Muppets fans were understandably upset when Muppet*Vision 3D, the final Muppets project Jim Henson completed before his death, closed for good at Walt Disney World’s Disney Hollywood Studios. Their consolation prize designed to take the sting out of the loss was the announcement that the Muppets would take over a different ride at the same park, the Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster.
The reskinned ride — which has been been themed to the band Aerosmith since it first opened back in 1999 — is expected to debut in 2026, and today Disney Parks Blog offered a first look at what the completed coaster will look like. The concept art above strongly resembles the ride’s current pre-show room, only instead of the members of Aerosmith, there are members of the Muppets’ Electric Mayhem band. (Cue the internet trying to decide which members of Aerosmith correlate to which Muppets.)
The blog post claims “with your VIP passes, you’ll be welcomed inside the recording studio, where – wouldn’t you know it – you’ll find the Electric Mayhem are cranking out some seriously rocking tunes. Along with the finest audio engineers (all penguins, of course) we’ll see Scooter doing his best to convince Electric Mayhem to stop jamming and get to their increasingly restless fans. But will it be enough to get the band across town and onstage in time?”
A second piece of concept art shows what the entrance to the ride will look like. It’s largely unchanged from the current configuration, except for some new colors, and the Muppets’ branding in lieu of Aerosmith.
READ MORE: Disney and Universal Rides That Closed Forever
The blog post also says that “with the help from our friends at Muppet Labs and a very fast limousine, we’ll take a twisting, turning, and screamingly fun road trip across Hollywood to reach the concert in time. The iconic scenery and landmarks of Tinseltown will feature a Muppet twist.”
In other words, it sure sounds like the ride will look and feel basically the same as it has for the last 25+ years, except with Electric Mayhem covers of classic rock hits blasting in your headrest instead of Aerosmith music and perhaps some updated scenery around the track. Whether that is a satisfactory replacement for Muppet*Vision 3D for Muppets fans (or, for that matter, a satisfactory replacement for the Aerosmith version of Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster for fans of Aerosmith or Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster) remains to be seen.
The post about the new ride only lists “2026” as an opening date. Given that the Aerosmith coaster is still operating, and Disney will need months to refurbish the attraction, I wouldn’t expect the Electric Mayhem to start rocking until pretty late in 2026.
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