Walt Disney World has introduced the everlasting cut-off date for It’s Powerful to Be a Bug at Animal Kingdom, which can be changed by the brand new Zootopia: Higher Zoogether. Right here’s all the pieces we find out about when this 3D stage present will go extinct in 2025, together with ideas on what this implies for DAK undertaking timelines and all the pieces else.
Let’s begin with primary background. Throughout final fall’s D23 Expo, Disney revealed that the brand new present contained in the Tree of Life can be referred to as Zootopia: Higher Zoogether present, and can open in Winter 2025 at Walt Disney World. This was shared together with attraction poster artwork throughout a quick-fire phase–perhaps a grand complete of 5 seconds was dedicated to the brand new present.
Previous to that, Disney initially introduced the present throughout Vacation spot D23 the earlier fall, coming as an out-of-left-field shock for a lot of followers who had been anticipating Zootopia Land in Animal Kingdom. From that, we additionally know that the idea for Zootopia: Higher Zoogether has friends visiting the totally different biomes you solely glimpse within the movie, touring together with Judy Hopps, Nick Wilde and different characters.
Up till February 2025, that’s all that had ever been shared about Zootopia: Higher Zoogether.
Over the course of ~18 months, Walt Disney World has shared surprisingly little in regards to the upcoming manufacturing. The main target, understandably, has been on Tropical Americas at Animal Kingdom, and actually the most important information was that land and not Moana and Zootopia Land being in-built DAK.
Now, we additionally know when It’s Powerful to Be a Bug, the present that Zootopia: Higher Zoogether is changing, will completely shut.
In response to an replace posted on the attraction’s official Disneyworld.com web page:
“It’s Powerful to be a Bug! will shut completely on March 17, 2025, to make means for Zootopia: Higher Zoogether! coming to Disney’s Animal Kingdom theme park in winter 2025.”
If the calendar of hours is right, the final day to expertise It’s Powerful to be a Bug can be March 16, 2025. The present can be completely closed as of March 17, 2025. It has hours for the sixteenth, however none for the seventeenth.
(Regardless that Winter 2025 ends on March 20, 2025, we don’t count on this to be a 3-day changeover. At this level, it appears doubtless that Walt Disney World is desiring to open Zootopia: Higher Zoogether in November or December 2025. Sometimes, they might discuss with that as “Late 2025” or “Holidays 2025,” however that doesn’t seem like the case right here for no matter cause. That or it truly is a 3-day turnaround, which might be extremely spectacular…and mildly regarding.)
It’s Powerful to Be a Bug invitations friends to develop into honorary bugs and don a pair of “bug eye” glasses. Take pleasure in a pleasant 3D film and dwell present hosted by Flik, the loveable ant from A Bug’s Life, and learn the way bugs survive within the wild. Through the present, dodge flying quills from a tarantula, really feel a innocent spray from a soldier termite and sniff the putrid “protection stench” from a stink bug.
When Hopper—the grasshopper villain from A Bug’s Life—unexpectedly reveals up, the theater goes bug-wild! The ethical of the story? It actually is hard to be a bug. With dazzling 3D film results, Audio-Animatronics figures and in-theater 4D surprises, that is one present you’ll be buzzing about for a very long time in keeping with Walt Disney World.
And so they’re in all probability right. It’s Powerful to Be a Bug is a gap day Animal Kingdom attraction that’s been carried out since April 1998. It’s had a superb run by 3D present requirements.
I’ve blended emotions about It’s Powerful to Be a Bug closing.
On the one hand, I believe it holds up shockingly properly for a movie from 1998. Like MuppetVision, I don’t assume it’s aged all that a lot. It’s higher than many more recent sights, and it does fairly properly (for what it’s) on our Rankings of All Sights at Walt Disney World.
However as a lot as I’ve loved It’s Powerful to Be a Bug through the years, I don’t view it as a basic like MuppetVision. I totally really feel for individuals who do and can lament its loss. I can solely converse to my private experiences, although, and the very fact is that we seldom make an effort to see It’s Powerful to Be a Bug anymore–even with a scarcity of issues to do at Animal Kingdom.
Conversely, Zootopia: Higher Zoogether is a brand new present primarily based on a film I really like. It will not be an ideal match for Animal Kingdom, nevertheless it’s shut sufficient for me, and I’d additionally a lot reasonably have Zootopia in Tree of Life than its personal land in Animal Kingdom. That metropolis of anthropomorphic animals is significantly better suited to Disney’s Hollywood Studios, and there’s the proper parcel for it there!
Zootopia: Higher Zoogether is one thing we’re wanting ahead to having fun with as a household–and possibly will dozens extra occasions through the years to come back than we’d It’s Powerful to Be a Bug. Given all of that, I don’t actually have a canine on this battle. To every their very own, however I’m way more optimistic about this than a couple of of the opposite upcoming modifications at Walt Disney World.
With that stated, Zootopia: Higher Zoogether has bought be an precise improve over It’s Powerful to Be a Bug. As a result of, once more, It’s Powerful to Be a Bug is superb by 3D present requirements. It’s so much like MuppetVision on this regard, in that it blends collectively an array of results and punches above its weight. So I do have some worries about Zootopia: Higher Zoogether not having the ability to dwell as much as its predecessor.
Nevertheless, I additionally renewed optimism in Zootopia: Higher Zoogether due to simply how quickly It’s Powerful to Be a Bug is closing.
If I needed to predict a closure date yesterday, I wouldn’t have guessed mid-March 2025. That’s means sooner than I might’ve anticipated, to the tune of a number of months. The timing there’s truthfully slightly perplexing. That’s earlier than the busy Spring Break season, at a time after I would’ve thought Animal Kingdom would’ve wanted the capability.
The earliest I might’ve predicted would have been the Wednesday after Easter (April 23, 2025), which can be after Earth Day and Animal Kingdom’s anniversary. The newest I might’ve predicted in all probability would’ve been someday in September. Perhaps proper after Labor Day.
My expectation was that this wouldn’t be a prolonged undertaking requiring a number of months of downtime.
Not like Nation Bear Musical Jamboree, for instance, it didn’t appear to be this may be an concerned course of requiring a bunch of theater updates and changing a number of Audio Animatronics. It’ll be a matter of swapping out the movie, making a lightweight refresh to the theater, and (hopefully) putting in two AAs.
On prime of that, Animal Kingdom is already down capability with the closure of Dino-Rama, so I might’ve guessed that Walt Disney World would’ve achieved all the pieces attainable to keep away from further closures. Having the Tree of Life theater closed for over 6 months will not be what I might’ve anticipated.
With that stated, I’m not complaining a couple of longer closure! Fairly the opposite.
As incessantly talked about, we’re taking part in the lengthy sport. The lifespan of a Walt Disney World stage present is normally measured in many years, so I’d reasonably an extended closure by a couple of months if that ensures the tip result’s higher for generations of friends for years to come back. From this attitude, I’m at all times in favor of Imagineering having extra time to do issues proper. (Assuming that’s the precise motivation, and never dragging out timelines attributable to cost-savings–however I doubt that’s the case right here.)
On this case, it’s additionally mildly reassuring that It’s Powerful to Be a Bug is closing earlier than Spring Break. This strongly suggests to me that Imagineering pushed for extra time to get the undertaking achieved, and dealing backwards from a desired opening date. Between this and the prolonged Huge Thunder closure, it looks like park operations is lastly not combating for shorter closures (or they nonetheless are, however being overriden).
This additionally makes me surprise, but once more, whether or not one thing else is deliberate for Animal Kingdom in 2025. Walt Disney World has one thing else up its sleeve for Summer time 2025, and I refuse to consider Disney Goals That Soar was the tip sport for drone shows at Walt Disney World.
If a drone present doesn’t come to Animal Kingdom, it’s going to be a tough couple of years for the park. Attendance is considerably decrease at Animal Kingdom than every other park at Walt Disney World. The park is in pressing want for additions, and there’s a superb likelihood that the opposite parks begin cannibalizing Animal Kingdom attendance till that occurs.
Regardless of claims on the contrary, Epic Universe will “steal” some park days from Walt Disney World (even when it does profit Magic Kingdom and DHS), and the primary place individuals will lower is Animal Kingdom. A bit past the scope of this submit, however perhaps that is the opposite cause why Walt Disney World is okay with a lot downtime for the Tree of Life theater. I suppose we will see pretty quickly!
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Your Ideas
Unhappy that It’s Powerful to Be a Bug is closing in mid-March 2025? Disenchanted that extra discover isn’t being offered so you’ll be able to plan a farewell go to, or are you at peace with the choice? What do you consider the Zootopia: Higher Zoogether present coming to Animal Kingdom in Winter 2025? Want Zootopia had been getting a full land, or do you favor the Tropical Americas idea with Encanto and Indy? Or, are you in wait and see mode with this? Do you agree or disagree with our evaluation? Any questions we may also help you reply? Listening to your suggestions—even once you disagree with us—is each attention-grabbing to us and useful to different readers, so please share your ideas under within the feedback!
