Today In Disney History ~ June 21st
Frozen Ever After, stylized as Frozen ever after, is a dark water ride attraction in Epcot at the Walt Disney World Resort. Part of the Norway Pavilion of the park’s World Showcase section, the attraction features scenes inspired by Disney’s 2013 animated film Frozen as well as the 2015 animated short Frozen Fever. It opened on June 21, 2016 and replaced the former Maelstrom attraction, utilizing the same ride vehicles and a similar track layout.
On September 12, 2014, Walt Disney World officials announced that the Maelstrom attraction would be replaced by an attraction based on Frozen. Maelstrom’s final day of operation was October 5, 2014.
In June 2015, then-Disney Chief Operating Officer Tom Staggs revealed that plans for a Frozen attraction were discussed prior to the film’s release, but were accelerated after the film’s worldwide success. On responding to whether converting a portion of the Norway pavilion into an attraction based on a fictional place was appropriate for World Showcase, Staggs stated: “If the goal is to give people a taste of something like Scandinavia with the Norway pavilion, then Frozen would only increase the extent to which people would be drawn to it. To me it doesn’t seem out-of-character at all.”
Disney also released the first details on the new attraction and revealed its final name, “Frozen Ever After”. The attraction uses the same ride vehicles and course that was used for Maelstrom. The Audio-Animatronics figures for the attraction feature improvements in facial animation that were first used on the Seven Dwarfs Mine Train, which opened in 2014 at the Magic Kingdom. The Audio-Animatronics are also the first ever all-electric Audio-Animatronics, with previous Audio-Animatronics using either pneumatics or hydraulics. While there are no new songs in the attraction, some of the original songs from Frozen have revised lyrics written by the original composers.
On May 20, 2016, Disney Parks revealed that the attraction would open June 21, 2016.
You can purchase your own copy of Disney’s Frozen on DVD and Blu-Ray on Amazon!
TMSM Today in Graphic by Sherry Rinaldi DeHart; Wiki 
Michele also contributes theme park news for Fox 35 Orlando 11pm news and on the radio on WDBO.
- EPCOT Food & Wine Fest Dates, Details Announced - April 23, 2024
- Daydream Believing! - April 19, 2024
- Disney Adventure World: Disneyland Paris Reimagines 2nd Park - April 12, 2024