With the closing of the studio Backlot tour, I thought I would share some history of the attraction.
The Studio Backlot Tour opened with Disney’s MGM Studios (Now Hollywood Studios) on May 1st 1989. The original entrance to the tour was housed at the current entrance to The Magic of Disney Animation.
The original tour lasted much longer then the final version, and included a drive through New York Street/Streets of America. The park proved popular, and New York Street/ Streets of America were removed from the tour and turned into public space within the first few years to add capacity to the small park. The tram then drove through Catastrophe Canyon, just like the final version of the tour.
After visiting Catastrophe Canyon, guests disembarked at the current exit area, and took a break at the area where the current Studio Catering Co. restaurant & adjacent shop is.
Guests would then embark on the second half of the tour. The break area was expanded to include Honey, I Shrunk the Kids: Movie Set Adventure.
The second half of the tour consisted of a walking tour which encompassed the water special effects tank, an effects shop, and the existing soundstages along Mickey Avenue and the soundstages that currently house The Legend of Captain Jack Sparrow, Walt Disney: One Man’s Dream, and Voyage of the Little Mermaid.
The soundstages were viewed from overhead walkways. Small bits of these walkways can still be seen today. Just like New York Street, former Backlot areas were opened up creating present day Mickey Avenue & southern Animation Courtyard).
Much of the walking portion of the Tour became its own attraction. It was named Backstage Pass, and was a separate experience from the original tour. With this change, the tour time was greatly reduced.
Soon after the modification to create Backstage Pass, the entrance to the Backlot Tour was moved to the end of Mickey Avenue, with the entrance now leading up to the water effects tank, the addition of a prop warehouse building to extend the queue, and a new loading area for the trams. In 2001, Backstage Pass closed.
In April of 2001, Soundstage 3 opened with Who Wants To Be A Millionaire – Play It! The attraction closed in 2006. In 2008, Soundstage 2 and 3 were converted into Toy Story Midway Mania!. Soundstage 1 currently sits empty waiting for a future attraction or, if rumors are to be believed, an additional track for Toy Story Midway Mania!
The adjacent building, an unnamed enclosed area and theater, housed for many years an attraction called “The Making of______”. The blank is filled in with the name of various films released throughout the attraction’s life. In 2001, the space was converted into Walt Disney: One Man’s Dream.
In 2003, the Residential Street portion of the tour was walled off and demolished. This freed up real estate to build The Lights, Motors, Action Stunt Show. The Backlot Tour was re-routed to avoid the attraction. Parts of the former residential street were utilized for the tour’s relocated and downsized boneyard and for the tram roadways. This once again reduced the overall length and size of the tour.
In 2008, the live tour guides on the trams were replaced by an automated spiel. The Special Effects Water Tank continued to have a live cast with volunteer guests.
The final version of the show was permentley closed on September 27th 2014. What follows is a tour of what that final version of the attraction offered:
The Entrance/Queue:
Guests entered a large canopy-covered area That featured props from Pearl Harbor, Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl, and The Rock. Guests could choose one of four lines to enter and see the props as well as a film that featured director Michael Bay telling guests how some of the special effects scenes from Pearl Harbor (2001) were filmed. While this was an interesting feature when it was installed, the effects were extremely outdated for 2014. While in the queue, four volunteers were randomly chosen to be used in the water tank portion.
Walking tour:
Guests were then taken into a show area with a large water tank in front of them with props such as the deck and the engine room of a patrol boat. Cast Members then explained how the water tank and props could be used in filming scenes for action films. The volunteers that were chosen would then participate in a special effects demonstration, known as Harbor Attack. One of the volunteers sat in the engine room and was overcome by a deluge of water (1,000 Gallons of Water) coming into the room through a window from two dump tanks above. The other volunteers would stand on the deck while an attack happened. Explosions underwater, simulated torpedo bursts, and fireballs were used to simulate the attack. When filming was finished the footage was put together with previously recorded footage of airplane attacks and dialogue and shown to the guests.
The guests then continued into a large prop warehouse which navigated aisles of props used in different major productions including Marvin’s Room, The Santa Clause 1 and 2, Honey, I Shrunk the Kids, Honey, I Blew Up the Kid, Who Framed Roger Rabbit, Prince of Persia, The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, The Great Muppet Caper, and George of the Jungle. Several of the props were tagged with information about each one. As you exited, the tram part of the tour began.
Tram tour:
The tram took you through different areas while a prerecorded narration explained what was found there. Guests traveled past the Earful Tower, the costume and materials building, which had a thru-way for the tram and windows for guests to see the costumes and people working, as well as glass cases displaying costumes used in recent productions.
When the tram left the building, it brought you to the boneyard (where movie vehicles and planes were stored). Vehicles from many films were parked here.
Props included:
– The Steamroller used during the climax of Who Framed Roger Rabbit,
– Ships from the original Star Wars films,
– The duo motorcycles from Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade,
– The escape pod from The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy,
– Cars used in the Herbie the Love Bug films
And
– The Spaceship from Flight of the Navigator
After leaving the boneyard, the tram visited Catastrophe Canyon, a rocky area with a fuel truck and water tanks inside of it. The tram shook, and the fuel truck exploded followed by a flood of water rushing down from the canyon and from above the tram. The tram then went around behind the set to show the back of it.
Bob Gurr wrote a wonderful article about the creation of the canyon. It can be viewed here.
After exiting the canyon, the tram traveled through parts of the boneyard again, past the Lights, Motors, Action! Extreme Stunt Show stadium and practice areas, then passed by Walt Disney’s private airplane N234MM or simply “The Mouse”.
Bob also shares a story about his trip on Walt’s plane HERE
After this, the tram pulled to the exit. For those who remembered the attraction in its glory days, it was a short and not so sweet experience.
Post-ride:
In order to leave the attraction, guests had to walk through an American Film Institute museum exhibit based on AFI’s 50 Greatest Villains, as well as props from Titanic. The exhibit and store were closed in August 2014, a month prior to the attraction’s closure. This space now houses Wandering Oaken’s Trading Post.
Personally, I am sad to see the Backlot Tour go, but would be pleased to see something major come to this large expansion plot. Disney hasn’t said what will fill the space, but one could only speculate that something must be on the way . . . on September 26th, WDI Chief Creative Executive Bruce Vaughn, Chairman Walt Disney Parks and Resorts Tom Staggs, Disney’s Hollywood Studios VP Dan Cockerell, WDI’s Kathy Mangum, Walt Disney World President George Kalogridis, and John Lasseter were all seen together at the area near Toy Story Midway Mania, and the Backlot Tour.
This group of creative minds have the ability to bring something big and exciting to Disney’s Hollywood Studios, John Lasseter’s presence would appear to indicate that the project is more than likely related to one of the Pixar films.
Do you have memories of the original Studio Tour and it’s slow shrink into obscurity? Do you have thoughts on what you’d like to see come to this space? We’d love to hear your thoughts and memories below.