Over the past 54 years, hundreds of animatronic figures have dotted Walt Disney World. Here are 10 notable theme parks you can scout in 2025.
• Country Bears Musical Jamboree, a reboot of the Magic Kingdom’s original attraction, has a more magical, Disney-like feel for summer 2024, but retains its animatronic lineup, including Big Al singing “Remember Me” from “Coco.”
• Elsewhere in Frontierland, last year’s transformation from Splash Mountain to Tiana’s Bayou Adventure was aided by Mama Odie as the title character, creatures as band members, and a figure of Louie the trumpet-playing alligator that was touted as one of the biggest figures Imagineers had ever created.
• The highly expressive Hondo Ohnaka animatronic gives instructions during the pre-show of “Millennium Falcon: Smuggler’s Escape” at Disney’s Hollywood Studios’ “Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge.”
• At the end of Hollywood Studios’ Slinky Dog Dash roller coaster, animatronic penguin Weezy will perform “You’ve Got a Friend in Me.”
• Magic Kingdom visitors can stop by Cosmic Ray’s Starlight Café corner to listen to Sony Eclipse’s spacey tunes celebrating 30 years with exclusive D23 pins this summer.
• Epcot’s featured attraction, Spaceship Earth, features a variety of animatronics from across the centuries, including Egyptians, Phoenicians, a snoozing monk, a newsboy, Michelangelo, and a computer scientist.
• Dozens of mechanical tropical birds delighted crowds at Disneyland and Magic Kingdom when they first opened. This attraction is now known as Walt Disney’s Magical Tiki Room.
Jay L. Clendenin/Los Angeles Times
A singing shaman guides Disney World guests aboard the Navi River Journey boat at Disney’s Animal Kingdom theme park. (Jay L. Clendenin/Los Angeles Times)
• The blue-skinned shaman statue of Song rests in Disney’s Animal Kingdom near the end of its journey along the Navi River. He became famous for his large arms and wide range of motion.
• Perhaps the most infamous animatronic hasn’t moved much in years. The 25-foot-tall Yeti, featured in the climactic scene of Animal Kingdom’s Expedition Everest coaster, encountered technical problems shortly after its 2006 debut and now uses strobe lights to represent its movements.
• Magic Kingdom’s Hall of Presidents features real-life animatronic representations of 45 politicians, including newcomer Donald Trump, who took office in June.
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