Walt Disney Audio-Animatronic Announced for Carousel of Progress

It’s a great big beautiful tomorrow! This afternoon, during the Creating the Happiest Place on Earth panel at Destination D23, it was announced that guests will soon be able to see an audio-animatronic figure of Walt Disney himself in Walt Disney’s Carousel of Progress at Magic Kingdom. You may remember that the first-ever audio-animatronic of Walt Disney debuted at Disneyland a few months ago.

Here is an excerpt from today’s announcement:

Walt’s own idea from beginning to end, the Carousel of Progress made its debut at the New York World’s Fair in 1964, where it was an immediate smash hit for millions of people visiting from around the world. Since then, the show has had more performances than any other stage show in the history of American theater and has found a comfortable home as a tribute to the original version of the show inside Magic Kingdom since 1975. 

Progress and innovation were two of Walt’s cornerstone passions, which is as evident in the show today as it was when it first debuted. Before you follow an American family (and Rover!) over four generations of progress as technology transforms their lives and paves the way for once-unimaginable innovations, you’ll be able to catch a brand-new introductory scene and hear from the legendary man who never stood in the way of progress — Walt Disney. 

There are still plenty of additional details to be revealed, including what John, Sarah, and the rest of the family are up to. Disney Imagineers love this attraction, and the heart of it will stay the same while introducing the Carousel of Progress to an entirely new generation of fans, showing them that a great big, beautiful tomorrow is just a dream away.  

Quick Recap: When the Carousel of Progress is updated, the attraction will feature a brand new scene featuring a Walt Disney animatronic. More details will be revealed at a later date about what John, Sarah, and the rest of the family, including Rover, have been up to. Disney has not shared any specific timeline for these updates at the time of this announcement.

Earlier today, Disney announced the following limited-time overlay for Tron / Lightcycle Run:

• Tron Lightcycle / Run at Magic Kingdom to Receive Special Red Overlay Celebrating ‘Tron: Ares’ Film

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