Avatar Land
Encyclopedia
Avatar Land will be a themed area at Disney's Animal Kingdom
in Lake Buena Vista, Florida
based upon the film franchise by James Cameron
. Construction will begin in 2013, with the land expected to open between 3 and 5 years later.
was approached by The Walt Disney Company
's chief executive officer
, Bob Iger, regarding the possibility of Avatar-themed attractions in Walt Disney Parks & Resorts. On September 17, 2011, a long-term, exclusivity deal was signed between Disney, James Cameron's Lightstorm Entertainment
and Fox Filmed Entertainment. This deal was officially announced to the public on September 20, 2011, on the Disney Parks Blog. The highlight of the announcement was that Disney's Animal Kingdom would receive a new themed area dubbed Avatar Land. The area is set to cost approximately $500 million. Construction is expected to begin in 2013, with a planned opening date between 3 and 5 years later. The deal could see Avatar attractions added to other Disney theme parks in the future, however, there are no immediate plans to do so.
with Avatar producers James Cameron
and Jon Landau
also providing creative assistance. The area will be an immersive world based upon the fictional exoplanetary moon
, Pandora. Avatar Land is expected to span several acres and will feature multiple rides and attractions, entertainment, audio-animatronics
, 3-D holograms
as well as retail, food and beverage outlets. Although exact details of the attractions have not yet been announced or even devised, James Cameron confirmed that a flying attraction featuring "3-D projections and creature designs that were cut from the original film" was a concept on the drawing board for the area. Avatar Land will include elements from the original Avatar film as well as its two, yet-to-be-released sequel
s.
, Walt Disney Imagineering is yet to determine a precise in-park location. It has been reported that Avatar Land will make use of the undeveloped land originally earmarked for the Beastly Kingdom, a never-built themed land which would have been based around mythological creatures.
Disney's Animal Kingdom
Disney's Animal Kingdom is an animal theme park located at the Walt Disney World Resort. The fourth park built at the resort, it opened on April 22, 1998, and it is the largest single Disney theme park in the world, covering more than . It is also the first Disney theme park to be themed entirely...
in Lake Buena Vista, Florida
Lake Buena Vista, Florida
Lake Buena Vista is a city in Orange County, Florida, United States. It is mostly known for being home to the Walt Disney World Resort. It is one of two Florida municipalities controlled by The Walt Disney Company, the other being Bay Lake....
based upon the film franchise by James Cameron
James Cameron
James Francis Cameron is a Canadian-American film director, film producer, screenwriter, editor, environmentalist and inventor...
. Construction will begin in 2013, with the land expected to open between 3 and 5 years later.
History
In Spring 2011, James CameronJames Cameron
James Francis Cameron is a Canadian-American film director, film producer, screenwriter, editor, environmentalist and inventor...
was approached by The Walt Disney Company
The Walt Disney Company
The Walt Disney Company is the largest media conglomerate in the world in terms of revenue. Founded on October 16, 1923, by Walt and Roy Disney as the Disney Brothers Cartoon Studio, Walt Disney Productions established itself as a leader in the American animation industry before diversifying into...
's chief executive officer
Chief executive officer
A chief executive officer , managing director , Executive Director for non-profit organizations, or chief executive is the highest-ranking corporate officer or administrator in charge of total management of an organization...
, Bob Iger, regarding the possibility of Avatar-themed attractions in Walt Disney Parks & Resorts. On September 17, 2011, a long-term, exclusivity deal was signed between Disney, James Cameron's Lightstorm Entertainment
Lightstorm Entertainment
Lightstorm Entertainment is an American film production company. The company was founded by Canadian filmmaker James Cameron and film producer Larry Kasanoff in 1990 and is best known for producing the films Terminator 2: Judgment Day, Titanic and Cameron's latest film Avatar...
and Fox Filmed Entertainment. This deal was officially announced to the public on September 20, 2011, on the Disney Parks Blog. The highlight of the announcement was that Disney's Animal Kingdom would receive a new themed area dubbed Avatar Land. The area is set to cost approximately $500 million. Construction is expected to begin in 2013, with a planned opening date between 3 and 5 years later. The deal could see Avatar attractions added to other Disney theme parks in the future, however, there are no immediate plans to do so.
Design
Avatar Land will be designed by Walt Disney ImagineeringWalt Disney Imagineering
Walt Disney Imagineering is the design and development arm of the Walt Disney Company, responsible for the creation and construction of Disney theme parks worldwide...
with Avatar producers James Cameron
James Cameron
James Francis Cameron is a Canadian-American film director, film producer, screenwriter, editor, environmentalist and inventor...
and Jon Landau
Jon Landau (film producer)
Jon Landau is an American film producer.Landau was born in New York City, New York, the son of Edie, a producer, and Ely A. Landau, a studio executive and producer, of non-practicing Jewish, German ancestry. He is one of the "famous faces" due to being a regular player on the online poker website...
also providing creative assistance. The area will be an immersive world based upon the fictional exoplanetary moon
Moon
The Moon is Earth's only known natural satellite,There are a number of near-Earth asteroids including 3753 Cruithne that are co-orbital with Earth: their orbits bring them close to Earth for periods of time but then alter in the long term . These are quasi-satellites and not true moons. For more...
, Pandora. Avatar Land is expected to span several acres and will feature multiple rides and attractions, entertainment, audio-animatronics
Audio-Animatronics
Audio-Animatronics is the registered trademark for a form of robotics created by Walt Disney Imagineering for shows and attractions at Disney theme parks, and subsequently expanded on and used by other companies. The robots move and make noise, generally in speech or song...
, 3-D holograms
Holography
Holography is a technique that allows the light scattered from an object to be recorded and later reconstructed so that when an imaging system is placed in the reconstructed beam, an image of the object will be seen even when the object is no longer present...
as well as retail, food and beverage outlets. Although exact details of the attractions have not yet been announced or even devised, James Cameron confirmed that a flying attraction featuring "3-D projections and creature designs that were cut from the original film" was a concept on the drawing board for the area. Avatar Land will include elements from the original Avatar film as well as its two, yet-to-be-released sequel
Sequel
A sequel is a narrative, documental, or other work of literature, film, theatre, or music that continues the story of or expands upon issues presented in some previous work...
s.
Location
Although it has been announced that Avatar Land will be added to Disney's Animal KingdomDisney's Animal Kingdom
Disney's Animal Kingdom is an animal theme park located at the Walt Disney World Resort. The fourth park built at the resort, it opened on April 22, 1998, and it is the largest single Disney theme park in the world, covering more than . It is also the first Disney theme park to be themed entirely...
, Walt Disney Imagineering is yet to determine a precise in-park location. It has been reported that Avatar Land will make use of the undeveloped land originally earmarked for the Beastly Kingdom, a never-built themed land which would have been based around mythological creatures.
See also
- Cars LandCars LandCars Land is a new themed land at Disney California Adventure Park that is currently under construction. This land will be built as part of the $1.1 billion expansion plan for Disney California Adventure Park on the former Timon Parking Lot behind the Twilight Zone Tower of Terror and A Bug's...
, a themed land at California's Disney California Adventure Park - The Wizarding World of Harry Potter, a themed land at Orlando's Islands of AdventureIslands of AdventureUniversal's Islands of Adventure is a theme park located in Orlando, Florida. It opened May 28, 1999 as part of an expansion that, along with CityWalk Entertainment District, the Portofino Bay Hotel, and Hard Rock hotel, converted Universal Studios Florida into the Universal Orlando Resort...
theme park
External links
- Official announcement at the Disney Parks Blog