Indy’s next adventure has a name, and for the first time it has Harrison Ford’s face.
Disney revealed at D23 on Saturday night that the Indiana Jones attraction coming to Disney’s Animal Kingdom is titled Indiana Jones and the Myth of the Jade Serpent, and Ford himself confirmed he is the model for its Audio-Animatronics figure.
The news came during the Horizons: A Carousel of Progress showcase, where Imagineers Michael Hundgen and Chris Beatty laid out the ride’s story, its Maya inspiration and a first look at one very large animatronic snake.
Ford’s First Disney Likeness
Ford opened the segment with a video message thanking fans for riding along on decades of adventures before sharing that he is the actual model for the new Indy figure.
He confirmed it is the first time he will be the face you see on a Disney attraction anywhere in the world.
Disneyland’s Indiana Jones Adventure has run since 1995 with an Indy figure that never used Ford’s actual likeness, so a Ford-accurate animatronic is a first for the parks. Hundgen and Beatty later put the digital model being used to build the figure on screen.
Disney Parks summed it up on X: Ford is the model, “fear of snakes included.”
Why Did It Have To Be Snakes
The ride lives in Tropical Americas, the new 11-acre land replacing DinoLand U.S.A., and drops riders in with Dr. Jones as he explores an ancient temple beside a cenote, a once water-filled underground cave that local legend says leads straight to the Maya Underworld.
The passageway is protected by a serpentine creature called the Tsukán, and the adventure takes off when riders are unwittingly sucked through a portal to the Underworld and have to escape monstrous bats, larger-than-life scorpions, fire and, of course, snakes.
The Tsukán shows up throughout, including a final confrontation the Disney Parks Blog warns will solidify your fear of snakes for the rest of time. Imagineers showed the gigantic Tsukán Audio-Animatronics figure, which towers over the team building it, and said it is being sculpted by hand.
Built With Maya Experts
Hundgen and Beatty stressed the ride blends classic Indy thrills with the cultural detail Animal Kingdom is built on, telling a story beneath a temple ruin that showcases Maya culture and its connection to nature.
The team is working with archaeologists, anthropologists and Maya experts, drawing on research trips to Honduras and the Copán ruins, one of the best-preserved cities of the ancient Maya.
Riders will see original Maya artwork throughout, and the temple entrance is being built right now, with the showcase offering a behind-the-scenes look at a facade previously seen only in renderings.
Tropical Americas Details
Tropical Americas was first revealed at D23 2024 by Josh D’Amaro, then Disney Experiences Chairman and now CEO of The Walt Disney Company, as an 11-acre expansion with two headliners, Indiana Jones and an Encanto attraction, plus shopping and dining. Disney says it is part of the biggest slate of expansion projects in Walt Disney World history.
The land also gets El Carrusel de los Animalitos, a carousel with 22 hand-carved animals pulled from Disney and Pixar films, including Scuttle, Squirt, Pua, Pascal, Simba, Eeyore, Kuzco and Heimlich, plus a Maya-inspired play area where kids can dig up artifacts.
Disney’s D23 write-up does not include an opening date for the ride.
More from the parks showcase: Robert Downey Jr. returns as Iron Man for Avengers Infinity Defense, and Millennium Falcon: Smugglers Run now connects to Fortnite.
