The next five years are shaping up to be the most exciting time for Disney park fans in the company’s history. Disney declared they are investing $60 billion in their experiences division, which is primarily made up of their parks, resorts, and cruise line. Disney Chairman of Experiences (soon to become CEO) Josh D’Amaro has coined the phrase “turbocharge” to describe all the massive projects under development.
Some of the highlights include a massive expansion to The Magic Kingdom, including a Piston Peak section in Frontierland and the first-ever Villains-themed land in the former Rivers of America.
Disney’s Hollywood Studios will welcome Monstropolis to the former Muppet’s Courtyard in Grand Avenue, and Disney’s Animal Kingdom will receive a Tropical Americas section in the DinoLand U.S.A. area.
On the West Coast, there are several massive projects under development for Disney’s California Adventure, including the first-ever Coco-themed attraction, an Avatar destination, and two new attractions for Avengers Campus.
When looking overseas, Disneyland Paris’ second gate, the Walt Disney Studios Park, is being entirely re-branded to Disney Adventure World and will add a new section of the park titled Adventure Bay, which will house World of Frozen and a future Pride Lands section, themed to The Lion King.
However, amid all these projects, several “smaller” developments are underway that many fans overlook. In The Magic Kingdom, Big Thunder Mountain Railroad and Buzz Lightyear Space Ranger Spin are getting massive makeovers that will make them feel almost as completely new attractions.
Big Thunder Mountain will receive a new track and an updated backstory. Space Ranger Spin is receiving new vehicles, gameplay enhancements, and even a new scene featuring an original character.
At EPCOT, Frozen Ever After is receiving a significant update as well, as Disney is installing updated audio-animatronics for Elsa, Anna, and Kristoff, similar to the version in Hong Kong Disneyland and eventually Disney Adventure World. Since the attraction opened back in 2016, these characters have been represented by projection-heavy figures. These types of animatronics also exist in Seven Dwarfs Mine Train at The Magic Kingdom, but they look much more convincing due to the design of these characters.
At the time of opening, these figures were quite revolutionary but have since become outdated.
While the majority of fans will eagerly await the next construction update on the many major expansions on the way, I will be paying close attention to any enhancements to our existing attractions.
This brings me to the purpose of this piece: what attractions are next? In this exercise, I will avoid any “major” wish enhancements, like updating Journey Into Imagination with Figment, as that project would be viewed as a significant update given the current state of the attraction (if Disney ever finds the little spark to do so). Any update to Journey Into Imagination will likely be a prominent talking point of the upcoming D23 Expo and would not fit the criteria of this piece.
Instead, I will suggest updates similar to what Frozen Ever After will see in early 2026. A smaller update could be just what a specific attraction needs to attract more visitors.
Spaceship Earth
Sitting at the top of our list will be a popular choice among die-hard fans. Spaceship Earth has undergone many iterations since it opened alongside EPCOT Center in 1982. For example, throughout the attraction’s history, there have been four narrators: Vic Perrin, Walter Cronkite, Jeremy Irons, and, most recently, Dame Judi Dench. In each version, certain set pieces and even the attraction’s overarching theme have been updated.
When Dench became the ride’s narrator in 2007, the theme and the ending scene were completely updated. Dench’s narration centers on the growth of communication throughout human history, not on storytelling, unlike the Irons’ narration. During the finale, instead of seeing various set pieces and projection effects as you descend back to the exit platform, you are now directed to look at the screen of your ride vehicle that will “design” your future based on your answers to a series of questions.
While this effect was quite impressive at the time, it has become a product of the mid-2000s and is not very futuristic. In fact, plans were already underway to update this iconic attraction in 2020, as part of the reimagining of EPCOT.
At the 2019 D23 Expo, Disney announced that Spaceship Earth was set for another major overhaul, which would have once again reimagined the attraction’s overall story. In this proposed version, the attraction was going to receive an entirely new musical score and narration, and discuss the evolution of human nature and experience. The ride was expected to have a tag line, “Our Shared Story.”
Proposed concept art released by Disney showed that the Ancient Egypt scene was going to undergo a significant overhaul, with a new projection effect called “Story Light” that would serve as a guide through the journey.
However, like many projects in the EPCOT reimagining, this was eventually shelved due to the COVID-19 Pandemic. While some projects eventually did see the light of day, like CommuniCore Hall, Journey of Water Inspired by Moana, and Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind, Spaceship Earth has yet to receive an update.
Earlier in 2025, the attraction underwent a minor refurbishment, but from a technical standpoint, the entire ride experience remained unaltered.
However, given that Test Track “3.0” drew so much inspiration from its predecessor, World of Motion, it is time for Walt Disney Imagineering to take another look at the park’s icon. While a new score and narration, in addition to updated set designs, will not only give this attraction some much-needed life but also reinforce it as the centerpiece of the park.
A new version of Spaceship Earth can bring the theme and purpose of EPCOT to the next generation. Similar to how the latest version of Test Track is not simply a cheap thrill, the spirit of optimism and innovation runs through that attraction now more than ever.
The centerpiece of this park deserves an attraction that connects the spirit of innovation, optimism, entertainment, and education into one experience, as EPCOT once strived to do.
Tomorrowland Speedway
Let’s hop on the monorail from EPCOT and head over to The Magic Kingdom. The Magic Kingdom is home to many of the previous “enhancement” attractions and the ones on the way that we discussed in the indictment, like Big Thunder Mountain Railroad and Buzz Lightyear Space Ranger Spin.
Over the past few years, we saw the Country Bear Jamboree transform into the Country Bear Musical Jamboree, which is potentially my favorite of these enhancements. By giving each of these original Marc Davis-designed characters state-of-the-art audio animatronics and a new setlist, the attraction is more popular than ever. While the Disney-inspired setlist is a shift from the original songs, sometimes these older attractions need a catalyst to connect them to the next generation, to not only keep them interested but, more importantly, protect the legacy of this attraction.
This update will likely keep the Country Bears in Magic Kingdom for the foreseeable future, which is an excellent sign, given that they have resided there since the park first opened.
While I debated discussing Walt Disney’s Enchanted Tiki Room, any drastic overhaul of that attraction would detract from the nostalgia. For example, at Tokyo Disneyland, Stitch has invaded the Enchanted Tiki Room. While this would be an entertaining overlay, Disney World has already tried to “update” the Tiki Room when Iago and Zazu took over this classic attraction, which did not age well and was eventually restored to the original form.
Instead, I suggest we provide a spark to the Tomorrowland Speedway. While a drastic overhaul for this attraction could be in the works, we can, however, take a “budget” approach and draw inspiration from our friends out west.
At Disneyland Park, Autopia (their “version” of the Tomorrowland Speedway), their sponsor, Honda, added two characters throughout the attraction. While driving, riders can spot Honda’s robot (ASIMO) and a bird in various scenes. While this is not a significant enhancement, minor set pieces do add some excitement to the attraction.
However, I would instead take an even greater inspiration from what Tomorrowland Speedway becomes during Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party. During this special ticketed event, the attraction becomes a holiday-themed drive-through featuring various Christmas trees, lighting effects, and other holiday decor.
I would propose a futuristic “speedway” where guests can drive along the stars, visiting various planets and destinations. Each set piece will be themed to a planet that guests may see at the exit of Space Mountain, or even the planet Zork, where Sonny Eclipse is from.
It does not appear that Disney is in any rush to remove this attraction, as they purposely designed Tron Lightcycle Run to go in a different section of the land. Why not inject it with a backstory that ties it to specific locations in Tomorrowland, using thoughtful set dressing?
The simple decorations used in Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party make it feel like an entirely new attraction. The potential is there for an affordable but effective enhancement that does not require tearing down the attraction.
Magic Kingdom’s Tomorrowland has received a lot of attention and will soon welcome a Walt Disney animatronic in Walt Disney’s Carousel of Progress. These updates will leave the speedway looking quite outdated in the near future, even more than it already is.
Avatar Flight of Passage
Let’s end off with a bit of a hot take. Don’t get me wrong, I love Avatar Flight of Passage at Animal Kingdom. It is one of the few attractions that everyone can distinctly remember the first time they rode it and what they felt while experiencing it.
However, this e-ticket can use a little love. First, when it opened in May 2017, the curved projection screen, nearly 70 feet wide and 100 feet high, was a marvel to first-time viewers. Riders were immersed in James Cameron’s world, feeling as if they were flying on the back of a Banshee. Seven years later, the screen no longer has the same immersive effect.
While it still transports you to the world of the Na’vi, the picture is not as clear as it used to be. This can be attributed to the upkeep of the 3D glasses or the projection itself. By giving this ride a short refurbishment to recalibrate the video to the screen and to purchase an entirely new set of glasses, this attraction will be able to return as close to its opening-day quality as possible.
A refurbishment like this would get the job done for most guests, but for a signature attraction like this, let’s take it up a notch.
In 2022, the second installment in the series, Avatar: The Way of Water, hit theaters and became another smash hit for this franchise.
In this film, viewers were introduced to other regions of Pandora, some of which are even hinted at during Flight of Passage. On December 19, the third installment, Avatar: Fire and Ash, released and introduced even more regions and creatures in this expansive world.
With the release of a new film in this saga that joined the previous installments in the $1B club at the box office, Disney should take advantage of this opportunity and finally update the film in Flight of Passage. While it does not need to be a complete overhaul like Tron: Ares did to Lightcycle Run earlier this year, a few nods to the new film would inject some life into this attraction.
In addition, this attraction even has the potential to take notes from a similar attraction that is receiving some enhancements, Millennium Falcon: Smugglers Run. On May 22, 2026, to coincide with the release of The Mandalorian and Grogu film, the attraction (on both coasts) will receive new missions inspired by the film.
Guests will have the opportunity to travel to Endor, Bespin, and Tatooine. Flight of Passage does not need to have the Star Tours: The Adventure Continues level of re-rideability, but something similar to the upcoming changes at Smuggler’s Run could add to the anticipation of experiencing this attraction.
Final Thoughts
Many Disney fans are eagerly awaiting the next significant milestone in the massive expansions underway. While I am just as excited to see the first milestone at Piston Peak, these smaller updates are just as crucial for the longevity of these attractions.
These three attractions, while popular, could reach an entirely new audience and offer a fresh, innovative experience by simply investing in them. This formula seems to be working, given Disney’s continued reliance on these enhancements, with the success of the Country Bear Musical Jamboree and several projects in the mix for 2026, as we discussed above.
Under the current management, Disney has emphasized Lightning Lane sales as the catalyst for its investment in the parks, as they provide direct revenue from the attractions. As Disney fans, we should applaud these types of enhancements, as they likely won’t be the difference between a guest purchasing Lightning Lane for a given attraction.
Frozen Ever After has been one of the most popular attractions at Walt Disney World since it opened, and upgrading the audio-animatronic figures will not change that. This enhancement is simply for guest enjoyment and improving the quality of the experience. As noted earlier, improving the screen and adding new scenes to Flight of Passage will not cause a drastic increase in Lightning Lane sales, given how immensely popular the attraction already is.
Instead, it will improve guest satisfaction, which is what makes Disney stand out from its competitors.
While these updates are not the center of most discussions among Disney fans, don’t let them go unnoticed; a small enhancement may make you fall in love with an attraction you often overlooked.
