outpost.
Some Imagineers were on the site yesterday, gaping into the giant whole excavated for the “Battle with the First Order” attraction, reportedly the single largest E-Ticket ride Disney has ever created.
Downtown Disney
The former Valet Parking area is now open to self parking.
Curl Surf and what we expect to be Sprinkles will be going between Sunglass Hut and Jamba Juice.
The facade work on the World of Disney store is finally complete.
The windows were already updated for the holidays (yet don’t reflect the changes to the Tower of Terror).
The Holidays come to Disneyland
It isn’t even Halloween yet, but Sleeping Beauty Castle is already decked for the holiday season.
The last of the Diamond Celebration decorations are finally gone, now replaced with snow-covered towers.
Fantasmic 2.0
Work continues on Tom Sawyer Island to prepare for Fantasmic! 2.0 next summer.
A scrim covers work on the new riverbank to hide Star Wars land.
New Orleans Square
Christmas decorations are already up in New Orleans Square as well.
This and That
Moana merchandise was spotted in Frontierland.
“it’s a small world” is now closed for its annual holiday makeover.
The majority of the facade work in Toontown is complete and I would dare say that Cartoon Spin has never looked better.
The 2017 attraction poster calendar is now available on both coasts.
Rogue Oen merchandise is readily available as well.
Some strange new sewer cap shirts are available around the Resort.
Disney Showcase on Main Street U.S.A. has become s full-fledged Christmas store.
Disney California Adventure
Disney Junior Live on Stage is now presented by Pull-Ups.
Work continues to fix the damage of 6 years worth of dance parties in the backlot area.
Twilight Zone Tower of Terror Removal
I’m still waiting for a “Yes, We’re Still Open” banner like in the movie Clerks to show up at the Twilight Zone Tower of Terror as the conversion into Guardians of the Galaxy: Mission Breakout continues while the ride is still functioning.
A Bug’s Land getting the holiday treatment, while Tower of Terror is getting a whole different kind of treatment…
It’s been out for a bit, but the relatively new line of Grizzly River Run merchandise is pretty terrific.
I know that there has been a tremendous amount of speculation as to when Disney might be debuting Rivers of Light, the new nighttime show for Animal Kingdom (which is now a whopping 6 months late after being set to debut April 22nd, 2016), but it looks like we can finally see the light at the end of the tunnel now. Supposedly. Maybe.
“Rivers of Light,”the majestic nighttime jewel, coming to Disney’s Animal Kingdom creates an illuminating musical experience for guests. Currently in development with a premiere date to be announced soon, “Rivers of Light” will celebrate the magic of animals, humans and the natural world with a blend of performers, floating lanterns and theatrical animal imagery. (David Roark, photographer)
Regardless, we expect an announcement from Disney very, very soon.
If it makes you feel any better, some cast members who have been present for recent dress rehearsals of Rivers of Light have called it “stunning”, “beautiful”, and one even went so far as to call it “the greatest thing I have ever seen in my life”. Color me excited for this one, folks.
Bear with us on this one, Square Enix has announced yet ANOTHER Kingdom Hearts rerelease, though in all fairness, this is the one people have really been waiting for all along.
On March 28, 2017, exactly 15 years from the release of the first game on PlayStation 2, Square Enix will release Kingdom Hearts HD 1.5 + 2.5 Remix for PlayStation 4.
Disney and Square Enix made the announcement today during Paris Games Week. The collection will include every game that was in the 1.5 ReMIX, as well as the 2.5 ReMIX. The full list can be seen below.
Kingdom Hearts Final Mix
Kingdom Hearts Re:Chain of Memories
Kingdom Hearts 358/2 Days
Kingdom Hearts II Final Mix
Kingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep Final Mix
Kingdom Hearts Re:coded
The collection leaves a couple of games off the list, like Kingdom Hearts 3D: Dream Drop Distance, though it does include all of the series most important entries like 1, 2, and Chain of Memories.
Interestingly enough, Square Enix still plans on releasing Kingdom Hearts HD II.8 — Final Prologue on January 28, 2017, despite the fact that this newly announced collection will include most of the games in Final Prologue and more.
Kingdom Hearts HD 1.5 + 2.5 Remix will be the first time the series staples will be available all together for current generation hardware. If you haven’t played an entry in the series before, this would be the perfect place to pick up. The game is available for pre-order now on Amazon for $50.
All remakes aside, Square Enix is still developing the highly anticipated Kingdom Hearts 3, which will release on PS4 and Xbox One sometime in the future.
With Halloween around the corner, we discussed the Scariest things ever at Walt Disney World
Cornac the Magnificent stopped by to amaze us with his insightful prognostications
In possibly our most offensive subject matter to date, bringing guns into the park came up a few times during the show. Good thing Tom had a handy map to explain it all the audience.
A new projection show will debut soon at The Magic Kingdom and we went over all the details
We played our most offensive (ok, maybe second most) version WDWNT: The Match Game brought to you by Theme Park Connection! What might Bob Iger be handing out to Trick or Treaters this year? What does Tom have to do 7 (yes, 7) times each night before bed? Find out in hour 2 of this episode.
Hosted by radio veterans and life-long Disney fans Tom Corless and Nick LoCicero, WDW News Tonight is a live, weekly, audio and video program presented on AM 1520 WBZW in Orlando, Florida and online at WDWNewsTonight.com every Wednesday from 9-11pm EST. The show covers the Walt Disney World Resort and other Disney news. The show combines the latest headlines, comedy, trending vaction topics, call in games, and in-depth discussions to bring Disney fans a one-of-a-kind 2-hour program covering the Disney Parks. While the show is being live-streamed in both audio and video, listeners and viewers also interact via a live chat online. The show is also available on demand as an audio download, online audio stream and can be watched live or recorded on YouTube.
Symoné will be producing the show, as well as staring in it. She will reprise her role as Raven Baxter, who is now a divorced mother with two children, one of which has just discovered her psychic abilities akin to those of her mom’s.
Scott Thomas and Jed Elinoff (Best Friends Whenever) are also set to produce, and casting is taking place now. As of right now, Raven is the only confirmed return character, though the show is in the earlier stages of planning, so we will see more announcements over time.
That’s So Raven was one of Disney Channel’s most successful sitcoms and ran from 2003-2007. After the show ended, a less successful spin-off titled Cory in the House aired, which focused on Raven Baxter’s younger brother living in the White House.
The official name for the new show is still pending, and Symoné has confirmed that she will be leaving The View by the end of the year to work on the new show.
