Despite it being an opening day attraction at Magic Kingdom using comparatively old technology, few lines at Disney World on any given day are as long as the one for Peter Pan‘s Flight. The attraction takes the classic dark ride concept and flips it upside down, using an elevated track so that the vehicles seem to fly through the air like Peter Pan. Fans will be glad to know that it has reopened today following a closure for refurbishment, but those who go on it will notice a significant change has been made.
Attractions Magazine revealed that the scene in the ride of the Never Land Tribe and Tiger Lily has been updated. The previous scene depicted the tribe sitting around a campfire looking stern while some members banged on drums.
The new version sees Tiger Lily and her great-grandmother during the tribe’s harvest celebration. The two women are dancing, accomplished by placing the figures on a turntable.
This is the latest move in what has been a systematic effort by Disney Experiences to update older attractions in ways that bring them more in line with modern cultural sensitivities. Splash Mountain was completely re-themed into Tiana’s Bayou Adventure. The World Famous Jungle Cruise also saw big changes that removed African tribal characters and the “headhunter” known as Trader Sam.
Both of those changes were met with varying degrees of outcry by fans. Anytime the parks change, which is often, some are upset. The Splash Mountain case in particular had a lot of very angry fans, who are still furious even though the deal is done. Now, the Magic Kingdom version of Tiana’s Bayou Adventure is already open. It was also announced last weekend at D23 that the Disneyland version will open in November.
The depiction of the Native American-inspired characters in Peter Pan has been a controversial case for a while. The fact that Disney World is now calling them the “Never Land Tribe” is particularly telling, considering in Peter Pan the movie they are referred to as “Injuns.” Watching the movie on Disney+ today viewers are met with a disclaimer before the film begins due to the insensitive depiction of the characters. It’s not a shock at all that this change was made.
When changes like this are made at one park it’s only a matter of time before they occur at any other park holding the same attraction, and that’s the case here as well. Disney has confirmed that the versions of Peter Pan’s Flight at Disneyland and Disneyland Paris will see similar updates, though no timeline for when the changes will happen was given.
