Yes, Disney World's Hollywood Studios surprised in late May by opening the courtyard outside the Magic of Disney Animation experience, and even though the main attraction isn't open yet, I've already walked through a good portion of it.
Behind the construction walls, what's emerging is less a single attraction and more a full reimagining of how Disney tells the story of animation itself — and a return to the park's roots. Even in its unfinished state, the space is far enough along to get a clear sense of how ambitious the final experience will be, blending character encounters, interactive environments, and nods to the studio's creative process.
Stepping inside the physical build makes one thing immediately clear: this is not a light refresh. It's a ground-up transformation of a space that sits on some of the most meaningful real estate in Disney's animation history.
The courtyard has already begun to take shape with embedded character footprints, hidden design nods, and a near replica of the Sorcerer Hat that stands outside Disney's animation building in Burbank, California.
What Dreams are Made of
Later this summer, Disney says the full experience will open with an Olaf animatronic guiding guests alongside recordings from Disney animators teaching drawing techniques for both classic and modern characters. The attraction will also include an immersive theater presentation of Once Upon a Studio — currently streaming on Disney+ — reimagined for a physical space, along with a range of character experiences spread throughout the building that once served as Disney Animation's offices.
Ahead of that opening, I had the chance to step behind the construction walls and tour the attraction while it remains an active worksite. I was guided through what will eventually become the "Off the Page" section. While much of the space remains unfinished, character artwork is already visible along portions of the ceiling trim beneath protective coverings — an early glimpse of the finished environment.
Guests will move through different stages of the animation pipeline while meeting characters along the way: Rapunzel's area is designed to resemble the inside of a multiplane camera, Mulan represents storyboarding, Chip 'n' Dale appear in the hand-drawn animation section, Stitch takes over effects animation, Goofy anchors lighting, and Donald and Daisy represent computer animation.
Inside the Experience
What I'm most eager to experience, however, remains under construction. The art gallery, the Once Upon a Studio theater, and Olaf Draws were not part of the preview tour because work is ongoing in those spaces.
Given the pace of development and Disney Imagineering's recent track record of delivering projects on schedule, I'm inclined to believe Disney when it says the attraction remains on track to open later this summer.
The art gallery could become one of the most compelling spaces at the attraction. Disney has already demonstrated effects that bring artwork to life in attractions such as Haunted Mansion and aboard Disney Cruise Line's Haunted Mansion Parlor. Here, I suspect we'll see Disney Animation characters emerge from frames and interact with one another. I also hope this is designed for repeat visits, with several effects occurring at random.
Similarly, Disney has shared only limited details about the Once Upon a Studio theater experience. Still, it has the potential to add an entirely new layer to the short film currently streaming on Disney+. It's been hinted that the action won't just be on the main screen, but on the walls and ceilings surrounding it.
Olaf Draws may ultimately be the most interactive experience of the bunch, bringing Olaf to life as he learns to draw alongside guests. Disney has already confirmed nine distinct drawing experiences, ranging from Mickey and Minnie to Nick and Judy from Zootopia, making it easy to imagine future updates keeping the attraction fresh.
A New Kind of Character
Even before any surprises, the technology already baked into Magic of Disney Animation represents a meaningful step forward.
Olaf Draws! may be the most technically interesting piece of the attraction. Rather than deploying a free-roaming character like the walking, talking Olaf seen at World of Frozen in Disneyland Paris and Hong Kong Disneyland, Disney Imagineering has done something more precise: they've lifted a moment directly from Once Upon a Studio and made it real. In the film, Olaf sits at an animator's desk — and here, he does so again.
Guests will sit alongside the animatronic and learn to draw with it, guided by actual Disney animators on screen. It's a different kind of ambition than a roaming character, but in some ways, a harder one to pull off. The goal isn't spectacle, it's the feeling that you've stepped inside a scene that already exists in the movie.
Pair that with an immersive theater experience and a traditional meet-and-greet pipeline reimagined around the animation process itself, and the Magic of Disney Animation is already doing a lot to close the gap between screen and guest.
Which makes the question of what else Disney might have planned all the more interesting. The BDX droids — also developed in-house at Imagineering using the same reinforcement learning approach — showed what's possible when that technology is deployed as a roaming park presence, creating encounters that feel unscripted and alive in a way traditional animatronics never could.
Magic of Disney Animation, with its mix of interactive spaces and an audience already primed to engage with characters in new ways, feels like exactly the kind of environment where Disney could debut something in that vein.
Whether or not that happens, the attraction already represents the clearest signal yet of where Disney's character experiences are heading — and what it could mean for guests both in the parks and at sea on Disney Cruise Line.
What stands out most isn't just the scope of what Disney is building — it's that this entire experience sits on the grounds of the former Disney Animation building, giving it a layer of authenticity that ties directly back to Disney's creative legacy.
It's a return to Disney's own creative identity, built on the footprint of its former animation campus, designed to bring the animation process itself into the guest experience.
And it doesn't exist in isolation. Magic of Disney Animation is part of a much larger transformation underway across Walt Disney World, where Disney is investing roughly $60 billion into its global parks and experiences — with work continuing on a Cars-themed Piston Peak and a new Villains Land at Magic Kingdom, and an Encanto attraction and Indiana Jones experience at Animal Kingdom.
But where those projects add new stories to the parks, the Magic of Disney Animation feels different. It's about going back to where Disney's storytelling began and rebuilding the way guests experience it from the ground up, showcasing classics and more recent additions to the library.
While the Animation Courtyard is open now at Hollywood Studios at Disney World, The Magic of Disney Animation is expected to open in 'late summer 2026.'
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