Closing a popular ride??????

kandb

DIS Veteran
Joined
Apr 22, 2006
I know the closure of Great American Movie Ride is a done deal but I just can't understand why Disney would close a ride that is still very popular. Unless it was a fluke, the GMR was busy and the wait was long the last 2 times we went on it the last week of August the last 2 years (slow time). We waited almost 30 minutes each time. I was mad at myself for not getting a fastpass. Why would Disney not keep a classic ride like this? I know it's not star wars or toy story but a lot of people like nostalgic rides. Not all of us want the new updated rides. A lot of us like the oldies. If the ride was unpopular I could understand but I think Disney made a mistake closing this one!
 
I know the closure of Great American Movie Ride is a done deal but I just can't understand why Disney would close a ride that is still very popular. Unless it was a fluke, the GMR was busy and the wait was long the last 2 times we went on it the last week of August the last 2 years (slow time). We waited almost 30 minutes each time. I was mad at myself for not getting a fastpass. Why would Disney not keep a classic ride like this? I know it's not star wars or toy story but a lot of people like nostalgic rides. Not all of us want the new updated rides. A lot of us like the oldies. If the ride was unpopular I could understand but I think Disney made a mistake closing this one!
I am not 100% certain, but I believe it had a lot to do with their partnership ending with Turner Classic Movies.
 
I know the closure of Great American Movie Ride is a done deal but I just can't understand why Disney would close a ride that is still very popular. Unless it was a fluke, the GMR was busy and the wait was long the last 2 times we went on it the last week of August the last 2 years (slow time). We waited almost 30 minutes each time. I was mad at myself for not getting a fastpass. Why would Disney not keep a classic ride like this? I know it's not star wars or toy story but a lot of people like nostalgic rides. Not all of us want the new updated rides. A lot of us like the oldies. If the ride was unpopular I could understand but I think Disney made a mistake closing this one!

Everyone has there favorites, but I'm ready for something new there. It's very telling that they are switching from an attraction featuring non-Disney movies to Mickey and Minnie.

When all the new stuff opens, I also suspect they felt the current crowds for the attraction would shrink quite a bit, thus the retheming.
 




Yes, some good points but the old rides are always great to see (Carousel of Progress) and the movie at the end of GMR was just so great IMO. I can still hear Marlon Brandon screaming "Stella" (I think it was him, lol)
 
I am a huge movie buff, but I can also say I am probably the only person I know in my age group (38 y/o) who has seen all the movies featured in GMR, not counting the finale. It's a ride that needs to be updated every 10-15 years or so to stay relevant, and it never was. I will certainly miss the ride, it was really the only ride remaining from the original MGM studio park. I am was hopping for a GMR type ride going through the eras of Mickey Mouse, but I just happy they are keeping the Chinese Theater Facade.

I will agree the line was long due to only have 5 rides at the park and FP+.

I am just happy that my next WDW trip is 8/8-16 so I will get to go on the ride at least 1-2 more times.
 
Carousel of Progress should stay for all time,Walt wanted it that way,and old or not I always enjoy going in there.Now the Indy show and Ellen should have been gone a long time ago.At least one is going and hopefully its a thrilling ride that I'll enjoy because I just don't get Guardians of the Galaxy,I've tried to watch the first one a couple of times and I start zoning out like 20-30 minutes into it.If its Somme kind of thrill ride I can enjoy it even if I didn't like the movie,kinda like Pandora,I loved the land and FoP is amazing,I can go without seeing the movie again.As far as GMR goes I enjoyed it overall but certain sections in it were getting stale,I will miss seeing all the classic movies in it as well as the movie clips at the end,its definitely sad to see rides like this go but I'm staying positive and hope the Mickey ride is excellent.Right now I'm hoping a Universal exec is reading this thread and decides it would be a good idea to add some sort of classic Universal movie tribute ride similar to GMR.Right now the Cinematic Spectacular nighttime show that's shown seasonally is a kind of classic movie tribute show but a new ride showcasing the amount of movies Universal has would make for a very popular attraction,just saying if someone who has say at Universal to think about it.
 
I will miss the Great Movie Ride. I look forward to the new Mickey ride. I just wish they could have closed it 2 or 3 months later, as I already have planned trips and would like to have ridden it again. It does seem that it was a VERY short notice of the closing.
 
I am a fan of the GMR, but I agree that the park is changing.

I love movies and, at one time, saw just about everything in theaters or on TV... But, the movie industry has gone down hill.

I agree that a of younger people haven't seen all of the movies depicted in the ride, but I don't think I want the ride updated with today's movies either! Now, if they would updated it with other classics I think it could been more popular. Maybe even have rotations every year or so and mix in new and old, etc.

Then again, I guess it's a moot point.
 
The line was long because there wasn't much else to do the park LOL. The ride was desperate for an update for a decade or more. It's time is up and while I enjoyed the ride I look forward to the new Mickey one.
Exactly that. And FP+ (with tiering) was driving traffic there.

That said, I'm still sad to see it go.
 
I don't think it was very popular. More like it was something to do in a park that lacks rides. My only issue with it is now what is my 78 year old dad with some heart issues supposed to do in that park?
 
During the Dis Unplugged, they made a good point that it was too out of date, and many guests had never seen the movies depicted in the ride.

When we were out at D23, my friend (late 50's) who is a big current movie buff made the same comment. She said Wizard of Oz was the only movie she was familiar with.
 
I agree it had to do with the loss of the Turner Movie Classic sponsorship. I read that they lost the rights to many of the movies in the ride. That would be a problem to keep it open.
I also agree it is not that it was that popular, but rather that the tiered FP system led guests there.
 
You mean to say that he only went on GMR at DHS?

Well, if you are looking at "attractions you ride" vs. shows, GMR was pretty much the only tame ride at DHS. So if they put in a Mickey ride that has health restrictions, you could end up with a park where some people can only watch shows and not ride any "rides" at all. The last few times I took my parents to DHS, GMR was the only ride they could experience as well, and my dad wasn't a big show fan. Needless to say, we hopped to another park pretty quickly. Thrill rides are good for a certain demographic, but if you plan to have a park where the whole family can have fun, you need at least a few tame rides the small children and older folks can enjoy as well. I'm hoping the Mickey ride won't be too wild - I think he's been deserving of a ride for quite some time now and it should be ride everyone can enjoy.
 
GMR is one of my favorites. And, yes, I have seen all the movies depicted. I'm in my mid 40s, and most of the movies today don't even come close to the movies depicted in the ride.

I miss it already.

My 9 year old daughter, who has only seen the Wizard of Oz, cried when she found out that the GMR is closing. She liked the ride, which goes to show you that you can enjoy GMR without having seen the movies.

I
 

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