The Walt Disney Company is celebrating its 100th anniversary in 2023, and it has grown a lot from its days as a fledgling animation studio. The company has expanded from just making animated shorts to a company with toys, films, television series and amusement parks. And attractions at those amusement parks have crossed over into film.

Disney has made several films based off attractions at its parks. The most popular of these has, of course, been the wildly successful “Pirates of the Caribbean” franchise. Other attractions have received their own films as well with differing results. But there are still several attractions that haven’t received a film yet. Let’s take a look at five attractions that can be made into their own films.

IT’S A SMALL WORLD

“It’s a world of laughter, a world of tears.” On the surface, this might seem like an odd choice since the ride is mostly remembered for its theme song which is memorable but can be irritating. But the concept of a boat ride around the world that showcases the world has some potential for a film. While the film would do well to skip showing children from each country just singing and dancing, it can present an interesting message about the journey and how we can unify in this “small world.” It can also present an a worldwide threat the entire world needs to unite to stop.

MATTERHORN/EXPEDITION EVEREST

The Matterhorn in Disneyland and Expedition Everest in Disney World essentially tell the same story about a group of travelers along a snowy mountain that run into an abominable snowman. This is an easy attraction narrative to turn into a film. And filmmakers could create a new mythology to surround the abominable snowman.

BIG THUNDER MOUNTAIN RAILROAD

This popular Disney attraction brings back the feel of the old westerns. It follows settlers in an American Southwest town who are working in a haunted gold mine. It should be fairly easy to pitch a film about a frontier mining town and how settlers tried to take over a mine that was on sacred ground. Plus, this ride is at three parks with differing backstories, so filmmakers could get three films out of the differing backstories or mesh them altogether to make one film.

KILIMANJARO SAFARIS

At Disney World’s Animal Kingdom, the Kilimanjaro Safaris takes riders through a Wildlife Preserve. When the attraction first opened, it featured a narrative involving an elephant and her baby that have to be rescued from poachers. While the current version of the attraction might not lend itself to a great film, that storyline from when it first opened is an interesting premise.

JOURNEY INTO IMAGINATION WITH FIGMENT

The popularity of Figment makes it difficult to believe Disney hasn’t capitalized on it yet. Figment originated in the “Journey Into Imagination” ride and seems perfectly poised to make the jump to film. I could see Figment leading an adventure film where he has to use his imagination to come up with solutions to any problem.

Those are my first five picks. I think I will be picking more rides that can be turned into movies down the road. Which attractions would you like to see made into films?

Jeremy Brown

Jeremy has been a big Disney fan since he was a kid growing up during the Disney Renaissance. One day he hopes to go to every Disney Park in the world.

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