Signs are continuing to point towards a closure of Splash Mountain at both Disneyland and Walt Disney World. Disney had previously announced that they would be transforming the ultra popular attraction into a Princess and the Frog experience. That was all the way back in 2020, however, and thus far it had looked like Disney was holding off on the Magic Kingdom changes as long as they could. Now, however, things are moving along and away from Bre’r Rabbit and his award-winning music.
A.J. Wolfe of Disney Food Blog reports that a significant absence was noted at the East Coast park today:
Notice something different? The Splash Mountain music has been removed from the Magic Kingdom Welcome Show. pic.twitter.com/G40AL12W38
— Disney Food Blog (@DisneyFoodBlog) July 27, 2021
“With the ride changing, it’s no surprise that music from the attraction is also being phased out of the parks. The song was removed from the background music in Disneyland and the Zip-A-Dee-Doo-Dah-Day gamewas removed from the Disney Parks Play app last August.” — Disney Food Blog
Of course, Splash Mountain is based on the Walt Disney live action animated hybrid, Song of the South. The movie was the first film to capture an Academy Award for an African American male actor (James Baskett). The song “Zip-a-dee-doo-dah” is a popular Disney piece that is very well-known. Yet the movie has been labelled negatively in recent decades, and Disney has implied the song “Zip-a-dee-doo-dah” is not inclusive any longer.
Our sources have suggested that Splash Mountain at Disneyland in Anaheim, California is likely to close for the change in 2022. However, the Walt Disney World version may close later, with a source suggesting it is being held until 2023. Whatever happens, it sure is a shame to lose Zip-a-dee-doo-dah and the only African American folklore in the parks. While the source material for the ride is controversial, the erasure does have some cost. Whether or not the change for the attraction is appropriate is ultimately up for readers to decide; from the author’s point of view there are positives and negatives. One important thing to note is that no matter what Disney does with its domestic parks, Tokyo’s version of Splash Mountain will remain based off of the tale of Bre’r Rabbit.
Let us know in the comments below what your thoughts are on Splash Mountain and its change. Do you wish we could keep Zip-a-dee-doo-dah in some form even though Splash Mountain is on its way out?
