When Disney World opened in 1971, standards and societal norms were much different than they are now.
Sexist and racist tropes were commonly accepted, which led to few, if any, park visitors being angry about things that would horrify many Americans now.
There are, of course, some people who hate change and don't understand why the "Pirates of the Caribbean" ride should not depict a group of women being sold into marriage against their will.
That scene was replaced in 2018 and Disney has made similar efforts to modernize the story of classic rides including "Jungle Cruise," which had a major storyline update.
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Disney has also completely rethemed its "Splash Mountain" ride at Disney World and Disneyland, which had been themed on "Song of the South," a film now widely seen as racist.
"The history of Disney's Song of the South is one of cheer, racism, and the odd choice to build an amusement park ride based on a film generations have never seen, or ever will," Collider explained. "The film is one filled with mixed messages, taking place in a time after slavery had been abolished, but still depicting black people as subservient to the white,"
Tiana’s Bayou Adventure, a similar log flume ride, will replace the original theming with a new story built around Disney's "The Princess and the Frog” in late 2024.
Now, Disney World is about to close another ride that has controversial (and dated) theming — Hollywood Studios' Rock 'n' Roller Coaster Starring Aerosmith."
Image source: Walt Disney
Could Disney World retheme Rock 'n' Roller Coaster?
Aerosmith has not aged as well as many of its classic rock peers. The band has faded in popularity since its 1970s heyday and its massive late-1980s comeback.
That's partly because some of the band's hits have not aged well ("Dude Looks Like a Lady" and "Janie's Got a Gun," for example) and partly because lead singer Steven Tyler faces multiple accusations of sexual assault of a minor.
In general, Walt Disney (DIS) -) has moved away from basing rides on intellectual property it does not own. It makes little sense to pay an outside party to use their name, image, and music when Disney has so many of its own IP options it could use.
That's a bit more complicated in Florida where Disney is limited in how it can use its Marvel characters based on its long-term deal with Comcast's (CMCSA) -) Universal Studios.
Under the terms of that agreement, which was made before Disney bought Marvel, the company can't use popular characters like Spiderman, The Hulk, and the X-Men because they're being used by Universal.
So, as Disney prepares to shut down "Rock 'n' Roller Coaster Starring Aerosmith" for about five months beginning Jan. 8, the one thing we know is that any retheme won't be an Avengers-based overhaul like the one the company did with the version of the ride at Disneyland Paris.
Disney has not disclosed its plans
It's possible that the five-month shutdown will not involve any sort of retheme. The indoor roller coaster uses Aerosmith's music to provide the soundtrack for a "limo" ride through downtown Los Angeles.
The timetable is not long enough for a full revamping of the ride. It might be enough time to replace Aerosmith with another band.
"Some fans, including me, had hoped that Disney would swap Aerosmith for its own Dr. Teeth and the Electric Mayhem, but Disney+ recently canceled its series featuring that Muppet rock band after a single season, pretty much scuttling any hope that the band would get a new home in Disney's Hollywood Studios," Theme Park Insider's Robert Niles wrote.
Disney also seems unlikely to pay the price it would have to meet to theme the ride to Queen or the Rolling Stones (the long-rumored original plan for "Rock 'n' Roller Coaster").
The most likely outcome, if Disney makes a change, would be to keep the Rock 'n' but lose Aerosmith. That could mean building it around a generic band and changing the soundtrack — changes that probably could be made in five months.
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