Disneyland is in the midst of a major expansion right now, and one of the projects the furthest along is the Avengers Campus expansion under active construction. The expansion will introduce a ride that promises an epic adventure combining physical sets and screen-based media, with several famous actors reprising their roles as the Avengers. This follows previous news on the project and a recently reopened pathway.
Disney revealed that six Marvel actors are returning to their MCU roles as part of a Disneyland expansion, and shared a sneak peek inside the progress of the massive new ride. Mickey Visit brings you the latest Disney news and planning resources, including new Disney popcorn buckets coming to available nationwide and new perks for guests staying at Disneyland Resort hotels.
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Inside Construction for Avengers Expansion
Avengers Campus is the Marvel-themed land at Disney California Adventure at Disneyland Resort. Over time, this theme park area has slowly grown to include an array of rides, live entertainment, and dining options, and it’s about to expand even further. The Avengers Campus expansion will open in 2028 with two new rides: Avengers Infinity Defense and Stark Flight Lab.
We have all the details on both of these new attractions, including big reveals for which Marvel actors are returning to reprise their roles and how construction is looking behind the scenes.
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Avengers Infinity Defense is a big-budget, high-tech ride coming to Avengers Campus at Disney California Adventure. Of the two attractions currently under construction, this will be the largest. In this story, we join the Avengers to battle King Thanos, a version of the Marvel villain who hasn’t appeared in the movies.
Avengers Infinity Defense will combine physical sets and screen-based media. The ride vehicle will physically move through a space, but large screens will infuse some simulator-esque components into the experience.
Within the conceit of the storyline, our ride vehicle will be moving much more dramatically than it actually is, carrying us through portals across the universe. We’ll visit familiar Marvel settings like New York City, Wakanda, and Asgard.
Walt Disney Imagineering shared a sneak peek of offsite fabrication and onsite construction for Avengers Infinity Defense and Stark Flight Lab.
We understand this to be an offsite assemblage of some of the giant props that will eventually make their way to Disney California Adventure, including Thor’s hammer.
A large statue of a panther, signaling riders’ arrival in Wakanda, will also be part of the ride.
Here’s a look at what the actual construction site looks like at Disney California Adventure itself. There isn’t any theming yet, but the basics of the rides’ infrastructure are here.
Avengers Infinity Defense and Stark Flight Lab will both be located in one huge building. Here’s what the exterior of that building threshold currently looks like.
The photo above shows the future home of Stark Flight Lab. This area will one day be populated by swirling robotic arms.
The following Marvel actors will reprise their film roles for Avengers Infinity Defense:
- Robert Downey Jr. as Iron Man
- Chris Hemsworth as Thor
- Anthony Mackie as Captain America
- Jeremy Renner as Hawkeye
- Iman Vellani as Ms. Marvel
During the preshow, Ms. Marvel will brief us on our mission. As with most modern Disney rides, the guests are active participants in the story rather than just bystanders or observers of the action. In this case, we’re the Avengers’ newest recruits.
In addition to showing the five actors listed above, concept art for the Avengers Infinity Defense preshow also depicts Spider-Man, Black Panther, and the Hulk. Disney has not mentioned if Tom Holland, Letitia Wright, or Mark Ruffalo are returning for the ride, or if their characters will be brought to life without those actors’ participation.
It seems as though most principal photography for the returning Marvel actors is already in production, and perhaps might already be complete. In a behind-the-scenes video on the Walt Disney Imagineering YouTube Channel, Anthony Mackie can be seen as Captain America, saying, “It’s showtime, J.A.R.V.I.S.,” seemingly talking to Tony Stark’s AI companion.
Here’s a rendering of a scene in the ride that shows how physical set pieces will combine with screen-based media. It’s our understanding that Thor’s hammer in the foreground here will be present in person, while the characters in the background are on a screen. It seems as though we, the riders, have shrunk with Ant-Man in this moment. Disney hasn’t mentioned whether Paul Rudd will return.
This sequence is a good example of the multiverse component of Avengers Campus. In the MCU film timeline, Mackie’s Sam Wilson takes on the mantle of Captain America long after Tony Stark/Iron Man is dead. The two never coexist as those versions of their superhero personas in the movies, but here in the ride, they are both main characters and talking to each other.
A Disney video clip reveals some of their dialogue in this scene.
“They are not ready for Thanos,” Iron Man says. “Thanos isn’t ready for them!” Captain America replies.
In a different scene, Iron Man tells riders to “open a portal to Cap,” then later greets the riders by sarcastically asking, “What took you so long?”
There’s also a moment when Iron Man says, “Shuri, get ’em out. No teammate left behind,” talking to Black Panther.
Chris Hemsworth performed his share of blue-screen performance work while filming his new scenes for Avengers Infinity Defense. In this scene, he shouts, “Let’s bring the fight to Thanos!” while wielding his hammer, Mjolnir, high in the air. This is another multiverse aspect of the ride, as in the most recent batch of movies, Thor carries a different hammer, Stormbreaker.
King Thanos is the villain for Avengers Infinity Defense, but Disney has not announced if Josh Brolin will return for this version of the character.
Riders will see Thor one last time at the end of Avengers Infinity Defense as he bids them farewell after their successful mission. “Congratulations, everybody! If it were any closer, we all would have died, but we didn’t. Well done!”
3 Marvel Actors Returning for Stark Flight Lab
Stark Flight Lab is a new thrill ride coming to Avengers Campus at Disney California Adventure. Riders will be situated in a two-person seat, which will be picked up by a robotic arm and flung around in the air to simulate the motions of superheroes’ flight patterns.
Disney shared a video clip showing what seems to us like new footage recorded for the ride’s preshow, with Robert Downey Jr. setting up the story.
“Welcome to Avengers Campus,” Tony Stark tells guests. “We built this place to recruit, inspire, and train the next generation. You’re a big part of that mission.”
This scene could be for Avengers Infinity Defense instead of Stark Flight Lab, but since we know Ms. Marvel will brief riders in the preshow for Avengers Infinity Defense, this clip of Tony seems more primed for Stark Flight Lab.
Three Marvel actors will return for Stark Flight Lab:
- Robert Downey Jr. as Iron Man
- Brie Larson as Captain Marvel
- Anthony Mackie as Captain America
Each superhero will star in a different variation of the ride, so guests can ride multiple times and potentially experience something very different than their first time.
Disney has confirmed that all three actors will appear in on-screen roles, not just audio as previously implied.
This isn’t the first real-world Disney Experiences appearance for Larson, Mackie, and Vellani. Larson returned as Captain Marvel for Avengers Assemble: Flight Force, the reimagining of Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster at Disney Adventure World in Disneyland Paris. Larson, Mackie, and Vellani recorded new footage as their characters for the Worlds of Marvel restaurant onboard multiple Disney Cruise Line ships. Also returning for that dining experience were Paul Rudd as Ant-Man, Evangeline Lilly as The Wasp, Xochitl Gomez as America Chavez, Kathryn Newton as Kate Bishop, and Dominique Thorne as Ironheart.
Elsewhere in the existing attractions of Avengers Campus at Disney California Adventure, guests can already witness theme park-exclusive performances of Tom Holland as Spider-Man, Chris Pratt as Star-Lord, Zoë Saldaña as Gamora, Dave Bautista as Drax, Bradley Cooper as Rocket, Vin Diesel as Groot, and even a cameo by the late Stan Lee.
More Marvel Attractions Coming
The Avengers Campus expansion at Disney California Adventure isn’t the only Marvel project that Walt Disney Imagineering is working on. A new roller coaster will anchor a Spider-Man land coming to Shanghai Disneyland.
At Hong Kong Disneyland, a new variation of the Tower of Terror ride system will drop and lift riders through portals and into various Marvel locales with Spider-Man, Doctor Strange, Black Panther, and Thor. See more about this new take on Tower of Terror’s tech.
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