Splash Mountain to become Princess and the Frog ride

[BrianL]

Whatever they do, I hope they don't cheap out on ANYTHING. I don't hate the FEA ride, but a bunch of easily-visible blank walls is unacceptable. I hope any alteration to Splash (and Jungle Cruise, etc) is done WELL, ala Guardians. ToT is my favorite ride anywhere, and I was very skeptical of the Guardians redo, but it's fantastic - they did an amazing job with theming, the quality of all the visuals and props, both on ride and in the queue. Splash needs that level of redo. (I also feel like Runaway Railway is too sparse, and needs a LOT more physical props - the only wow moment for me is when you go down the waterfall.)

The only issue with Guardians is the Boiler Room area - they put a bunch of rope lights and alien props, but it still looks like a boiller room. I think they cheaped out a little on that part. I agree though, if they are doing this - pull out ALL the stops. I want it to make Rise of the Resistance look like a carnival in the parking lot of an abandoned shopping mall.

 

[RamblingMad]

I don’t how this is going solve racial injustice by causing more in my opinion.

I think, it's going to boil down to if the redo is better than the original. If it's not as good, then that will be a problem. Of course, I remember during the Great Recession all of the blog posts about the animatronics not working properly.

 

[Krandor]

Well... I loved parts of the movie and all of the ride, but I can't be upset with anyone bothered by its faults. I will dearly miss the characters and songs... it's such a HAPPY RIDE!

I am very happy with the new theme, however. I'm even more happy that it highlights a princess that many children can visually identify with. It's a good movie, has great songs, and fits just as well in the respective areas as Splash Mountain did.

Mourn the loss of the things that were good. Celebrate the possibilities of the future.

It is a very happy ride and I enjoy it a lot and will be sad to see it go.

However, I think this was not an IF but a WHEN question though I guess right now it is still a WHEN question since we still don't know that.

 

[SierraT]

I don't see a slippery slope. If you consider Song of the South racist propaganda, how could you not be upset with the person that actually paid for the rights, produced it, and spread it to the entire world?

I agree with so many differing opinions here and you make a very valid point. There have also been rumors floating around for years that Walt was an anti-Semite but most of us Disney fans choose to believe the best of him. The reality is though none of us know because he’s dead. In this case, I prefer to remain ignorant I guess.

 

[andyman8]

I don't see a slippery slope. If you consider Song of the South racist propaganda, how could you not be upset with the person that actually paid for the rights, produced it, and spread it to the entire world?

That’s a whole different argument to be had entirely. I was talking about the trope of “if this changes, then they’re going to have to change that, that, that, and everything will be ruined.” How we judge historical figures relative to current attitudes is a whole different argument and one I’m not sure this thread is the avenue for.

 

[mmackeymouse]

I agree and I'm going to tread lightly here. When i hear people who don't want something people are offended by to change try to defend it by deciding what some other group (who hasn't said anything) should be offended by that would then have to change as well it makes be cringe a bit. It's a strawman at best.

My point, and I I'm going to tread lightly here, is that the whole argument of "You don't get to decide what is or isn't offensive to people" is by its nature a slippery slope. Everyone, and I mean everyone, on this earth is offended by something.

I am not comparing hardships or offenses. That's not my meaning. I'm just saying if the idea of "If it offends ANYBODY, whether it intends to or not, it should be removed." is the bar we set for whether something stays or goes.....if this is the bar we set, there are going to be a lot of songs, movies, and rides affected.

 

[OHmomof2]

Disney will still be my magical escape...they’ve gotten rid of and changed rides before and they’ll still do it in the future. But I’ll always have the memories of them! Hopefully they’ll do a good job with the re-theme.

 

[Krandor]

That’s a whole different argument to be had entirely. I was talking about the trope of “if this changes, then they’re going to have to change that, that, that, and everything will be ruined.” How we judge historical figures relative to current attitudes is a whole different argument and one I’m not sure this thread is the avenue for.

Agreed. This thread is already getting very close to crossing the political line but so far people have been good. I don't think we want to venture beyond SotS and Splash. I suspect at some point this thread will get locked but let's try to avoid that as long as possible.

 

[Dean Marino]

Why not drop another Millennium Falcon into Frontier Land? Or "Skywalker's great water escape"? Theaming stinks. Perhaps Frontier Land should just be gutted, and turned into something else?

 

[BrianL]

I agree with so many differing opinions here and you make a very valid point. There have also been rumors floating around for years that Walt was an anti-Semite but most of us Disney fans choose to believe the best of him. The reality is though none of us know because he’s dead. In this case, I prefer to remain ignorant I guess.

Those rumors are pretty much debunked, though Walt certainly held some negative beliefs about his competitors and likely used words in a way that we would not today to describe them. I think that's where it comes from. He was absolutely NOT a Nazi sympathizer as some claim - he was very pro-America.

 

[Krandor]

I am not comparing hardships or offenses. That's not my meaning. I'm just saying if the idea of "If it offends ANYBODY, whether it intends to or not, it should be removed." is the bar we set for whether something stays or goes.....if this is the bar we set, there are going to be a lot of songs, movies, and rides affected.

but in the case of splash that ISN'T the bar being used. Splash isn't one person being offended. It and SotS have been an issue for a long time. So "remove anything that offends anybody" doesn't apply here because that isn't the standard being used.

When something is removed on that standard then we can discuss it but that isn't Splash.

 

[rteetz]

https://twitter.com/x/status/1276258594548301824

 

[SierraT]

My daughter just came in the room and said “mom, so is it about time to shelf Cinderella, Snow White and Sleeping Beauty, let’s rename the castle, Cinderella is so weak.”

I personally loved all the princesses as a kid but this new generation is so different.

 

[OKW Lover]

Why not drop another Millennium Falcon into Frontier Land? Or "Skywalker's great water escape"? Theaming stinks. Perhaps Frontier Land should just be gutted, and turned into something else?

Hardly. There was a time in US history when Louisiana was the frontier. I believe it fits nicely on the Rivers of America.

 

[mmackeymouse]

My daughter just came in the room and said “mom, so is it about time to shelf Cinderella, Snow White and Sleeping Beauty?“ Let’s rename the castle, Cinderella is so weak.

I personally loved all the princesses as a kid but this new generation is so different.

Oh don't get me started.....I guess there is only one way to be a female nowadays.

 

[Krandor]

My daughter just came in the room and said “mom, so is it about time to shelf Cinderella, Snow White and Sleeping Beauty?“ Let’s rename the castle, Cinderella is so weak.

I personally loved all the princesses as a kid but this new generation is so different.

you associiate with the people you grew up on. Kids today know Rei, Po, and Finn more then Luke, Leia, Han. And with reboot movies kids will associate more with the reboot characters then the old ones.

Kinda like music - you are more attached to the songs you listen to growing up.

 

[chasgoose]

I don’t how this is going solve racial injustice by causing more in my opinion.

I don't think anyone thinks fixing a problematic ride will solve racial injustice, but I don't see what's so bad about fixing a ride that is deeply offensive to many people and reminds them of a time when their relatives were subjected to state-sponsored terrorism either and I absolutely don't see how it could possibly cause more racial injustice to address their concerns. Song of the South comes from a long history of false narratives trying to paper over the horrors of slavery and the Jim Crow era while also justifying the Jim Crow mistreatment of black people. It's good that Disney finally recognizes its time to move forward.

 

[mmackeymouse]

but in the case of splash that ISN'T the bar being used. Splash isn't one person being offended. It and SotS have been an issue for a long time. So "remove anything that offends anybody" doesn't apply here because that isn't the standard being used.

When something is removed on that standard then we can discuss it but that isn't Splash.

To be fair, I have seen people in multiple threads saying this very thing when discussing Splash in the past. "If there are people offended by it, it should go, no questions asked."

So I stand by what I said.

 

[Krandor]

https://twitter.com/x/status/1276258594548301824

It would be nice if they could keep mountain in the name so it could still be one of the mountains but not sure how to fi that in with PATF though

 

[SierraT]

Oh don't get me started.....I guess there is only one way to be a female nowadays.

So so true. She was being sarcastic to get a rise, but I thought it was somewhat fitting.

My kids grew out of Disney unfortunately but they are so pragmatic and recognize Disney is a corporation and does what makes them money.