Hollywood Studios at Disney World Adds 4 New Experiences Replacing Star Wars Attraction

Disney’s Hollywood Studios has been an ever-changing park at Walt Disney World this year, and it is not finished. Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster reopened with the Muppets. The Mandalorian and Grogu joined Millennium Falcon: Smugglers Run. Monstropolis got a partial 2027 opening timeline at D23. That is a substantial amount of change for one park in a single year, and most of it landed in a matter of months. Now comes the last major opening of 2026, aimed at a part of the park that has been in flux for over a decade. On September 14, The Magic of Disney Animation opens at Hollywood Studios. It replaces Star Wars Launch Bay, which itself replaced the original Magic of Disney Animation more than ten years ago. That is a strange full circle, and longtime guests will appreciate it. More importantly, this is not one attraction. It is four distinct experiences under one roof, and while there is genuinely something here for every age, it is going to be a massive hit with younger kids in particular. That matters at Hollywood Studios, a park that has historically skewed toward thrill rides and older guests. Here is everything opening on September 14.

Olaf Draws

This is an animation class, and Olaf is teaching it. Guests learn to draw iconic Disney animated characters in a space inspired by one of Olaf’s most memorable moments from Once Upon A Studio, as they sit at an animator’s desk and discover the joy of drawing. Olaf will be a brand-new Audio-Animatronic figure welcoming guests into the room. Josh Gad returned to record original dialogue for the experience. “I’m so thrilled that a whole new generation of kids can dream of becoming animators one day and can actually begin their journey right there on the studio lot,” Gad said. The smartest part of the design is that each class features a different character, so there is a real reason to return. Each is paired with an actual Disney Animation artist:

• Mickey Mouse with Dan Abraham, director (Once Upon A Studio, Baymax!)
• Minnie Mouse with Hyun Min Lee, animator (Frozen 2, The Princess and the Frog)
• Donald Duck with Austin Traylor, animator (Once Upon A Studio, Moana 2)
• Genie with Eric Goldberg, animator (Aladdin, Hercules)
• Moana with Samantha Vilfort, story artist (Encanto, Zootopia 2)
• Stitch with Fawn Veerasunthorn, director and head of story (Wish, Raya and the Last Dragon)
• Olaf with Trent Correy, director (Once Upon A Studio, Frozen 3)
• Ursula with Michael Woodside, animator (Big Hero 6, Encanto)
• Judy Hopps and Nick Wilde with Byron Howard, director (Zootopia, Zootopia 2)

Putting real artists in front of guests, with their credits attached, is the detail that sets this apart from a generic drawing class. Eric Goldberg animating Genie is not trivia. It is the person who made the character move.

Off the Page Character Greetings at Hollywood Studios

Character meets, but is organized around how animation actually gets made. Guests will meet characters across six departments from the animation studio: Story, Layout, Hand-Drawn Animation, Computer Animation, Lighting, and Effects. Specific characters may vary, but examples include:

• Mulan in Story, posing in front of an oversized storyboard panel
• Rapunzel in Layout, in a setting inspired by the classic multiplane camera
• Chip n’ Dale in Hand-Drawn Animation
• Donald and Daisy in CG Animation
• Goofy in Lighting
• Stitch in Effects

The character pairings are doing real work here. Chip n’ Dale in hand-drawn animation and Donald and Daisy in CG animation is a quiet nod to the eras those characters came from, and putting Stitch in Effects is a joke that lands if you know the character. Rapunzel in a multiplane camera setting is the standout. The multiplane camera is a genuine piece of Disney animation history, and building a meet-and-greet around it teaches something without lecturing anyone.

Drawn to Wonderland Playground

This is the piece parents are going to care about most. Drawn to Wonderland is a whimsical indoor play area designed for the youngest guests, described by Disney as “the youngest animators-to-be.” It includes an oversized flower garden with musical instruments, a Mad Tea Party play set, and a Tugley Wood exploration area, all inspired by Mary Blair’s original concept art for Alice in Wonderland. Two things worth flagging. First, it is indoor. Hollywood Studios has very little indoor play space, and the Central Florida heat in September is not a joke. An air-conditioned play area is a genuinely valuable addition to a park where families frequently run out of options in the afternoon. Second, Mary Blair’s concept art is a specific and gorgeous style, and building a children’s play space out of it means parents get something beautiful to look at while their kids run around. That is a rare balance.

The Once Upon A Studio Theater at Hollywood Studios

The theater presents the Emmy Award-winning short film Once Upon A Studio, which is the foundation on which the entire attraction is built. The presentation includes enhanced effects that add an extra layer to the viewing. Characters may pop up within the artwork along the theater walls, placing guests inside the story rather than simply watching it. For anyone who has not seen the short, it brings together generations of Disney animated characters in a single space and plays extremely well with an audience.

Why This Matters for Hollywood Studios

Hollywood Studios has a reputation as a park built for thrill seekers. Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster, Tower of Terror, Slinky Dog Dash, Rise of the Resistance, and Smugglers Run. That is a strong lineup, and most of it comes with height requirements or a fair amount of intensity. Families with small children have long had fewer options here than at Magic Kingdom or Animal Kingdom. The Magic of Disney Animation directly addresses that. Four experiences, no height requirements mentioned, indoor air conditioning, character meets, a play area, a theater, and an activity that kids can actually take home in the form of their own drawing. It also fills out the Walt Disney Studios Lot, which replaced the former Animation Courtyard and has been open for a couple of months. The Roy E. Disney Animation Building is the piece that has not opened yet, and September 14 is when that changes. For a park that spent the year adding thrills, ending 2026 with something built for the whole family is the right note.