To say that Disney has gone through something of an identity crisis would be a grand and glorious understatement. As the company struggles at the box office and cries for classic content go unheeded, a recent announcement from the parks might have just turned the tide.
This week, it was revealed that the Sorcerer's Hat is returning to Disney's Hollywood Studios in the form of a new attraction inspired by the wonders of Disney Animation. While that's certainly going to nab the attention of any veteran Disney Parks fan, it might also be Disney showing its hand.
Back to the drawing board (literally)
Long story short, Disney's Hollywood Studios is changing the Star Wars Launch Bay into an attraction paying tribute to the iconic work done by Walt Disney Animation Studios, with a heavy influence from the short film Once Upon a Studio. However, as pointed out by former Disney Cast Member @dappermanatee, Disney might have ulterior motives for this massive change.
As @dappermanatee says, Disney doesn't close things and then just bring them back. By bringing back Animation Courtyard, Disney is essentially turning back the clock and going back to both traditional animation and traditional practices.
If you're anything like this Disney writer, you're probably an absolute obsessive when it comes to Disney animation. You'll also know that for a good period of time, many of our favorite animated features were developed in Disney's Hollywood Studios in Orlando, Florida, at Walt Disney Feature Animation.
From 1989-2004, Walt Disney Feature Animation helped bring some of Disney's most treasured films to life, including the likes of Mulan and Lilo & Stitch. If Disney is indeed going all in on its animation studio, it wouldn't be too crazy to think that the company is also reviving the old studio.
It's been said that modern animated movies are essentially advertisements for the theme parks. Why else would Dreamworks/Universal release a remake of How to Train Your Dragon so close to the opening date of Epic Universe? If that's indeed the case, Disney is about to make the ultimate Hail Mary move.
In this writer's opinion, Disney is indeed healing, but it might be a dollar short and a day late. True, the nostalgia factor is going to play a big role in attracting visitors to this attraction, but the studio's ability to bounce back after some of the recent backlash (as seen with Elio) brings things into question.
That being said, this does inspire hope for the future of Disney. The House of Mouse was a pioneer of the animated medium, and to actually see the studio return to the traditional art form will be a breath of fresh air. We won't really know until the ink hits the paper.
The Magic of Disney Animation opens at Disney's Hollywood Studios in 2026.