Late last year, Disney shocked the theme park world when they announced that the Rock ’n’ Roller Coaster at Hollywood Studios would be rethemed to The Muppets, allowing the characters to remain a prominent part of the park after their longtime attraction — Muppet*Vision 3D was evicted to make room for the upcoming Monsters, Inc. land.
At the time of the announcement, Disney said that the Muppets would bring “laughter, screams and new tunes” to the attraction as their “energy” was a “perfect fit” for the coaster. While that may be true, I have my doubts that the Muppet version of the Rock ’n’ Roller Coaster will be able to match the chaotic energy of the Muppets ride that could have been.
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In the late 1980s and early 1990s, Disney and Jim Henson — the legendary creator of The Muppets — were deeply involved in negotiations for the Mouse House to acquire Henson’s creations. As part of the potential deal, Henson was to remain involved in a creative capacity, and The Muppets would become a major part of Disney’s intellectual property portfolio AND the company’s theme parks.
In fact, at one point, plans were in motion to add an entire Muppets-themed land to the theme park then known as the Disney-MGM Studios. During the development stages, this land was to be headlined by a Muppets 3D film as one of the most interesting dark ride concepts Disney Imagineering would ever cook up: The Great Muppet Movie Ride.
As the name implies, the ride would have essentially functioned as an in-park parody of the Studios’ then-headline attraction The Great Movie Ride. According to an interview with Henson from the period, the ride would have been the “…the flip side of the rest of the Disney-MGM Studio, which tells you how movies are really made. We’re doing it in the most stupid way possible, using lots of misinformation.”
Looking at the attraction’s concept art, it appears there would have been chaotic-yet comical Muppet segments spoofing Peter Pan…
..Indiana Jones…
… Frankenstein…
… and genres like science fiction, all in the iconic Muppet way.
As the 90s dawned, Disney was so sure they had the Muppet acquisition nailed down that they produced an entire TV special — The Muppets at Walt Disney World — to more closely link Henson’s characters with the parks and the company’s planned “Disney Decade” of growth. The special premiered on May 6th, 1990, and would sadly serve as the final Muppet project to air in Jim Henson’s lifetime.
Just 10 days later, on May 16th, 1990, Jim Henson passed away suddenly from toxic shock syndrome caused by Streptococcus pyogenes. He was just 53 years old.
In the immediate aftermath of Henson’s tragic death, the negotiations between Disney and his company broke down, and led to several legal battles that ended Disney’s bid to purchase The Muppets (for the time being), and led to the cancelation of most of the theme park plans.
Just about a year later, the 3D film did come to fruition in the form of the legendary (and soon to be dearly departed) Muppet*Vision 3D, but the rest of the land — and The Great Muppet Movie Ride — were never built, becoming nothing more than legend amongst Imagineers and Disney parks aficionados.
While the planned Muppets Land was never built, the park that would come to be known as Hollywood Studios continued to expand over the next several decades, including the construction of the Aerosmith-themed Rock ’n’ Roller Coaster, which opened in 1999. Meanwhile, Disney finally did purchase The Muppets outright in 2004.
That all brings us back where we started, to the news that the Muppets were taking over the coaster from the “Bad Boys of Boston.” So, what are my reservations?
Well, while I’m ecstatic that the Muppets will remain a part of the Studios park, I’m very wary about them meshing well with the Rock ’n’ Roller Coster’s ride system. As evidenced by the above Great Muppet Movie Ride concept art, a Muppets dark ride has the potential to be a highly detailed thematic experience that could emphasize the chaotic comedy the characters are known for through intricate show scenes. Said intricate show scenes will likely be impossible to install in the coaster’s show building, nor visible to guests as the ride moves through its launch and inversions.
Don’t get me wrong, I have no doubt that Disney will do something fun with the Muppets theme (and if nothing else, the preshow and queue will likely be worth the experience alone) but it seems impossible that they’ll be able to match the promise of the Great Muppet Movie Ride that never was. Stay tuned to AllEars for more deep dives into Walt Disney World history.
Disney’s Forgotten How To Make Rides Like the Great Movie Ride
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How do you feel about The Muppets taking over the Rock ’n’ Roller Coaster? Let us know in the comments below.
I’m probably one of the few that dislike the muppets. I wish if they had to retheme it they would have went with something different.
Build it Disney! Sounds great!
I still think the Great Muppet Movie Ride would have been WAY better than trying to cram the Muppets into a roller coaster that’s over in less than 90 seconds. It would have preserved a version of the beloved opening-day attraction so many of us desire to resurrect while calling back to the all-but-extinct movie-making experience on which MGM Studios was built.
Disney is ruining it’s park by re-theming everything instead of just fixing the rides and letting new visitors experience the park the way it was originally designed. Rides have been taken away and others are being changed for no reason other than a few people feel they need to be changed or done away with. If the day ever arrives that my husband and I can afford to visit Walt Disney world…there won’t even be a park there to visit. Rock N’ Roller Coaster was perfect the way it was…just because the music group is not one of the newer groups and one member has had legal issues…someone thought they had to change it….the member was not the reason for the ride….THE MUSIC was. Stop changing the park. Leave it the way it is already.
My family loves the muppets
The 3D show was nice for everyone in my family
My younger kids love the muppets but it will be along time before they can ride the old Aerosmith rollercoaster where as they have been going to muppetvision for years
I LOVE The Muppets and I LOVE RnR Coaster but younger children may get frightened on this ride. I hope Disney will provide rider/parent swaps for guests with kids.