Walt Disney Imagineering has already begun collaborating with film director James Cameron and film production company Lightstorm Entertainment on an Avatar-themed park expansion, but the first long awaited sneak peek at what’s behind construction walls has been released to the public.
Park officials claim the expansion will be unlike anything at any other Disney Park and that it will allow guests to “fly with (Pandora) banshees.”
“This creative process has been one of the most dynamic and collaborative ones we’ve ever undertaken,” said Bruce Vaughn, Chief Creative Executive of Walt Disney Imagineering. “We’re having a lot of fun dreaming up ways to bring life to the land’s iconic elements from the magnificent floating mountains to the interactive bioluminescent forest, and even to the soaring banshees.”
Disney’s Animal Kingdom will be expected to host the expansion, with towering cranes hanging over the construction zone visible from the parking lot.
The “Pandora” inspired land, based off of James Cameron’s blockbuster Avatar movie, will be expected to open around 2017, following a 2016 release of an Avatar sequel.
Discovery Island’s Discovery River will be the center of a new event called “Rivers of Light.” Additional changes to Animal Kingdom will be a true “full day” experience with extended park hours, intended to engage guests as nightfall arrives.
Animal Kingdom usually stays open until 8 p.m. at the latest, and 5 p.m. at the earliest for guests wanting to visit animal exhibits. Other additions to Animal Kingdom, such as a nighttime version of Kilimanjaro Safari, will be phased in, separate of Pandora, according to Tom Staggs, chairman of Walt Disney Parks and Resorts.
