Disney World is building a NEW Villains Land in Magic Kingdom that is promising to be a little spooky. But just how scary will this land actually be?
One of the most anticipated Disney World projects in years, the new Villains Land will expand Magic Kingdom to include an all-new land that highlights the pantheon of Disney villains. This land will undoubtedly be different than anything Disney has done stateside, as it will highlight a darker and more evil realm of Disney. That has us begging the question: “Will the new Villains Land be scary?”
By comparison to other Disney Parks lands, sure — Villains Land will be scarier. But we should probably add some context.
Disney isn’t really known for its scariers, so anything slightly darker and more sinister is naturally scarier by default.
If we’re comparing the new land to actual horror IP, than the answer becomes NO — Villains Land won’t really be scary. There is plenty of evidence to back up this claim. For starters, this land will be featured in Magic Kingdom, which is known as a family-friendly safe haven packed with nostalgia, smiles, and joyous theming.
Unless Disney implements age restrictions to enter Villains Land (which they won’t do), it’s super unlikely Magic Kingdom will completely break from its family-friendly theming. Sure, we expect this land to be a bit darker than the rest of the lands, featuring slightly spooky imagery. However, that doesn’t mean you’ll feel like you’ve stepped out of Magic Kingdom into an R-rated horror film.
Instead of Universal’s Halloween Horror Nights, think closer to Mickey’s Not-So-Scary Halloween Party. Think funny villains, way more jokes than scares, and a land designed to entertain — not cause anxiety.
While Horror Nights are meant to terrify, Mickey’s Not-So-Scary Halloween party is more like a villains team-up where you can enjoy the devilishly good fun the event has to offer. We’re expecting the new land to be closer to this experience.
Another piece of evidence that lends itself to this argument is the NEW Disney Villains: Unfairly Ever After show at Disney’s Hollywood Studios. Sure, the new show has some creepy elements like eerie music and fog effects — both of which we expect to see in the Villains Land — but at its core, it’s super playful. We’ll be shocked if that theme doesn’t carry over to Magic Kingdom.
The final piece of evidence practically guarantees that the new Villains Land WON’T be scary.
Universal’s Epic Universe has a popular Dark Universe Portal based completely on Universal’s Classic Monsters IP. Sound familiar?
Many consider the Universal theme parks to cater to older crowds, so if they wanted to go super scary, they theoretically could do so with this land. Universal already scares the pants off its guests with Horror Nights, and soon will in Las Vegas with its Universal Horror Unleashed year-round haunted house experience.
With that said, Dark Universe isn’t all too scary. Don’t get us wrong, there are definitely some spooky things in the land and the Monsters Unchained ride has plenty of scary elements…but the average park-goer should be able to handle it.
Dark Universe is definitely more cool than terrifying — and there’s a reason for that!
Like Magic Kingdom, Epic Universe is trying to cater to fans of all ages, featuring IP that will please kids and adults alike. As such, making a land inaccessible to an entire demographic is dumb business. Disney is well aware of this, which is why Magic Kingdom’s Villains Land should still be relatively tame.
Disney has yet to provide true, untethered terror. In all of our years covering the parks, we’ve yet to see them embrace the darkness — it’s hard to imagine they’ll start now. Still, we can only speculate.
What do you think? Will this new land be scary or something that kids (and the easily frightened) can handle? Let us know what you think, and continue to follow us here at AllEars for all the latest Villains Land updates!
The Villains Land Expansion Will Be a Monumental Achievement — If Disney Can Finish It
How scary do you think Villains Land will be? Share your thoughts in the comments below!
I’m guessing it will be as scary as the scariest scares Haunted Mansion dishes out…