ANAHEIM, Calif. — The world of Pandora is coming to Disneyland. But the prominent question theme park experts are asking is where?
On the heels of a successful theatrical release of “Avatar: The Way of Water,” Walt Disney Co. CEO Bob Iger dropped a doozy during Wednesday’s investor call when he said the world of “Avatar” is coming to Disneyland Resort.
“I’m thrilled to announce that we will be bringing an exciting 'Avatar' experience to Disneyland,” said Iger. “We’ll be sharing more details on that very soon.”
Disneyland officials had no further comment Thursday about what the “Avatar” experience would look like or where it would be placed, either at Disneyland or Disney California Adventure. A Disneyland spokesperson referred Spectrum News to Iger’s statement.
Disney is no stranger to bringing to life its box office hits. Disney theme parks are filled with rides, attractions, characters, and other experiences based on Disney movies and animated films.
“Avatar” is no different.
Disney opened Pandora — The World of Avatar based on director James Cameron’s 2009 box office hit at Walt Disney World in 2017. The 12-acre Pandora themed-land inside Animal Kingdom features two major rides, themed retail and dining, and a stunning colorful visual landscape, especially at night.
Iger told investors the move to have “Avatar” at Disneyland represents how Disney spreads its core intellectual properties to its vast business portfolio.
“As you’ve seen time and time again, we have a unique way of leveraging creative success across multiple businesses and territories and over long periods of time,” he said.
With “Avatar” coming to Disneyland, Disney fan speculation is rampant.
Will this new “Avatar” experience be a themed land inside Disneyland or Disney California Adventure? Perhaps it would anchor a third theme park once Anaheim approves Disney’s Disneyland Forward project, which will re-entitle Disney’s vast properties in and around the resort.
Unlike Walt Disney World, Disneyland Resort opened in 1955 and is hugely landlocked. There’s limited space to put any type of 10 to 15-acre themed land without removing and demolishing existing attractions.
Robert Niles, the editor of Themepark Insider, said to pay attention to Iger’s word usage.
Iger didn’t say “Avatar attraction.” Disney’s top boss said, “Avatar experience.”
“Since Iger said experience and not attraction, I’m thinking something that might fit in an obvious under-utilized space, such as the old America Sings theater in Tomorrowland,” said Niles to Spectrum News. “A big WDW-style Pandora land would need to wait for Disneyland Forward to open up some space.”
Disney opened an "Avatar" traveling exhibit at Shanghai Disneyland last September. The temporary walk-through exhibition that runs through March takes visitors inside the alien moon of Pandora, where they can see life-sized recreations of exotic creatures, items from indigenous Na’vi culture, and other items from the film.
Jordie Poblete, the editor of Disney Examiner, a Disney news site, said the traveling “Avatar” exhibit is more likely to be what Iger was referring to coming to Disneyland during the shareholder call.
“I think that is probably the ‘Avatar’ experience as opposed to a full land or attraction,” said Poblete. “There are a lot of factors to what should be added at Disneyland. The resort faces several limitations because of [the lack of] land and where it is geographically. But it will be interesting how Disney will present this popular franchise to the Southern California region and the Disneyland audience.”