WALT DISNEY WORLD (Orlando, Florida) — At the D23 Expo earlier this month, there was the sudden announcement of The Great Movie Ride being closed to make way for a new Mickey Mouse attraction, Mickey and Minnie’s Runaway Railway.
The announcement wasn’t a complete surprise to some fans, as it’s been rumored for several months that the attraction would likely close. What was a surprise was the speed at which Disney decided to close it. With Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge and Toy Story Land being far from complete, closing The Great Movie Ride now means there’s one less reason to visit Hollywood Studios until those new lands open.
Some of our Facebook readers were upset that Disney didn’t give even a month’s notice, not realizing that their last ride on The Great Movie Ride was their last ride ever on the attraction.
While it would have been nice to have a little more notice, Disney is offering an after hours meetup on July 28, 2017 for fans who have time to make a trip to the parks.
But there wasn’t much notice of that either, and it’s already sold out.
From the Disney Parks Blog…
Today, we’re offering a chance to join us for a special finale of The Great Movie Ride inside the Chinese Theatre at Disney’s Hollywood Studios. The Great Movie Ride After-Hours Meet-Upbegins at 9:45 p.m. ET on Friday, July 28, 2017. We are asking attendees to begin arriving at 9 p.m. ET to check in for the late night event.
If you were lucky enough to get into Meetup, we’d love to hear from you. Drop us a line at [email protected] and we’ll reimburse you via Disney gift card for a report and/or video.
The Great Movie Ride closes forever after August 13, 2017.
So long, Great Movie Ride. I really thought we had a little more time.
[Source: Disney Parks Blog]
I really thought we had more time for a last ride, too, especially since this has been an iconic attraction at the park since the park opened. My wife and I love the Great Movie Ride. Sad to see it get the bum’s rush.
The theme park is called Hollywood Studios, and this was the only ride that actually demonstrated an appreciation for Hollywood movies in general. If you want a Minnie Mouse ride, go to Disney World. I went there expecting something more for movie buffs, but instead the park and gift shops are totally dedicated to Star Wars. One of the attractions are a bunch of Star Wars movie clips put together and shown in a theater and they call that an attraction? Universal Studios was much more of a Hollywood Themed Park, but Hollywood Studios should just change their name to Star Wars Theme Park with a Minnie Mouse Ride, because that’s pretty much what it has become.