“Who’ll give me ten . . . ten for a hen?” Yes folks, a Pirates for a new generation has reopened at Disneyland. It comes with a few surprises as well. We’ve got the scoop and our thoughts below. We also have Star Wars construction photos, and various updates from the park, where Summer has arrived and crowds are beginning to swell.

Show ’em your hens

The redo of the Redhead scene at Disneyland’s Pirates of the Caribbean is complete. Visually, it’s similar in feel to the old Buy a Bride scene.  The main difference is that the Redhead is no longer a voluptuous maiden awaiting her fate. She’s now a pirate herself. One who isn’t happy about the auctioning of hens. It’s the rum she wants. Additionally, instead of a lineup of potential brides, we now see villagers hauling looted goods. The new dialogue, while a bit cringe-worthy, is heavily inspired by the original bride auction.  Phrases start in a way that will seem familiar and end with their new purpose. It does seem a bit forced, but overall it works for me.

, Disneyland Update – Pirates of the Caribbean Recasts the Redhead as a Pirate Herself

Both Redd and the Auctioneer have a full range of motion, but Redd is much more expressive, turning and making large gestures.

, Disneyland Update – Pirates of the Caribbean Recasts the Redhead as a Pirate Herself

, Disneyland Update – Pirates of the Caribbean Recasts the Redhead as a Pirate Herself

, Disneyland Update – Pirates of the Caribbean Recasts the Redhead as a Pirate Herself



, Disneyland Update – Pirates of the Caribbean Recasts the Redhead as a Pirate Herself , Disneyland Update – Pirates of the Caribbean Recasts the Redhead as a Pirate Herself

, Disneyland Update – Pirates of the Caribbean Recasts the Redhead as a Pirate Herself

Here’s a snip of video of the new auction scene:

, Disneyland Update – Pirates of the Caribbean Recasts the Redhead as a Pirate Herself

The big surprise had nothing to do with the auction scene but rather with the former Davy Jones cave (following the treasure scene). The projection mist screen is now gone (good riddance) and replaced by a new pirate ensnared in a booby trap with a pilfering octopus nearby. But that’s not all, with Davy Jones gone, they were able to restore the original cave soundtrack “No fear of evil curses . . . ” A delightful return to the past.

, Disneyland Update – Pirates of the Caribbean Recasts the Redhead as a Pirate Herself
Swashbuckler caught in a booby-trap – Dead. (Joshua Sudock/Disneyland Resort)
, Disneyland Update – Pirates of the Caribbean Recasts the Redhead as a Pirate Herself
Swashbuckler caught in a booby-trap – Alive. (Joshua Sudock/Disneyland Resort)

, Disneyland Update – Pirates of the Caribbean Recasts the Redhead as a Pirate Herself

The new pirate serves an important role, linking the past to the current. The early caves show the pirates in the past, represented as skeletons. But once you leave the caves, the pirates are all alive. Since this new pirate is at the end of the caves, just before the big pirate ship battle, he’s a skeleton when you first see him . . . but if you look back, he’s alive!

, Disneyland Update – Pirates of the Caribbean Recasts the Redhead as a Pirate Herself
Here he is mid-transformation. This is the same effect Disney uses in Journey into Imagination at Epcot to make the butterfly appear/disappear. It’s simple, but extremely effective.

Here’s the full video (I’ve run some processes on it to lighten the image so you can better make out the new stuff). Make note of:

  • The classic cave narration which begins at the 5:30 mark
  • The new Octopirate at the 6:15 mark
  • The new auction scene at the 8:50 mark

To promote the new scene in the ride, Disneyland now has a walk-around Redhead in New Orleans Square – Just call her Redd. She really does a great job interacting with guests and adds a fun element to the area.

, Disneyland Update – Pirates of the Caribbean Recasts the Redhead as a Pirate Herself
REDD SAILS INTO DISNEYLAND PARK THIS SUMMER  (Joshua Sudock/Disneyland Resort)
, Disneyland Update – Pirates of the Caribbean Recasts the Redhead as a Pirate Herself
REDD  (Joshua Sudock/Disneyland Resort)
, Disneyland Update – Pirates of the Caribbean Recasts the Redhead as a Pirate Herself
Image: MiceChat
, Disneyland Update – Pirates of the Caribbean Recasts the Redhead as a Pirate Herself
Image: MiceChat

On reopening day, they were some “I was there” cards available. The cards help you come up with your Pirate name.

, Disneyland Update – Pirates of the Caribbean Recasts the Redhead as a Pirate Herself , Disneyland Update – Pirates of the Caribbean Recasts the Redhead as a Pirate Herself

And the restaurants of New Orleans Square are getting into the act as well with Pirates of the Caribbean themed items. , Disneyland Update – Pirates of the Caribbean Recasts the Redhead as a Pirate Herself

At the Blue Bayou you’ll find Cursed Pirate” Fried Octopus & Calamari with andouille sausage, rum-soaked pineapple, haricot vert, and remoulade. (Disneyland Resort)

, Disneyland Update – Pirates of the Caribbean Recasts the Redhead as a Pirate Herself
Also at Blue Bayou Restaurant, Chicken Betty’s” Jidori Free Range Chicken with coconut rice, ham hock, maque choux, fried plantains, and a spiced rum glaze. (Disneyland Resort)
, Disneyland Update – Pirates of the Caribbean Recasts the Redhead as a Pirate Herself
Blue Bayou Restaurant – Redd’s Strawberry Cake, a sponge cake soaked in strawberry compote syrup with candied strawberry, coconut Chantilly, and diced pineapple sautéed in brown sugar and vanilla bean. (Disneyland Resort)
, Disneyland Update – Pirates of the Caribbean Recasts the Redhead as a Pirate Herself
Redd Velvet Cake available at French Market Restaurant – through June 10. (Disneyland Resort)
, Disneyland Update – Pirates of the Caribbean Recasts the Redhead as a Pirate Herself
The Golden Churro returns to the Churro Cart in New Orleans Square, only through June 10. (Disneyland Resort)

There are a lot of impassioned opinions on the changing of the Auction scene. How did they do? Given the circumstances, does it look as good or better than before or are you heartbroken?

Tiki Vista Returns to Adventureland

With the Aladdin walls and tower now removed, it’s looking a lot more Tiki on the East side of Adventureland.

, Disneyland Update – Pirates of the Caribbean Recasts the Redhead as a Pirate Herself
Here’s what the former Oasis looks like this week . . .
, Disneyland Update – Pirates of the Caribbean Recasts the Redhead as a Pirate Herself
And here’s what it looked like the week before last. Big change.

, Disneyland Update – Pirates of the Caribbean Recasts the Redhead as a Pirate Herself

, Disneyland Update – Pirates of the Caribbean Recasts the Redhead as a Pirate Herself , Disneyland Update – Pirates of the Caribbean Recasts the Redhead as a Pirate Herself

Some construction scrims have been added to the exit area of Jungle Cruise, including the upstairs queue. But this is just to keep us from taking photos.  Nothing to see here  . . . move along.

, Disneyland Update – Pirates of the Caribbean Recasts the Redhead as a Pirate Herself

, Disneyland Update – Pirates of the Caribbean Recasts the Redhead as a Pirate Herself

A peek through the fence shows how quickly everything was gutted.

, Disneyland Update – Pirates of the Caribbean Recasts the Redhead as a Pirate Herself

Star Wars Land Construction

Most of the new rockwork in Star Wars land is nearing completion, but there are still some obvious exceptions.

, Disneyland Update – Pirates of the Caribbean Recasts the Redhead as a Pirate Herself , Disneyland Update – Pirates of the Caribbean Recasts the Redhead as a Pirate Herself

Some of the rockwork looks like petrified trees, others like mountains.

, Disneyland Update – Pirates of the Caribbean Recasts the Redhead as a Pirate Herself

, Disneyland Update – Pirates of the Caribbean Recasts the Redhead as a Pirate Herself , Disneyland Update – Pirates of the Caribbean Recasts the Redhead as a Pirate Herself , Disneyland Update – Pirates of the Caribbean Recasts the Redhead as a Pirate Herself , Disneyland Update – Pirates of the Caribbean Recasts the Redhead as a Pirate Herself

But the detail that really feels like Star Wars to me are these dome shaped buildings:

, Disneyland Update – Pirates of the Caribbean Recasts the Redhead as a Pirate Herself , Disneyland Update – Pirates of the Caribbean Recasts the Redhead as a Pirate Herself, Disneyland Update – Pirates of the Caribbean Recasts the Redhead as a Pirate Herself

, Disneyland Update – Pirates of the Caribbean Recasts the Redhead as a Pirate Herself
That’s not a Star Wars building in the background, it’s the parking structure. But you can see how the Star Wars project deforested the wilderness exposing this structure. There are some smaller trees at that bottom of this vista which will one day obscure the structure again. But Perhaps they should just paint the park-facing side of the structure in go-away green. or use a camouflage scrim on it like they did with the Indy building in the early days.

Speaking of the parking garage, here’s what Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge looks like from the top of it.

, Disneyland Update – Pirates of the Caribbean Recasts the Redhead as a Pirate Herself , Disneyland Update – Pirates of the Caribbean Recasts the Redhead as a Pirate Herself , Disneyland Update – Pirates of the Caribbean Recasts the Redhead as a Pirate Herself , Disneyland Update – Pirates of the Caribbean Recasts the Redhead as a Pirate Herself , Disneyland Update – Pirates of the Caribbean Recasts the Redhead as a Pirate Herself , Disneyland Update – Pirates of the Caribbean Recasts the Redhead as a Pirate Herself , Disneyland Update – Pirates of the Caribbean Recasts the Redhead as a Pirate Herself , Disneyland Update – Pirates of the Caribbean Recasts the Redhead as a Pirate Herself , Disneyland Update – Pirates of the Caribbean Recasts the Redhead as a Pirate Herself

Ant-Man and the Wasp

A Marvel preview is now showing in the Tomorrowland theater.

, Disneyland Update – Pirates of the Caribbean Recasts the Redhead as a Pirate Herself , Disneyland Update – Pirates of the Caribbean Recasts the Redhead as a Pirate Herself , Disneyland Update – Pirates of the Caribbean Recasts the Redhead as a Pirate Herself , Disneyland Update – Pirates of the Caribbean Recasts the Redhead as a Pirate Herself

This and That

Various little projects and pretty things to see . . .

, Disneyland Update – Pirates of the Caribbean Recasts the Redhead as a Pirate Herself
Pixar Fest continues . . . so now red, white & blue bunting this year.

The poor subs have a rust problem again.

, Disneyland Update – Pirates of the Caribbean Recasts the Redhead as a Pirate Herself , Disneyland Update – Pirates of the Caribbean Recasts the Redhead as a Pirate Herself , Disneyland Update – Pirates of the Caribbean Recasts the Redhead as a Pirate Herself

, Disneyland Update – Pirates of the Caribbean Recasts the Redhead as a Pirate Herself

This new abominable snowman plush is really cute. He’s at the little kiosk on the parade route near Matterhorn and Small World Mall. If you buy 2 they are $20 each.

, Disneyland Update – Pirates of the Caribbean Recasts the Redhead as a Pirate Herself , Disneyland Update – Pirates of the Caribbean Recasts the Redhead as a Pirate Herself , Disneyland Update – Pirates of the Caribbean Recasts the Redhead as a Pirate Herself

Not sure what the holdup is on completing this parade gate near Small World. The metal supports have been up for weeks, but they haven’t installed all the panels.

, Disneyland Update – Pirates of the Caribbean Recasts the Redhead as a Pirate Herself , Disneyland Update – Pirates of the Caribbean Recasts the Redhead as a Pirate Herself

, Disneyland Update – Pirates of the Caribbean Recasts the Redhead as a Pirate Herself

Our wonderful @DisneyBySteph took some beautiful Primeval World photos.

, Disneyland Update – Pirates of the Caribbean Recasts the Redhead as a Pirate Herself , Disneyland Update – Pirates of the Caribbean Recasts the Redhead as a Pirate Herself , Disneyland Update – Pirates of the Caribbean Recasts the Redhead as a Pirate Herself , Disneyland Update – Pirates of the Caribbean Recasts the Redhead as a Pirate Herself , Disneyland Update – Pirates of the Caribbean Recasts the Redhead as a Pirate Herself , Disneyland Update – Pirates of the Caribbean Recasts the Redhead as a Pirate Herself , Disneyland Update – Pirates of the Caribbean Recasts the Redhead as a Pirate Herself

The former Info booth turned Häagen-Dazs stand in the Esplanade has been walled up. I hope they are installing a loop.

, Disneyland Update – Pirates of the Caribbean Recasts the Redhead as a Pirate Herself

The surf shop in Downtown Disney is selling some Tom’s Shoes featuring Disney princess designs.

, Disneyland Update – Pirates of the Caribbean Recasts the Redhead as a Pirate Herself , Disneyland Update – Pirates of the Caribbean Recasts the Redhead as a Pirate Herself , Disneyland Update – Pirates of the Caribbean Recasts the Redhead as a Pirate Herself , Disneyland Update – Pirates of the Caribbean Recasts the Redhead as a Pirate Herself , Disneyland Update – Pirates of the Caribbean Recasts the Redhead as a Pirate Herself

, Disneyland Update – Pirates of the Caribbean Recasts the Redhead as a Pirate Herself

, Disneyland Update – Pirates of the Caribbean Recasts the Redhead as a Pirate Herself

And that’s a wrap. We have a DCA update for you later this week. The Pier is nearly ready for its Pixar debut.

My sincere thanks to #DisneyBySteph for her help with some of the photos today. I could never have captured those low light Pirate photos with my camera.  She’s truly amazing.

Be sure to follow along on social so you don’t miss out on all the fun as it happens. We aggregate it all for you in this article, but we like to share as we go on social.

, Disneyland Update – Pirates of the Caribbean Recasts the Redhead as a Pirate Herself
Perhaps ye knows too much… ye’ve seen the cursed treasure, you know where it be hidden. Now proceed at your own risk. These be the last friendly words ye’ll hear. Ye may not survive to pass this way again…
Dusty Sage
Dusty Sage
https://www.micechat.com
Dusty is the founder and CEO of MiceChat.com. When he's not visiting theme parks and writing, editing or speaking about Disney and theme parks worldwide, Dusty is involved in multiple Disney related projects and charities. He helped save and restore the charming Walt Disney Birthplace in Chicago, launched the Dick Van Dyke Foundation, and is the curator of Walt Disney's historic 1930's estate in Hollywood. If you've got news or photos to share with the MiceChat community, or would like to book Dusty for an upcoming event, please contact [email protected]
Facebook