Published: August 20, 2026 · 12:02 PM EDT
Disney is expanding some of its biggest film and music-driven franchises into new physical experiences across Walt Disney World, Disneyland Resort and Disneyland Paris
Disney is continuing a major expansion of its theme-park business, bringing films including Monsters, Inc., Cars, Encanto, Coco and The Lion King, along with its classic Disney Villains, into a new generation of attractions and themed environments.
During D23 2026 in Anaheim, Walt Disney Imagineering presented new models, concept work and development updates for projects underway across Walt Disney World, Disneyland Resort and Disneyland Paris. Several of these projects were originally announced at D23 in 2024, while the 2026 event provided a clearer look at how they are taking shape.
Beyond rides, the expansion shows how Disney continues to move its intellectual property across different parts of entertainment - from film and streaming to music, merchandise and permanent physical experiences.
At Disney’s Hollywood Studios, Disney is building Monstropolis, the first complete Disney Parks land based on Pixar’s Monsters, Inc. franchise.
The story takes place after the original movie, with Mike and Sulley living in a city now powered by human laughter. Guests arrive during H.U.M.A.N. Day, short for “Humans Understand Monsters Are Nice,” as humans are welcomed into Monstropolis for the first time.
Parts of the land are expected to open in 2027, while construction continues on its major Door Vault coaster. The attraction is being developed as Disney’s first suspended coaster.
The land will also include locations inspired by the films, including Harryhausen’s, Archie’s Scare Pig Pizza and the Glob Theater.
The project also carries a direct connection to Disney and Pixar’s musical history.
Randy Newman, who composed the score and songs for the original Monsters, Inc. film, has written a new song titled “Welcome to Monstropolis.”
The song will be featured in the Glob Theater show and marks the first time Newman has composed an original song specifically for a Disney theme park.
That makes Monstropolis more than a visual recreation of the movie. Disney is extending the musical identity associated with the franchise by bringing one of its original composers into the new physical experience.
At Magic Kingdom, Disney is also developing an entire land dedicated to its villains as part of the park’s wider expansion.
The project is planned with two major attractions, along with dining and shopping, creating a permanent environment built around characters that traditionally appeared as antagonists across individual Disney films.
Unlike Monstropolis, Disney has not yet announced an opening date for Villains Land.
Pixar’s Cars universe is moving beyond Radiator Springs through Piston Peak National Park at Magic Kingdom.
The new area is being designed around landscapes inspired by American national parks, with mountains, trails, waterfalls and other wilderness elements incorporated into the Cars universe. Two attractions are planned for the area.
At D23 2026, Imagineering displayed a large model of Piston Peak and provided another look at how the new setting will expand the franchise beyond locations established in the films.
At Disney’s Animal Kingdom, Encanto will become one of the principal properties inside the upcoming Tropical Americas area.
The attraction follows Antonio Madrigal after he receives his magical gift and will take guests into the world of the Madrigal family and the Casita.
D23 2026 displayed new looks at Audio-Animatronics being developed for the experience. Tropical Americas is currently planned to open in 2027 and will also include a separate Indiana Jones attraction.
At Disney California Adventure, Pixar’s Coco is being developed into its first major Disney Parks ride-through attraction.
The project will bring guests into Miguel’s world and the Land of the Dead. Construction preparations are underway in an area near Paradise Gardens Park and Pixar Pier.
For Rockum, Coco is particularly relevant because music is not simply background decoration in the original movie - it is fundamental to the characters, story and emotional identity of the film.
Disney has not yet detailed a new musical soundtrack specifically for the attraction, so Rockum is not assuming what songs or arrangements will ultimately be used.
At Disney Adventure World at Disneyland Paris, The Lion King is also moving into a permanent themed area.
Disney describes the project as the first-ever ride-through attraction based on The Lion King. Guests will travel beneath Pride Rock and follow Simba’s journey from cub to king. The surrounding land is also planned to include dining, retail and character experiences.
At D23 2026, Imagineering displayed a study model of the attraction, a ride-vehicle maquette and a scale model of Rafiki’s Tree.
As with Coco, music is inseparable from the cultural identity of The Lion King, although Disney has not yet announced specific new musical material for the attraction.
The D23 projects also illustrate something larger than theme-park construction.
Disney is increasingly able to take a movie and extend its life across cinema, streaming, music, merchandise and physical entertainment.
In Monstropolis, that includes bringing Randy Newman back to create new music decades after the original film. With Coco and The Lion King, Disney is turning properties whose identities are strongly connected to songs and musical storytelling into destinations audiences can physically enter.
That makes the parks another stage in the commercial and cultural life of Disney’s entertainment catalog.
Disney Experiences has described its current development cycle as an accelerated period of growth, with new attractions and themed areas planned across its resorts around the world.
The strategy demonstrates the long commercial lifespan of intellectual property.
A movie released decades ago can continue generating new audiences through sequels, streaming, soundtrack consumption, merchandise and eventually an attraction designed to remain in operation for years.
That is particularly visible with properties such as The Lion King and Monsters, Inc., which are now being physically expanded long after their original theatrical releases.
The D23 2026 updates are significant not simply because Disney is building more rides.
They demonstrate how some of the company’s largest film franchises are being transformed into broader entertainment properties that can operate across several generations and several different businesses.
Monsters, Inc. is becoming an entire city with new Randy Newman music. Cars is expanding into an original national-park environment. Encanto and Coco are moving from screen stories into physical attractions, while The Lion King is receiving its first dedicated ride-through experience.
The films may begin on a screen, but Disney’s business increasingly ensures that the stories do not end there.
From Monstropolis in Florida to Pride Rock in Paris, Disney’s next generation of attractions shows how film, music and popular culture can continue evolving long after an original release.
D23 2026 did not introduce every project for the first time, but it offered a much clearer picture of how Monsters, Inc., Cars, Encanto, Coco, The Lion King and Disney’s Villains are being transformed into physical entertainment - while Randy Newman’s new music for Monstropolis provides a direct reminder that Disney’s musical legacy remains part of that expansion.
Written by Gino Alache – Music Journalist
SOURCE: Disney Experiences / Walt Disney Imagineering / Disney Parks Blog / D23
IMAGE CREDIT: Walt Disney World
