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Disneyland Paris - Crush’s Coaster Accident

The Crush’s Coaster attraction at the Disneyland Resort Paris’ Walt Disney Studios has reopened following a serious accident on October 11, 2012.

Radio Disney Club reports that a maintenance worker was hurt in the incident, and is currently in hospital with non-life threatening injuries. It is rumoured that one of the roller coaster’s cars ran over the man’s hand, causing extensive damage. However, this is yet to be confirmed by official Disneyland Paris sources.

Crush’s Coaster was swiftly reopened to the public, returning to action the very next day. An investigation is underway into the causes of the incident, although the short period of the closure suggests that Disneyland Paris is confident that the coaster remains safe for riders.

Walt Disney World - Avatar Land Out, Cars Land In?

Rumours have emerged online that the planned Avatar Land at Disney’s Animal Kingdom could be delayed or even cancelled, due to creative differences with director James Cameron.

Reports suggest that Walt Disney Imagineering has suffered from a rocky relationship with Cameron, with IGN claiming that this could push the opening date for Avatar Land past the planned 2015/16 time window.

If true, the delay would be a blow to Disney, which had hoped for a significant attendance boost from the debut of Avatar Land. The project was announced in September 2011, with Cameron serving as a consultant on the project, having had previous theme park experience when developing Terminator 2: 3D for Universal. Plans are already in place to close the popular Festival of the Lion King show this fall and move it to a new location in order to create space for the Avatar area.

Inevitably, the Avatar Land reports have strengthened rumors that a version of Disney California Adventure’s Cars Land will be installed at Disney’s Hollywood Studios. With much of the work of designing Cars Land having already been done, this would potentially enable Walt Disney World to debut a major new area in a shorter timeframe.

According to the IndieWire report, the start date for production on the first two sequels to the original Avatar is also shrouded in mystery. If these are delayed, Disney’s ability to co-promote the new Avatar area would be diminished, and a delay to the theme park project could be less impactful - provided Cars Land could be installed in the meantime.

The move to secure the rights to Avatar theme park attractions has widely been reported as Disney’s response to the massive success of the Wizarding World of Harry Potter at Universal Orlando’s Islands of Adventure. The first Avatar movie grossed more than $2.7 billion at the box office worldwide, and is based on the story of the indigenous Na’vi people’s attempts to fend off mining activities on the idyllic planet of Pandora.

Disneyland California - CELEBRITY SPOTTING

Sheryl Crow and her sons, Wyatt and Levi, stopped by Cars Land recently. It was hard to tell who was more excited about walking through Radiator Springs!