When Pirates of the Caribbean re-opens at Disneyland Paris on July 24, guests will discover new surprises as well as a band of new buccaneers. The blockbuster “Pirates of the Caribbean” films provided the inspiration for our Imagineering team to come up with new twists and turns in our story, and a chance to introduce new characters and magic to this classic attraction.
Captain Barbossa, from the blockbuster films, will appear in the attraction for the first time, joining a skeletal crew in a scene unique to Disneyland Paris. Also, ghostly visages of Davy Jones and Blackbeard will warn that “dead men DO tell tales!”
Throughout the attraction, we’ve enhanced the show with new Audio-Animatronics figures, costumes, special effects, lighting and sound, including some of the now-classic musical themes from the films. Of course, the classic “A Pirates Life for Me!” song will continue to underscore the attraction.
You’ll even discover that a familiar character is playing a new role joining the pirates ranks and helping the local townspeople “unload” their valuables at the Mercado auction. In the U.S., this famous redhead will appear in a similar scene at the Magic Kingdom Park and Disneyland park in 2018 following a previously scheduled refurbishment. Click here to view an artist’s rendering of the new Walt Disney World and Disneyland Resort scenes.
Disneyland Paris guests will also discover some changes to the Blue Lagoon Restaurant, re-opening as Captain Jack’s. It seems that Captain Jack won the restaurant in a wager and is now welcoming pirates of all ages to relax over a drink and hot meal. The interior of the restaurant has been re-themed and the establishment has been staffed with a fun-loving band of pirates.
The adventures set sail on July 24 in Adventureland at Disneyland Paris.
Comments
it’s not like this is the first time that Pirates has been altered. In 1997, the scene (following the auction) with the pirates chasing women was altered into pirates chasing after food that the women are holding, and that famous “pooped pirate” was turned into the gluttonous pirate. So really, this auction scene change was bound to happen eventually.
The attraction was always about the fun, romanticized version of piracy.
Disneyland is not a historical landmark. They can change anything that they want. Why is it ok for some things to change and others to not change? What’s with all of the opinionated picking and choosing?
Walt Disney intended the park to change and evolve to reflect new technologies, the times, and public tastes. I believe in Walt’s vision.
At the end of the day, I’m just excited at the prospect of something *new* in the attraction, and it’s been years since Walt Disney Imagineering has created realistic human animatronics, so I’m looking forward to seeing the new figures. In recent years, most new animatronics have only been cartoony characters and creatures.
Continued
This attraction was one of the last that Walt touched (if not THE last). Nobody cared all these years about this scene. Nobody that matters cares today. If you want to make her a pirate, then add a scene on the way out of the ride. I would also like to see more effects added to the going back up the waterfall into our times, so this is a good chance to plus this up. Please do not meddle with the auction scene, at least not at Disneyland. I was against adding movie characters, but those are more of an overlay, and can be easily changed if need be. There are many additions that I like, and that I can deal with, but changing the wench auction scene us not one if these changes. I’m always OK with adding more pirates, and I feel that Walt would’ve liked them being added, plussed, and all that jazz.
Small World losto some of its soul with changes that were made…please leave pirates alone. Nothing about pirates is p.c.
Period.
Ya know, I find this change to be GREATLY stuffed with hypocrisy. The movies are FAR from politically correct, and are very offensive, as they should be, with the treatment of women. This is especially true of Captain Jack. The first movie was great, the rest were meh…especially the last two if the trilogy. They became very blazing saddles esque.
So, on to my point.
Sometimes a make believe scene in a Pirate ride is just that… make believe. This isn’t a history book or a life lesson. Disney should spend more time changing lightbulbs and broken floor tiles than changing this great ride.
Growth is good and necessary, however true growth cannot take place through subtraction but only by addition. Please don’t let a handful of people who can’t separate a ride from reality subtract from this iconic ride, one of the last Walt Disney worked on. Subtractions from any attraction lead to the park losing some of its magic, and the more changes like this made in the park the less of that original Disney magic will remain until it’s gone. By all means keep growing the parks by making additions to them not subtracting from them.
I honestly think they should leave the ride as is! I never even noticed the sign behind the women. As a child I didn’t notice or cared. I just wanted to get a little scared.
Remember what the pirate sitting by the barrel used to say (when the girl he was looking for was peeking out of it instead of Jack Sparrow)? “It’s sore I be to hoist me colors on the likes of that shy little wench.” And then he asked us to “Keep a weather eye out..I be willing to share, I be!” Kind of creepy what that, the auction scene, and the pirates chasing the women implied. A lot of portrayals in the entertainment industry have changed since the time of Walt to reflect a (hopefully) a more enlightened society. No one would think blackface is acceptable anymore, would they?. I think we can all agree that Pirates of the Caribbean is pretty sanitized version of history for entertainment purposes but I think the time of the imminent rape gags has come and gone.
Thank you Disney for making this change to the ride. I am happy for the update. As Walt said “Around here, however, we don’t look backwards for very long. We keep moving forward, opening up new doors and doing new things, because we’re curious…and curiosity keeps leading us down new paths.”
I’m fine with adding the movie characters. Please don’t keep changing the theme of the ride to make it more politically correct. Some have said it’s not alright for children to think it’s ok for auctioning the women. These are important conversations to have, being a pirate is not ok! This is a way to have conversation with children. There are still pirates in the seas, do not romanticize so much that it is misleading. Mr. Disney seemed to always keep a fear and edge in his stories and rides. DO NOT loose this please! I personally enjoy revisiting and remembering the original stories.
Please don’t do this. It would break my heart. I was already hurt when you added Disney film characters to It’s A Small World and honestly wasn’t too keen on the first update to Pirates adding Capt. Jack Sparrow (although I love Johnny Depp). Is nothing sacred?
Disappointed. The ride became our favorite before the movie and before the SJW obsession. It never needed to change and it would have still been loved by the majority. This will be remembered as a mistake that could have been avoided by only listening to the customers who are always rooting for you.
What a shame. As a kid, I knew Pirates was more than just a “water ride.” It was an educational, dynamic, and thrilling experience. The depiction of the scenes aren’t a behavior endorsement, and it doesn’t take a genius to know that! It’s history! We learn what’s right and wrong by seeing truth.
Just redo the whole ride if you want to make the ride an IP experience like Shanghai. But to dumb it down is just a huge loss in the Disneyland experience.
One more post;
I want to point out that the attraction was never meant to be historically accurate. The attraction has always been about the FUN, ROMANTICIZED side of piracy.
I don’t care what anyone says on social media. Most people on social media are ALWAYS crowing about something that they dislike. The fact of the matter is, most of the casual daily guests who visit the park in real life are not going to think that this is a big deal.
I know what I am talking about. This is not my first rodeo, I am speaking from experience.
Please do NOT REMOVE. After all these years you now want to REMOVE the Sign. Please leave it. I DO NOT wish for it to be REMOVED.
#wewantstheredhead
POTC just celebrated its 50th anniversary. Why are you changing it? I completely understood and supported the change to incorporate characters from the movie franchise but this change is just ridiculous. Where does the PC police stop? The ride depicts drunkenness, theft, murder, and arson. That’s what pirates did.
As a child I never understood what the scene meant and my children never asked me about it. But if they had it would have been an educational moment to teach them. If parents don’t know how to talk to their children about the subjects on the ride, that’s on them.
I’m disappointed in Disney.
To those that voice concerns that sexual slavery is still an issue in the world, I say this: You’ll do more to combat it by leaving the scene as a starting point for conversation than by hiding the fact that such a thing exists. Those that don’t understand history are doomed to repeat it.
In the United States, we talk about the horrors slavery. We talk about how Europeans stole land from the native inhabitants. No sane person would see that as an endorsement.
In Germany, they talk about what the Nazi’s did, they don’t hide it from public view.
Yes, selling women into slavery was and is horrible. Let’s not hide it from public view. Let’s depict life as it was so that we can have a discussion about how it should be.
“We pillage, we plunder, we rifle and loot…” Now the pirates are going to be bidding for the villagers’ possessions? This ride depicts events in the years spanning the 1500’s to the 1800’s. Please do not change it to 21st Century gender equality (redhead as pirate) or sugar coat the pillaging. What are we to think when we come to the end scenes of the village in flames? Possibly Mrs. O’Leary’s cow kicked over a lantern?
I love these new ideas and changes! This is really going to elevate the ride and propel it into this century — refreshed and ready to go for another however many years.
Thanks as always, Disney cast members and imagineers, for your tireless work. I and my loved ones greatly appreciate it.
Looking forward to the changes!!!
I appreciate Mr. Disney’s sentiment that Disneyland should continue to change. However, please NO! This is my favorite ride and I have embraced other recent changes but not this! No! We wants the redhead! And not as an auctioneer.
I get changing things up, but why not leave the ride as it is at Disneyland, and bring the changes to Disneyland Paris only? Not every park is exactly the same anyway…
Thank you for making this change. The depiction of human trafficking was not entertaining. This is a positive and compassionate change.
so disappointed you will be changing the pirates ride at Disneyland. I’ve always been fond of that ride, it’s a Disneyland Icon & should stay as is. While it’s not an appropriate scene for today, it depicts a long ago time & you can’t cleans history to make it PC for todays values.
PLEASE DON’T CHANGE THIS ICONIC SCENE!
We homeschooled our DD and often the classroom was Disneyland. What can you learn in POTC? You can inspire your child to look at history and see what the truth is/was. Truth is the pirates did auction woman off. Did it happen as depicted in the ride? No! But it gets people thinking.
Add another huge NO to the change!!
Sad to get rid of the redhead another reason why not to go to Disney
I want to first contextualize this comment: I’m a massive Disney Parks fan. I’ve been to Disneyland over 200 times, Disney World nearing 30 times, and Disneyland Paris twice. I’m a Premier Passholder and a DVC member. I care immensely about the integrity of Walt’s vision and the parks as both a creative and business endeavor. There are plenty of questionable moves by park management over the years (like making the upcoming Max Pass a paid feature, like Universal’s cutting for the rich system.)
This is NOT one of those mistakes. First, as Marty Sklar rightly points out, Walt himself said Disneyland should always grow and change, that it will never be finished. Should the Carousel of Progress have always ended in the 1960s? That was one of Walt’s original attractions, too.
Let’s be clear: this is not Disney being overly OC. We’re not talking about borderline sexism. This is literally a scene of women being auctioned into sexual slavery. That’s something that actually still happens to people. And it’s an extremely serious and dark thing to portray in a family ride. How would you feel if the people being auctioned off were young boys? That would surely make all parents disgusted. It should be no different.
And to those crying that this is just historical… Come on. Do you really think almost anything in the ride is a historical portrayal of Caribbean pirates? Of course not. It’s a whimsical look at the romantic version of piracy. And nothing about auctioning off women is romantic. As for history, there actually were female pirates, so that’s not a PC rewrite.
Yes, this scene had its day, its great lines, its fun characters. But there is absolutely no reason those lines and characters can’t be incorporated into this new version of the scene. Frankly, I am excited to see the Redhead as a cool pirate. That’s a POTC ride character that little girls might find cool, for instance. But honestly, it’s a surprise that this wasn’t changed decades ago. Good on Imagineering for finding a clever, respectful way to do it now.
Very disappointing news. Why not do this somewhere else on the attraction? I would much rather WDI create a brand new scene from whole cloth for this rather than changing something that’s been an iconic and humorous staple of the ride since its inception.
Please don’t change the Red Head auction scene. We wants it the way it is!
I’m glad they’re changing it. I was never comfortable with that scene and didn’t think it was appropriate for children. Some changes are good and I applaud this one. Thanks, Disney!
No!!!! Please do not do this!! It’s awesome the way it is and is a classic ride!
NOOOOOO! Please leave our red head alone!!!! ?
Brief note: I got my dates mixed up in my last post, that’s why I re-posted it. Sorry for the confusion.
I have to cast my opinion that I am not at all in favor to the announced changes to the Redhead at both the Disneyland Park and the Walt Disney World’s Magic Kingdom Park. Not only has the bride auction scene been designed, built, and played out as it currently is since 1967, so for a solid 50 years, but also in that time it has become so very beloved and iconic to the attraction. As these changes have not yet happened in the USA, I strongly urge the Imagineers and other decision makers in charge of the US Parks to kindly reconsider this change to the Redhead. I do not see how turning her into a rifle-toting, sea-faring Annie Oakley-wannabe is going to enhance the attraction. She is a beautiful lady of the night, not a pirate.
But …. We WANTS the Redhead!!!… and all of Walt’s original rides to stay original! Never have any of these wonderful scenes ever made me think of negative things! They are all just amazing portrayals of a different time! You are ruining an iconic piece of history!
Horrible, horrible, horrible idea. Literally NO ONE I know thinks this is a good idea. You might as well take the scene out completely and put “Censored” signs where it once was. The new idea isn’t funny, doesn’t advance the story snd is insulting to the original. Smooth move.
Coming to Disney 2025! Merchants in the Caribbean! An adventurous ride with the lovable group of merchants as they deliver goods throughout the Caribbean. Nothing else exciting happens…sorry.
What a terrible idea. That scene is THE iconic scene of the entire attraction. And you’re going to change it because? I grew up going to WDW and now take my family there. Never once have any of us thought that selling brides was a good thing. Never once did we think that Disney was encouraging that type of behavior. What a terrible TERRIBLE idea.
Does it matter at all that the overwhelming majority here (and even worse on other sites where you can’t manage the comments) don’t want this to happen? It’s a truly awful idea.
Two questions;
1. Shouldn’t the customers be excited about the additions/changes you make?
2. Does what the customers actually want matter?
This is NOT a change we want. Why does “equality” mean women have to look like or act like men? Must we remove ALL of Walt’s ideas from the park? This is a change I absolutely oppose and it would be yet another reason NOT to visit the park. Leave it as it is.
A sad day for any Disneyland fan!
Great change, Disney! I can’t understand why anyone is upset about this. I think it’s a great thing, and I’m glad impressionable children won’t be seeing that scene much longer.
This was never an accurate depiction of piracy in the first place. If it were, she’d be depicted as abused and beaten, or worse. She wouldn’t be saucy or suggestive. She’d be terrified. No one would have wanted to see a scene depicting that forty years ago. Frankly, most of us don’t want to see anyone being sold into slavery today, even if they are buxom redheads with an alluring demeanor, and even if it is the way the ride always was. Some people feel nostalgic over this scene. The thought of what this scene really means turns my stomach, and I know I’m not the only woman who feels that way.
Pirates fans: instead of being upset over this, please try being upset over the erosion of women’s rights. Be upset over domestic abuse and our culture of misogyny. Hey, maybe you can even be upset over actual human trafficking. There are better things to focus your energy on.
For those saying the pirates are auctioning off furniture, re-read the post. They’re RELIEVING people of their possessions. Probably calling it an auction — “if you give us this stuff, we’ll pay you with your own life, because we won’t kill you if you turn it over.”
I’m in “wait and see” mode. This scene may become a new icon. Or I may end up vastly disappointed. But until I see more than marketing-speak and a single piece of concept art, it’s too soon for me to pick a side.
Disney certainly makes their mistakes, but I don’t assume that ANY change is a mistake until I see it in action. After all, I was against the Guardians of the Galaxy re-theme of Tower of Terror, but it’s been popular (I’m still not a fan of the change but I can’t argue with the results, at least in the short term — we’ll see how it works out in the long term).
Please don’t make this change in Disneyland. While Pirates is far from a historically accurate depiction of the terror that were (and are) pirates, it doesn’t need to be changed. Is the red head a tie in to another film character we haven’t met yet? Even then, wouldn’t it be sly of her to sneak into the auction to set the women free?! The auctioneer is a fantastic peice of work, and, yes, though the scene harkens back to a different time, it’s iconic.
Please please please Disney, don’t overlook the value of your history in a constant search for the politically correct answer. Pirates tells a good story just as it is.
Why!?!?!?! After the hype of turning 50, YOU want to change it? Or were there complaints of the “way it portrayed women”? Please don’t change this iconic scene. I was going to write something rude but I dont wanna be the mob, please dont change this at WALTS Disneyland…
Add me to the list of people who are extremely disappointed with this news and don’t see the need for it. So you’re rerecording the auctioneer, removing Paul Frees from his most iconic role in this attraction (as well as the wonderful phrase “fo’c’s’le swab,” leaving an attraction where the only insult left for these pirates to call each other is “bilge rat.” I guess pirates weren’t known for their creativity). Are you also going to remove Alice Davis’ costumes?
While we are at it…Let’s just re-write history regarding things that happened in the past. Let’s no longer acknowledge anything that closely resembles anything that makes anyone feel uncomfortable. Pretty annoyed about this change. I can only imagine that more of the PC philosophy will end up closing down the ride in the future, because…really…is a Pirate’s life truly one that we want to portray in today’s PC world? BTW – total sarcasm! I was also annoyed years ago when they changed from the pirates chasing the women to the women chasing the pirates. Anyways…so sad for this upcoming change Disney! Almost sad enough to not ride the ride anymore.
I’m torn in this. But no one here seems to mention the fact that the red head does go on to be a Pirate captain herself, as depicted in the beginning of the ride. The story goes in reverse chronological order. So seeing her as a pirate finally after all these years should be fun.
I have to make yet another comment here;
I was discussing this with my sister earlier to get her opinion (we are both adults in our ’30s) and my sister is glad that they are changing the scene. She feels that the action scene (despite the “buy a bride” sign) still represents male chauvinism with the idea of buying women like they are objects.
She also pointed out that, YES, they ARE pirates, but the point of the attraction has always been about showing the FUN, romanticized side of piracy.
I REALLY hope that someone reads this comment.
On another note, I am getting tired of Disney fans getting riled up about every change. The Frozen musical in 2016, Mission Breakout in 2017, and in 2018 it will be a change to Pirates. Can the “traditionalists” just lighten up and relax for once? They have Disneyland squeezed so tightly that it can’t breath.
As one of the last rides Walt oversaw I’m very sad they felt the need to change this. We need to stop shielding people from history. Why don’t we just give all the pirates cell phones instead of interacting with each other. If parents are so worried and offended then why do they still celebrate Columbus Day and Thanksgiving?
I have to make yet another comment here;
I was discussing this with my sister earlier to get her opinion (we are both adults in our ’30s) and my sister is glad that they are changing the scene. She feels that the action scene (despite the “buy a bride” sign) still represents male chauvinism with the idea of buying women like they are objects.
She also pointed out that, YES, they ARE pirates, but the point of the attraction has always been about showing the FUN, romanticized side of piracy.
I REALLY hope that someone reads this comment.
On another note, I am getting tired of Disney fans getting riled up about every change. The Frozen musical in 2017, Mission Breakout in 2016, and in 2018 it will be a change to Pirates. Can the “traditionalists” just lighten up and relax for once? They have Disneyland squeezed so tightly that it can’t breath.
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