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Disney Sets a September 14 Opening Date for The Magic of Disney Animation at Hollywood Studios
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Disney Sets a September 14 Opening Date for The Magic of Disney Animation at Hollywood Studios

Michael Travels
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Published
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Updated

Disney has finally put a date on it: The Magic of Disney Animation opens at Disney's Hollywood Studios on September 14, 2026. The new attraction revives a name retired when the original closed in 2015, and it takes over the building that most recently housed Star Wars Launch Bay, while the surrounding Animation Courtyard is rebranded The Walt Disney Studios.

This is the payoff of the construction we reported in early July. Disney has now revealed both the opening date and the full lineup of what is inside, and Olaf's voice, Josh Gad, summed up the pitch:

I'm so thrilled that a whole new generation of kids can dream of becoming animators one day and can actually begin their journey right there on the studio lot.

The quick facts: The Magic of Disney Animation opens September 14, 2026 at Disney's Hollywood Studios, inside the former Star Wars Launch Bay building. Animation Courtyard is being rebranded The Walt Disney Studios. Five experiences make up the attraction: Once Upon a Studio Theater, Olaf Draws!, Off the Page!, Drawn to Wonderland, and an Enchanted Art Gallery.

A new home in the old animation building

The attraction sits in a building modeled on the Roy E. Disney Animation Building in Burbank, California, topped with Mickey's Sorcerer Hat, mirroring the real studio on the West Coast. The name is a deliberate throwback: the original Magic of Disney Animation operated at the park until 2015, though this is a new, differently configured experience rather than a straight revival.

Drawn to Wonderland

The family-focused experience is Drawn to Wonderland, an indoor play area for younger guests inspired by Disney Legend Mary Blair's original concept art for "Alice in Wonderland." It includes a Mad Tea Party, the Mad Hatter's house, the Queen of Hearts' rose garden, and the Cheshire Cat's Tulgey Wood.

Concept art for Drawn to Wonderland, an indoor play area inspired by Mary Blair's Alice in Wonderland artConcept art for Drawn to Wonderland, the indoor play space inspired by Mary Blair's "Alice in Wonderland" art. Image: Disney.

Off the Page! and Olaf Draws!

Off the Page! stages character meet-and-greets across six animation departments: Mulan in Story, Rapunzel in Layout, Chip 'n' Dale in Hand-Drawn, Donald and Daisy in Computer Animation, Goofy in Lighting, and Stitch in Effects. Olaf Draws! is a drawing-instruction experience hosted by an Audio-Animatronics Olaf with new dialogue from Josh Gad, where recorded Disney Animation artists teach guests to draw characters including Mickey, Minnie, Donald, Genie, Moana, Stitch, Olaf, Ursula, and Judy Hopps and Nick Wilde.

An Audio-Animatronics Olaf hosts the Olaf Draws! animation-class experienceAn Audio-Animatronics Olaf, voiced by Josh Gad, hosts the Olaf Draws! drawing class. Image: Disney. Rapunzel greets guests in the Layout stage of Off the Page!Rapunzel greets guests in the Layout stage of Off the Page! Image: Disney.

Once Upon a Studio Theater

Rounding out the attraction is the Once Upon a Studio Theater, a dedicated theater screening the Emmy Award-winning short "Once Upon a Studio" with enhanced in-theater effects, plus an Enchanted Art Gallery. The full lineup debuts when the attraction opens September 14.

Sources

Image credits: All concept art and photography by Disney.

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