As it stands now, much of the upper part of Sunset Boulevard, just after making the turn from Hollywood Boulevard, is dominated by shops. Hollywood Boulevard already features a wide assortment of shops and the ones on Sunset Boulevard do not really offer anything unique or special. Therefore, I would keep the shops on the left side of the street, both the Sweet Spells candy shop and Villains in Vogue (although this would be returned to a shop selling exclusively villains merchandise). On the right side of the street I would transform the shops into new experiences for the guests.
The first buildings on the right currently house the Legends of Hollywood shop and the Planet Hollywood store. In their place I would create a restaurant that was originally planned for the park, David Copperfield’s Magic Underground. This would have been a magic-themed restaurant where diners would enjoy their meals amidst various magic act props. In keeping with the time period of the area, this restaurant would showcase the era of Harry Houdini and his magic tricks and death-defying escape acts. As guests would dine they would be treated to various acts and tricks performed by magicians roaming throughout the restaurant.
Further down Sunset Boulevard are the Mouse About Town and Sunset Club Couture shops. Among the building facades for these shops is a small-scale replica of the Carthay Circle Theater, the theater in which Walt Disney premiered Snow White and which is now going to be the centerpiece of Disney’s California Adventure.
I would redesign the exterior facades of these shops to give the Carthay Circle Theater a larger, more grand appearance (more along the lines of what is planned for California Adventure).
Inside of the theater I would have a show entitled “The Magic of Disney Animation.” This would replace the current show that is found inside of the Animation Courtyard (because I have something else planned for this location) but be completely different from the current show. The show would be divided into two parts. The first component would highlight the animation process and utilize the film “Back to Neverland” starring Walter Cronkite and Robin Williams that originally was shown prior to the Animation Tour at what was then the Disney-MGM Studios.
Following this would be another film about the legacy of Disney animation featuring a highlight of clips from every Disney animated feature film all set to a dramatic score of some of the best music from these movies. What I envision for this film is something along these lines:
After exiting the theater guests would walk through a post-show area highlighting concept art, storyboards, and models previewing upcoming Disney and Pixar animated movies.
Moving further along Hollywood Boulevard we come to Theater of the Stars which currently houses the Beauty and the Beast show. As popular and timeless as the movie is, this show has been a mainstay at Hollywood Studios for years and is in need of a change. First, I would give the exterior of the theater a major refurbishment and also enclose the theater to allow for a more enjoyable, climate-controlled setting which would also enable the use of greater lighting and other special effects. The exterior façade of the theater would have the appearance of the grand movie palaces prevalent during the Golden Age of Hollywood. Below is some concept art from the planning stages of Hollywood Boulevard of a building that was never constructed that is the type of style that I envision for this theater:
As for the show itself, I would replace Beauty and the Beast with a show that is performed aboard the Disney Cruise Line as well as at Hong Kong Disneyland called The Golden Mickey’s. The premise of this show is that guests are attending an awards show highlighting achievements by various Disney animated films in several different categories, such as romance, villains, heroes, comedy, etc.
The show does not highlight any one particular movie but rather features musical sequences from numerous Disney animated films, such as Tarzan, Lion King, Lady and the Tramp, and Aladdin.
The beauty of this show is that the musical sequences can be switched out over time to keep the show fresh and up to date; already the Disney Cruise Line has added in a new musical sequence from Tangled. In addition, the finale of the show features one of my favorite Disney songs not from a Disney movie:
Next to Theater of the Stars is the Hollywood Hills Amphitheater, home to Hollywood Studio’s nighttime spectacular Fantasmic. This show continues to be a popular fan favorite so I would keep it very much as it is now but with a few minor tweaks and improvements. The biggest change would be the removal of the Pocahontas sequence and replacing it with a Pirates of the Caribbean sequence complete with a replica of the Black Pearl along with apperances by Jack Sparrow and Captain Barbosa. Most of the other changes I would make with the show would be updates to the technology used, including new fountain effects more along with lines with what is used in World of Color at California Adventure, new high-definition projections onto the water screens, more pyrotechnic effects, and a new dragon like the one they have in Fantasmic at Disneyland.
Tower of Terror ranks consistently as one of the most popular attractions at Hollywood Studios and all of Walt Disney World. Therefore, I would make no changes to this attraction.
Despite its popularity, Rockin’ Rollercoaster starring Aerosmith does not fit in at all with the theme of Sunset Boulevard, which forces me to make some significant changes to this attraction. However, my changes would be more in the theming and storyline rather than with the ride system itself. I would use this opportunity to create an entirely new mini-land at the end of Sunset Boulevard encompassing the current Rockin’ Rollercoaster as well as the surrounding area. The theme of this new sub-land would be based on an idea that was originally planned for the park but never came into being.
Roger Rabbit's Hollywood, sometimes known as Maroon Studios after the cartoon studio featured in the 1988 film, would have been a mini-land based around Roger Rabbit and the other inhabitants of Toontown. Planned at the height of Roger's popularity, a New York Times article described the land: “This will be a kind of Toontown, where - as in the movie - only cartoon characters may live.” It would look like the cartoon studio buildings featured in the film with all the cartoon peculiarities such as boxes of TNT, grand piano's hanging above the sidewalk, and Roger shaped holes in the walls.
My vision for Roger Rabbit’s Hollywood is that the exterior façade, viewed from Sunset Boulevard, would look like the exterior of Maroon Cartoon Studios from the movie, which blends in well with the classic Hollywood feel of the area.
Once passing under the archway and into the studio itself, guests would then find themselves in the whimsical Toontown. This new area would include two attractions, one geared towards adults and the other for the entire family.
One of the attractions planned for this new land was a ride featuring Benny the cab that would take guests on a wild and crazy ride through Toontown. While never built in Disney World this attraction did come to fruition in Disneyland as Roger Rabbit’s Car-Toon Spin. This is the new overlay that I would give to Rockin’ Rollercoaster. The ride vehicles would be rethemed to look like Benny and guests would be launched on a much more thrilling ride through Toontown with many more props and effects than on the current coaster. I would also include some animatronic figures to add depth to the storyline, including guests being pursued and shot at by the Weasels.
Another attraction originally planned for this area was called the Toontown Trolley. This was to have been a simulator-style ride where Roger Rabbit would take guests on a tour of Toontown only to have things go awry. I envision this attraction to be far more mild than Star Tours, one that would not have a height requirement and could be enjoyed by the entire family. Guests would board a trolley that would have screens on the front and sides of the vehicle in place of windows. Roger Rabbit would begin the tour taking guests past some of the more prominent locations throughout Toontown but then loses control of the vehicle. The trolley begins moving faster and faster and taking guests on an out-of-control ride through the streets of Toontown narrowly dodging vehicles driven by well-known characters. Below is some concept art that was originally released for the ride:
With all these additions, Sunset Boulevard would become a more complete area of the park, balancing out the popular thrill rides with other offerings for the rest of the family while helping to more solidify and expand upon the great theming and detail that already exists in the area.
Stay tuned for my next entry which will include dramatic changes to the Animation Courtyard.
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