Disney has confirmed that it will be reimagining the iconic Splash Mountain attraction in response to backlash over the ride's "racist" origins.
Splash Mountain first opened in Disneyland back in 1989, and subsequent Splash Mountain rides then opened at the Magic Kingdom and Tokyo Disneyland in October 1992.
Now, the rides at both Disneyland in California and the Magic Kingdom in Florida will be stripped of their Song of the South theming and reimagined to a Princess and the Frog story.
Writing on the official Walt Disney Imagineering Instagram account, officials wrote:
"As Imagineers, we have a deep passion for evolving our parks with new ideas and relevant stories that guests from all over the world can enjoy. And we want these stories to reflect and celebrate the diversity of our world infused with Disney magic.
"We’re thrilled to share that Splash Mountain – at both @Disneyland Resort in California and @WaltDisneyWorld Resort in Florida – will soon be completely reimagined with a new story inspired by an all-time favorite @DisneyAnimation film 'The Princess and The Frog.'"
And writing on the official Disney Parks website, the company provided more information regarding the ride's new story, writing:
"We pick up this story after the final kiss, and join Princess Tiana and Louis on a musical adventure – featuring some of the powerful music from the film – as they prepare for their first-ever Mardi Gras performance."
Explaining why Princess Tiana is the perfect character to have a ride themed after her, Disney officials said:
"Tiana is a modern, courageous, and empowered woman, who pursues her dreams and never loses sight of what’s really important. It’s a great story with a strong lead character, set against the backdrop of New Orleans and the Louisiana bayou."
Currently, Splash Mountain tells the story of Br'er Rabbit, as he attempts to avoid capture from Br'er Fox and Br'er Bear, and earlier this month, Disney was under pressure from fans to retheme the ride as a result of its source material.
The issue is that the songs and characters featured on the ride stem from Disney's 1946 movie Song of the South. The problematic movie tells the story of African-American former slave Uncle Remus, as he delights a child named Johnny about the adventures of Br'er Rabbit, Br'er Fox, and Br'er Bear.
However, Johnny soon learns that the stories are a way of coping with the challenges of working on a plantation.
Since the movie was released, Disney has been criticized for its poor handling of race and slavery.
An article by Slate highlights some of the problematic elements of the movie, explaining that "it's implied that the black workers are no longer Johnny's family's property, [but] they are still completely subservient, and happily so."
Because of it's past, Song of the South does not appear on Disney+ and has never been released in full on DVD or Blu Ray.
And in the wake of the BLM protests, petitions were set up calling for Disney to retheme the Splash Mountain attractions.
One petition, titled "Re-theme Splash Mountain to Princess and the Frog" was signed by tens of thousands of people.
As its description explains: "While [Splash Mountain] is considered a beloved classic it’s history and storyline are steeped in extremely problematic and stereotypical racist tropes from the 1946 film Song of the South."
It goes on to suggest that the ride should be rethemed to focus on the story of Princess Tiana from the 2009 movie The Princess and the Frog. The petition's creator explains:
"There is a huge need for diversity in the parks and this could help fill that need. Princess and the Frog is a beloved princess movie but has very little representation in the parks. Tiana could be one of the first princesses with a thrill ride, as well as giving her a much deserved place in the parks."
They even go on to explain that a Princess and the Frog-themed ride would be the most cost-effective solution for Disney, saying that "it would be fairly easy to transition the ride into the bayou of New Orleans considering the location of the ride in each park."
In fact, one Twitter user by the name of Frederick Chambers has shared his in-depth imaginings about what the ride should look like under this new suggested guise:
(He should really get a job as an Imagineer.)
And there were many people on social media who loved the idea of retheming the classic to a Princess and the Frog ride:
However, then there are those who disagree (and they really disagree):
There will be many Disney fans out there who adore Splash Mountain without even having seen Song of the South (I am one of them). However, we cannot deny the troubled history that the ride stems from.
Disney has been making changes to some of its most beloved attractions for years now - and all for the purpose of making sure those rides resonate with modern-day audiences.
For example, a handful of the scenes from the original 1967 version of Pirates of the Caribbean ride have been altered to make them more fitting for today's guests.
According to the OC Register, "the ride was made more politically correct [in 1997] by changing a scene in which lusty pirates chased frightened women. Now, one setup sees a pirate chasing a woman because she’s carrying food, and another has the woman chasing the man."
And despite a huge backlash from Disney Parks loyalists, the Tower of Terror ride at Disney's California Adventure was completely rethemed in 2017 into a
At Disney's California Adventure, the Tower of Terror ride was completely redone to have a Guardians of the Galaxy theme in 2017