In 1990, Jim Henson and Walt Disney World partnered up on an attraction for their new theme park, MGM Studios, now called Disney’s Hollywood Studios.  Henson, creator of the Muppets, saw this as an opportunity to innovate on the Muppets and show them in a new medium. Henson was passionate about creating a Muppets experience never made before, and saw the show as the future for the Muppets. The ride would be a 3D film featuring 4D effects around the theater, like bubbles falling from the sky, water shooting into the audiences, and using new computer animation technology to make Waldo, a completely digital Muppet, as well as animatronic characters all around the theater. This would include animatronics of Statler and Waldorf, sitting on the balcony to heckle the Muppets as the show goes on. Not to mention the iconic Muppet monster Sweetums would walk out into the audience every show, letting the audience see real puppetry in action. And of course you could witness Sam Eagle’s glorious salute to all nations but mostly America! Henson called the show Muppet*Vision 3D. Later that year, Henson passed away, leaving Muppet*Vision 3D to be the final Muppets project he ever worked on.

Jim Henson passed away on May 16, 1990, and Muppet*Vision 3D opened on May 16, 1991, the first anniversary of his death, and a testament that his legacy would live on at Walt Disney World. Muppet*Vision was surrounded by a larger Muppet courtyard, a whole area dedicated to Henson’s legacy. The Muppet Courtyard grew as years went on, offering fun experiences for Muppet fans. You could dine at PizzeRizzo, a pizza restaurant owned by Rizzo the Rat, passing off his restaurant as fine dining, though really, it’s rat pizza. You could buy all your favorite Muppet merchandise at the Stage 1 Company Store, and appreciate the beauty of the Miss Piggy fountain located at the center of the courtyard.

At D23, the Disney convention’s 2024 showcase, Disney announced their plans to open a “Monsters, Inc” themed land at Disney’s Hollywood Studios. While it was exciting for fans at first, by looking deeper into the concept art, many fans noticed the area around it seemed very similar to where the Muppet Courtyard should be. Fans argued online, begging Disney not to replace Muppet*Vision, and hoping the land would really be located elsewhere in the park. On January 24, 2025, fans’ fears were proven to be correct, and Disney announced Muppet*Vision 3D would be closing for good. Later they announced the last day to experience the attraction will be June 7, 2025.

Destroying Muppet*Vision was more than Disney simply disrespecting the Muppets again, it was Disney disrespecting the legacy of Henson and his creations, getting rid of the last show Henson ever put on. Disney claimed they were looking for a way to preserve the film, though they could have simply said this to stop backlash, and the show would never be the same without being able to see it in a large theater with 3D glasses and animatronics.

Yet Muppet*Vision’s closing isn’t the only thing that was announced in January; they also announced The Muppets would find a new home within Hollywood Studios. Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster Starring Aerosmith is a music themed roller coaster where you race through the freeways of Los Angeles to get to an Aerosmith concert. The ride is an intense indoor roller coaster, where you loop and drop around iconic Hollywood iconography and rock out to iconic Aerosmith songs. Aerosmith has been a dated band for a while, and Disney finally announced that after Muppet*Vision closes, the Muppets would be moving to a retheme of Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster, now starring the Muppets band Dr. Teeth and the Electric Mayhem. To many fans, this didn’t make up for the loss of Muppet*Vision, and it seemed like a way for Disney to diffuse the anger they knew this announcement would cause. I personally speculate Disney came up with this idea after seeing the backlash of the possibility of Muppet*Vision closing. Disney was likely looking to phase out Aerosmith for a while, and used the Muppet*Vision backlash to quickly whip up some concept art for a Muppets retheme of the ride.

The decision to make the Muppets a high intensity roller coaster was baffling to some, but to others it made perfect sense, as what other type of ride could capture the Muppets’ insanity? And as sad as it is to lose Muppet*Vision, there’s no denying that putting the Muppets in a hugely popular roller coaster will make them way more relevant to Walt Disney World. Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster is seen as a must-do attraction in Hollywood Studios, and is near the front of the theme park. Muppet*Vision was hidden in the corner of the park, and was unfortunately next to a lot more exciting attractions, like Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge. 

Muppet*Vision was a part of history and a beloved attraction to locals, but Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster is hugely popular with tourists and is the biggest roller coaster in Hollywood Studios. The Muppets are losing their legacy in Hollywood Studios, but they’ll be more popular at Hollywood Studios than they ever were for Muppet*Vision 3D.

Now we can only hope Disney keeps their promise to try and preserve parts of Muppet*Vision, and if not we’ll just have to keep believing, and try to keep Jim Henson’s legacy alive. I’m excited to see Kermit, Miss Piggy, and the Electric Mayhem rock out in Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster. Muppet*Vision has done just what it set out to do, and the Muppets will continue to bring joy to Walt Disney World. The loss of Muppet*Vision 3D is a tragic removal of an important part of Henson’s legacy. It was the last thing he left the world with after his passing, and it’ll be sad to lose his spirit within Hollywood Studios. But to quote Kermit in “The Muppet Christmas Carol”, “Life is made up of meetings and partings. That is the way of it.”