d23 expo schedule

23-ish Predictions for D23 Expo 2022

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d23 expo schedule

The D23 Expo is back in Anaheim this summer and we cannot wait! 

Just released: the weekend schedule. And we have thoughts about what might be covered in each and every big panel.

We’re talking about our biggest and most wild predictions including THE KARDASHIANS AS DISNEY LEGENDS. Look… look… it could happen (question mark?) 

Show Notes

Find the No-Guilt Disney Team

–> No-Guilt Disney on Facebook

Contact us by email at [email protected] or find us on socials:

Patty

Theresa

Jane

  • @realmousewifewdw on Instagram
  • @realmousewifeFL on Twitter

Music from https://filmmusic.io
“Vivacity” by Kevin MacLeod (https://incompetech.com)
License: CC BY (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/) 

Episode Transcript

Episode Introduction

Patty 0:04
To all who come to our happy place… Welcome to the No-Guilt Disney Podcast, where we have no guilt about our love for all things Disney.

Jane 0:12
We are three Disney fan girls who probably know more about the Disney Parks than most grown women should, and we’re perfectly okay with that.

Patty 0:21
You know, I’m so okay with that. I don’t know how I could be more okay with that.

Theresa 0:28
I’m excited because today we’re going to show that we know a little bit more than just Disney Parks. We’re getting into all the Disney fandoms that we have. Hello, everyone! My name is Theresa and you can find me on Twitter at @GertieTheDino.

Jane 0:42
My name is Jane and you can find me on Instagram at @RealMousewifeWDW.

Patty 0:47
Hey, y’all! I’m Patty Holliday from NoGuiltDisney.com and you can find me on all socials at @NoGuiltLife. We had some wonderful news earlier this week. We geeked out over it. We got excited about it. We think you probably did, too, based on the chatter that we saw online. We are here to bring you our 23 top D23 Expo predictions based on the schedule that was just released earlier this week. Now, if you’re not going to D23 Expo, if you don’t know what it is, we are going to put Jane on the hot seat and asked her to describe it because she’s the only one that hasn’t been! So what do you think it is?

Theresa 1:35
What is your prediction for what D23 Expo will be like?

Jane 1:40
I’d like to drop this class, please.

Patty 1:43
Fail. You’ve passed that timeframe. Sorry, we’re keeping your money and you’re going to get an F if you don’t answer this.

D23 Expo General Information

Jane 1:50
It is a convention for Disney-minded nerds who want to hear everything about all aspects of the company. So entertainment, parks, everything. Everything you can think of. What’s coming, what does the future of the company look like… That’s pretty much it. But also merchandise and cool outfits and fun times and also an excuse to go to Disneyland. And then you may or may not get to see some celebrities. Also, you could geek out over seeing executives, if that’s your thing. Theresa, I know you and me… that’s our thing. Maybe some Imagineers.

Patty 2:31
I think you nailed it. About stuff in the future… Theresa is our resident “living in the past” girl and she likes to do all of the panels and experiences that talk about old school Disney stuff. That happens every year. There’s always something or somebody from back in the day who comes in and shares their experiences with the class.

Theresa 2:58
The Disney Archives usually do have a big presence, whether that’s doing something on the exhibition floor or having panels. I think there’s usually a Disney Archives stage. As much as they do a lot of information and panels and exciting news looking forward… If you’re somebody who’s just interested in Disney history in terms of the films or the parks, there’s a little bit of something for everybody, regardless of what direction your Disney fandom goes into.

Patty 3:29
Now, this is an actual in life, real convention-thing that’s happening. The first one since 2019. Usually, D23 Expo is held every other year. It was scheduled for 2021. Obviously, for pandemic reasons, that was not happening. But, it is scheduled now for 2022. It starts on September 9. It’s happening in Anaheim, California. There are still tickets! If you’re listening to this and you think, “I would like to be around those people. I would like to go to Disneyland after this. I would like to go and have that experience”… Listen. There are still tickets available for Sunday and Friday. Saturday is sold out, but those other two days are full of amazing awesomeness. Consider it. Think about it. Come take a trip. The three of us all have our plans to go to D23 Expo. Theresa and I have been a couple of times before. This will be Jane’s first trip and we are excited about it. We’re so excited that they sent out this information, which then got our minds spinning as far as what we might hear at these big panels. This [episode] is 23 D23 Expo predictions, and I say 23 of them but 23-ish. You know us. We can’t count, we don’t do well with math but I have a feeling we might go over the number in some ways and then maybe we go under someplace else. We each have a list and I don’t know what’s on everybody’s list. We don’t know exactly how far off the 23 goal path we’re going. We did give it that title because we were trying to force ourselves to edit this down a little bit so this doesn’t go on forever and ever.

Theresa 5:25
Full transparency. I was telling Patty and Jane last night [that] I’ve got three pages worth of things. So, Patty mentions this morning, “Condense it, find find ways to group things together”. I am absolutely the “-ish” in the 23-ish.

Patty 5:40
Yes, Theresa is the “-ish”. We’re going to start this off and we’re just going to go in chronological order as to what’s happening. Theresa and I might also throw in some of our experiences at previous panels [and how they] might have been and how cool they were because this is like our Super Bowl. I don’t even know if I can say that without getting sued. This is like our “Big Game”. Let’s just say that. We really love this experience. It’s a lot of crazy people with a lot of crazy fans. You never know who you’re going to see walking on the Expo floor or running into at the parks later, because that has happened as well. You guys know about the blue sweater right? Everybody remembers my blue sweater story? We don’t need to rehash blue sweater.

Jane 6:27
But we have a whole podcast called Chris Evans and His Blue Sweater.

Theresa 6:33
If you want more D23 Expo content, go back and listen to that episode.

Disney Legends Ceremony Predictions for D23 Expo 2022

Patty 6:37
On Friday morning, the first big panel that is going to kick off is, as always, the Disney Legends Award Ceremony. This ceremony honors visionaries, artists, actors, actresses, newscasters, everybody that’s been tied with The Walt Disney Company over the years. I don’t know exactly how they determine who gets chosen or what the criteria are each year. When I have gone, I’ve seen Johnny Depp. I’ve seen Susan Lucci, James Earl Jones, Robert Downey Jr., Ming-Na Wen. My girl, I love her so much! They’ve all been inducted in recent years. We’re going to start here and throw out predictions. Jane, do you want to go first? Who do you think could be on our Disney Legends list this year?

Jane 7:32
I feel a lot of pressure but I also feel like I’m playing a little bingo with you guys and what you might suggest. I am going to start with one of my very serious picks. I tried to go back through the list of who’s already been named a Disney Legend before and I think I got far enough back where he was not on it. John Ratzenberger!

Patty 7:57
That’s a good one.

Jane 7:57
Why is he not a Disney Legend?

Theresa 7:58
That’s a really good pick.

Jane 8:00
Isn’t that amazing?

Patty 8:01
That’s a good pick, Disney. If you’re still looking at culling your list… I could see John. He is the Pixar legend, right? He’s in every single one.

Jane 8:14
Every one that he can be. Kicking it off with one of my super serious picks.

Patty 8:23
Theresa, who do you have?

Theresa 8:25
I will stay in line with the voice acting category. There are two women who were in a number of Disney animated films in the 50s and 60s who are not Disney Legends, and I think they absolutely should be. I am going with Verna Felton and Eleanor Audley, and if you don’t know their names, you definitely know their voices. Verna Felton was in six animated features with Disney, including voicing the Fairy Godmother in Cinderella, the Queen of Hearts from Alice in Wonderland and Flora from Sleeping Beauty. Eleanor Audley, you hear all the time. She voiced Lady Tremaine in Cinderella, Maleficent in Sleeping Beauty and she is the voice of Madame Leota in the Haunted Mansion. These are two [whom] I feel so strongly [about]. They are absolutely deserving of being Disney Legends. I’m really crossing my fingers hoping this is their year.

Patty 9:16
I like that.

Jane 9:18
That’s a great pick.

Patty 9:18
I don’t see why not. I don’t know the reasonings or exactly what the criteria are. I could definitely see both of those ladies [as Disney Lengends], obviously being very deserving and should be in there. We’ll have to see what happens with that. [For] mine… I think it’s maybe too soon to put them as a Disney Legend status. I’m just going to throw this out there as someday, some way I hope to see Zac and Vanessa getting inducted together the same year. Zac Efron and Vanessa Hudgens from High School Musical, the originals. I just think that both of these actors have gone on to do some amazing work. They’re still young, so maybe it’s too young to meet the requirements. But hey, Kenny Ortega got inducted last time, so I’m pulling that someday Zac Efron will be on that stage.

Jane 10:25
I did not have that on my bingo card.

Theresa 10:27
No, not on my list. However, the age thing… We were talking right beforehand, when I was looking at the list of Legends, the one that threw me off so much was Christina Aguilera. This is not a comment on all of her work, but I think they look at it in terms of your contributions to Disney. I see her as being slightly more limited just because more of her work has been outside of Disney than with Disney. I think her getting it last time has opened the door a little bit more for people who maybe have had prolific careers outside of their Disney work.

Jane 11:06
Her being on the list opened the door for me to add the Kardashians.

Patty 11:12
Oh! Could you imagine Kourtney’s head? Oh my god!

Jane 11:18
I mean, she is the ultimate Disney adult. You know what, Theresa? You’re right. Because Christina Aguilera is on there and it threw me as well, because I’ve never really looked at the list. I knew a couple people off the top of my head, like Robert Downey Jr., Johnny Depp. You know what? The Kardashians are Disney now. I’m pulling hope.

Patty 11:48
Listen, I know this is controversial. We’re totally going to go on a tangent here, I’m so sorry. But, we got to talk about the Kardashians.

Jane 11:59
You’re welcome.

Theresa 12:00
Do we have to talk about them?

Jane 12:02
Always.

Patty 12:03
Yes! Okay, so listen, listen, listen. I have always been anti-Kardashian. I’ll straight up admit it. I have not gotten them. I’ve not understood. I have not anything. So, when the new series came out, I decided – because my good friend Jane loves them so much and I love her and I wanted to be able to have conversations with her and bond with her. Not really, but it really was more [that] I’m going to hear about it and at least this way, I understand what she’s talking about if I go ahead and watch it.

Jane 12:32
Wait, no. Let’s start with the fact that you’re obsessed with Kim and Pete.

Patty 12:37
Yes. I’ve always been obsessed with Kim and Pete. That was an immediate obsession. I held up the sign at the Marathon Weekend with Kim and Pete on it because I love these two so much. They’re gonna make it, y’all. They’re gonna make it. Okay, there was the Kim and Pete of it all that sucked me in. But! I started watching The Kardashians. Let me just tell you, folks. Anybody that’s listening to this and rolling their eyes and saying they’re vapid and they’re idiots… I got to say, there’s a lot you can not like about the Kardashians, but there are some things that you’ve got to respect about what this family has done. I would absolutely have to make that nod with you. If you’re looking from ABC’s standpoint now that they’re on Hulu and in the Disney fold, could this be a huge impact? Absolutely. It could be. We’ll have to see how this goes and where it goes and if it goes. For anybody that doesn’t realize it, I had to learn the names of all the K’s because I didn’t know any of them. Kourtney is a true Disney adult. She really does love Disney.

Jane 13:42
Her one redeeming quality.

Patty 13:48
Well, we’re not going to turn this into a Kardashian podcast. Anyway, that is interesting. I’m interested in that possibility. Maybe we should start an online petition.

Jane 14:00
No. Listen. Nine episodes does not a legend make.

Patty 14:04
I’m aware.

Jane 14:06
But they are going to sit on my list for years now.

Patty 14:10
Alright, fair. Anybody else that you want to throw out there as possible legends? I know you’ve got a list, Theresa, so go ahead and rattle it off.

Theresa 14:18
This is one that I think out of the ones on my list has the best chance. I’m going Kevin Rafferty for Imagineering. He retired last year after over 40 years at Disney and so I think the time is right for him to get this award. He’s just made so many contributions within Imagineering. I think it’s really impressive that he started off as a dishwasher at Disneyland and worked his way up through the company. He worked on Tower of Terror, Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster, Test Track, Philharmagic. He wrote some of the songs for Sonny Eclipse, and he was the lead Imagineer for Cars Land and Mickey & Minnie’s Runaway Railway. Of the ones on my list, I think just because of his retirement and that he’s had so many positions within the company, but primarily with Imagineering, he’s the one that I think has the best chance of getting it this year.

Jane 15:09
Similarly, I had George Kalogridis, who is also retiring and has been at Disney World for 50 years. He was on my list for the same reasons. If we’re going to pick somebody within the company, I definitely think George is worthy.

Theresa 15:25
I wouldn’t be surprised about that one, either. I think that’s another really likely pick.

Patty 15:31
From the entertainment standpoint, if it’s going to be this year or in the next couple of years, I also predict John Stamos was going to end up at [becoming] a Disney Legend. Obviously. I think Yvette Nicole Brown will eventually end up there. I’ll tell you what… She is the hardest working woman in Hollywood and she absolutely loves Disney. She’s been doing a lot through Disney, especially over the last three, four years. They’ve been using her in a lot of things, which I just love to see it all. Also, you know it’s coming: Chris Evans. Chris Evans will be a Disney Legend.

Jane 16:08
Bingo!

Patty 16:10
We all know Chris Evans is going to be a Disney Legend. There is nobody that loves everything about Disney Parks and Disney movies and just being part of it all than this guy. You know what? All I ask is that when he shows up on stage, he please wear blue.

Jane 16:30
This lady!

Patty 16:34
Look! That blue sweater, man. It’s so good.

Jane 16:38
If he doesn’t have a blue sweater, can he still come anyway? Because I’m taking him in whatever sweater he’s wearing. You know what? No sweater is just fine.

Patty 16:48
If he doesn’t show up in the blue sweater, I won’t be mad. I would just prefer it. I’d also really take it as a personal favorite, Chris, when you give your speech, if you would let some of that Boston come out because that’s hot.

Theresa 17:01
Along those lines, the other one that I’m torn [about]. I think there’s a chance [for] Chadwick Boseman. Even though he might not have had as much time with Disney as some of the other actors, I think Chadwick Boseman [could be inducted] because the Black Panther character was so impactful. It meant so much to so many people. Chadwick Boseman has a good chance, if not this year, [then] in the future.

Patty 17:25
I agree with you.

Jane 17:28
Can I just quickly add on just a couple that I had?

Patty 17:32
Do we need a whole episode of Disney Legends?

Jane 17:38
You asked me to do homework, I will get to do my homework and I did my homework! I don’t think we’re ready yet, but Kevin Feige [is an option]. He’s not on the list. I would really like all the Spider Mans because all the Spider Mans.

Theresa 17:57
That’s challenging because not all the Spider Mans are Disney. Go free. We’re predicting. Anything you want.

Jane 18:11
Tom Hanks.

Theresa 18:14
Mm-hm. Because Tim Allen is?

Jane 18:16
Correct. How are we waiting so long? Tom Hanks and Lin-Manuel Miranda.

Theresa 18:26
I don’t know about that yet, but at some point he will be in the future. Ron Clements and John Musker, I think [both of them] not having it yet might be more of a political decision. They’re the directors of most of the Disney films you love, but they’re doing a film right now for Warner Animation. I don’t know if they will get it this year, out of the fact that they are doing a film for another studio. Ron and John not having it yet really surprised me.

Patty 18:27
I agree with you. Well, there you go. We’ve just filled up the slate for D23 Expo.

Theresa 19:01
For the next few years!

Jane 19:05
If you’re listening, and you’d like us to run that panel for you, we’ve got this covered.

Disney Live Action, Pixar Animation Studios, and Walt Disney Animation Studios Predictions for D23 Expo 2022

Patty 19:09
Just let us know. On Friday afternoon, this one fascinated me. At 3:30pm, there’s going to be the Disney Live Action, Pixar Animation Studios, and Walt Disney Animation Studios [panel]. That’s the name of the panel and every studio that they’re lumping into this. Now, this is different than what they did [before]. Years ago, we had Live Action and we had Animation. Those were the two big panels. Now, they’re breaking things out a little bit more. This is interesting, because looking at the rest of the schedules, I was curious how they’re going to use 20th Century Fox Studios. The Fox acquisition. This would be the year that maybe they were also mentioned? They weren’t mentioned specifically in this list and who’s going to be talking and what we’re going to talk about during this this panel. While that’s not literally a prediction, that’s just a question mark. Is 20th Century always going to be completely separate? Or is that something that they’re going to slowly slide into some of these big fan events? I’m seeing a lot of the same promotion for those projects through the emails that I get from the PR folks. I know they’re sharing a PR list. I don’t know at what point that will be included or not. Anyway, that was my thought process for Friday afternoon. We don’t have any mention of that. My only prediction I have is obviously we’re going to get more information about future Pixar things that are coming up because they take a couple of years to get them together. The only one I think that we know about that’s coming out outside of Lightyear, which is coming out next weekend, is Elemental. Some information, maybe some clips for that to get us interested and excited because that’s one that they’re working on right now. What typically happens with Pixar is [that] they do two movies in one year, then the next year they do one movie, and then they do two movies the next year and then one movie. We just had two movies this year with Lightyear and Turning Ted. I am guessing Elemental will be the only thing that gets solidified for 2023. Maybe they’ll announce the two that they plan to come out for 2024, and I have zero guesses as to what that could look like.

Theresa 21:58
I think we’ll get some cast announcements and character images for Elemental because that’s coming out in June 2023. I absolutely think we’ll get that. I think in terms of more information about a film, right now there’s an untitled Walt Disney Animation Studios film for November 2023. I think we’re going to get the title and the synopsis. I think we’ll find out if it’s going to be a more broad Walt Disney Animation Studios film. Are we getting another princess? We’ll firm up what that looks like. This was my long shot pick of what might happen in that panel. I’m hoping that Cassie Steele will get cast in something. If you don’t know, Cassie Steele was originally supposed to be the voice of Raya. They announced her at the last D23 Expo and I got super excited because I’m a huge Degrassi fan. She is Manny Santos, which is one of the most iconic characters in Degrassi of all time. I remember when they announced her name, I screamed. I was so excited. Everybody was looking over [at me]. My girl Manny Santos. Eventually over time, they recast as the story got changed, and they thought that Kelly Marie Tran’s personality and voice fit the character a little better. I’m hoping [for] justice for Cassie Steele. She will get cast in a new project with Disney.

Patty 23:24
That’s fair. Jane, do you have anything for those predictions or interests or what you would like to see?

Jane 23:31
I have no predictions about that. As we’ve discussed, my very limited entertainment is focused mostly on reality, but I love to see what the movies are that come out.

Patty 23:49
What if they announced an animated Kardashians?

Jane 23:53
That’s a little weird, to be honest. Then they [would] borderline Bratz dolls. No, it would be weird. It’s like the Kimoji app. They weird me out.

Patty 24:07
So, we do have a stopping point when it comes to Kardashians. Good to know. We can’t cross that line.

Theresa 24:12
I was looking at the other slate of things that we know are coming out, like films and things that are in production or post production. I think we’ll get clips or trailers for a few things. The live action Snow White has been filming for the last few months. The live action Little Mermaid has also been filming and I think they have either wrapped filming or they’re close to it. I think we’ll definitely get some some clips or trailers for those. The one that I’m kind of curious and a little afraid of is the live action Lilo and Stitch movie. It’s in production or it’s been rumored to be in production, and I don’t know if anybody else has seen it. It’s fanmade, it is not real. There is this image that’s gone around for the past few years of what the live action Stitch might look like and it’s terrifying. My thought is that if they’re still moving forward that, we might actually see what the live action Stitch will look like. I’m thinking they’ll probably go more the route of Sonic [with the] CGI. After they re-did it, it looks a little better. I think we’ll possibly see what the live action Stitch looks like.

Patty 25:26
Stitch is not my guy. However, if they come up with an ugly Stitch first…

Theresa 25:35
And then they re-do it. Maybe they’ll do that. They’ll lean into it and be like, “Here’s the original Stitch” and give him creepy teeth. “But here’s what we decided on!” Ugly Sonic was in the Chip and Dale Rescue Rangers movie.

Marvel Studios/LucasFilm Predictions for D23 Expo 2022

Patty 25:51
He was the hit of the movie. It was crazy. By the way y’all, if you have not watched that movie, it’s cute. You do not have to be a child of the 90s to enjoy it. Even I enjoyed it. There’s so much pop culture. It’s fairly kid friendly, but it’s not for kids. It was made for the adults because there’s so much good stuff in there. So now, we’re moving on to Saturday. Saturday is also the day that most of the cosplayers come out in their big costumes. It’s just so much to see and do on Saturday. At 10am, the big one that they’ve put together [and] this is the first time that we’ve seen this… It’s going to be Marvel Studios and Lucasfilm. They are getting one of the big panels just for the two of them to share. I’m low-key geeking out about this. I know there are a lot of people that have superhero fatigue and they’re not happy with Star Wars, but this is where we’re going to learn more and more about the future and where [Kevin] Feige is taking us and where Kathleen Kennedy wants us to go in these beloved stories. This is my number one panel that I want to be in. It’s a new panel in theory, but to give you an idea, when we went to the Live Action panels in the past, pretty much the entire cast minus Chris Evans was on stage for Avengers: Infinity War. It was wild. Avenger after Avenger after Avenger. They all just came pouring out on stage. We got to see Robert Downey Jr. It was a big deal.

Jane 27:45
Can we go back to that?

Patty 27:46
You missed that, unfortunately. But, it was so cool. I’m going to guess with Marvel Studios and Lucasfilm, we are obviously going to get some additional information on stuff that are rumored out there that are going on. Now, here’s the catch. We haven’t mentioned Disney+ Day, but we’ve got to throw this in there. Disney+ Day is not D23 Expo related. It’s adjacent, because a lot of the stuff that we know is coming out with Marvel and Star Wars they’re putting on Disney+, right? Disney+ Day is happening September 8th, the day before Expo starts. Disney+ Day is going to be an all day thing where they’re dropping trailers, giving us information and telling us what’s coming to Disney+. All day long it’s going to have a lot of really cool information and cool stuff coming out. You’re going want to check that out. My guess is that they’re going to announce some things on Disney+ Day and then we get the expanded trailers or the expanded sneak peeks at D23 Expo or they’re going to announce some things on Disney+ Day, but they’re going to hold back some more deep cuts for us at the Marvel and Lucasfilm [panel]. What I’m thinking from a Marvel perspective is [that] we might see something on the Thunderbolts.

Theresa 27:47
I have a big prediction for Thunderbolts.

Patty 29:16
This is like a villain Avengers group, right?

Theresa 29:20
It’s like Marvel’s version of the Suicide Squad.

Patty 29:23
Hopefully not nearly as bloody and gross because I can’t with the Suicide Squad. They’re too much, even though Pete Davidson – See! It all goes back to Pete. I’m thinking that Thunderbolts will probably get announced. I hope I can follow the dots and the connections that Mr. Feige is dropping down for me. I’m hoping that we finally get a Young Avengers series or movie announced. I’ll take either one. There are so many characters that could be in this. Maybe a three movie arc? I don’t know. There’s a lot we could do with this. Young Avengers… the seeds have been planted for that with all these shows. That’s my hope is that we’re going to get that official. I still want a Hawkeye season two. Hopefully we either get that on Disney+ Day or they announce it there with some more Kate Bishop because she’s awesome.

Jane 29:27
Cosign that.

Patty 30:26
I’m hoping that we see sneak peeks of Loki season two and please, oh please, oh please bring me Tom Hiddleston. I would love to be in the room with him. That would be amazing.

Jane 30:38
What should he wear?

Patty 30:39
Anything green. Mr. Hiddleston looks the best in green. There’s a whole bunch of other things. There’s Secret Invasion, Echo… Maybe we get a sneak of Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday? Sidenote Jane… What did you say as soon as we got off of [Guardians of the Galaxy:] Cosmic Rewind?

Jane 30:58
This is what I was saving for the other panel!

Patty 31:03
I’ve already opened the door, so go ahead and jump in on this one. As soon as we got off of Guardians [of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind], Jane looked at me and she said…

Jane 31:13
One of the things we never get out here in Disney World is the cool overlays that Disneyland gets. Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind is super easy to do an overlay.

Patty 31:27
Well, “easy”. We’re all over here doing air quotes like we’re Imagineers.

Jane 31:34
It’s not intense where you have to close the Haunted Mansion and insert new animatronics or move things around or fully decorate. It’s just a simpler installation and a little bit of a change of story. It would be really great because they have the Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special coming out. How easy would it be to plop in a holiday overlay version of Cosmic Rewind. You get one of six beautiful holiday songs that we can all try to save the galaxy to and chase Santa down or however they’re going to do it to tie it all in. If they’re not doing that… Disney, you need to be doing that. Because it’s amazing.

Patty 32:29
We’re going to demand it, right? We’re going to be out there picketing. Where’s the overlay? That’s just a little side note. I think we could go there with that. I also think we got this new character, America Chavez in Dr. Strange, and I feel like if they’re going to introduce her to us on the big screen, something more is coming with America. My guess is we’re also going to maybe have another show. I don’t know. Those are my exciting thoughts and predictions on Marvel, specifically. Theresa, do you have anything Marvel-related that you want to expand on?

Theresa 33:11
Yes, I do! We’re saying these [predictions] for D23 Expo. Patty mentioned Disney+ Day is the day before, so I think some things will get announced on Disney+ Day, some things will get get announced during D23 Expo. The other thing to remember is San Diego Comic Con is in July. Now, because of the fact that Marvel and Lucasfilm are doing one large panel together, there are definitely rumors swirling now that Marvel will not be at San Diego Comic Con. If you were at the last D23 Expo, you’ll know that Marvel didn’t get many announcements. They pretty much announced the full slate at Comic Con because it was shortly beforehand. I think even if they do have a presence at Comic Con, I think they are definitely looking to do more of their announcements at D23 Expo. Some of the things will get announced or will happen, I just don’t know what day it will be. We’re almost definitely going to get trailers for Black Panther Wakanda: Forever because that comes out in November. They’ve been doing trailers a little bit later, so that’s my “almost guarantee”. Secret Invasion is in post production. I don’t think they’ve announced the date for that yet. I’m torn if it’ll be Disney+ Day or if they will do that during during the D23 Expo. I have some Thunderbolts theories. I absolutely think we are going to get a lot of information about Thunderbolts in this. I narrowed down some of what I think is going to happen. It’s being written by the same screenwriter who did Black Widow, so you can almost guarantee that Yelena and Taskmaster will be in it. I think that, without us knowing, they have been dropping additional hints to who was going to be in this based on anybody you’ve seen Julia Louis Dreyfus’s character talk to in either the films or the series because she’s been making some appearances. Anybody you see her talking to is going to be in Thunderbolts, because you’ve also seen her recruiting U.S. agents and they are part of Thunderbolts. Baron Zemo is the leader of the Thunderbolts in the comics; you can almost guarantee he’s going to be in it.

Patty 35:19
More Zemo!

Theresa 35:21
He’s absolutely in this. He did not have as tight connections to Thunderbolts in the comics. There was some overlap, but I see this 100% being the way for them to bring Moon Knight into the films.

Patty 35:34
Do you think this is going to be a series or do you think this is going to be a film?

Theresa 35:40
I’m fairly certain it’s a film. This is how I see them pulling Moon Knight out of his own series into the film. There are lots of opinions on the series, but I think the character is very interesting. This feels like the right fit for that character, if they wanted to bring it more into the MCU. That’s my unlikely prediction, but I definitely see Moon Knight working into Thunderbolts.

Patty 36:10
Moon Knight was weird, weird, weird. However, Oscar Isaac was flippin’ amazing in this show. If you have any kind of love towards Oscar, and you want to see some really great performances, go ahead and take the time to watch Moon Knight. Also, prepare yourself because they may show up later down the road, which as we know all things are connected in the Marvel Universe.

Theresa 36:36
The way that series ended, they clearly introduced… a “new character” maybe is not the way to say it. I’m not trying to spoil things if you haven’t watched this yet, but they introduced an extension of Moon Knight that they have not explored yet. This is where I feel good about this. This is my “putting pieces together” prediction.

Patty 36:56
I love it. Let’s see what happens.

Theresa 36:59
Oh, I have one small one. There have been casting rumors. I just want this one to be true. I don’t know if it’s going to be or not. For the last two weeks, there have been casting rumors for Agatha House of Harkness that Catherine O’Hara and Amy Poehler have been cast for the show. I think Amy Poehler is the one that I’ve seen a little bit more. I just want this to be true so badly.

Patty 37:19
I am cosigning with you on that. Of course, you know I love Catherine O’Hara. Yes, put her in there, please! That would be amazing. Now let’s move over to the Star Wars universe. I just have one word for you and that is Lando. Listen, they announced that there was a Lando coming, but what I want to see some movement towards Lando actually happening. Picture this, if you will, that we are all in this room with these huge Star Wars nerds and out on stage walks Billy Dee Williams and Donald Glover.

Jane 38:02
No Lionel Richie?

Patty 38:04
No Lionel Richie. They start talking about the Lando series and how both of them are somehow in it, which I don’t know how that would work. But that’s what I want, right? I want it all. I want both Landos in this and I want it in this series, and I want to hear that it’s happening. I want some date. I want some information. I don’t know if we’re going to get that. I feel like they’ve gotten very quiet on a lot of the things that they announced with Star Wars, but that’s my number one thing. My number two thing: I want Solo 2 to happen. Listen, if you skipped this one or if you listened to the haters and you said it wasn’t worth watching… Solo was really fun. It’s not the greatest movie. I’m not putting it up on that pedestal, but I really appreciated it and I really loved it. I love this idea of having a Solo 2 and having Bryce Dallas Howard co-direct with Ron Howard. That would make me so happy. I don’t know if they would like it, but I would like it. I think it would be so neat to see the two of them work together.

Theresa 39:19
I would love to see that, too. I am hopeful for that.

Jane 39:25
I just want them to make something that gets me back. They’ve lost me.

Patty 39:33
I hear you. That’s what I want from Lando. Lando, you’re my only hope. Solo was the other one that I was kind of attached to, so I would like both of those to come back.

Jane 39:47
I wasn’t a huge fan of Solo, although like you said, maybe I’ll watch Solo again and give it another shot. But they really lost me after that last movie. I want you to bring me back to Rogue One.

Patty 40:06
That one was so good.

Theresa 40:10
Well, if you like Rogue One, we do have Andor coming. It’s obviously going to tie into that. Hopefully when Andor comes out, I think you’ll get some of that. I think one of the easy guesses for this panel, all the clips that they showed at Star Wars Celebration I think they will reshare. There’s going to be some overlap of people who were there. I think they’re going to share Mandalorian season three. I think we’ll see a little bit more from Ahsoka. My long shot is [that] we’ll get the casting announcement for Ezra for Ahsoka. Star Wars Rebels is probably my favorite thing to come out of the Star Wars universe. I am so excited about just the thought of the continuation of Rebels in a live action thing. They’re continuing those stories; I’m so excited for that. One of my mid-shot predictions… They’ve already announced that Mando and Grogu will be appearing later this year in Batuu over at Disneyland. There have been no mentions on any of these characters over in Florida, so I don’t know if they’ll get that announcement. But there was also a rumor going out that there’s going to be some kind of appearance on a prestige series that makes Disney Parks fans really happy. I think we’ll see a clip of Mando and Grogu visiting Batuu.

Patty 41:34
That would be wild. That would be smart of Disney. Galaxy’s Edge needs to tie it in. I don’t know if that was always the plan or not, but Grogu and Mando would definitely be your power couple to make Galaxy’s Edge a thing again.

Theresa 41:51
I don’t think it was the plan because I feel like their whole approach was [that] they wanted [Batuu] to live independent [from the rest of the Star Wars universe]. There has been some criticism of not seeing more of these characters in there. They’ve announced that Boba Fett and Fennec are going to be over in Disneyland visiting Batuu. We’ll see Mando and Grogu there and it’ll just make my heart happy.

Patty 42:14
Now, just to throw it back to Solo. Solo did mention the Black Spire Outpost at one point. We all remember that. We’re going to throw that out there and let’s connect the dots. Let’s make Solo 2 happen and set it maybe at Black Spire Outpost.

Theresa 42:34
I would be happy with that because I also really liked Solo. I don’t think it deserved all the criticisms.

Patty 42:41
It did not!

Theresa 42:41
I would love that. I’m predicting this. Obviously, the Obi Wan series has not completed at the time we’re recording this, so this character may not be around. I think we’ll see Reva in Andor because Andor takes place like slightly after this [Kenobi series]. If her character continues, I see that being one of the links between those two series.

Patty 42:54
Yep, I can see that, too. Cool.

Theresa 43:14
My other big prediction is that we’ll get the director announcement for the Kevin Feige produced Star Wars movie. Jane, you’re saying you need something to get you back in? There was an interview a couple months ago that Kathleen Kennedy did with Vanity Fair, alluding to that she was hoping to make an announcement about that director in a few months, and it did not happen at Star Wars Celebration. If they’re doing a large Lucasfilm panel, I think that we have a good chance of getting that director announcement. Lucasfilm is not just Star Wars; it’s also Indiana Jones. There is an Indiana Jones movie coming out next year. I would not be surprised to see something Indiana Jones. Also as I’m saying this… circle back to Disney Legends. Mark Hamill and Carrie Fisher are both Disney Legends, but Harrison Ford is not.

Jane 44:12
He was the other one I went looking for. This is ridiculous!

Theresa 44:16
He falls into that now. There’s a chance this is connecting it all together, especially if they have Harrison Ford there to do anything tied to Star Wars or to Indy. If he’s already going to be there, I think there’s a chance that he is also on the Disney Legend list.

Patty 44:32
Oh, for sure. I agree with you on that, too. That’s kind of what they did with Robert Downey Jr. that year and Johnny Depp. The year that [Depp] was inducted, he came out on stage talking about whichever Pirates of the Caribbean was up that year. He came out dressed as full Jack Sparrow, did a whole shtick. It was amazeballs. You’re right. That’s a good one. Not as good as the Kardashians. I’m just kidding! Don’t turn off the podcast. It’s a joke!

Jane 45:06
Sidenote: maybe not for this panel but for the live panel, if they wanted to announce another Pirates and bring out Johnny Depp, I’d be okay.

Disney Parks Predictions for D23 Expo 2022

Patty 45:16
We’ll see. That could be something that they actually mention because there have been talks. I’ve seen the rumors. Now that the court thing has happened, we’ll just have to see how that turns out. Is that everything for Lucasfilm and Marvel? Then we are going to skip ahead, because I think for essence of time, we’re going to jump to Parks. We want to talk a lot about the Parks. There is another panel in the afternoon on Saturday and that’s the Disney branded television [panel]. These are all the series that you grew up and loved, [like] Doc McStuffins, Owl House, High School Musical, Descendants. I personally don’t have a lot of predictions for that one and I think we should save that for the end in case we run out of time. We’re going to skip forward to Sunday morning because this is the big panel that I think most people here listening [are interested in]. Also, between the three of us, this is one of the biggest panels that we have some stake in and we have some interest in. We’re talking about the Disney Parks, Experiences and Products panel, which is happening at 10:30 in the morning on Sunday, September 11. This is a complete couple of hours, filling you up with everything that’s coming and going and changing at the parks. And that’s all the parks. In the past, Shanghai Disneyland had a huge panel one year when it was being built. We’ll see what all is in store for the discussion there. My predictions are all over the place with this one. I think even the Disney Cruise Line is going to be covered in this panel as well. Some of the things that I’m just going to rattle off real quick and if anybody wants to discuss it more, we can. I hope we hear confirmed, and some details as to what it might look like, is that Disneyland gets its Tomorrowland overhaul. I want the PeopleMover to please come back.

Theresa 47:40
You don’t want Rocket Rods? I want to ride a Rocket Rod. Then again, I like terrible things.

Patty 47:45
I mean, I’m not saying I wouldn’t, but at the same time… Picture this. My happy place is Disneyland as it is. Even if you had to gut and change [Tomorrowland] completely, which is what I understand [that] they would have to do some massive changes over there. But if we’re going to do it, let’s do it right and let’s get back that PeopleMover. I would be the happiest person in the most happiest place on earth if I can ride the PeopleMover through Disneyland, as Walt once intended. That would make me very happy. I think we’re going to also hear of some Encanto presence at Magic Kingdom. Or, I’m assuming Magic Kingdom.

Theresa 48:30
Ooh, I have a different [prediction].

Patty 48:33
I mean, it could be EPCOT. The obvious is EPCOT, right?

Theresa 48:36
No.

Patty 48:38
You’re taking it to Disney’s Animal Kingdom.

Theresa 48:39
I am taking it to Animal Kingdom.

Patty 48:41
Okay, that was actually my question here because I figured we’re not going to get it at EPCOT. I don’t know if Colombia is ready to put in a whole pavilion. Obviously, it’s not Mexican, folks. Anybody that keeps saying Encanto should be in the Mexico Pavilion.. No, no, no, no, no, no.

Theresa 48:58
I have two reasons for thinking strongly Animal Kingdom. There is a tree with animals in the movie Encanto and the tree itself looks very similar to the Tree of Life. Like if you look at it visually, they look very similar, but that’s actually not where I think it’s going. I know we have a fan of the podcast who has mentioned that that DINOSAUR is her favorite attraction, and I am so sorry, but I think Dinoland is going to make way for South America [and] Encanto.

Patty 49:34
Interesting.

Theresa 49:35
I know that area is earmarked for Zootopia, which again, I can see it but I am going Encanto/South America.

Patty 49:43
I had Zootopia on my list, that Animal Kingdom is up next as far as getting a new ride. Disney’s Hollywood Studios got Mickey and Minnie’s Runaway Railway, EPCOT got Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind and Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure, Magic Kingdom is getting Tron Lightcycle. Animal Kingdom should be up next with a new ride. I was thinking Zootopia, but I guess it could also be an Encanto attraction. I wasn’t thinking [to] get rid of DINOSAUR. I was thinking it’s either Zootopia or Encanto. Now that you’ve said this about Animal Kingdom, that could fit there, too. That it takes over where Primeval Whirl was? Keep the DINOSAUR ride. I think the DINOSAUR ride stays.

Theresa 50:26
I think it’s great. I just think if they’re redoing that area, I don’t see how you only have DINOSAUR over there. I could be wrong. I think the ride building stays there and the ride structure stays there. I think it’s just going to be a retheming.

Patty 50:44
I think you could keep DINOSAUR and the Dinoland USA [area] where the kids dig in the sand section separate. When we got to the point where we can see the back of Batuu exposed and you can see Batuu from Toy Story Land… I don’t think they care anymore. I think they’ve given up the idea of how everything has to be seamlessly flowing from one to the next. I just think they’re going to stick something over there to be honest. Right or wrong. That’s a possibility. Jane, what do you think? What predictions do you have for Parks?

Jane 50:44
The first one that I had was definitely that we are going to get an update on the Dinoland transformation, whatever that is going to be. I do agree that it’s going to be a little bit light on Walt Disney World just because we’re coming out of the 50th. I do think that we’re going to get some updates, particularly, about nighttime spectaculars. What will happen with Enchantment once the 50th celebration is over? That has always been considered a limited time 50th thing. Will we get Happily Ever After back? Will we get Wishes 2.0? I don’t know. I am very much hoping for – as I complain about almost on the daily – a nighttime parade!

Theresa 52:26
Yes, I feel pretty good about nighttime parade. Whether it’s one that we’ve seen before or something new.

Jane 52:35
I don’t care if [it] can be one person in a light-up bug suit running down Main Street USA with something like a boombox. I just want something to sit on the curb and watch at 11pm.

Theresa 52:50
I agree with you. Nighttime parade is one of my predictions. Staying in Magic Kingdom, we’re going to get the Tron Lightcycle opening date if we haven’t yet. Also, the date of the Walt Disney World Railroad returning. I think those are two of the big dates that we’ll hear. Both [in] Florida and Disneyland that we know is happening but we haven’t heard much about is the Tiana Splash Mountain refurb. I think we’ll probably get some more info on that. I have other Florida and Disneyland predictions, but if we’re staying in the Magic Kingdom area, that’s what I feel [we’ll see].

Patty 53:28
Listen, Magic Kingdom: I need you to put that beignet stand. Announce that it’s coming with the Princess and the Frog. We’ve already got beignets over at French Quarter in Disneyland, but I need this also at Magic Kingdom and I need it to be specific to Tiana.

Theresa 53:42
They could do it at the Western Outpost. That little cart that’s right next to it.

Jane 53:50
That this could tie in to the Tomorrowland refurb out in Disneyland, but potentially also here as well in Walt Disney World. There’s rumors of a Lightyear update for the Buzz Lightyear Space Ranger Spin. I’m hoping that we’ll hear a little bit more about that, if that’s going to come to fruition.

Patty 54:10
Something else that came out recently is [that] the Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster in [Disneyland] Paris got rethemed to an Avengers-type coaster. I know we can’t do Avengers in the same way over here, but I’m wondering if Aerosmith might finally be on its way out now that we have seen what they can do over in Paris. I don’t even know what they would do, but tie it to a movie of some sort would be my guess. They can’t do Avengers in the same way, but maybe they could do something similar.

Jane 54:45
I don’t necessarily think that they would do Marvel again, especially since we have Cosmic Rewind as the big roller coaster here. I was going to say a Star Wars one, but they wouldn’t do that in Studios where it’s located too far away [from Batuu]. Maybe they can take that and turn that into the Wreck-It Ralph coaster that was rumored for a long time. I’m sure they have some cool ideas.

Theresa 55:16
The roller coaster that’s been rumored for a very long time is Monsters Inc.

Patty 55:22
Monsters Inc. was rumored over in Disneyland.

Theresa 55:24
It was rumored in part of Hollywood Studios, over by Toy Story Midway Mania. Before they did all of that, I think it was supposed to go over there. I could kind of see that, but I agree. I think that a new overlay is coming for Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster.

Patty 55:42
I absolutely love Aerosmith and I love the music on the ride. I am not over here screaming to do it or it needs to be changed. However, I’m just thinking progressively from a Disney Parks perspective. Steven Tyler is like 80 years old at this point? Little kids have zero connection to who Aerosmith is, and they’re not even hearing this music or even this kind of music anymore on the radio. Except for on the “oldies”station.

Theresa 56:18
Patty, I have an idea for you.

Patty 56:20
Oh, tell me.

Theresa 56:21
What if the new theme is High School Musical?!

Patty 56:25
Oh, stop!

Theresa 56:26
And they do different songs from High School Musical!

Patty 56:29
Oh, my gosh! Oh, make it happen, Josh D’Amaro!

Theresa 56:35
And that’s how you get Zac and Vanessa to be Disney Legends!

Patty 56:34
That’s right! I hadn’t thought about that. But how fun would that be? But they’d have Olivia Rodrigo singing everything. I had not thought of that, Theresa. That’s a good one.

Theresa 56:44
Patty has a new campaign she’s going for.

Patty 56:59
Bring the potatoes back and bring me a High School Musical: The Musical: The Series roller coaster.

Theresa 57:07
Oh my gosh! That’s the perfect name, too!

Jane 57:10
That’s what they’re going to position it as. High school is such a roller coaster. This is the ride you take.

Patty 57:16
We’ve got that all storyboarded out for you to see. Let’s make this happen. Oh, Theresa, you’re genius.

Jane 57:23
Oh, my god, guys! We’re getting ready to go to the musical and we have to go fast, we have to go outside! Let’s go get in this limo!

Patty 57:33
You don’t even have to change it! They still gotta drive a car to get there, right?

Jane 57:38
Make it a super stretch!

Theresa 57:41
As long as they keep Ken Marino. Ken Marino has to reprise his role. That’s all I’m asking for.

Patty 57:47
Now that’s a deep cut Disney Legend that we could go for there. You said Ken Marino and of course, I went to Veronica Mars, which of course – when is Kristen Bell going to be a Disney Legend? There’s so many Disney Legends that we can come up with. What else in Parks? Anything else that you guys want to throw out?

Jane 58:08
I have two things. This might be nothing, but it might be something great. Who knows? Over by the Grand Floridian, they had filed some paperwork to do some construction and make some updates. There’s no real updates of what that is, but the rumor is potentially a new hotel. If it is a new hotel, please tell us, because I love hotels. The other thing that I really, really would like for them to tell us – but it’s another thing I’ve made up in my head. I would like a Marvel immersive hotel that is like the Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser. I also think that if they did it and they’re going to try it, it’s not going to be in the US.

Patty 58:52
Yes. I agree with you on those things as well. They could do it over at Disneyland, obviously not [at] Walt Disney World. My question to doing it at Disneyland is, where?

Jane 59:11
I mean, it’s only a shipping container. You just plop it [wherever].

Theresa 59:17
If you’re paying attention, Disneyland Forward is a thing. There have been permits filed related to Disneyland Forward. I do think that there’s room for expansion, or they are planning out. Google Disneyland Forward. There’s an official website about it, talking about all of the things that they would like to do. So much of it is proposals; don’t read it thinking that this is actual announcements, but it’s what they would like to try and move towards or have people thinking about. I agree with you that I think an Avengers version of that makes sense. We haven’t really talked about international announcements, so it wouldn’t surprise me if it is something that goes into one of the international parks. I do think we’ll get some more information about Disneyland Forward. I work in the Tomorrowland overhaul into that. I have on my list [an] Avengers Campus expansion. Because Avengers Campus is right there, I think that [an] expansion could easily [be possible]. If you think of the way the Halcyon goes into Batuu, I think a park that has Avengers Campus is going to be the one that gets this immersive resort experience.

Jane 1:00:29
I think for the US, it makes sense. Avengers Campus is in Disneyland, but it means that even though both parks have Galaxy’s Edge, we’re the ones out here in Walt Disney World with Galactic Starcruiser and then they’re the ones that get the other immersive experience out in Disneyland. That’s definitely my dream there.

Theresa 1:00:52
I’ll say my other big Disneyland prediction. We talked on a recent episode about how Disney California Adventure is going through a little bit of an identity crisis at the moment.

Jane 1:01:06
You leave her alone!

Theresa 1:01:06
I’m not saying this is a bad thing. Because they’ve been transitioning a lot of things, a lot of lands that were kind of California-focused have been changed into other things. You saw it with Paradise Pier [turning] into Pixar Pier. I know a bug’s land was not California specifically, but that becoming Avengers Campus. My big prediction for Disneyland is that DCA will become Disney’s Hollywood Adventure.

Jane 1:01:13
That could be. I could see that happening.

Theresa 1:01:27
I think it’s getting renamed. Disney’s Hollywood Studios has also been rumored for a long time to get renamed. Both of those parks are now [about] experiencing the movies or walk through the areas that you’ve seen [in the films]. “Hollywood Adventure” was a rumored name that Hollywood Studios might get changed to, but I think they’re going to switch it. I think California Adventure will become Hollywood Adventure.

Patty 1:02:07
Listen, I’m down for that. I loved the whole idea of Hollywood Studios back in the day. How you love EPCOT so much, I loved what the original Hollywood Studios was. It was a working studio, and you could go on the Backlot Tour and see some of those props and movie making as it happened, and The [Indiana Jones] Stunt Spectacular. I loved all of that stuff. Leaning into something about making the movies and how the movies now, like it or not, have become so much more part of the parks. There used to be original items [attractions] just for the parks. Now, those items [attractions] have been turned into movie [themed attractions]. The movie stuff is taking over the parks. I could go down with a name change for either park. If they change it [Hollywood Studios] to something [different] because they were at some point thinking of that. I also wouldn’t mind seeing Disney California Adventure getting changed as well, because I agree with you. The name doesn’t fit with what’s happening there anymore. So let’s plus it, let’s change it up.

Jane 1:03:19
In addition, I’d also like to see the announcements of the on sale date for the [Disney Vacation Club] Villas at Disneyland Hotel. I know they’re definitely mid-construction. I check on that almost daily for personal reasons.

Patty 1:03:33
That’s DVC [Disney Vacation Club], if anybody’s at a loss as to what she’s talking about. They’re doing some additional DVC over at the Disneyland Hotel, which is Jane is letting you know she will be purchasing immediately.

Jane 1:03:50
Immediately, like as soon as the announcement is made. I’d just like to see what the future of DVC is, especially since they have announced the new Polynesian wing but they seem to have shelved Reflections during COVID. I’m curious. What does that mean? Does that ever come back? Or do we just move on to new projects?

Theresa 1:04:21
Just looking at some of the artwork and the designs, it seems like a lot of the Reflections influence is going into the Polynesian [DVC tower]. That’s what it seems like, just looking at it. It’s really interesting because [at] the last big Disney Parks presentation at D23 Expo, a lot of stuff got announced and then COVID happened. I think it’s going to be not necessarily walking back on some of those things, but I think we’ll maybe see what they are turning into instead. This is why I’m also going to say a lot of stuff gets announced at these panels; it doesn’t always end up happening. You can get excited about things but it may or may not come into fruition. As we were talking about this, it just occurred to me because we talked about DVC. I think if we haven’t heard anything about Annual Pass sales, we’ll get an update on that.

Patty 1:05:11
I don’t know. I feel like that’s a potential for this to riot.

Theresa 1:05:17
I think they’ll announce them coming back. They’ll announce sales resuming. They stopped selling all of them over at Disneyland. Well, that’s because it’s summer and the passes that they had available are blocked out for summer. But you’re right; it could be contentious, specifically because this is taking place in California where it’s a little bit more lawsuit-y.

Patty 1:05:42
Correct. If it was me, even if we had a new program coming out, I don’t know that I’d be announcing it at this thing unless we had tested it and run it through the wringer and we knew it was going to be 100%, positively viewed. I think there were a lot of problems with whatever the Magic Key situation is at Disneyland. They’re taking the summer to pause and to reflect on that and to change it up. Unfortunately, I think that what’s going to ultimately [happen], as all things do when you talk Disney, is [that it’s] going to result in higher levels of pricing for the Magic Keys. I think that that’s always continued to be one of the problems between [Walt Disney World] Annual Passes and [Disneyland] Magic Keys. So many Southern California folks in particular need their Magic Keys and Disney was trying to say [that] not so many of you [can be] here all at the same time, we’re going to space this out with reservations. I don’t think it’s worked out how they wanted. I feel like if they come back, they’re also going to come back with a very substantial increase in the price tag.

Theresa 1:06:53
I agree.

Patty 1:06:56
Which is also why I don’t think that’s going to go over well in this setting.

Theresa 1:07:01
If they announced it, they’d be like, “It’s coming back” and that’s all they’re going to say. They will not give details about it. “Annual Passes are coming back. Bye!”

Patty 1:07:11
I can completely see Josh [D’Amaro] standing up there and saying, “And I have some great news! Annual Passes are coming back on sale soon! Be watching for all of that information. Disney Parks Blog! Uh… Bye!”

Theresa 1:07:29
I want to get into my one other set of predictions after this, but can you imagine if in that room they announced the park hopping time restriction going away?

Patty 1:07:37
Oh, I think people would lose their minds. They’d be standing on the stairs. Hey, and listen, if Josh D’Amaro shows up in a blue sweater and says it, I’m done. I’m done. I’m just saying. Disney. Let’s make that happen. So, that’s the Parks.

Jane 1:07:55
This episode is “23 Predictions for D23 Expo and Who Should Wear What.”

Patty 1:08:02
Listen!

Theresa 1:08:05
My last Disney Parks prediction! Because you know I’m going to talk about this park! I haven’t mentioned her yet! She deserves some attention! Three weeks after D23 Expo is EPCOT 40. I think we will get some kind of announcements as to what EPCOT 40 is going to look like, if they haven’t yet. EPCOT had so many announcements last time and they’ve done some updates about what will and will not be going into the current reimagining of EPCOT. But because it’s EPCOT 40 coming up, because it’s been rumored for so long, Journey Into Imagination is long, long overdue for some changes. I think we will get a Dreamfinder return announcement. Because of EPCOT 40, I think there’s a good chance Dreamfinder comes out. Even if it’s an Inside Out overlay coming, which again, I think makes sense. I’m not mad about that. Listen to me talking about Disney characters coming into EPCOT! I would not be mad about Inside Out, but I would be not be surprised if we get a Dreamfinder coming back announcement. When they initially had the EPCOT Experience, you could see a big guitar leaning up on the Mexico Pavilion, which clearly was indicating Coco has been thought of as being what would make sense to go there. They’ve added some of it into the lobby area, so possibly Coco for the Mexico Pavilion. Also long, long, long rumored, which may have changed obviously because of global financial situations: the Brazil Pavilion for World Showcase. We all thought it was going to get announced at the last D23 Expo. A new country has not come into World Showcase since I think Norway in ’88. I think World Showcase is also long overdue for a brand new pavilion back there. Brazil’s been the one that’s been rumored to be, so I wouldn’t be shocked. I don’t know because they have to continue the existing projects before they really announce a lot of new stuff. That’s my long shot, but it’s been long rumored.

Patty 1:10:19
I don’t know. I don’t see a new pavilion coming anytime soon. I feel like that place is such a mess right now. They just need to figure out and finish everything that they’ve got going. Even if in five years they’re going to open the Brazilian pavilion, I don’t think they’ll announce it yet.

Theresa 1:10:39
At most, we will get overlays. We might get a better look at the Moana experience that’s coming. We’ll possibly get some updates on the already announced projects or overlays for existing attractions. But Dreamfinder returning is just – please, Disney! Please give this back to me, bring back the rainbow tunnel, bring back some of these things. Patty and I, we both had a similar prediction. Usually at a lot of these panels, people will get items or get posters for the Disney Parks panel. I was there the year that the new version of Fantasmic was coming back, so we got to go to the park and watch it. Patty and I both had the same prediction for what we think the Disney Parks panel will give to attendees this year.

Patty 1:11:27
What is it?

Theresa 1:11:30
We think that because we know it’s coming out soon for both coasts, everybody who attends the panel will probably get the MagicBand+.

Patty 1:11:40
I definitely think that’s a good possibility. Maybe I’m wrong. Maybe that’s too expensive of an item for them to be giving out, but I also think that they have the opportunity to really make some guests dreams come true by giving away something like that. We’ll see. That was my my thought. There will be something on the Expo floor that you can go over and play with [along with your MagicBand+]. Maybe those golden statues or something along those lines show up all around the Expo floor [and] you can take your newly acquired MagicBand+ and go have some fun. I could see that being really explored at D23 Expo as well. Real quick, let’s just touch on this. Does anybody have anything that they are expecting to hear from at the Disney Branded Television [panel]? The Disney TV shows, not Disney+ shows but Disney Channel, that sort of thing. Anything that you are expecting to see? I really didn’t have a list, so I don’t have anything really to say much about that.

Other Predictions for D23 Expo 2022

Theresa 1:12:54
I have quick things. They did actually say Disney+ will have a presence at this. The ones that they have announced look at the new Disney+ Original Series National Treasure, American Born Chinese, and The Santa Claus. We do know that it’s not going to be exclusive [to Disney Branded Television]. There’s going be some Hulu announcements. I don’t have any strong thoughts. My hope is that we’ll get announcements of some of the Disney+ shows I really liked. Prop Culture, the Disney’s Animal Kingdom series that they did. Behind the Attraction was not my favorite series, but I thought it was good. I would just love to see more from that. They had also announced an Ink and Paint Docuseries years ago that there has been no update on. The one I’m really hoping we hear about is the Society of Explorers and Adventurers [series]. S.E.A. has its presence throughout all of the Disney Parks. They’ve told us that they are planning some series, maybe movies. There’s a whole universe. The S.E.A.C.U. [Society of Adventurers and Explorers Cinematic Universe] is what I’m calling it. I’m hoping we get something about what that looks like because they’ve teased it for a while. That’s what I’m most excited about in terms of Disney+ or some of that additional content coming out. Whether it’s Disney+ Day or Disney Branded Television panel, I hope we hear more about what that is.

Patty 1:14:34
Got it. Oh, and then they’re wrapping the whole thing up on Sunday afternoon. There’s going to be a Disney Concert. It’s going to have Disney Princesses singing. I’ve actually [gone] to two of their Sunday afternoon panels where they did musical stuff. The two that I went to were very sparsely attended in comparison, but they were amazing. I mean, I got to sing along with Josh Gad and Kristen Bell with the Frozen crew. That was really great. The other one had Alan Menken singing at a piano. You can’t get any better than that. You know that this is going to be an amazing experience and it’s a great way to wrap up your D23 Expo experience with this concert. That is happening Sunday evening. Now, for anyone that’s not going to any of the D23 Expo this year, we will have a ton of content for you. We will, of course, be doing updates. My hope is that the three of us can get together at the end of each day and do a quick little 15-20 minute rundown of some of the stuff that we saw so that we can update you guys in real time on the podcast. That’s what I did last year on No-Guilt Fangirl, if you guys want to go back and listen to the D23 Expo experiences there. It’s all still on that podcast. I have not done anything recently on that podcast, but the podcast exists and you can go back to the backlog if you want to find some D23 Expo experiences that we discussed a couple of years ago now. That’s my hope is that the three of us will be able to get together and do quick updates based on which panels we went to. These are just the big panels, there’s going to be a lot of breakouts and a lot of smaller panels. In the past, I went to a High School Musical: The Musical: The Series panel; absolutely loved it. There was an Agents of SHIELD panel. There are always a lot of different panels. Theresa’s also got to see some specific Imagineering type panels, that sort of thing. There’s that to look forward to. There’s going to be all kinds of experiences on the Expo floor that we can tell you guys about for those that are following along at home. There’s a lot of D23 coming your way and we are excited about it. Again, this doesn’t go down until September 9, but you know we’re going to be talking about it up until then. Anything else, ladies, about D23 predictions? I know we hit well more than 23. I did not count them. If anybody did count them and we came in under 23, let me know and we’ll throw in some more in the Facebook group. I am positive that we hit 23. Did anybody count? Okay, that’s what I thought.

Theresa 1:17:30
I did make sure my list was at 15 because I have a lot to say. I grouped them together so we can condense them. We’ll figure it out.

Patty 1:17:47
That’s what we promised. That’s what we said. So there you go!

Jane 1:17:52
If you have anything that you specifically want to ask about with D23 or let us know what you want to hear while we’re out there, you can send us an email at [email protected] or you can join us in our Facebook group, No-Guilt Disney.

Theresa 1:18:08
And make sure you join us each week on the No-Guilt Disney Podcast, because as Patty likes to say –

Patty 1:18:13
It’s no fun to fan girl blue sweaters at D23 Expo alone. #AllTheBlueSweaters. Bye, y’all.

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