Walt Disney World has quietly removed Tiana’s Bayou Adventure from its Disney After Hours lineup in the Magic Kingdom as the company continues to struggle with its controversial reimagining of the beloved Splash Mountain attraction.
Disney Parks has shared the first official full-length ride-through footage from Tiana’s Bayou Adventure in Disney World pic.twitter.com/OpPOmutTSn
— The Hollywood Reporter (@THR) June 1, 2024
The change, noted by eagle-eyed Disney fans, marks yet another chapter in what has become a public relations nightmare for the entertainment giant.
This decision follows what many have described as the largest backlash Disney Parks has faced in years. Originally conceived as a bold rebranding effort to align with modern sensitivities, Tiana’s Bayou Adventure has been fraught with criticism from longtime Disney enthusiasts who view the reimagining as unnecessary at best and pandering at worst.
And to make matters worse, the ride keeps breaking down!
Tiana’s Bayou Adventure has done several “in show exits” today. The ride keeps breaking down and guests must be escorted off by cast members (with worklights on).
Credit to a channel called Farmeritaville for this footage that confirms what I was hearing. pic.twitter.com/8MSC8JWw4r
— Jonas J. Campbell (@JonasJCampbell) June 2, 2024
Tiana’s Bayou Adventure had a tumultuous rollout with the attraction breaking down for large stretches of the day just about every day. The trend of breakdown and guest evacuations has persisted to this day.
When Disney announced plans to retire Splash Mountain—an iconic attraction beloved for decades—fans immediately voiced their discontent. Rooted in the controversial (according to Disney…) Song of the South, the ride was a fixture of nostalgia for park-goers. While the company argued that Tiana’s Bayou Adventure would offer a more inclusive story centered around The Princess and the Frog, detractors claimed the move was more about chasing social trends than improving the park experience.
Splash Mountain at Walt Disney World; Copyright Disney Parks
Some aggressively Disney-friendly outlets even called Tiana’s Bayou Adventure a “necessary downgrade” from Splash Mountain.
The backlash reached a fever pitch with petitions to save Splash Mountain gathering hundreds of thousands of signatures. Disney responded by doubling down on the new theme and promising a cutting-edge attraction. However, fan sentiment has seemingly not improved, with many criticizing the attraction’s concept art and lackluster promotional materials.
The absence of Tiana’s Bayou Adventure from the Disney After Hours lineup raises questions about Disney’s confidence in the new ride. After Hours events are premium offerings that highlight the park’s most popular attractions. Its omission suggests that Disney may not see the ride as a guaranteed crowd-pleaser.
Tiana’s Bayou Adventure via TheTimTracker YouTube
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Furthermore, it potentially shows a lack of confidence from Disney that the ride will operate as needed during the special event period. After Hours features a select roster of attractions, with one of the selling points being faster access to the biggest rides in the park.
Given the steep prices associated with these events, fans likely expect attractions with universal appeal that aren’t going to break down for long periods.
That’s certainly not Tiana’s Bayou Adventure.
An image of Splash Mountain at Tokyo Disneyland via WDW News Today YouTube
Removing Tiana’s Bayou Adventure from the After Hours roster also risks further alienating whatever loyal guests Disney still has, pushing them into the increasing ranks of those who feel the company has strayed from its roots. By failing to include its latest marquee attraction, Disney inadvertently amplifies the narrative that this project may be more problematic than promising.
The controversy surrounding Tiana’s Bayou Adventure casts a long shadow. With Disney facing declining attendance, deteriorating infrastructure, and rising operational costs, the company can’t afford to gamble on attractions that fail to resonate with audiences. The quiet decision to sideline Tiana’s Bayou Adventure during After Hours events could be an early indicator of Disney’s low internal expectations.
Only time will tell if the attraction can overcome its rocky beginnings, but for now, it seems Disney is still grappling with the consequences of alienating its core audience.
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Please, Disney shills, tell us again how the company is “too big to fail.” Screwups like this are costly in both the short- and long-term. First they blow a ton of money upfront building these things, then they lose more trying to get them to work, and then they keep losing more still when customers reject these changes.
Same with movies and TV shows: they spend a fortune producing them, more trying to market them, then fail to recoup costs when viewers reject them and lose more money still when folks stop seeing anything else Disney makes because they don’t trust them to produce anything good anymore.