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Staggs Says Avatar Land Is Still On

Wednesday, December 12, 2012 Tara 3 Comments

During the Grand Opening Press Event for Walt Disney World’s New Fantasyland, Parks and Resort Chairman Tom Staggs confirmed that another one of the WDW projects is still on track – that being the Avatar Land to be built in Disney’s Animal Kingdom.

News on the “Avatar” land front has been quiet for some time since it was announced more than a year ago. This has caused the rumor mill to be filled with stories that the land was either being re-evaluated or even cancelled. Fuel was poured on the rumor mill fire recently when Disney announced the acquisition of Lucasfilms and the rights to the “Star Wars” franchise.

But Staggs reaffirms that the development plans are continuing. ”We’ve gotten more excited about Avatar as we’ve gone through development. Because we are finding that really playing around with this notion of allowing guests to visit Pandora can be very magical. We’re not in construction yet. We’re still in development. And we’re still honing exactly what we’re going to do. But it’s going to be big.”
Staggs compares the Avatar development to that of the newly opened “Cars” Land in DCA and the New Fantasyland at MK. “We love that as a direction,” Staggs said. “We’re going to go for that in Avatar. Cars Land has been a tremendous hit in Anaheim. It’s such a hit with our guests that it clearly factors into our thinking about the long-range plans for our other properties,” he said. “We haven’t made any final decisions about if or when that might happen. But we’re excited to see how much the guests are really loving that land.”

Staggs also confirmed that the presence of “Star Wars” in its theme parks will expand, ”You’ll see more Star Wars in the parks,” Staggs said.

Prior to any Avatar or Star Wars development however, Disney must complete the roll out of it’s “NextGen” project which has been in development for years. ”NextGen” pieces include a reservations system which allows visitors to book rides from home, keyless hotel-room doors and interactive ride queues.

Disney Confidential – Avatarland is BACK ON…Maybe! (chipandco.com)
Top Disney exec says Avatar Land remains on track (orlandosentinel.com)

Disney Confidential – Avatarland is BACK ON…Maybe!

Sunday, October 28, 2012 Tara 1 Comment

Hey there guys and gals! It is Avatarmouse here…no, not yet at least…Anonymouse here and I have some news that changes all of our old news and info.

Plans have been leaked online that say not only is Avatar is back on/in at Animal Kingdom, but they have the blueprints to prove it! No one is confirming or denying whether any of this is true or correct info (that is why I am reporting it, so do not send any Fact Checkers my way!) but there is murmurings out there that James Cameron, Avatar “land” and Disney are back to being good friends.

What do you think? My guess is this news is going to be met hesitation…but who ever thought Cars Land would be as great as it was??? Hopefully, Disney will make Avatar “land” just as good if not better than Cars Land.

Anywho that is all the Disney Gossip I have right now. For my past Gossip articles be sure to check them out here.

Got any good gossip/rumors? Please email me at AnonyMouse@chipandco.com or on my Facebook Page.

Disney Confidential – Avatar gets a bump and Fastpass+ begins more testing (chipandco.com)
Disney Confidential – Bus Times and Dragon Boats (chipandco.com)

Marvel Studios To Relocate to Glendale Closer to Disney

Sunday, September 23, 2012 Tara No comments

Pretty soon Mickey Mouse and Spiderman may soon be spotted eating lunch at the Walt Disney Studios Commissary…

The Marvel Studios are moving closer to the Disney Studios. Marvel will be relocating to new offices in Glendale, CA which is minutes away from the Walt Disney Studios. The move will affect about 150 Marvel staffers and is supposed to be completed by the spring of 2013.

Marvel had been the largest tenant in the Raleigh Studios (where they are moving from in Manhattan Beach, CA) for the past four years. But Raleigh won’t we too negatively impacted by the move. James Cameron’s Lightstorm Enterainment will be producing the next two “Avatar” sequals at Raleigh for over the next five years.

James Gunn Confirmed to Direct Marvel’s ‘Guardians of the Galaxy’ (chipandco.com)
Joss Whedon Signs With Marvel Through 2015; Will Do ‘Avengers 2′, a TV Show, and More (chipandco.com)

Disney’s John Carter Bluray Review

Tuesday, June 5, 2012 Chip 1 Comment

I had the pleasure of checking out the Edgar Rice Burroughs classic tale John Carter over the weekend. How someone from the early 1900′s could write something so futuristic and entertaining for a non fiction era is beyond me.

This movie was great! While my writer Patrick was able to see the film when it first came out and is hands down the bigger nerd than I am I wouldn’t feel right if I didn’t link to his great movie review.

Not knowing much about the story of John Carter I felt I would be a good candidate to fill the Bluray Reviewer role as most people who are going to be reading this review are probably not as versed with Barsoom or the rich lore from the books. I will be honest I have never read or even heard of this tale from Edgar Rice Burroughs. I am lucky that Disney Publishing sent me the actual books which are on my to do list this summer.

I thought the movie was stunning, Disney really transports you in the tale. While for me the beginning was a little jumpy and I wish they would have given us more of John Carters back-story after watching it for a little bit you start to pick the necessary pieces of his past up.

The overall feel of the movie reminds me of Avatar and you can tell Disney really put the time and budget into this film just like Avatar did. I think the storyline is great and the marketing just fell short telling people about the film It’s hard to have such a great film when people are kind of clueless as to what it’s about.

I am not going to go into movie details or plot points. You can look them up online or read the book. What I do what to focus on is the bonus content.

The 19 minute deleted scenes for me was the best part of the bonus content. After watching the movie I was left with wanting more. The 10 or so deleted scenes are far from finished but is a nice addition to the combo pack.

The blooper reel wasn’t really funny what I loved the best was the “100 Years in the Making” feature. It is a remarkable look at how Edgar Rice Burroughs brought John Carter to a world that was dominated by Non Fiction. It was one of the major highlights for me in all of the bonus content.

John Carter was a really good movie and I think Disney did a great job with it. If you are a science fiction nut or love Edgar Rice Burroughs you will really love this movie. I plan on reading the books this summer since last I heard there won’t be a second or third film. John Carter is out today on Bluray & DVD.

Overall I give the movie a B+.

Don’t forget to use this $5 off Coupon when you buy John Carter Bluray Combo Pack!

John Carter Bluray/DVD Combo Pack Giveaway (chipandco.com)
Disney Releases 10 Minute Clip of John Carter (chipandco.com)

Disney’s AVATAR: James Cameron Explores Disney’s Animal Kingdom

Tuesday, October 18, 2011 Chip No comments

As work continues to bring the epic fantasy world of AVATAR to life at Disney Parks, filmmaker James Cameron and his Lightstorm Entertainment producing partner Jon Landau explored Disney’s Animal Kingdom yesterday with Tom Staggs, Chairman of Walt Disney Parks and Resorts, and Imagineer Joe Rohde.

“Getting the chance to roll up my sleeves and explore Disney’s Animal Kingdom from the inside out was a phenomenal experience,” said James Cameron. “As I walked through the park, I kept imagining Pandora coming to life all around me and found my mind racing with all the possibilities of what we will be able to create in the years ahead. Disney’s Animal Kingdom is truly a remarkable place and I can’t think of a better home for our first AVATAR experience.”

Cameron and Landau are touring the Walt Disney World Resort this week as part of the creative partnership announced in September between Walt Disney Parks and Resorts, Fox Filmed Entertainment and Lightstorm Entertainment. Construction of the first AVATAR-themed land is expected to begin at Disney’s Animal Kingdom by 2013.

“We do a significant amount of work at the beginning of our projects to ensure that the final experience has the attention to detail, theme and uniqueness for which Disney is known,” said Tom Staggs. “Today’s visit is an important step in the creative process and we are excited about getting started on what will be a spectacular addition to Disney’s Animal Kingdom.”

Along with their team at Lightstorm Entertainment, Cameron and Landau are serving as creative consultants on the project, working side-by-side with Imagineers to dream up groundbreaking experiences that will take guests deep into the worlds of AVATAR like never imagined.

“AVATAR and Disney’s Animal Kingdom share a common bond in that they both focus on adventures that will radically change your perspective. They call you to take action on behalf of nature wherever it may be found,” said Joe Rohde, who led the creative team that designed the park. “This is a rare opportunity to collaborate with Jim, who has an incredible eye for detail and a passion for doing things that haven’t been done before.”

Source Disney Parks Blog