Here we are one year after the Presidential Election and the Hall of Presidents attraction at the Magic Kingdom still remains closed. In fairness, Disney said it would open before the end of 2017, however, that is looking less and less likely at this point.
According to guest relations cast members at the front of the park, the attraction is now set to open in “mid-2018”. When we reached out to Disney’s PR Department to clarify this, they stated that they had “no comment” on the time frame, even refusing to adhere to the pre-announced late-2017 opening. Cast members outside of the attraction are still saying it will open later this year, so I guess different departments have different answers at this point. Honestly, the bottom line is nobody knows.
Disney stated previously that the attraction would return as promised with Donald Trump in audio-animatronics form delivering a speech of some kind, as has been tradition in the attraction since the early 1990’s.
I just hope they give into public demand and turn this into indoor seating for the Liberty Square Baked Potato stand.
We love the Hall of Presidents.
An informative history lesson for families to view together. DIsney will update the HOP and present a wonderful viewing experience.
This is such a strange situation and one where no matter what they do, not everyone will be happy. I personally do not like Donald Trump (putting it lightly), so I don’t want him in the attraction. I think he has said a lot of hateful things and is making legislation that hurts and divides the country, and his approval (or lack thereof) ratings reflect that the American public generally agrees. I don’t feel he’s honorable enough to be in this attraction, based on his actions, not just that he’s a republican. On the other hand, it’s pretty difficult for Disney to take a stand and say they’re not going to add him in after they added Bush, Clinton, W, and Obama. Even if they put Trump in, there’s a (strong) possibility his animatronic will look so ridiculous that the right will still be upset. If he’s in there, there will be more than a few performances where “BOOOOO!!”‘s break out, maybe even some physical altercations. That’s definitely something MK doesn’t want. Disney can’t win and there will be controversy either way, so they’re putting it off. Or maybe Trump just really hasn’t given them the time of day to record audio. Maybe this whole attraction will go down in flames before we ever see a Trump animatronic. Who knows.
This is exactly why it is not open. People like you that just can’t be considerate of others.
Still, it’s great to finally have a president who doesn’t go to church or follow the ten commandments. That, at least, is progress.
indeed
The above poster made a lot of good points about what the issues could be, and at the end of the day, we don’t know what’s causing the delay. It could be because Disney can’t figure out how to handle this best, because there’s no way to please everyone. Some people are against him being up there on stage. Some people who don’t like him still think he should be included our of respect for the office. Some people who support him want him there, period. So then, amidst all that divisiveness, there might be concern about how to proceed. No one wants to see booing and shouting matches erupt in a time-honored Disney attraction. And, we don’t actually know what the hold up is. How well are the two parties working together? What if the Trump administration has conditions regarding the new version that Disney isn’t comfortable with? What if no one’s right or wrong, but both sides can’t agree how to proceed? The whole thing is a mess, but then again, that’s what the country feels like now so it’s not surprising.
Yup. The only thing they can do is close it. It’s no one’s favorite- I’ve not been in it in almost 20 years. Anything else will just be paying for controversy.
It isn’t fair for you to just assume that this may happen because of Donald Trump being in the Hall of Presidents. You need to give Disney a chance to renovate the Hall of Presidents, and please keep your political views off of this website.
Such a shame! That was a great place for me to take a nap during the show!
Well written Tom, I admire your professionalism.
Disney can put #45 into the attraction if they want. I’ll just avoid it until he’s replaced by #46…or even later….
Word up!
I know it has been 8 years for me.
At the end of the day, Donald J. Trump is the President of the United States of America. You may not agree with him, but you should try to respect the fact that he is indeed the president. Disney would be making a big mistake here if this attraction ends now. Why? Just because you don’t agree with him?
I didn’t agree with the last mess in office but I respected the fact that he was president…..
Get over it people.
The show must go on….
I think the problem is that it’s less of not agreeing with his politics and more of just that he’s done a lot of bad things. He has been accused of sexual harassment/abuse, even being recorded saying the “grab her by the …” things. He has said Mexicans are rapists and murderers. He has said there were “good people on both sides” in regards to a nazi rally and the protesters. I don’t agree with his policies, but I didn’t agree with either Bush’s either and I don’t care that they’re in there. Trump is really not presidential or honorable and to put him in the HoP just feels disrespectful to many Disney guests. You can’t blame Disney for not wanting that negative presence in the parks.
So well said Kate. I can’t agree more.
We’re talking about Bill Clinton, right?
Could dismantle lots of of your statements, but to keep it short … seriously … Bill Clinton and John Kennedy are in the attraction. Your outrage is so very selective.
Should have said- “negative presence in the parks *to me*.”
Kate- this might come as a shock to you- but you don’t speak for everyone. In fact, there are millions of people… dare I say billions- that aren’t you that you don’t speak for.
In the meantime, speaking of grabbing people by the … (and by this, I mean actually doing it, not just shooting the S with ole Billy Bush)- how are all those Lasseter-created characters doing in the parks?
Let’s respect of the office of the Presidency no matter who is the President. I am very disappointed in Disney for prolonging the opening of HOP. Let’s pay homage to all our Presidents and the sacrifices that the others before us made in order for us to have the freedoms that we enjoy today. It is a history lesson for our children. I didn’t visit the HOP for the last eight years because I didn’t agree with the previous President’s policies but I never thought that he should not be included in the attraction or be given the respect that all previous Presidents enjoyed. I’m a big Disney fan and have been visited the parks since 1974 but I am truly disappointed in Disney for the amount of time it has taken to reopen this show.
That’s because 44 didn’t bully his own people every damn day.
No, he just let them break or make their own laws every day. No one was more divisive than Obama.
indeed mr. bolls
False equivalence and more fake news from the snowflake right. Carry on.
I totally agree. If you don’t like it, there’s a lot of other things to do.
You’re blaming Disney, but this may very well be Trump’s fault because he won’t record audio due to some petty anger at the Disney Company.
It’s just a bad situation.
I think not having him do a speaking part might be the answer. He can just nod in the background.
I completely agree with you, Linda, and perhaps that puts me on the opposite side of my fellow millennials, but as a child, I was enthralled to see history come to life literally in front of me. They should respect the office of the presidency, irregardless of who is in office. As a mother of four young children, that sense of wonder and magic is what I want to impart to them, and teach them to learn from the mistakes of the past, not run from them, so that we won’t be doomed to repeat them. #nopoliticsinHOP
Well Said!
Sorry, this smells of political correctness at it’s finest. I’m all for upgrading the attraction, but let’s be honest, had Hillary won, we would have been taking naps the past few months in the HoP. Many people disagreed with the decisions and policies of Obama, Bush, etc., yet they were all represented with their own animatronic in a timely manner. For those who want to “boo”, it shows their immaturity and lack of respect for the Office of President, period.
Not just lack of respect or immaturity- but lunacy. Its a flippin’ animatronic. If you boo it- you’re certifiable.
I believe it is only politics that it is not opening. If Hillary had won, it would be open now. Iger does not like Trump. I love to go into the Hall of Presidents. It will be disgraceful if they do not allow Trump the same courtesy as the other President.
I remember when George W. Bush was elected and folks on the left said all the same things … he’s a racist, war monger, divisive, evil, blah, blah, blah. I remember the same outrage from them over adding him to the HOP.
Get over it, Trump is the president whether you like him or not.
It’s boring. It’s outdated. and Disney has been backed into a corner over a very divisive figure. But I like being able to go in there and get a break in a cold, dark theater. The folks in attractions/imagineering just need to grow a pair and open it up and see what happens. My guess is nothing much will happen, because MK doesn’t exactly attract protesting activists…
So if someone doesn’t believe in the same things you believe in they are divisive? Hmmm… That makes you divisive.
Regardless of your personal opinion of the current president, he is still the president. Disney is doing the right thing by adding him. Political Correctness has nothing to do with it.
Rumor has it that he canceled his scheduled recording session for his AA after Bob Iger left his advisory council; if true, then Disney will either need to cobble together a speech from recordings, get someone to impersonate him, or go back to having Lincoln/Washington be the speaking Presidents and give Trump a more minor role.
When the star of your attraction is widely loathed by most of the country and under federal investigation for treason, it definitely gives Disney fewer reasons to open it quickly. I imagine they’re hoping things will be resolved soon.
“When the star of your attraction is widely loathed by most of the country and under federal investigation for treason …”
Sorry, but he was voted in by nearly half of the country, and there is no investigation for treason. Educate yourself.
You don’t have to like him … that’s totally fine and acceptable. But don’t rewrite history or make stuff up.
I would suggest actually looking at facts.
“Half of the country” didn’t vote for him. He lost the popular vote by over three million votes; he only won the election due to the Electoral College. About 1/4 of the country voted for him, at very most.
And yes, Robert Mueller’s investigation is to see whether the Trump administration worked with Russia to get the president elected and, in doing so, committed treason.
Those are actual facts that are quite easy to look up, and a pretty good reason why Disney is a bit hesitant to have Trump star in one of their most famous attractions.
He’s the President … get over it.
By the way … there are two different “Eric” posters here. I’m the the first .. or am I?
“Popular vote” people crack me up. Talk about trying to find victory in defeat.
If the victor of a football game was decided based on who kicks the most field goals- Team A scores 3 field goals and 2 touchdowns and team B scores 2 field goals and 3 touchdowns- just because team B has more points, doesn’t make them the winner. In fact, maybe they should have focused on kicking those field goals instead of scoring touchdowns.
In essence- popular vote means jack squat. Had they both been campaigning for the popular vote- who knows what would have happened. Maybe Hillary wins by 13 million more votes instead of 3. But the fact of the matter is that they didn’t. So your “3 million” number means as much as the dump I took this morning.
The reactions from people on both sides are the reason that Disney hasn’t opened the attraction. The unfortunate fact is that we as citizens of this country can’t have a reasonable conversation anymore with someone that disagrees with us without it devolving in to someone calling someone a racist or a snowflake for their views. It is really a sad time that our country has devolved into a bunch of school children on the playground.
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