“Monsters, Inc. ”Land Coming to Walt Disney World Will Open Next Year: Every Detail Revealed at D23

NEED TO KNOW

• Disney Imagineers revealed the 'Monsters, Inc.'-themed land coming to Walt Disney World's Hollywood Studios will open earlier than planned, debuting next year

• It will feature Disney's first suspended coaster, a ride through the movie's iconic door factory

• Monstropolis replaces Muppet Courtyard at Disney's Hollywood Studios, a change that upset some nostalgic park lovers

The city of Monstropolis is getting ready to welcome its first human visitors!

On stage at the D23 convention in Anaheim on Saturday, Aug. 15, Disney Imagineers shared artwork and a slew of new details about the Monsters, Inc. -themed land coming to Hollywood Studios at Walt Disney World in Orlando, Fla.

They also dropped the major bombshell that it will open earlier than planned, as in "next year."

The land was first announced at D23 in 2024 . At the time, Billy Crystal , who voices the green, one-eyed protagonist Mike Wazowski, appeared onstage to share the news, and he revealed that the land will feature a ride that travels through the door factory from the film, marking the first-ever suspended coaster for a Disney park.

On Aug. 15, Imagineers showed off a new video animation of the ride's functionality, including how it will lift riders from the queue 40 feet straight up into the air in four seconds and then launch them into the vault for a thrilling start.

They also shared some of the other elements that will be found in the monster city, including a pizza shop, Monsters University and its alumni club, plus a Scare Emporium gift shop and the previously hinted-at Harryhausen sushi restaurant and Glob Theater (a play on Shakespeare's Globe).

During the Monsters, Inc. -themed segment, Megan Hilty performed a sample of "Welcome to Monstropolis," a new song written by Randy Newman that will be part of the land's stage show.

Disney shared in a previous update in June that guests are one step closer to being able "to take in all the monstrous sights, tastes, and sounds of Sulley and Mike's world."

The premise for the land is that humans are being allowed into Monstropolis for the first time to help "monsters understand that humans aren't so frightening after all."

The celebration will be known as "H.U.M.A.N. Day," short for "Humans Understand Monsters Are Nice."

A display at D23 seemed to reveal other elements of the land, including the names of some neighborhoods — Old Town Monstropolis and Frightening Heights.

There was also a theater marquee displaying "Welcome to Monstropolis! With Sulley & Mike."

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The land replaces the now-shuttered Muppet Courtyard, which was home to the beloved attraction Jim Henson's Muppet*Vision 3D and the PizzeRizzo restaurant.

Many fans expressed their dismay at the closure of the show, which first opened in 1991 and was the last project Henson worked on before he died.

The news of the closure was confirmed in November 2024 after several months of speculation, as park watchers guessed at areas of Disney's Hollywood Studios that were ripe for a retheming following the Monsters, Inc. land announcement.

The Muppets didn't leave the Orlando park altogether, however. They now have a new gig as the stars of a rethemed Rock 'n' Roller Coaster, which opened earlier this year.

The Monsters, Inc. -themed land will open at Walt Disney World's Hollywood Studios in 2027.

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