Large Scale Model Revealed for First-Ever Lion King Ride Coming to Disney Park!

A new Disney ride is in the works that will be the first-ever ride themed to The Lion King at a Disney park!

This news was first announced at the Disney Experiences Showcase at D23 as The Lion King was celebrating its 30th anniversary that summer. Now, at the Disney Annual Shareholders Meeting, Disney has revealed a stunning look at a large-scale model for this Lion King ride.

Keep reading for more details on the new Disney Lion King ride and what we know so far!

Large-Scale Model Revealed for Lion King Ride

Disney has revealed a large-scale model for the Lion King ride coming to Disneyland Paris. Disney CEO Bob Iger shared that “Once completed, the majestic Pride Rock will serve as the gateway to an adventure-filled water attraction that will follow Simba on his journey from cub to king, and we can't wait for guests to experience this retelling of the classic animated film.”

No opening timeline has been revealed for the attraction yet. You can see more details about what the ride will entail and its concept art in the sections below.

You can see a closer look at the model in the video below! This looks like it will be a really impressive attraction.

 

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First-Ever Disney Lion King Ride Details

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Disney previously announced the reimagining of Walt Disney Studios Park at Disneyland Paris as it will be transformed into “Disney Adventure World.”

Now, Disney has shared that a new area of the park, called Pride Lands, will be inspired by the characters and stories of the film. It will include new dining, shopping, and character meet-and-greet opportunities. In the new ride that is the first-ever inspired by The Lion King, guests can witness Simba's journey “from cub to king.”

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See the concept art for the Lion King ride below:

After the concept artwork was released Disney clarified that the ride would be based on the original 2D animated movie and not the newer CGI / live action versions of the movies that the concept artwork represents.

Some have suggested that the above concept artwork was actually a version of a Splash Mountain redo at Disneyland that could have happened rather than the change to Tiana's Bayou Adventure (opening date just announced!). These thoughts come from the fact that the concept artwork features a log with people sitting behind one another and only the Disneyland Splash Mountain has this seating. In the model below you can see that the final version of this attraction will have the side by side seating that the Walt Disney World version of Splash Mountain has.

Disneyland Paris experiences lots of rain and snow throughout the year and may actually be one of the coldest Disney Parks. Some have questioned whether it is the right call to add a water ride there. At Tokyo Disneyland where it is colder in the winter months they are actually able to dial back the amount of splash and wetness that guests experience. Hopefully that same ability is added here so that the ride can be comfortably enjoyed year round.

Generally, we have heard that Lion King is particularly popular with European guests and that the ride's presence was influenced by this interest. You can see more on this new attraction revealed in the model below.

I am in particular interested to see what a Lion King meet and greet will look like. During the presentation they also discussed the Disneyland Paris version of the World of Frozen. That land, the Lion King land, and the newly announced nighttime water show will really bring great new life to this secondary park at Disneyland Paris.

New Model of Lion King Land Revealed

After the Disney Experiences Showcase, the Imagineering: Behind the Dreams Pavilion at D23 revealed a model of the Pride Lands including the new Lion King ride. See an overview of the model below including the new Lion King flume ride that will take guests into the caverns beneath Pride Rock as they follow Simba's story.

Here is a closer look at the rest of the land below:

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