by James Coulter
It’s time to raise the curtain. It’s time to light the lights. It’s time to meet the Muppets one last time at MuppetVision 3D.
The classic Muppet show will be closing at Disney’s Hollywood Studios, and the Muppets are set to make their new home on the other side of the park at another classic attraction.
Earlier this year at D23, Disney Parks announced a new Monsters, Inc.-themed land, which will include the tentatively named Monsters, Inc. Door Coaster, the first suspended roller coaster in a Disney park.
The new ride and land were announced to be built at Disney’s Hollywood Studios, yet where the land would be placed had yet to be determined–until now.
Recently, Disney has confirmed that the new land and ride will be replacing Muppet Courtyard, where MuppetVision 3D currently resides, along with the Muppet-themed eatery Pizzarizzo’s.
Over the years, that area has slowly been remodeled to remove most of its original Muppet theming. In 2017, both the Muppet balloon and fountain were removed. And as of this year, the Stage 1 Company Store was demolished.
As for the Muppets themselves, they will not be leaving the park entirely. Instead, they will be making their new home on the other side of the park at another classic attraction, Rock n’ Roller Coaster.
The nearly 25-year-old launch coaster will be receiving a Muppet makeover. Disney Parks Blog states that the Muppet characters will be taking over the ride, as well as “teaming up with some of music’s biggest stars for a rockin’ music festival!”
This planned retheme has been announced the same year the rock band Aerosmith, to which the attraction is currently themed, has announced their retirement from touring. Meanwhile, the other Rock n Roller Coaster attraction in Disney Studios Paris is planned to be rethemed to Marvel’s The Avengers.
As for MuppetVision 3D, Disney Parks has assured fans that the classic film attraction will be preserved in one way or another. They wrote: “As we move forward with these changes, we are having creative conversations and exploring ways to preserve the film and other parts of the experience for fans to enjoy in the future.”
MuppetVision 3D is significant, not only for being a unique show that blends puppetry with 3D visual and practical effects, but also being the very last project Muppet creator Jim Henson worked on before his death in 1990.
The attraction was supposed to be part of a larger Muppet-themed land, which would have also included The Muppet Movie Ride, a dark ride parody of the park’s then iconic attraction, the Great Movie Ride. However, plans were scrapped following Jim’s passing.
How and where MuppetVision 3D will be preserved remains unknown. Many fans speculate the attraction may move next door to Rock n Roller Coaster, replacing Lightning McQueen’s Racing Academy. Other fans speculate the film could be released either on Blu-Ray/DVD or on streaming on Disney Plus.
Either way, where one door closes (to open for a door coaster), another door opens. And the Muppets will no doubt be making their way triumphantly through that opened door with their upcoming new venture.
