We’ve been learning new details about the Splash Mountain re-theme coming to Walt Disney World and Disneyland coming up. The new ride will be Princess and The Frog-themed and Disney announced at this year’s Essence Fest the ride will be called Tiana’s Bayou Adventure and will replace the Song of the South-themed log flume ride in the parks. The Disney theme parks recently announced the Tiana-based ride will be opening in 2024, as well.
To note, a lot of people are excited about the upcoming Disney changes, but there’s been some pushback online. Recently, TikTok user and Disney adult DisneyFanQueen clapped back at a commenter who repeatedly kept defending Splash Mountain in her comments.
@disneyfanqueen ♬ original sound - DisneyFanQueen
The two ended up having a back-and-forth exchange in which the commenter also vividly said they would “defend” Splash Mountain with their “life.” There seem to be plenty of people that don’t want the nostalgia of the longtime ride to go away. There’s a “Save Splash Mountain” petition that’s gained plenty of traction and near 100,000 signatures online. (That petition actually cropped up after another petition to re-theme Splash Mountain actually got this whole process rolling.)
However, this isn’t really an isolated take on changes happening in the parks. While plenty of people are happy to see Tiana getting an attraction in the theme parks, not everyone is excited for the original Splash Mountain to go away. Plenty of other sectors on social media are still relatively unhappy about the change and some have also expressed feeling like Tiana should get a brand new attraction built from scratch rather than a re-theme.
There is absolutely no reason @Disney can't give Tiana her own ride and leave #SplashMountain alone. This is just going to put a damper on Tiana's ride with unnecessary controversy when our black princess deserves nothing but celebration. Disney, you've messed up and alienated usJuly 1, 2022
Some feel Tiana simply isn’t the right fit for Splash Mountain, though the ride should be re-themed. Then, another tweet just from the day of this writing noted that Splash Mountain had a 75-minute wait today and people are still catching the ride before it closes down for its refurb. That twitter user believes that Disney is pandering to “cancel culture” and that the parks should “leave Splash Mountain alone.”
Certainly, plenty of memories have been made on the longtime ride, which opened at Disneyland in 1989 and in the Magic Kingdom in 1992. Viral moments, including a man shaving his beard on Splash Mountain, should help its legacy live on in the time to come. The positive news is that in general, the chatter about The Princess and the Frog getting real representation in the parks has been positive.
When news was first breaking about this idea, a lot of fans expressed interest in changing up Splash Mountain, even before it was determined Tiana would be the focus. And an Imagineer even spoke out about why Tiana’s Bayou Adventure will bring much-needed representation into the parks.
There is no change coming to the Tokyo Disneyland version of Splash Mountain at this time as only the U.S. versions of the ride are expected to change. Disneyland and Disney World have both been quietly prepping for the changes since at least March.
