One of the mainstay rides at Disneyland, Splash Mountain is getting a makeover. The Imagineers at Disney announced that the Splash Mountain ride at both Disneyland in California and Disney World in Florida will be redesigned to feature characters from its animated movie The Princess and the Frog.
It will tell the story of what happens after Princess Tiana and Prince Naveen’s final kiss in the film. It will feature music from the movie and follow the characters as they prepare for their first Mardi Gras performance.
“With this longstanding history of updating attractions and adding new magic, the retheming of Splash Mountain is of particular importance today,” Disney said in a statement. “The new concept is inclusive, one that all of our guests can connect with and be inspired by, and it speaks to the diversity of the millions of people who visit our parks each year.”
Song of the South long has been criticised for its depiction of African Americans and romanticising the Antebellum South. Disney has kept the film locked away in its archives and never has released it on video. A recent petition was among the calls to re-theme Splash Mountain with Princess and the Frog, which features Tiana as the Disney’s first black princess.
Disney’s announcement of the changes to Splash Mountain comes as other figures in media are altering their names to be more racially sensitive.