Walt Disney World’s best attraction prompted a little concern among guests this week. Indiana Jones Epic Stunt Spectacular! over in Disney World Hollywood Studios had a mishap.
On TikTok, @crislainyrodrigues posted a video from the attraction where the giant boulder It’s supposed to roll down the track period from there, things kind of go off the rails? With any attraction, of any age, there is a margin for error. But, When we’re dealing with a prop that weighs about 400 pounds, You have to act quickly in order to keep all the guests in the audience safe.
Despite this clip making the rounds on Tiktok, a larger audience became aware of it through Scott Gustin’s reporting. As “THE” theme park reporter for Nexstar, He was able to confirm that the cast member in question wasn’t seriously hurt while trying to stop this massive boulder from reaching the crowd. The cast member in question did take quite a nasty spill though. Another person working the ride came to steady the boulder and get things back together. One of the funnier touches of the video is the Indiana Jones peeking out to figure out what went wrong.
On Twitter, Gustin wrote, “During Indiana Jones Epic Stunt Spectacular! at Disney’s Hollywood Studios today, a 400-pound boulder prop dislodged from its track. A Cast Member was injured stopping it before it reached the audience. Disney says the Cast Member received immediate care and is recovering.”
Disney World Indiana Jones Stunt Show goes off the rails
(Paramount Pictures)
One of the things events like this brings into focus is how old rides like Indiana Jones are down at Disney World. With Universal opening up Epic Universe within the last year, Disney decided it was time for some upgrades. Every two years, fans of theme parks descend on Anaheim for the Disney Experiences Showcase. 2024’s edition focused a lot on things coming to Walt Disney World in both the long and short term. Cars fans are going to be thrilled at the trackless element at Piston Peak National Park.
Back at D23, The Disney Parks unveiled their addition to the Magic Kingdom. A new cars themed section of Frontierland down in Florida. Their blog explained this initiative. “The American West has always been about keeping your eyes on the horizon … believing in yourself, carving your own path, and striving toward success,” Disney Parks head Josh D’Amaro argued. “That goes for miners in the mountains, bears from the country, a princess from the bayou … or a racecar from the big city.”
Walt Disney World has been a Florida staple since 1971, but visiting the “Most Magical Place on Earth” has become increasingly costly over the decades.Over the past 50 years, Walt Disney World tickets have soared from $3.50 to over $200 on peak days. While Florida residents enjoy discounted passes, multi-day ticket deals and resort offers, out-of-state visitors face full pricing. Video above: Walt Disney World Fallidays Sweepstakes Here’s a look at how Disney World ticket prices have evolved and how Florida residents have enjoyed special perks along the way.1971 – The Magic BeginsTicket Price: $3.50 – $8When Walt Disney World opened its gates in Orlando, single-day tickets cost just $3.50 (about $27 in today’s dollars). Everyone paid the same with no resident discounts or promotions yet. Families flocked to experience the park’s rides, shows and attractions.1980s – Growth and AdventureTicket Price: $23.50 – $25Ticket prices climbed from $8 in 1980 to $23.50 by 1989. New rides and attractions made the price increases feel worth it, and Orlando was quickly becoming a must-visit vacation spot for families across the nation.1990s – Residents Get a PerkTicket Price: $35 – $225Tickets rose from $25 in 1990 to $35 by 1995. Florida residents began seeing special offers, including:Discounted annual passes for localsExample: In 1993, a Florida resident’s annual pass was priced at $190, while out-of-state guests paid $225 for the same pass.Resort package dealsOut-of-state visitors still paid full price, but locals could now enjoy more affordable ways to visit frequently.2000s – Tiered Pricing & ExpansionsTicket Prices: $41- $99From $41 in 2000 to $69 by 2009, ticket prices continued to rise. This decade introduced:Peak vs. off-peak pricingFlorida resident promotions like the Play 4-Day Pass, giving locals access to all four Disney parks for $99Flexible multi-day tickets and annual pass deals for residents2010s – Dream Passes & Seasonal DealsTicket Prices: $84 – $104Ticket prices climbed from $69 to $92, but Florida residents continued to benefit from perks such as:4-Day Dream Pass: $84 for Florida residents with optional Park Hopper for ~$26Annual pass discounts with early park entry and merchandise dealsRoom discounts at Disney resorts, often up to 25%Special seasonal ticket promotions unavailable to out-of-state visitorsEven though the Park Hopper option was available to all guests, Florida residents often had discounted rates during these promotions.2020s – Peak Prices & Modern MagicTicket Prices: Range from $109 to $189Prices vary based on what day and what park the ticket is being purchased for, and what the demand is. Florida residents can still access:Discounted annual passesMulti-day ticket deals like the 3-Day, 3-Park specialPark Hopper add-on available for Florida residents for $40, allowing access to multiple parks in a single dayResort package discountsMeanwhile, out-of-state guests pay full price, especially on peak-demand days.
Walt Disney World has been a Florida staple since 1971, but visiting the “Most Magical Place on Earth” has become increasingly costly over the decades.
Over the past 50 years, Walt Disney World tickets have soared from $3.50 to over $200 on peak days. While Florida residents enjoy discounted passes, multi-day ticket deals and resort offers, out-of-state visitors face full pricing.
Video above: Walt Disney World Fallidays Sweepstakes
When Walt Disney World opened its gates in Orlando, single-day tickets cost just $3.50 (about $27 in today’s dollars). Everyone paid the same with no resident discounts or promotions yet. Families flocked to experience the park’s rides, shows and attractions.
1980s – Growth and Adventure
Ticket Price: $23.50 – $25
Ticket prices climbed from $8 in 1980 to $23.50 by 1989. New rides and attractions made the price increases feel worth it, and Orlando was quickly becoming a must-visit vacation spot for families across the nation.
1990s – Residents Get a Perk
Ticket Price: $35 – $225
Tickets rose from $25 in 1990 to $35 by 1995. Florida residents began seeing special offers, including:
Discounted annual passes for locals
Example: In 1993, a Florida resident’s annual pass was priced at $190, while out-of-state guests paid $225 for the same pass.
Resort package deals
Out-of-state visitors still paid full price, but locals could now enjoy more affordable ways to visit frequently.
2000s – Tiered Pricing & Expansions
Ticket Prices: $41- $99
From $41 in 2000 to $69 by 2009, ticket prices continued to rise. This decade introduced:
Peak vs. off-peak pricing
Florida resident promotions like the Play 4-Day Pass, giving locals access to all four Disney parks for $99
Flexible multi-day tickets and annual pass deals for residents
2010s – Dream Passes & Seasonal Deals
Ticket Prices: $84 – $104
Ticket prices climbed from $69 to $92, but Florida residents continued to benefit from perks such as:
4-Day Dream Pass: $84 for Florida residents with optional Park Hopper for ~$26
Annual pass discounts with early park entry and merchandise deals
Room discounts at Disney resorts, often up to 25%
Special seasonal ticket promotions unavailable to out-of-state visitors
Even though the Park Hopper option was available to all guests, Florida residents often had discounted rates during these promotions.
2020s – Peak Prices & Modern Magic
Ticket Prices: Range from $109 to $189
Prices vary based on what day and what park the ticket is being purchased for, and what the demand is.
Florida residents can still access:
Discounted annual passes
Multi-day ticket deals like the 3-Day, 3-Park special
Park Hopper add-on available for Florida residents for $40, allowing access to multiple parks in a single day
Resort package discounts
Meanwhile, out-of-state guests pay full price, especially on peak-demand days.
Disney decided then that this was the perfect time for some Disney resort-wide price increases. It’s never a good time to get the news that Disney Parks are getting more expensive, especially in this unprecedented economic times. Variety recently reported that one-day, single-park tickets to Disney World or Disneyland now cost more than $200 for the first time ever during peak vacation times during the winter holidays. That’s a 5% increase for the Orlando resort and up 8.7% at Anaheim’s original park. It’s a headache to see the pricing get more expensive the more days you add to a vacation or if you want to opt-in on tickets that will let you go park to park on the same day.
And with a packed park comes the option to add Lightning Lane passes, yet another additional fee beyond your entry ticket, which now runs a whopping $34 per pass at Disneyland. Lightning Lane pass prices also increased across the parks at Disney World, with multipasses increasing between $4 and $6, and individual ride passes increasing a couple of dollars depending on the ride.
Similarly, the theme park’s annual passes, known as Magic Keys at the Disneyland Resort, have also seen a price increase for their top-tier options. Variety also mentioned that Disneyland’s most expensive pass, the “Inspire Key,” now costs $1,899 (an increase of $150) and the “Believe Key,” which has more blockout dates in comparison (days where it’s not admissible for park entry), went up $100 to $1,474.
Weirdly, the lower-tier passes, “Enchant” and “Imagine,” did not see an increase, remaining at $974 and $599, respectively. Sadly, that reinforces the public belief that these moves are to price out middle- and lower-class families during the holidays in favor of folks with deeper pockets who can spend more during those peak times or for pricier-tiered pass holders who they want to give more access to the parks compared to the average park-goer.
That wasn’t the only unfortunate news Disney found itself dealing with this week. Entertainment Weekly reported today that a guest at Disneyland was found unresponsive at the end of Haunted Mansion, one of the park’s most popular rides, and declared dead at a local Orange County hospital near the theme park. The cause of death has not been determined as of yet. This passing follows the death of another park guest at Orlando’s Epic Universe, where a young man was found unresponsive after riding Stardust Racers, a new coaster at Universal Studios’ recently opened theme park.
At least it’s not all bad for the Disney Parks division, which is still largely holding it down for the company as holiday season travel is meant to kick up despite the government shutdown (though airports need air traffic controllers stat). Today the company also confirmed that The Muppets Rock n’ Roller Coaster is set to open next summer at Disney’s Hollywood Studios.
Before that, one of the quieter attraction refurbishments, Zootopia Better Zoogether!, will be opening up November 7. The new show will be taking over the space Pixar’s It’s Tough To Be A Bug occupied under Animal Kingdom’s Tree of Life. I’m already endeared to the neat animatronic Clawhauser that will host the “4D” show that centers on the residents of Zootopia’s many biomes preparing for Zoogether Day.
Speaking of animatronics, Frozen Ever After at the Epcot Norway Pavilion is finally getting the good animatronics—just like the new ones seen at World of Frozen over in the international parks. Gone will be the outdated animatronics with the haunted-looking digital screen faces that looked washed out on a good day and on a bad one would glitch out in really nightmarish ways. Whether or not they’ll be worth eating the extra prices on tickets to get in and see them, however, remains to be seen.
Seasonal and promotional ride overlays are now ways to draw in more people to revisit beloved attractions at Disney’s parks or give passholders a reason to come back over and over. Over time some have had more longevity than others, as the most popular overlay continues to be Disneyland’s Haunted Mansion Holiday, which has Jack Skellington and friends take over the West Coast haunt with his spooky Christmas shenanigans. Meanwhile, the haunted version of Space Mountain: Ghost Galaxy seems to have exorcised its spirit—it just might have been a tad too scary, while Star Wars: Hyperspace Mountain stays beating out the rest.
Here is a compilation of some of the most out-there and unique Disney experiences overlays, along with their current statuses at the parks.
Tron Lightcycle Run (NIN Tron: Ares Collaboration)
io9 recently got to experience the Tron: Ares overlay at the Magic Kingdom’s Tron Lightcycle Run coaster (Walt Disney World admission and Lightning Lane were provided), which for the first time features the actual score from the new movie. When we covered the opening of the ride back in 2023, Disney creatives revealed that the on-ride music was a new arrangement based on Daft Punk’s score for Tron: Legacy made specifically for the purposes of the attraction. You can, however, still hear the iconic Daft Punk tracks featured throughout the coaster’s queue and exit areas. Inside the ride itself, the usual Tron blue hue is swapped for Ares‘ crimson aesthetic as part of a new narrative of the ride, as we’re tasked with seemingly working with a program-gone-rogue before deleting it to preserve the grid (perhaps giving us a hint at what Ares will be about).
With the release of Tron: Ares, the coaster transforms into Nine Inch Nails: The Ride in the best way, with their signature industrial instrumentals, which fit perfectly in the world of the Grid gone rogue. It really works as a tonal opposite companion to the Team Blue track that usually plays. If the ride were ever built elsewhere, it would be such a cool dual coaster utilizing both instrumentations. At night the Ares theming looks incredible, to boot.
The Haunted Mansion Holiday is what happens when The Nightmare Before Christmas’s popularity gets out of hand (thanks, Hot Topic). Don’t get me wrong, we love the film and Jack Skellington’s frightful festive branding, but we believe it takes over the Haunted Mansion too early. The Christmas-themed overlay goes up in September for Halloweentime at the Disneyland resort, even though the Haunted Mansion is the perfect ride for Halloween. Its ghosts and scares make more sense to continue until the end of October! But I guess those of us in the camp that thinks this incredible overlay of holiday cheer should start in November are in the minority, because the queue for it is always over an hour or even longer during its fall and winter run.
Space Mountain (Rockin’ Space Mountain, Ghost Galaxy, Hyperspace Mountain)
Space Mountain at Disneyland (sorry, Magic Kingdom, and your sad Christmas music overlay) is hands down the champ of seasonal theming. What began with Rockin’ Space Mountain when the coaster got a Red Hot Chili Peppers soundtrack has only glowed up from there. For a while, it was the home of a space specter that might have been too scary during Halloweentime’s Space Mountain: Ghost Galaxy. I can attest from my personal experience that I am still haunted by the memory of the thrilling, creepy music and jump-scare projections of being chased through dead space by a very angry fiery ghost with hollowed eyes. It hasn’t held up residence in the coaster since 2018, though it has gone over to Hong Kong Disney’s Space Mountain variant.
However, Space Mountain’s current reigning seasonal offering is Hyperspace Mountain, where you zoom through the Star Wars galaxy in a dogfight between X-Wings and TIE Fighters, all set to the films’ legendary John Williams score. Its debut predates the opening of Galaxy’s Edge and remains a better experience than Smugglers Run because we want that hyperspeed thrill of being in the fights we grew up watching. You can usually catch it in the spring during Disneyland’s Season of the Force events in the run-up to Star Wars Day.
It’s a Small World at Tokyo Disneyland recently received new pint-sized guests thanks to Baby Groot and friends. Earlier this year, Avengers fans were able to see Earth’s mightiest and tiniest figures throughout the attraction at the Asia park. Along with Groot, it included Ms. Marvel, Thor, Hulk, and Black Panther, among others. Yet, there’s no word if either of the states’ versions of the ride would ever get this. Perhaps Walt Disney World’s Magic Kingdom version could, since it definitely needs some love.
It would be too crammed at Disneyland’s original ride, as it currently has more of a permanent addition in the form of iconic characters being given the original ride artist Mary Blair treatment within their corresponding countries. For instance, you can find Cinderella in France, and new for this year, they added Pixar’s Coco heroes Miguel and Dante to the Mexico section of the ride.
Guardians of the Galaxy: Mission Breakout (After Dark)
For Halloween at Disney California Adventure, Guardians of the Galaxy: Mission Breakout gets infested by monsters after dark. The drop tower attraction overlay is a current Halloweentime staple at the Disneyland resort for those who want to get even more terrified. The storyline takes a turn when various creatures from the collection are let loose, leaving riders to go into a dark monster house version of the Collector’s fortress to rescue Groot.
Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind (September, Holiday Remix)
Speaking of the Guardians, over in Disney World, the Epcot attraction Cosmic Rewind gets a few cute variants. From September 21 through the 30, the ride only plays Earth, Wind & Fire’s “September,” which is usually one of the songs that plays on random rotation from the ride’s usual mixtape, a nod to the Awesome Mixes from the James Gunn movies. It’s such a silly nod to the meme-fication of your parent’s fave disco-era track, but endearing nonetheless. I still haven’t gotten this song on my rides of the mixtape-based coaster and missed this guarantee by a few days recently! I did, however, get to experience the holiday overlay on it, Holiday Remix, which only lasted one year in 2022 and was set to the tune of “Run, Run, Rudolph” but parodied as “Run, Run, Rocket”. Cute!
The Jingle Cruise is missed at Disneyland. It felt as if nostalgic vintage holidays threw up on the riverboat ride. It’s more of a chaotic added theme that the skippers use as fodder for their Jungle Cruise bits on the fly, as you can see the animals on the ride appear to have gotten into some Christmas cargo. And the holiday puns are always top tier! Every year I wish it would return to Disneyland (it ended on the West Coast in 2017), but thankfully it is still operating during the holidays at the Magic Kingdom’s Jungle Cruise in Walt Disney World.
Lastly, Epcot’s sustainable garden and farming zen ride, which is a favorite to decompress on, gets a lovely holiday lights tour overlay during the winter. It makes the relaxing and educational voyage away from the overstimulating bustle of the park even more wondrous to behold as festive key ingredients of holiday dishes from around the world are nerdily described over the course of the attraction. It’s theme park ASMR and chill holiday vibes. I hope Disney never changes this, because this little gem is something completely unexpected yet comforting to bask in at Epcot during Disney World’s busiest times.
When we hear of criminal activity at Walt Disney World, it’s not usually pertaining to an action sequence that feels like it’s come right out of a Disney movie itself. But that was apparently the case this week in Orlando, when over $10,000 was stolen from a Disney World restaurant by a scuba-diving criminal mastermind.
WFTV9 (via Cinemablend) reports that in the early hours of today, an unidentified man staged a robbery at the Paddlefish seafood restaurant in Disney Springs, a shopping and dining area that is part of the Walt Disney World resort. The restaurant is aboard a replica steamboat anchored on Lake Buena Vista, and current thinking, according to a report from the Orange County Sheriff’s Office, is that the thief used scuba gear to swim in the lake up to the restaurant and secured their equipment before making their way to the restaurant’s manager’s office.
There, the perpetrator came across two staff members counting money from the restaurant’s earnings that night and depositing it into a safe. According to the report, the man forced the employees into a corner and told them to close their eyes (WFTV9, citing a source familiar with an unredacted version of the Sheriff Office’s report, alleges that the employees were tied up, although not threatened with a weapon). Somewhere between $10,000 and $20,000 was then taken from the earnings before the thief left the office within two minutes. The employees managed to free themselves and call 911, but by that point, the mystery man had seemingly recovered his scuba gear and escaped via the lake.
Thankfully, no one was harmed during the robbery, and Paddlefish opened to Disney World guests today with no signs of disruption or increased security beyond Disney’s usual security efforts, according to WFTV9. But given Walt Disney Studio’s penchant for turning the attractions at its various parks into theatrical adventures—from Pirates of the Caribbean to Haunted Mansion, or the likes of Scarlett Johansson’s upcoming Tower of Terror project—whether or not the thief is found, this has all the makings of a potential Disney movie in its own right, given the peculiar way the theft went down. Or at the very least a Disney+ special! It’d be one way to try and recoup the losses if they’re never found.
The iconic Cinderella Castle in Walt Disney World Resort’s Magic Kingdom is being repainted once again, according to an announcement made at Destinations D23 over the holiday weekend.
“The updated paint will feature grays, creams, blues, and touches of gold, aiming to enhance the castle’s architecture,” stated an announcement posted to Disney Parks Blog on Sunday, Aug. 31. “While the project team is still putting the finishing touches on the paint design process, we wanted to share the incredible amount of research and care that goes into this project.”
See the magic of Cinderella Castle at Walt Disney World through the years
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Fireworks and six Air Force F-16 fighters fly over Cinderella’s Castle during the rededication of the Magic Kingdom at Walt Disney World in Lake Buena Vista, Florida on Oct. 1, 1996. The Castle was decorated as a birthday cake for the 25th Anniversary of the opening of Walt Disney World.
The new look is inspired by the castle’s original design, and Imagineers have posted a rendering to the Walt Disney Imagineering Instagram page.
The iconic look and colors “were chosen to reflect the Florida sunshine in a way that makes the castle shimmer from every angle,” according to the blog post.
What does the castle look like now?
The castle, which now appears in pink, rose gold and blue, was repainted in an “EARidescent makeover” for the Magic Kingdom’s 50th anniversary, which began on Oct. 1, 2021, according to a Disney blog post.
It isn’t the first time the castle has been transformed for the park’s anniversary.
In 1996, the now-infamous Cinderella Castle Cake design was unveiled for the park’s 25th anniversary. It featured bright pink frosting, candy decorations, candy cane towers and 25 birthday candles, which could be “lit,” and more, according to another blog post.
The Cinderella castle on Aug. 25, 2022, during the Magic Kingdom’s 50th anniversary celebration.
What did the castle look like before the ‘Earidescent’ makeover?
Before the castle makeover in 2020 and 2021, the castle was painted in the iconic white, gray and blue color palette, which resembles what the castle is now being changed back to.
Photo of Cinderella Castle taken on March 4, 2019, before the Magic Kingdom’s 50th anniversary celebration.
When will the castle be repainted?
Imagineers (Disney’s engineers) are still finishing up the design process and have only shared a rendering of the new design. A date for when the process is expected to begin has not been announced.
Julia is a trending reporter for USA TODAY. Connect with her on LinkedIn, X, Instagram and TikTok: @juliamariegz, or email her at jgomez@gannett.com
Disney has announced a new way to skip the lines at its parks. But depending on where you go and when, you might have to spend over $400 a day per person to take advantage of the new Lightning Lane Premier Pass.
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On Wednesday, Disney announced its plans to roll out a new tier of Lightning Lane, a pre-existing program that lets visitors pay extra to skip the lines for certain rides in Disney World and Disneyland. Previously, Lightning Lane Multi Passes, which let you skip the line on multiple rides, cost $32 a day per person, though the price could increase for various reasons. These passes forced guests to select a time to arrive for their “line skip,” which could cause problems if you were late. This newly announced tier of line skipping, Premier Pass, does away with that restriction, but at a steep cost.
As spotted by GameSpot, the new “Premier” pass—which will be available later this month—will cost up to $450 a day per person at Disney World. The price varies depending on the park and when you go, with Disney saying that the highest prices will be found on a “limited number of days over peak travel periods.”
Here are the prices for each park, but keep in mind that you still need to buy a ticket to the park, and at Disney World, only folks staying in Disney World hotels on property will be eligible to buy these new, limited passes.
Disney’s Animal Kingdom: $129 to $199
EPCOT: $169 to $249
Disney’s Hollywood Studios: $269 to $349
Magic Kingdom: $329 to $449
Meanwhile, at Disneyland, the Premier pass will cost $400 per person until December 31. In 2025, the pass will drop to $300 to $400 a day per person, based on what dates you visit.
In 2023, Disney CEO Bob Iger said that the massive company had been “too aggressive” about increasing prices at the parks and wanted to make them more “accessible.” This, uh, doesn’t seem like a good way to do that. And sure, you can argue that people don’t need to buy these passes, that they can just wait in line, but ride queues can get quite long and waiting sucks. Besides, the big appeal of Disney World and Disneyland is the rides! And making it more expensive to actually enjoy them seems like the opposite of making your parks more accessible to more people.
JLL Hotels & Hospitality group announced that it secured $620 million in acquisition financing for Hyatt Regency Orlando, a 1,641-key, AAA Four Diamond resort in Central Florida.
JLL represented affiliates of RIDA Development Corporation and an Ares Management Real Estate fund to secure the floating-rate, five-year loan through Wells Fargo, Bank of America and Deutsche Bank on behalf of borrowers.
This premier resort offers spacious guest rooms averaging 453 square feet and suites averaging 846 square feet. The accommodations feature marble-accented bathrooms, sleeper sofas, mini-fridges and 65-inch streaming TVs.
Guests can also enjoy in a variety of amenities, including six dining options, a 24-hour fitness center, tennis courts, a spa and an outdoor pool. Furthermore, the hotel features 315,000 square feet of meeting and event space along with its three direct connections to the Orange County Convention Center (“OCCC”), the second largest convention center in the United States.
Located at 9801 International Drive, the property also provides exceptional proximity to top Orlando demand generators, such as Walt Disney World and Universal Studios Florida and Universal Islands of Adventure. Both attractions are conveniently less than a 15-minute drive away. Additionally, Universal Orlando is constructing Epic Universe, its largest theme park in the United States spanning 750 acres, situated just minutes from the hotel. Epic Universe is set to open in 2025.
Hyatt Regency Orlando sold for $1.02 billion to joint venture, or about $622,000 per guest room.
The JLL Hotels & Hospitality team was led by Americas CEO Kevin Davis, Managing Director Mike Huth and Senior Director Barnett Wu.
“We are pleased to have worked together with RIDA, Ares, and Hyatt in this transaction,” said Davis. “We enjoyed working with the sponsors in their strategic vision for the future of the Orlando convention district and look forward to continuing to work with all the stakeholders in the future.”
JLL’s Hotels & Hospitality Group has completed more transactions than any other hotels and hospitality real estate advisor over the last five years, totaling $83 billion worldwide. The group’s 370-strong global team in over 20 countries also closed more than 7,350 advisory, valuation and asset management assignments.
Over the past few days Disney fans who have managed to ride Tiana’s Bayou Adventure at Walt Disney World have been among the first to experience the continuation of Tiana’s fairytale after the events 2009’s The Princess and the Frog. The ride itself serves as a sequel in attraction form, where guests follow Tiana and friends as they put together a band for their Mardi Gras celebration. But there are so many more details revealed even before you board the flume water ride for fans of the beloved Disney film.
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One of the biggest official reveals is that unlike the Disney Princesses that came before her—even as far back as Snow White—New Orleans’ very own princess has a real last name. In the queue for Walt Disney World’s attraction, fans have noticed that Tiana is referred to as Tiana Rogers, daughter of Sargent James Rogers, in newspaper clippings and cooking awards for Tiana’s Palace and Tiana’s Foods (her culinary co-op). And this was intentional, Disney Imagineer Ted Robledo shared: “There’s so much of her story that was touched upon in the film, the relationship with her father, a World War I veteran; her relationship with her mother, [who] we like to say was the entrepreneurial inspiration for her to be the successful businesswoman that Tiana is today in our story.”
See below for the in-universe confirmation of Tiana Rogers’ last name.
Image: Sabina Graves/Gizmodo
The fairytale fandom has been very tricky when it comes to the Disney Princess lineup and their official titles. Technically Rapunzel could have taken Eugene Fitzherbert’s name—but it’s never canonized in Disney content, much like the other married princesses including Snow White or Cinderella (can the real Mrs. Charming please stand up?). Even in the case of The Princess and the Frog, Tiana did marry Prince Naveen of Maldonia, which would make her Tiana Rogers, Princess of Maldonia, since she clearly kept her father’s name to honor him with her successful food company in New Orleans.
“Tiana’s story is going to be furthered in a new series that was announced,” Robledo continued, confirming that Disney Imagineers worked closely with Disney animation to keep within canon on Tiana’s Bayou Adventure as the studio prepares for her Disney Plus series Tiana, which will dig a little deeper with what’s next for the princess and her family. The series will focus on things like, “Her relationship with her husband, who is from another country of likely of mixed race. It’s a time of Indigenous people and colonization. I think that team, from what little we heard, is going to explore that route. But I will say this about Naveen: we knew early on, and even if Naveen plays a small role or big role in this story, he has a role—they’re a married couple, they care about each other. So to honor that, we want to make sure he’s included somewhere in a real way. And actually, it’s quite humorous, as this little performance of our story.” We can’t wait to see Tiana and Naveen return with more adventures down in New Orleans with Disney+ series Tiana, but for now going on bayou log boat rides will do at Disney Parks.
Tiana’s Bayou Adventure is now open at Walt Disney World in Orlando, FL and is set to open soon at Disneyland in Anaheim, CA.
If you’re going down the bayou to ride Walt Disney World’sTiana’s Bayou Adventure, there’s a few things you need to know to make sure you’ll be able to experience the Magic Kingdom’s newest exciting attraction. It won’t have a traditional “wake up early and rush to the line” queue, but rather an online virtual queue you’ll have to wake up early to enter on the MyDisneyExperience app (with a second shot in the afternoon)—or as a pay-as-you go Lightning Lane, which has replaced Genie+ just in time for the in-demand ride’s opening.
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When Does Tiana’s Bayou Adventure open?
Disney’s Orlando theme park has officially opened the long-needed replacement for the dated and problematic Splash Mountain with a property that fans love. The Princess and the Frog universe expands with a continuation in ride form following Tiana’s adventures through the swampy, magical land of New Orleans with the bones of Disney World’s iconic log flume ride. Soft previews in the past few weeks and first-day reactions are flooding the internet with praise celebrating the incredible animatronic work, sets, and music with Disney Animation’s original cast—including Tiana herself, Anika Noni Rose, singing the ride’s finale song. So if you’re heading to Disney World this summer, it’s not to be missed if you want to keep cool on a water ride and see Princess Tiana’s fairytale continue before her Disney+ animated series Tiana arrives.
Image: Sabina Graves/Gizmodo
How to Ride Tiana’s Bayou Adventure
Here’s the spice: in order to ride without any additional costs beyond park admission, make sure you have the MyDisneyExperience app downloaded before your trip. On the app, ensure that your entire party’s tickets are saved under the trip planner’s profile (pick the most tech-savvy person in your group to handle this)—but multiple people can try to book on the Virtual Queue for the entire group at the same time; you just have to make sure they select all party guests for your boarding group lottery.
Walt Disney World’s Virtual Queue is available twice a day, once at 7 a.m.(which can be done at your leisure from anywhere on property) and then at 1 p.m.—the catch at Magic Kingdom is that TRON Lightcycle/Run currently still only has virtual boarding groups, so you have to choose between Tiana and Tron. If you want to do both, you can try for Tiana in the morningbut not get it, and then have a hard choice at 1 p.m. to try to secure the free boarding group pass for Tiana’s again (not guaranteed) or Tron (also not guaranteed). It’s worth noting that in order to try for a second time at 1 p.m., your party has to be inside of Magic Kingdom to be eligible—and you can only hold a boarding group once per day during the park’s operating hours.
It feels tricky—it is tricky!—but there’s another way to make sure you’ll get to ride Tiana’s Bayou Adventure and Tron, or any high demand ride like Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind which is restricted to the Virtual Queue and does not have standby lines currently available.
What is the new Lighting Lane option at Walt Disney World?
Genie+ is gone! Poof! Disney Experiences’ pay-as-you-go option has streamlined the process by rebranding as simply Lightning Lane, the line that used to contain the free fastpass (RIP to that feature). It’s had multiple names since becoming a financial add-on at both Disney World and Disneyland but will now be known as Lightning Lane, broken down into Lightning Lane Multi Pass (a three-ride package) or Lightning Lane Single Pass for an individual ride.
Purchasing a Lightning Lane Multi Pass allows you to make up to three Lightning Lane selections in a theme park. If you’re staying at a Disney hotel or a participating neighbor hotel, you will be able to access this up to seven days before your trip to make selections, and you’ll be able choose available times as you make your ride choices. If you’re purchasing the Multi Pass the day of your visit, your selections will vary on availability. Your three ride selections will come from three levels: one from rides that have the highest demands like an E-ticket new attraction (think Tiana or Tron),and two that will be lower in demand level (think classics, i.e. Haunted Mansion). The cost of a Lightning Lane Multi Pass will vary depending on when you go, scaled between peak vacation days and the off-season.
If you only want to secure a single new Lightning Lane for Tiana’s Bayou Adventure or other in-demand rides or attractions, the same booking rules apply—and day of availability will vary, with the stipulation that you’ll only be able to buy into two single Lightning Lane options for your party.
This is what the options look like on Day 1 in the afternoon at Walt Disney World.
Image: Sabina Graves/Gizmodo
Don’t miss out on Tiana’s Bayou Adventure by not being in the know—and make sure you plan your Disney World vacation with the above in mind. And if you miss out or have a Disneyland trip planned this year instead, Tiana’s Bayou Adventure will also open on the West Coast soon in Walt Disney’s original park in Anaheim, CA.
The day is finally here. The general public will get to ride the new “Tiana’s Bayou Adventure” at Walt Disney World’s Magic Kingdom Park. This is a complete retheme of the former Splash Mountain attraction. The ride system itself remains the same, but everything else is themed with characters from “The Princess and the Frog” movie.
The exterior of the new Tiana’s Bayou Adventure ride at Walt Disney World, formerly known as Splash Mountain.
I was at Disney World a few weeks ago for their official media preview and got to ride the attraction multiple times. Here are some things to know about the ride, along with my thoughts on the overall experience.
The Story
Walking through the ride’s queue, you’ll be able to pick up the storyline of the attraction. It takes place a year after the events of the 2009 film. Tiana is following her dreams and running her own restaurant. She’s looking to have a big party but she’s missing a few ingredients to make it special … and guess what …. YOU are one of those ingredients! Here are some photos from outside and inside of the queue…
The Ride Experience
Like I said before, the ride system is the same as it was on Splash Mountain. You ride in logs with a few dips along the way, and the 50-foot drop remains as the ride’s centerpiece thrill.
To sum this up, the ride is one big party. Most of the music is from the film, re-orchestrated and recorded specifically for the ride. This was my favorite part of the attraction – there are multiple songs that get caught in your head as the colorful elements of the bayou come to life.
As for those scenes, Disney Imagineers have created some incredible animatronics of Tiana, the alligator Louis, Mama Odie and more. These characters do more then sway back and forth. They swivel their hips while turning their heads in lifelike fashion. It made me wonder about where this technology will be 20 years from now. Here are some shots from inside and around the ride, featuring those new animatronic characters…
My Thoughts
As you can probably tell, I really, really enjoyed this attraction. The ride is a party from start to finish, consistently building in energy along the way until you hit the large drop. Then you slowly float into a room with a giant celebration scene and a brand new song.
The music is the real star of the show, all throughout the ride. My favorite scene takes place just before the big drop as the song “Dig A Little Deeper” bumps throughout the bayou, as you are surrounded by glowing plant life. It’s just plain fun.
There is no suspense in this attraction – and I LOVED that. Many have criticized the ride for not featuring a villain or something to bring some tension as you head up the lift hill before the big splash, but why can’t a big drop be fun? I love big drops. It was refreshing to have a ride that is a giant party from start to finish. This will work especially well for the younger kids experiencing a daunting drop like this for the first time.
Of course, all of this comes with one big question…
Does The Ride Work?
If you have been following reports over the last month or so, Tiana’s Bayou Adventure has experienced quite a bit of downtime and riders have been evacuated off of the attraction more than a few times. It’s important to remember that this is during a time of technical rehearsal where Imagineers are consistently tweaking and evaluating the attraction.
But now the ride is open to the public. The people getting onto the logs are not castmembers or annual passholders who head to the park many, many times a year. Now, the guests getting on the attraction may be a family taking a once-in-a-lifetime trip to Disney World. This is when the ride needs to run consistently and efficiently.
There are significant challenges when you try to take new technology and apply it to an older ride system. Hopefully Disney Imagineers have worked through many of those issues and the ride will be able to operate on a regular basis with limited issues. Don’t be surprised to see some setbacks and breakdowns as Disney-sized crowds take in the attraction for the first time. I’m hoping they are able to figure these out and settle in on a system that works long term.
The ride is that good. I can’t wait to take it all in again, next time with my own family by my side.
My lonely, lonely first ride on Tiana’s Bayou Adventure at Walt Disney World’s Magic Kingdom.
I will have my full ride and review posted in video form soon!
The flights are direct from Orlando International Airport to John Wayne Airport in California — allowing travelers to easily access both Walt Disney World and its Anaheim predecessor, Disneyland.
One-way flights to each location start at $89. The flights depart from Orlando International Airport on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Saturdays.
A year after the Star Wars: Galactic Starcruisertook its last flight, here’s a look back at the best of Disney Parks’ bold venture into the immersive entertainment space—and why in the end, it couldn’t quite work.
James Mangold on his Future Star Wars Film | io9 Interview
At io9, Star Wars and fantastical realms of sci-fi coming to life are a major component of what we write about through films, shows, and theme park experiences. And that’s because bringing to life some of the idealized futuristic worlds we hold dear presents a lot of challenges—particularly when they’re brought into a very real world that may only really share themes of banding together with civil unrest against a fascist tyranny. In Star Wars the people find ways to come together and play a role to defeat the bad guys; in real life things are far more complicated.
To many Star Wars fans who were able to check out Galactic Starcruiser during its short-lived existence, the attraction presented a chance to act on the frustration many share in their day to day lives of watching atrocities happen and feeling like there’s little we can do about them. There was an irony in this, since Galactic Starcruiser was part of Disney, a major corporation that prioritizes its financial bottom line.
And indeed, Galactic Starcruiser’s exorbitant cost turned off a lot of folks who thought it was a hotel—which it never was, instead more resembling a fancy theater camp where you could wallflower it or actively participate in your own corner of Star Wars. Hotels are generally built around recreational, relaxing areas like a pool or a spa; the only amenities that reflected a familiar Disney vacation aspect aboard Galactic Starcruiser were the dinners and the Galaxy’s Edge excursions at adjacent Walt Disney World. On a surface level, that’s what probably misled regular folk—vacationers who don’t actively follow the immersive experiences niche—into thinking Galactic Starcruiser was a Disney Cruise on land. Coming on board to realize it was not, and that you had to get involved in ways that could be compared to pretending to be a coach for your fantasy football league, in a realm where you’re in the game, threw the unprepared off. That’s a big part of what ultimately led to Disney shutting down the attraction, which at its core was a community-building endeavor born out of Imagineering and Lucasfilm’s story trust to inspire at least a portion of people to feel like if they could be a part of a story like Star Wars, then perhaps they could take their experiences from it to the real world, in small and big ways.
While there’s a lot of outrage out there to deconstruct the pared-down end result that came from an ambitious idea, many folks who got to visit Galactic Starcruiser enjoyed the experiment, whether they saw it as an imaginative interactive playground to bring their loved ones to or experience on their own. It was a sandbox: if you wanted to be there to cosplay while trying funky-looking food and drinks, that was a path you could take; if you wanted to embrace the childlike wonder of lightsaber training and blasting baddies into space, there was that too. And some people just wanted their kids to play and meet their heroes.
The milage varied on how open and social you were willing to be to find the path of best enjoyment. On my own visit, I went in as a disenchanted space witch on her honeymoon, and with the intention of leaving behind how limited I felt in being able to change the real world. I quickly made an alliance with some reluctant scoundrels to help the good guys out, playing up some Cassian Andor vibes (I pretended to be a relative). I had some issues with having to be on my “data-pad” (what that really means: one’s own phone) to do the more gamer app stuff around Galaxy’s Edge; that was not for me as a non-gamer. But I found that character interaction and roleplay on board the ship to be a highly rewarding experience. I befriended other guests, young and young at heart; moved smuggled goods about (how did they know I’d be down to hustle the Empire?); and when my beloved and I needed a romantic space moment to share our vow renewals, the in-room droid—D3-O9, who encouraged me to help the Resistance—performed a whole ceremony that makes me cry to this day, because right after, she sacrificed herself and got attacked by the First Order.
That event, like in any hero’s journey, quickly radicalized me and I was able to find the Rebel princess for the people inside me I’ve dreamed of being since I was a little girl. Then it was on and along with the Padawans in training we led stormtroopers to their own imprisonment by pretending to lock up Chewbacca, used a fake proposal to move precious cargo, and stood tall with a galactic pop-star along with our fellow Resistance members to back up Rey when Kylo Ren showed up for the epic finale. And finally—when the good guys won—I was able to step into my power and begin the Jedi (witch princess) training I’d felt I long abandoned hope for. As soon as I ignited my lightsaber on that last night, I was ready to fight again.
Oh—and here are the vows D3-O9 recited for us:
D3-O9: You have come today to declare your promise of devotion to your chosen partner.
Please repeat after me:
…We vow to share our triumphs and troubles…
…No matter what difficulties may come…
…We share in each other’s successes…
…Not with jealousy, but with joy and admiration…
…We promise each other a life cycle…
…Filled with curiosity, humor, and adventure…
…We pledge unquestionable devotion…
…for we are worthy of each other’s love.
You are destined. The galaxy has connected you amongst the millions of other inhabitants. Though you may have once traveled singular paths, you now travel united, and stronger for it. Cherish your bond, and seek to share it, for your bond shall inspire others to seek their own. From love to love, the galaxy grows stronger. And you are now a part of that great and unending chain.
Like those who did find the best of our experiences to outweigh the kinks that had so much potential to be ironed out, it is nice to feel a part of that “great and unending chain” with those whose lives were enriched by the experience of the GalacticStarcruiser.
CEO Bob Iger and Disney Experiences Chairman Josh D’Amaro confirmed last week the company is moving forward with expansions to Magic Kingdom and Animal Kingdom parks. The expansions aren’t breaking news, but the Disney execs made them official to a select group of reporters at Walt Disney Imagineering in California.
Disney World’s big-ticket new attraction this year will be Tiana’s Bayou Adventure, an exciting, more-than-a-makeover upgrade to the bones of Splash Mountain. The log flume plunge ride is expected to open around the unofficial start of summer at the end of May in Magic Kingdom.
Also expected to open this year at Disney are a reimagined Country Bear Jamboree show at Magic Kingdom (summer) and a revamped The Little Mermaid: A Musical Adventure show (fall) at Hollywood Studios.
Disney may not be working on a new theme park in Florida, but these retooled attractions and expansions are part of the company’s $60 billion investment in its theme parks over the next 10 years. Back in September, Disney announced its plans to invest $17 billion just in the Florida parks.
Since that Florida investment announcement at Destination D23, Disney World has opened the Moana-themed Journey of Water attraction and a new nighttime fireworks show at Epcot, and added new locations and characters to Star Tours. Plans are in place to revamp Epcot’s Test Track (closing June 17) and to open a Pirates of the Caribbean-themed lounge in Magic Kingdom.
It was at Destination D23 that D’Amaro teased a “beyond Big Thunder Mountain” expansion at Magic Kingdom. At the time, D’Amaro said the growth would be similar in scale to Pandora: The World of Avatar and Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge.
To media last week, Michael Hundgen, site portfolio executive, confirmed the size will be about the same as Galaxy’s Edge’s 14 acres. The expansion would include the area west of Frontierland.
Disney has not said what lands or attractions will go in the expansion. But D’Amaro and Iger did confirm an overhaul of Dinoland U.S.A. at Animal Kingdom is coming soon.
Instead of the prehistoric-themed opening day carnival, the area will be transformed into the Tropical Americas with attractions based on IP like Indiana Jones and Encanto.
There aren’t more details about these expansions beyond confirmation that Disney is working on them, and no new attractions have yet been announced to open in 2025. These facts have been a subject of criticism among fans and investors.
During a virtual shareholders meeting last week, a preselected question asked, “Why hasn’t Disney prepared anything, or placed more than just a handful of attractions to be ready for this (Epic Universe) in 2025 at Disney World?”
Iger responded that “just couldn’t be further from the truth.” The CEO also said the company has known about Universal’s new theme park plans for over a decade and then detailed all the projects that debuted at the Florida parks these last 10 years.
Still, Universal is opening an entirely new theme park plus three new hotels — all of it well under construction and taking shape at the resort’s south campus.
It’s presumptuous to assume Disney World would add another theme park at the same time Universal Orlando does (also, can you imagine the traffic?). But the lack of information about new experiences coming next year and beyond the scheduled ride revamps continues to leave fans frustrated.
Katrina Amian Redfern Griffin was bent over, tying her daughter’s shoes during a trip to Disneyland in April 2022, when a park employee dressed as Goofy — the klutzy but lovable cartoon canine — barreled straight into her, according to a lawsuit she filed in Orange County Superior Court.
Then, she claims, he fell on top of her with all of his weight, driving her into the “hard cement floor.”
Griffin suffered “severe, traumatic, debilitating, and permanent” physical injuries from the collision, along with emotional pain and suffering, she said.
Now, Griffin is suing Disneyland, the unnamed employee inside the Goofy costume, and Goofy’s “handler,” another employee who was supposed to guide the big, silly character around the park to make sure he didn’t bump into anything, according to the lawsuit.
Representatives for Disney did not immediately respond to a request for comment Friday evening.
Personal injury lawsuits might not be the most pressing issue for Disney lawyers right now. The entertainment empire is embroiled in a number of high-profile legal battles that have placed it on the front lines of the nation’s culture wars.
The movie division fired actor Gina Carano from the film “The Mandalorian” in 2021 after her social media posts questioned the results of the 2020 election and likened the treatment of American conservatives to German Jews during the Holocaust.
Carano, in turn, sued Disney for wrongful termination, claiming she had been fired for standing up to the “online bully mob who demanded her compliance with their extreme progressive ideology.”
In Florida, Disney is fighting an extended court battle with Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis, who took political control of the land upon which Walt Disney World sits after company officials opposed the state’s “Don’t Say Gay” law, which bans classroom lessons on sexual orientation and gender identity in early grades.
But even as other issues swirl, injuries at Disney theme parks, the company’s bread and butter, have continued to make headlines.
In October, Emma McGuinness sued Walt Disney World, claiming she had suffered a nightmarish “wedgie” on the park’s Humunga Kowabunga water slide.
Online marketing for the slide promises the “ride of your life” and that “you won’t know what’s coming as you zoom 214 feet downhill in the dark and spray your way to a surprise ending!”
McGuinness’ surprise was severe and permanent bodily injury, according to her lawsuit.
Specifically, when she neared the pool at the bottom of the giant drop, her legs came uncrossed, allowing clothes and water to be “violently forced inside her” by the impact.
She went to the hospital with severe vaginal lacerations and her bowel protruding through her abdominal wall, among other internal injuries, the suit claimed.
Griffin, the woman who said she was bowled over by Goofy at Disneyland, did not provide details of her physical injuries in her lawsuit.
She is asking Disney to pay for her medical bills and lost earnings and to compensate her for the physical, mental and emotional pain she says she suffered.
Neither Griffin nor her attorney could be reached for comment on Friday.
Robledo discussed how the magic all comes together thanks to the Imagineers. “This is a milestone. It’s the first time we’ve seen these characters realized in three dimensions, and so much care is included from the finishing group into the hair, the texture of the hair and color of the hair, the materials themselves, and the fact that they can do this 18 hours a day, all day long is amazing,” he said. “ And that really is the credit of the care design from who’s going to build these things, be able to perform all day long.”
ORLANDO, Fla. — Former Bachelor and North Carolina native Matt James was among the top 10 to finish in his first-ever runDisney event.
James joined thousands of runners from across the country during Disney’s Princess Half Marathon at Walt Disney World Resorts. He completed his run in 1 hour, 27 minutes and 32 seconds, placing 10th among male runners.
Sunday’s half marathon was the final race of the three-race weekend that included a 5K and a 10K, plus a Disney Fairytale Challenge where runners complete the 10K and the half marathon.
James said he enjoyed the race and will likely return to Florida for January’s Walt Disney World Marathon Weekend, where he plans to take on the Dopey Challenge, which consists of running the 5K, 10K, half marathon and full marathon on consecutive days for a total of 48.6 miles and six medals.
James made history on season 25 of “The Bachelor” as the first Black man to appear as the lead in the long-running show. He graduated from Sanderson High School before playing football for Wake Forest University in Winston-Salem.
ORLANDO, Fla. — Former Bachelor and North Carolina native Matt James was among the top 10 to finish in his first-ever runDisney event.
James joined thousands of runners from across the country during Disney’s Princess Half Marathon at Walt Disney World Resorts. He completed his run in 1 hour, 27 minutes and 32 seconds, placing 10th among male runners.
Sunday’s half marathon was the final race of the three-race weekend that included a 5K and a 10K, plus a Disney Fairytale Challenge where runners complete the 10K and the half marathon.
James said he enjoyed the race and will likely return to Florida for January’s Walt Disney World Marathon Weekend, where he plans to take on the Dopey Challenge, which consists of running the 5K, 10K, half marathon and full marathon on consecutive days for a total of 48.6 miles and six medals.
James made history on season 25 of “The Bachelor” as the first Black man to appear as the lead in the long-running show. He graduated from Sanderson High School before playing football for Wake Forest University in Winston-Salem.
ORLANDO, Fla. — Former Bachelor and North Carolina native Matt James was among the top 10 to finish in his first-ever runDisney event.
James joined thousands of runners from across the country during Disney’s Princess Half Marathon at Walt Disney World Resorts. He completed his run in 1 hour, 27 minutes and 32 seconds, placing 10th among male runners.
Sunday’s half marathon was the final race of the three-race weekend that included a 5K and a 10K, plus a Disney Fairytale Challenge where runners complete the 10K and the half marathon.
James said he enjoyed the race and will likely return to Florida for January’s Walt Disney World Marathon Weekend, where he plans to take on the Dopey Challenge, which consists of running the 5K, 10K, half marathon and full marathon on consecutive days for a total of 48.6 miles and six medals.
James made history on season 25 of “The Bachelor” as the first Black man to appear as the lead in the long-running show. He graduated from Sanderson High School before playing football for Wake Forest University in Winston-Salem.
ORLANDO, Fla. (WTVD) — Former Bachelor and North Carolina native Matt James was among the top 10 to finish in his first-ever runDisney event.
James joined thousands of runners from across the country during Disney’s Princess Half Marathon at Walt Disney World Resorts. He completed his run in 1 hour, 27 minutes and 32 seconds, placing 10th among male runners.
Sunday’s half marathon was the final race of the three-race weekend that included a 5K and a 10K, plus a Disney Fairytale Challenge where runners complete the 10K and the half marathon.
James said he enjoyed the race and will likely return to Florida for January’s Walt Disney World Marathon Weekend, where he plans to take on the Dopey Challenge, which consists of running the 5K, 10K, half marathon and full marathon on consecutive days for a total of 48.6 miles and six medals.
James made history on season 25 of “The Bachelor” as the first Black man to appear as the lead in the long-running show. He graduated from Sanderson High School before playing football for Wake Forest University in Winston-Salem.
