Earlier this year, Splash Mountain in Magic Kingdom at Walt Disney World took its final splash as the ride officially closed permanently. This decision was announced in 2020 to make way for a new “Princess and the Frog” ride as the Walt Disney Company pushes for more inclusion.
Disney Imagineers have already begun demolishing the attraction and working to transform the structure to its new Tiana-themed ride. On a recent visit to Magic Kingdom, one Guest spotted a furry intruder roaming the track and getting an up-close view of the ongoing construction.
Cat Caught On Video Roaming Splash Mountain Track
In a now-viral TikTok video shared by @manyadventuresofautumn, one of Disney World’s stray cats was caught roaming the track of Splash Mountain as the ride has been drained so that Imagineers could begin transforming the structure to its new Tiana-themed attraction.
“While splash mountain is being rethemed the disney cats will play!,” the TikTok user captioned the video.
@manyadventuresofautumn While splash mountain is beinng rethemed the disney cats will play! #splashmountain #wdw #disneyworld #disneyparks #magickingdom #animalkingdom #epcot #hollywoodstudios #disneytiktok #disneyedit #catsoftiktok #cats #splashmountainride
♬ Hakuna Matata – Billy Eichner & Seth Rogen & JD McCrary & Donald Glover
The cats at Disney World are actually a normality for the company,. as rumor has it, Disney actually allows the cats to roam, especially during the night as a way to help control the mouse population within the Parks. Known as The Kingdom’s Kitty Keepers, these cats have become quite popular within the Disney community, and Guests may spot a cat occasionally during Park hours, such as the one roaming around Splash Mountain.
Splash Mountain Being Quickly Demolished
As the Walt Disney Company pushes for more inclusion, they made the decision to get rid of Splash Mountain and turn it into a “Princess and the Frog” attraction.
In order to transform the mountain into the bayou, construction workers are removing certain aspects of the outside, as well as gutting the inside of the attraction space. Although fans cannot see what is happening on the inside, Guests visiting Disney World can clearly see the scrims and workers tearing down the outside of Splash Mountain.
The Splash Mountain attraction sign has also been removed, as well as certain parts of the mountaintop. The water from the ride was almost immediately drained so that workers could begin taking apart the attraction.
Splash Mountain was based on the film, “Song of the South”, which is extremely controversial as many deem it racist — which is why Disney decided to close the ride and reopen it as a new “The Princess and the Frog” attraction.
“Song of the South” is a mix of live-action and animation and features an older African-American plantation laborer named Uncle Remus who tells stories to a young white boy. Groups including the NAACP protested the film’s initial release.
Tiana’s Bayou Adventure
The new ride, Tiana’s Bayou Adventure, will pick up where the beloved 2009 film left off, seeing how Tiana’s life is after the success of her restaurant debut and marrying Prince Naveen. Per Disney Parks Blog, “Walt Disney Imagineering is creating an original, next chapter story for Tiana. Within the attraction queue, guests will discover that she continues to grow her business with Tiana’s Foods – an employee-owned cooperative. Combining her talents with those of the local community, Tiana has transformed an aging salt mine and built a beloved brand.”
Tiana’a Bayou Adventure is set to open at both Walt Disney World Resort in Florida and Disneyland Resort in California sometime in 2024.
