D23 2026 Disney Parks Predictions

On August 15, 2026, the D23 Disney Parks Panel will take place at the Honda Center in Anaheim, California. D23 is the biannual official fan expo of The Walt Disney Company. They hold a Parks Panel every year that is usually chock full of announcements and updates regarding theme park projects around the world. And as this is the first time this decade that I won’t be attending D23, I thought it would be fun to go through some of my predictions for what I think will be announced at the D23 Parks Panel.

The last D23 saw a pretty extensive list of rides and attractions announced for Disney Parks around the world. A total of 19 rides were announced, and that’s not even counting the smaller announcements for things like Disney Starlight or the Disneyland 70th Anniversary celebration. Because of this, I’m expecting this D23 Parks Panel to be less heavy on announcements for new things and more heavy on updates and more details on projects currently in the works.

That’s not to say that there won’t be any new announcements. If the last 2 D23 Parks Panels are any indication, it’s likely that surprise projects will be announced at this D23 as well. Will we finally get that long awaited Disneyland Tomorrowland refresh? Is Figment finally going to get a proper ride refurbishment? I talk about that and so much more down below so I hope you’re ready for a fun article.

I decided too that I’ll be giving each prediction a rating of either likely or unlikely to be announced or talked about at D23. I don’t want to give a flat out “will be” or “will not be” announced because at this point, no one is really sure of anything. It would be careless of me to say with 100% certainty that something is definitely or definitely not being announced because, unless you work for Disney or Imagineering, no one really knows for sure.

Take note that while some of these predictions are for things that were already announced, such as the aforementioned ride details on already announced projects, most of them are just speculation on my part for what I think is going to be announced at D23. I’ve also included some wildcard predictions for surprise announcements that I think could be making their way to parks around the world. At the end of the day, some of this is just wishful thinking, although I tried to include announcements of things that I think have the possibility of happening.

So without further ado, let’s get right to the predictions!

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Table of Contents

Disneyland

Disneyland has no active projects right now. Its last active project was the Walt Disney – A Magical Life attraction that debuted as part of Disneyland’s 70th anniversary. As such, I expect that some announcements may be made as part of Disneyland Forward now that Disneyland doesn’t have anything big in the pipeline. I also expect a bunch of smaller attractions and enhancements to be announced at D23. Let’s get into it!

New Daytime Parade

Likely

I would absolutely love it if a new daytime parade were to come to Disneyland. Or even if they just brought back Magic Happens. Disneyland not having a daytime parade for its 70th anniversary was a huge mistake in my opinion, but Disney could make up for it by either debuting a new parade or bringing back Magic Happens. I think bringing back Magic Happens is more likely than an entirely new parade, but you never know what Disney has up their sleeve.

Main Street Electrical Parade Return

Likely

This has been rumored for so long that I’m already expecting an announcement at D23. Especially considering that it’s the 55th anniversary of the Main Street Electrical Parade in 2027 and that they spent money to turn the last float into a It’s a Small World inspired float, I expect that they have no intentions of ever retiring this parade. Now I will admit I am a huge fan of the Main Street Electrical Parade, so if they brought it back I would fly to Anaheim just to see it. So the MSEP fan in me is hoping this gets announced at D23.

New Fantasmic Dragon or New Rivers of America Nighttime Show

Likely

This could go one of two ways: either Disney announces that they’re retooling Fantasmic and giving it an upgrade, or they completely replace Fantasmic with a new concept for a nighttime show. Honestly, with the state that Disneyland’s Fantasmic has been in, it makes me think that they might just replace it. As a Fantasmic fan, I would rather they refresh the show with new effects and a dragon, but if they can make a show of equal or greater caliber than Fantasmic, then I’m all for it.

New Tomorrowland and Peoplemover Return

Unlikely

This would be the one announcement I really want to happen among everything in this article, but I still think it’s very unlikely. Disneyland would need a huge capacity increase before they shut down all of Tomorrowland for a refurb. I could see this happening as part of Disneyland Forward, but not in the immediate future. But if they want a quick win during the panel, then announcing a Tomorrowland refresh or a Peoplemover return will do just that.

Disney California Adventure

Disney California Adventure seems to be the focus of Imagineering and Disney when it comes to expanding in Anaheim. They’ve got four huge rides coming in the future, with three of them already in various phases of construction. The one remaining project to break ground has been causing quite a stir in recent months, but all signs indicate that it’s still a go. I can’t wait to see the future of DCA, but also think that because of the amount of new things being built, I don’t think we’re going to get another huge announcement for this park.

Details on Avengers Campus

Likely

Avengers Infinity Defense and Stark Flight Lab are more than halfway through their construction timelines. Cast Members have already been recruited to lead the opening teams. I think we’ll get a lot of details on these two attractions, including plot details, cast details, and maybe even an opening timeframe. I really believe these rides could open as early as next year, so more details at D23 about these rides seems logical. They could even show us some ride scenes, animatics, or behind the scenes videos on their construction at the panel. Expect this to be a centerpiece of the presentation.

Details on the Coco Ride

Likely

The Coco boat ride has begun construction in DCA, so expect Disney to release some details on the attraction. I would love to see how they plan on making animatronic skeletons, and would also love to know if the ride will be re-telling the story of the movie or if the ride will tell an all-new story. I hope that we get an opening timeline and a name for the ride, but I don’t expect that to happen as the ride is still a couple of years away from completion.

Details on Avatar Land or Zootopia

Likely

If I had written this piece two days ago, I would’ve said that Zootopia has probably replaced Avatar. But during Disney’s earnings call today, they released a graphic showing their upcoming slate of theme park projects and Avatar was one of them, so I think it’s a safe bet that it’s pushing through.

I wish it wasn’t, as I don’t think Avatar belongs in Disney California Adventure. An alien world is as far from the California theme as you can get. Zootopia wouldn’t fit either, but I could get behind that more than Avatar. It’s just disappointing that the Disney Parks seem to be devolving into IP based parks with no distinguishable theme from each other. I hope I’m proven wrong.

Tokyo Disneyland

I want to mention something before we start talking about the Tokyo Parks: nothing new is going to be announced. Disney doesn’t own the Tokyo parks, and the company that does (the Oriental Land Company) doesn’t really like using D23 as a platform to announce their projects. We may get some updates on current projects, but don’t expect any big Tokyo news to come out of the presentation. Anything is possible, but I think this is highly unlikely.

Details on New Space Mountain

Likely

Tokyo Disneyland has only revealed one piece of concept art for their new Space Mountain attraction. D23 would be the perfect time to release additional concept art for the ride. Maybe they could give us an opening season or month for the ride as well, and maybe even the name of the ride itself. I would also love to see the ride vehicle design and maybe a bit of the queue. Realistically, we’re probably only getting 1 new piece of concept art, and the opening season and ride name might be something Tokyo Disney would want to reveal themselves. But I can dream!

Details on New Wreck-It Ralph Ride

Likely

Tokyo Disney has only released one piece of concept art for this attraction. Given that this ride was supposed to open this year, I would like to get new concept art for what the ride would look like and maybe even behind the scenes footage of them installing the animatronics and other parts of the ride. A name and opening timeframe would be amazing as well but realistically we’re probably just looking at new concept images for the attraction.

More Concept Art for New Adventureland

Unlikely

Tokyo Disney unveiled some concept art for a new Adventureland featuring rides themed to Moana, Up, and the Incredibles. I highly doubt there are firm plans right now for this land, so I don’t expect anything to be said about this at all. They might bring out the old concept art just to say that there are plans being developed now for Tokyo Disney, but other than that I don’t think we’re going to get much more about this project at D23.

Tokyo DisneySea

Just like Tokyo Disneyland, I think that the biggest DisneySea projects won’t be announced at D23. I will say that if Disney does want to announce something for Tokyo DisneySea at D23, it would have to be something small. With that in mind, I can see them announcing one new attraction at D23, only because that attraction isn’t a ride, which means it could be small enough for the Oriental Land Company to allow Disney to announce it.

Replacement for Big Band Beat

Likely

This is the attraction I’m talking about. Big Band Beat was one of Disney’s best stage shows anywhere, and sadly it’s not running anymore and its theater has been sitting empty for a while now. A replacement is imminent, and if the Oriental Land Company wanted to throw Disney a bone in order for Tokyo Disney to be represented somehow at D23, then this would be that bone. I just hope that the eventual replacement is of the same caliber as the previous show, but we shall see.

More Concept Art for New Port Discovery

Unlikely

This concept art for the new Port Discovery was released at the same time as the Adventureland concept art for Tokyo Disneyland, and just like Tokyo Disneyland’s Adventureland I don’t think this is going to be expanded on at D23. This project is years away from happening and I don’t think there are any firm details yet on what will be included in the project.

Disneyland Paris

There’s a fact about Disneyland Paris that I think is crazy: they haven’t gotten a new attraction in over 20 years. The last big attraction to be added to the park was Buzz Lightyear Laser Blast in 2006. Disneyland Paris is in the longest current drought between new attractions, and I think Disney is going to want to change that this year now that Disney Adventure World has debuted.

New Star Wars Expansion in Tomorrowland

Unlikely

I’ve heard this rumor circulating the web recently. I don’t know how popular Star Wars is in Europe, but the rumor focuses on closing Autopia in Discoveryland and turning that area into a smaller version of Galaxy’s Edge with a Mandalorian and Grogu themed attraction. I don’t know if these plans will still push through given the lackluster performance of Mandalorian and Grogu at the box office, so I’m gonna tag this as unlikely. There should be something coming to Disneyland Paris, but this isn’t it.

Return of Space Mountain

Likely

An easy win for Disneyland Paris fans would be the announcement that they’re converting the Hyperspace Mountain at Discoveryland at Disneyland Paris back into its original (or Mission 2) version. They could even announce a Mission 3 if they want to. This rumor would be stronger if they also announce a Star Wars expansion as they would probably want all the Star Wars attractions to be condensed in their Star Wars land, meaning Space Mountain will have to change themes anyway. I’m tagging this as likely as I think Hyperspace Mountain has run its course, but we shall see.

Disney Adventure World

Many things are coming to Disney Adventure World in the future. They’ve got an Up-themed wave spinner coming to Adventure Way next year, as well as a Lion King land coming to the park sometime in the next few years. I think that Lion King will open before the next D23, meaning that a lot of this year’s D23 Parks Panel will focus on that.

Details on World of Lion King

Likely

I expect a lot of details to be unveiled for World of Lion King. We can expect a land name, attraction name, some new concept art, some ride testing footage, mock-ups of scenes, site pictures, and maybe even an opening year. This will be one of the signature projects that Disney will focus on for this D23 so expect a lot of new information. We may even get a surprise announcement of a flat ride, restaurant, and entertainment coming to thisland. This is definitely likely to happen, which is good news for you Disneyland Paris fans.

Moana-themed Area

Unlikely

There’s essentially one more space in the park for expansion, and while this was rumored to be an Avatar themed land because of leaked images relating to Disney Cascade of Lights, I think plans have pivoted to a new Moana themed land.

Moana is an incredibly popular movie and the fact that there is no ride representation for Moana anywhere in the Disney Parks is something I think Disney will want to fix. This is the best place to do it, in my opinion, and it would be so cool to see Pride Rock, the North Mountain, and Motonui all around Adventure Bay. I don’t know, however, if this will be announced at THIS D23, so I’m tagging this as unlikely. But as with Disney, sometimes you never really know.

Hong Kong Disneyland

Disney’s tiniest resort has actually seen a lot of growth in its last almost 21 years of existence. Doubling its ride and land count, HKDL continues to expand with a Pixar theater and Avengers attraction being built right now. I don’t think another ride will be announced for HKDL as I think they want all the focus to be on the Avengers ride that they’re building, but I do see them making smaller announcements. Let’s take a look!

Details on Pixar Theater

Likely

Since this is debuting next year and we only have 1 piece of concept art for it, expect that a lot of information about this experience will debut at D23. I would expect a name for the theater, a name for the show, the plot of the show, the movies that will be included, and an opening timeframe for the show to be announced at D23, along with concept art and rehearsal footage. We might even get an opening month for the show at D23. Expect a large portion of the HKDL section to be dedicated to this attraction.

Details on Avengers Tower of Terror

Likely

Along with the Pixar theater, expect some time to be dedicated to the Avengers Tower of Terror ride coming to Tomorrowland at HKDL. We’ll probably get some details on the plot and cast of the ride, as well as some new concept art and maybe ride vehicle testing animatics. I would love for them to give us an opening year for the ride, as it’s rumored now to open in either 2028 or 2029. But honestly I’d be glad with any new information they can give us.

New Electrical Parade

Unlikely

This prediction is more wishful thinking on my part. I would love it if Hong Kong Disneyland got a new night parade or a return of Paint the Night as part of an effort to lengthen the park hours. If Hong Kong Disneyland gets a good night parade, they would probably have the best entertainment of any park in the world. While I would love for this to happen, there’s one other piece of entertainment the park is missing that I think has a higher chance of being announced at D23.

New Castle Stage Show

Likely

Ever since the 20th Anniversary of Hong Kong Disneyland ended, the castle stage has been sitting empty without any word on a replacement. I think Hong Kong Disneyland will use D23 to announce that either Follow Your Dreams, the previous castle show before the anniversary, is returning with some enhancements, or that a new castle stage show will premiere sometime later this year or early next year. It might be too much for the park to produce two shows at once, but they did it for the 20th so I can see them doing it now.

Shanghai Disneyland

Celebrating its 10th anniversary this year, Shanghai Disneyland may have the biggest announcement of the night. Rumors have been swirling for years that a second theme park will be coming to the resort in the near future. I’ll get more into that in a bit but even if they don’t announce that park at D23, there’s still a big project coming to Shanghai Disneyland in the very near future.

Details on Spider-Man Coaster and Land

Likely

I have a feeling 2027 is going to be a big year for the Asian Disney parks. Every single Asian resort will have something opening in 2027 if this project stays on track and opens by next year. We’ve been receiving updates about the Spider-Man rollercoaster these past few months and the track has just finished being installed, so expect some more updates about the land at D23.

We might get the names of the land and attraction, entertainment and food options, more concept art for the ride, and much more. This is a cornerstone project of this D23 so expect a lot of info on this!

Second Park

Likely

Now we’re getting into the announcement that might just be the biggest announcement of the night. Shanghai Disney Resort has been due for a second park for a while. Some concept art has leaked in the past few months showing what looked like a new version of Epcot complete with Spaceship Earth. Whatever the park ends up being, an announcement is coming.

I thought they would announce it at Shanghai Disneyland’s 10th Anniversary celebration on June 16th, but since there was no announcement there, a D23 announcement is all but guaranteed. I would actually be more surprised if it’s not announced, and the only reason I can see for that is if Shanghai wants to save it for a future date. But if you ask me, my money is on a D23 announcement.

Disney’s Animal Kingdom

We are now at our last resort, and this one might be the resort with the most updates and announcements. Walt Disney World got the lion’s share of announcements in 2024, and now I think that their projects are going to get the most updates this year. Starting with the one park whose project is opening next year: Animal Kingdom. I have an additional prediction for Animal Kingdom, but I think we’re going to spend most of the Animal Kingdom time talking about their current expansion project.

Details on Tropical Americas

Likely

This is going to be the first major project at Walt Disney World to open, and since it’ll be open before the next D23, I think we’re going to learn a lot about this land. We’ll probably get the Encanto attraction name, story, and ride system, as well as a look into the Indiana Jones attraction. We might get some concept art or construction photos of both of those rides and maybe even a look at the mythical bird that will be the center of the Indiana Jones ride.

I wouldn’t be shocked if we also got information on the restaurant coming to the land, as well as maybe a look into what Disney characters will be featured on the carousel in the land as well. The biggest news of all, however, would be an opening timeframe for the project. We probably won’t get a month but an opening season, which I’m predicting will be Fall 2027. It’s an exciting time for Animal Kingdom, and I can’t wait for this portion of the panel.

New Nighttime Spectacular

Likely

My wildcard prediction is that a new show is going to go into the amphitheater where Rivers of Light used to be. Disney’s Animal Kingdom desperately needs nighttime entertainment as a reason to keep the park open late. It would be amazing if they could debut a nighttime spectacular at the same time as Tropical Americas, making DAK a full day park. And they could just use water and drones so that they don’t aggravate the animals. I think this announcement is definitely coming, and it would be a quick win for Walt Disney World fans.

Disney’s Hollywood Studios

Disney’s Hollywood Studios has one big construction project going on right now. I think we’re going to get lots of details about that project as Disney themselves have teased that there will be announcements coming at the D23 panel. I expect this to be another cornerstone of the presentation so expect a lot about this project.

Details on Monstropolis

Likely

Disney has teased in a previous post talking about the story of Monstropolis that some more announcements about the land would be revealed at D23. I expect that we’ll get some more concept art on the Door Coaster, as well as maybe the name of the Door Coaster attraction and an opening year for that as well. I would love to see some video of them making the different elements that will go into Monstropolis, and maybe some concept art for the Harryhausen’s restaurant that they’re building.

Glob Theater Show Announcement

Likely

Disney has also teased that a Glob Theater show announcement is probably coming to D23. The Glob Theater is what Disney is calling the theater that was formerly home to MuppetVision 3D that they seem to be repurposing into some kind of Monsters Inc themed show. Whether this show will be Monsters Inc Laugh Floor but in a different theater remains to be seen, but we should get a couple pieces of concept art and a show name at this year’s D23.

Epcot

Epcot is the only Walt Disney World park that has no construction projects going on right now. This means that an announcement is imminent. There are many different theories as to what will get announced. Some are saying maybe Brazil will get a pavilion at Epcot, others are saying that maybe Illuminations: Reflections of Earth will come back for the park’s 45th anniversary, but I personally think that if anything is going to be announced, it is probably going to be one of these three options.

Figment Reimagining

Likely

If Disney wants the Honda Center to explode with cheers, then this is the announcement that will do that. A Figment reimagining has been on people’s D23 bingo cards for years, and I think that, with nothing going on at Epcot, now is the perfect time to announce that. Fans have been begging for a Figment overhaul for a while now, and Disney even teased this a couple of years ago, so it’s totally within the realm of possibility. Will it actually happen, however, only time will tell. But if Josh D’Amaro wants an easy win with fans, this announcement is that.

Wonders of Life Refresh

Likely

I think that, on the off chance that Figment doesn’t get announced, this would be the other major project that could get announced. I’ve heard rumors that the pavilion would return to its edutainment and health-focused roots and feature the Inside Out characters for mental health and Baymax for physical health. I think this is an incredible idea that I would fully support. There’s also been some exterior work happening on the pavilion recently, so I wouldn’t count out an announcement of this kind at D23.

Spaceship Earth Refurb

Likely

This was actually confirmed to be coming to Epcot until the pandemic derailed all the plans for this attraction. Disney has been in the habit of refurbishing attractions recently, and if there was one attraction that could use it, it’s Spaceship Earth. I expect that since Disney has the time and resources to do these attraction makeovers that maybe this project will finally begin, and I expect Disney to announce that they will be doing so at D23.

Magic Kingdom

Magic Kingdom probably has the most exciting projects in the pipeline right now, with expansions to Frontierland in the form of Piston Peak and a whole Villains-themed land in the works. Plus, Disney just announced that a new version of Carousel of Progress will debut next year. I also have one more wildcard prediction for Magic Kingdom, and it’s one that has been gaining traction these last few weeks.

Details on Piston Peak

Likely

Piston Peak will be a major focus of D23. We might get a model of the entire Piston Peak, as well as some more concept art or ride test footage like what we got at the last D23. I would also expect them to tell us more about the flat ride that is coming to the area. My bet has always been that it will be similar to the Cars flat ride currently found at Disney Adventure World in Paris. Given that this might open before the next D23, it’s highly likely we will get a lot of details about this project at D23.

Details on Villains Land

Likely

Villains Land is at least 4-5 years away, so don’t expect a lot of details at this D23 about it. We might get an opening timeframe, as well as some additional concept art of the land, but I doubt that Disney at this stage is going to reveal any ride concepts, themes, or character details. We might get a restaurant or lounge announcement, or maybe a theater for a stage show since Magic Kingdom doesn’t have one, but big details will probably be unveiled at the next D23.

Details on New Carousel of Progress

Likely

They just revealed a lot of details about the new Carousel of Progress in a recent Disney Parks Blog post. I think we’ll get even more info at D23. We may even get possible mockups or animatics of some of the new scenes to be featured in the Carousel of Progress. I would also like to get a cast list for who will be voicing the characters in the new scenes, and an opening month would also be nice to get at this point.

New Space Mountain

Unlikely

I’m only tagging this as unlikely because I think there’s just so much going on at Magic Kingdom that they won’t do this until Magic Kingdom gets some extra capacity to replace what will be lost when this goes down. They might wait until Piston Peak is open to do this, but I think it’s time for a Space Mountain refresh. The ride is old and rickety and in dire need of some work, so I think it’s just a matter of if the park can survive without Space Mountain open, which again will only happen once Piston Peak opens.

Disneyland Abu Dhabi

Unlikely

Given the state of the world right now, I doubt that we’re going to get any kind of news about Disneyland Abu Dhabi. It’s also not the right audience for it, and I think since Disney won’t own this resort they’d rather let Miral, the company that will own the resort, announce important things on their own terms. They might just recommit to pushing through with the project, but I don’t see them doing much more than that.

D23 2026 Disney Parks Predictions Conclusion

And that’s it for my predictions! I hope you guys are as excited as I am for everything that’s to come at D23. It really is such an exciting time to be a Disney fan, and the future looks very bright. If you have any questions, reach out to me on my socials.

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