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| Previously known as Disney-MGM Studios Theme Park | |
 | |
 The Hollywood Tower Hotel, the icon of the park | |
 Interactive map of Disney's Hollywood Studios | |
| Location | Walt Disney World,Bay Lake, Florida, United States |
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| Coordinates | 28°21′25″N81°33′22″W / 28.357°N 81.5561°W /28.357; -81.5561 |
| Status | Operating |
| Opened | May 1, 1989; 36 years ago (1989-05-01) |
| Owner | Disney Experiences (The Walt Disney Company) |
| Operated by | Walt Disney World Key people: Jackie Swisher (VP) Steve Ruffner (GM, Operations)[2] |
| Theme |
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| Operating season | Year-round |
| Website | disneyworld |
| Walt Disney World |
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| Theme parks |
| Water parks |
| Other attractions and areas |
| Resorts |
| Affiliated services |
| Transport |
Disney's Hollywood Studios is atheme park at theWalt Disney World Resort inBay Lake, Florida, nearOrlando. It is owned and operated bythe Walt Disney Company through itsExperiences division. Based on a concept byMarty Sklar, Randy Bright, andMichael Eisner, the park opened on May 1, 1989, as theDisney–MGM Studios Theme Park, and was the third of fourtheme parks built at Walt Disney World. Spanning 135 acres (55 ha), the park is themed to an idealized version ofHollywood, California, and is dedicated to the imagined worlds fromfilm,television,music, andtheatre, drawing inspiration from theGolden Age of Hollywood.[1]
Disney's Hollywood Studios was initially developed as both a theme park inspired byshow business and an operatingproduction studio, with active film and television production services, ananimation facility forWalt Disney Animation Studios, and a functioningbacklot. Construction on the combined park and studio began in 1987, but was accelerated when the construction of the similarly themedUniversal Studios Florida began a few miles away.[3] To increase public interest and the variety of film representation within the park, Disney entered into alicensing agreement withMetro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM), from which the park's original name was derived. The park's production facilities were removed throughout the 2000s, and many of the park's soundstages were retrofitted for newer attractions and guest use. The park's current name took effect in 2008, with the removal of the MGM-branding throughout the park. In the 2010s, the park began to distance itself from the original studio backlot intention and entered a new direction of immersive theming and attraction development inspired by imagined worlds from Hollywood storytellers.
The park's original landmark was theEarffel Tower, a fauxwater tower topped withMickey Mouse ears. In 2001, theSorcerer's Hat—a stylized version of the magical hat from Disney Animation's 1940 filmFantasia—was erected in the park's central hub and served as the icon until its removal in January 2015.[4] The Earffel Tower was also removed the following year. TheHollywood Tower Hotel has since been the official icon, with the park's replica ofGrauman's Chinese Theatre serving as the visual centerpiece. In 2024, the park hosted 10.3 million guests, ranking it the ninth most-visited theme park in the world.[5]
The World you have entered was created by The Walt Disney Company and is dedicated to Hollywood—not a place on a map, but a state of mind that exists wherever people dream and wonder and imagine, a place where illusion and reality are fused by technological magic. We welcome you to a Hollywood that never was—and always will be.
— Michael Eisner, May 1, 1989[6][7]
A team ofWalt Disney Imagineers led byMarty Sklar and Randy Bright had been given the assignment to create two new pavilions forEpcot's Future World section. The brainstorming sessions led toWonders of Life andGreat Movie Ride pavilions. The latter was to look like a soundstage backdrop, with a movie theater-style entrance in the middle and would have sat betweenthe Land andJourney Into Imagination pavilions. When newly appointed CEOMichael Eisner saw the plans for the pavilion, he requested that, instead of placing the ride in an already existing park, it should be the anchor for a new park themed with Hollywood, entertainment, and show business.
In 1985, Disney andMetro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) entered into a licensing contract that gave Disney worldwide rights to use the MGM brand and logo for what would become Disney–MGM Studios, which included working production facilities for films and television shows, abacklot, and a satellite animation studio forWalt Disney Feature Animation, which began operation prior to the park's debut.[9] In 1988,MGM/UA responded by filing a lawsuit that claimed Disney violated the agreement by operating a working movie and television studio at the resort. On May 1, 1989, the theme park opened adjacent to the production facilities, with MGM's only affiliation being the original licensing agreement that allowed Disney to use MGM's name andlion logo in marketing, and separate contracts that allowed specific MGM films to be used in theGreat Movie Ride. On opening day, the only two operating attractions were theStudio Backlot Tour and the Great Movie Ride. Several months after park opening, the "Streetmosphere" improvisational troupe was added to the park. The Streetmosphere performers, now named the Citizens of Hollywood, are the longest-running attraction at the park.[10]
Disney later filed a countersuit, claiming that MGM/UA and MGM Grand, Inc. had conspired to violate Disney's worldwide rights to the MGM name in the theme park business and that MGM/UA would harm Disney's reputation by building its own theme park at theMGM Grand hotel and casino inLas Vegas, Nevada. On October 23, 1992, Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Curtis B. Rappe ruled that Disney had the right to continue using the Disney-MGM Studios name on film product produced at the Florida facility, and that MGM Grand had the right to build a Las Vegas theme park using the MGM name and logo as long as it did not share the same studio backlot theme as Disney's property.[11] The 33-acre (130,000 m2)MGM Grand Adventures Theme Park opened in 1993 at the Las Vegas site and closed permanently in 2000. Disney was contractually prohibited from using theDisney-MGM Studios name in certain marketing contexts; in those instances, the park was called eitherThe Disney Studios orDisney Studios Florida.
In the 1990s, as the park's popularity and attendance grew, the park saw its first expansion in 1994, with the addition of Sunset Boulevard andThe Twilight Zone Tower of Terror attraction. The backlot's New York streets were opened to guest access to relieve traffic and renamed as Streets of America. During that same decade,Walt Disney Feature Animation's on-site satellite studio assisted in the production ofBeauty and the Beast,Aladdin, andThe Lion King, withMulan andLilo & Stitch being completed entirely at the park's studio.[12] The Sunset Boulevard area would receive an expansion in the late 1990s, starting with the installation ofFantasmic!, a nighttime show that opened in 1998, six years after the debut of its predecessor atDisneyland.[13] The next year in 1999, an indoor launched looping roller coaster themed toAerosmith calledRock 'n' Roller Coaster, officially opened to the public.[14] In 2001, theSorcerer's Hat—a stylized version of the magical hat fromFantasia—was erected in front of the park's Chinese Theater and began to serve as thepark's icon from then onwards, displacing theEarffel Tower in that role.[4] In 2004, Disney shuttered the Florida animation unit. The previous summer, the backlot's Residential Street was demolished to accommodate the new location forLights, Motors, Action!: Extreme Stunt Show, an American adaptation ofMoteurs ... Action!: Stunt Show Spectacular atWalt Disney Studios Park.[15] The stunt show would open along withSoarin' at Epcot in 2005 to coincide theHappiest Celebration on Earth festival.[15] In 2007, Disney announced that Disney-MGM Studios would be rebranded as Disney's Hollywood Studios, effective January 7, 2008.[16][17] That same year, the former Stage 1 soundstage became home toToy Story Mania! and the surrounding area was rethemed as Pixar Place.
In the 2010s, Disney began phasing out the park's "studio-like" attractions that headlined the park during its early years of operation. This included the closure of the park's Studio Backlot Tour,American Idol Experience, and theLegend of Captain Jack Sparrow attractions in 2014.[18] The following year, the Sorcerer's Hat was removed and the original sightlines from Hollywood Boulevard to the park's Chinese Theatre were restored.[19] In March 2015, during an annual shareholders meeting, Disney CEOBob Iger hinted at another possible name change for the park due to the changes coming in the near future.[20] However, the company denied the rumors of a name change in February 2018.[21] The park continued to close more studio-themed attraction; in April 2016, the majority of Streets of America—including the backlot street facades, theLights, Motors, Action! Extreme Stunt Show, the Earffel Tower, and the remaining backstage areas—was closed and demolished in preparation forStar Wars: Galaxy's Edge andToy Story Land.[22][23] In 2017, theGreat Movie Ride closed as the final remaining opening-day attraction and was replaced byMickey & Minnie's Runaway Railway in 2020.[24][25][26]
The parkwas closed from March 16 to July 15, 2020, due to theCOVID-19 pandemic in Florida.[27][28] In 2025,Muppet*Vision 3D and the surrounding Muppet-themed courtyard was closed. The area is expected to be re-themed toPixar'sMonsters, Inc. franchise, including Disney's firstsuspended roller coaster.[29][30][31][32]
Disney's Hollywood Studios is divided into seven themed areas, each inspired by eitherromanticized versions of real locations inHollywood andgreater Los Angeles or imagined worlds drawn from Hollywood-born stories. The park’s original layout once formed a largeHidden Mickey, visible in early guide maps and aerial photographs, though subsequent construction and redesigns have removed most traces of it.[33] Several themed areas feature prominent façades and buildings modeled after both existing and defunct structures from across Los Angeles, including those found in Hollywood,Pasadena,Inglewood, andBurbank.
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Hollywood Boulevard, inspired bythe real street of the same name, serves as the park's main entrance and operates in the same vein asMain Street, U.S.A. atMagic Kingdom. It is lined with themed streetscape facades and venues selling Disney merchandise and park services. Guests enter through the main entrance gate, which resembles thePan-Pacific Auditorium. Near the park's gate is a recreation of theCrossroads of the World tower. Live street entertainment and seasonal parades travel down the main street throughout the day. At the far end of Hollywood Boulevard stands an exact replica ofGrauman's Chinese Theatre, which housesMickey & Minnie's Runaway Railway, adark ride themed to the world ofMickey Mouseanimated shorts. Near the entrance of Animation Courtyard—resides The Hollywood Brown Derby restaurant, a themed replica of the originalBrown Derby restaurant inHollywood, California.
Echo Lake, inspired bythe similarly named neighborhood in Los Angeles, is designed to mimic the suburban "California Crazy" form of architecture from Hollywood's Golden Age and is anchored around the area's namesake lake.
Echo Lake features two major attractions based on characters and films created byGeorge Lucas and produced byLucasfilm.Star Tours – The Adventures Continue is a3-Dmotion simulator ride set in theStar Wars universe. In the open-air Epic Theater, the live-actionIndiana Jones Epic Stunt Spectacular! re-enacts various action scenes fromSteven Spielberg'sRaiders of the Lost Ark,with professionalfilm stunt actors performing asIndiana Jones andMarion Ravenwood.
The Hyperion Theater housesFor the First Time in Forever: AFrozen Sing-Along Celebration, a musical show based on Disney'sFrozen. Behind this building lies a subsection named Commissary Lane, that connects Hollywood Boulevard directly to Grand Avenue and bypasses Echo Lake altogether. In this area, resides two eateries:ABC Commissary, a quick-service restaurant themed toABC television programs and theSci-Fi Dine-In Theater Restaurant, adinner theater with a retro-style theme featuring vintage car themed tables and a large movie screen featuring continuous clips ofscience-fiction films from the 1950s.
Grand Avenue is themed as agentrifiedhistoric district inspired bythe real location of the same name indowntown Los Angeles. The area features BaseLine Tap House, a modern California-styledpub.[34] The main street of Grand Avenue leads into a recreation of aFigueroa Street Tunnel which connects Grand Avenue to the adjacentStar Wars: Galaxy's Edge.[35]
Grand Avenue was originally planned in the 1980s as a themed area called Muppet Studios, centered aroundthe Muppets fromJim Henson'sThe Muppet Show, following Disney's intended acquisition of theJim Henson Company. The area's design includedMuppet*Vision 3D, a4D film attraction, as well as a themed restaurant and a Muppetdark ride parody ofThe Great Movie Ride.[36][37] The deal fell through after Henson's death in 1990, and only Muppet*Vision 3D was developed and later opened in 1991. The Muppet-themed restaurant was reworked intoMama Melrose's Ristorante Italiano.[38]
The realized Muppet-themed section became a part of the park's formerStreets of America area, which encompassed several attractions, including anurban street amalgamation ofNew York City andSan Francisco. The area's namesake street facades were formerly the park's workingbacklot set, which was originally a component of the park's inauguralStudio Backlot Tour, and opened to pedestrian park traffic in the mid-1990s; this area closed on April 2, 2016 to accommodate the construction of Galaxy's Edge.[39][40] PizzeRizzo, apizzeria owned byRizzo the Rat, opened in 2016.[41] The Muppet-themed areas and a single remaining New York block of the Streets of America facades were repurposed intoMuppets Courtyard, which served as a placeholder designation until Grand Avenue was completed in September 2017.[42] The entirety of the Muppet-themed areas—including Muppet*Vision 3D and PizzeRizzo—as well as Mama Melrose's, closed in 2025.
Star Wars: Galaxy's Edge is set within theStar Wars universe, at the Black Spire Outpost village on the remote frontier planet ofBatuu. Attractions includeStar Wars: Rise of the Resistance, adark ride that places guests in a climactic battle between theFirst Order andthe Resistance; andMillennium Falcon: Smugglers Run, a flying simulator attraction that allows guests to pilot theMillennium Falcon through a customized secret mission on behalf ofHondo Ohnaka andChewbacca. Restaurants and shops include Oga's Cantina, Savi's Workshop, and the Droid Depot. The land opened in 2019, replacing the park's Streets of America section.[43] The 14-acre (5.7 ha) area cost an estimated $1 billion.[44]
Toy Story Land is inspired byPixar'sToy Story series. The 11-acre (4.5 ha) area is themed toAndy's backyard with three attractions, each hosted bycharacters from the series.[45] The attractions includeToy Story Mania!, an interactive 4D attraction inspired by classic carnival midway games;Slinky Dog Dash, an outdoor roller coaster; andAlien Swirling Saucers, aWhip ride.[45][46] The land opened on June 30, 2018.[46]
Toy Story Mania! was originally a standalone attraction within Pixar Place, an area dedicated to films and characters created by Pixar, resembling the animation studio'sEmeryville, California campus. Pixar Place was also the home ofLuxo Jr., a six-foot-tallaudio-animatronic version of Pixar's desk-lamp mascot.[47] The moving character performed periodic shows throughout the day and evening across from Toy Story Midway Mania.[47]
Animation Courtyard is home to attractions based on films and characters owned by theWalt Disney Company.The Little Mermaid – A Musical Adventure is amusical stage show production based on the 1989 animated filmThe Little Mermaid. Mickey Avenue, a subsection of Animation Courtyard, is home to a walk-through exhibit,Walt Disney Presents, which explores the life and legacy ofWalt Disney through photos, models, artifacts, and a short biographical filmWalt Disney: One Man's Dream, narrated byJulie Andrews in the Walt Disney Theater.
This section of the park originally was the starting point for the Studio Backlot Tour, with its entrance being marked by a traditional "studio arch". From 1989 to 2004, the site was the operations forWalt Disney Feature Animation Florida, with theMagic of Disney Animation operating as a walk-through tour. The Magic of Disney Animation closed in 2015 and was replaced withStar Wars Launch Bay, aStar Wars exhibit that featured behind-the-scenes props and character meet-and-greets withDarth Vader,Chewbacca, andBB-8. The exhibit, along with a majority of Animation Courtyard closed on September 25, 2025 to be redeveloped and reopen as a new themed area,The Walt Disney Studios Lot, inspired by theWalt Disney Studios campus inBurbank, California.[48]
Sunset Boulevard, named after thereal thoroughfare of the same name, features theaters, boutique shops, and marketplaces. The focal point of Sunset Boulevard is the Hollywood Tower Hotel which housesThe Twilight Zone Tower of Terror, adrop tower thrill ride themed to an abandoned hotel and inspired byRod Serling'sThe Twilight Zone. Located nearby isRock 'n' Roller Coaster Starring Aerosmith, an indoor darkenedroller coaster themed to the music ofAerosmith in G-Force Records Studio, with threeinversions and a high-speed launch. This area also features recreations of theCathay Circle Theatre,Academy Theatre, andThe Original Farmers Market. Sunset Boulevard was the first expansion of the park, opening in July 1994.
Sunset Boulevard has two outdoor amphitheaters, and one indoor theater. The covered Theater of the Stars hostsBeauty and the Beast Live on Stage, a stage show featuring highlights from the1991 animated film. The larger open-airHollywood Hills Amphitheater is the home ofFantasmic!, a nighttime show featuring Mickey Mouse and other Disney heroes and villains in a story with fireworks, lasers and water effects. The indoor Sunset Showcase Theater hosts theDisney Villains: Unfairly Ever After, a stage show hosted byDisney Villains.
Disney's Hollywood Studios has featured numerous forms of in-park entertainment throughout its history. During its early years, the park featured the "Star Today" program, with a daily celebrity guest. The celebrity would often be featured in a motorcade along Hollywood Boulevard or would take part in ahandprint ceremony at the Great Movie Ride's entrance, or participate in an interview session.
At other times, Disney haslicensed characters andintellectual properties that were not part of its own original library of films and television shows. In addition to MGM properties, some of these characters have included theTeenage Mutant Ninja Turtles,Ace Ventura, Pet Detective, and characters from theGoosebumps series by authorR. L. Stine. TheMighty Morphin Power Rangers made appearances in the park during the first seasons of the television series but then vanished. Disney had ownership of the Power Rangers franchise through its purchase ofSaban Entertainment until May 2010 when Saban purchased the franchise back and were regular members of the park's cast of characters during that time.[49] Live musical acts, such as thecover band Mulch, Sweat and Shears and thea cappellaquartet Four For a Dollar, used to perform on the park streets or as pre-show entertainment at the larger shows.[50]
Like Disney's Animal Kingdom, Disney's Hollywood Studios also used to run daily parades down Hollywood Boulevard. TheDisney Stars and Motor Cars Parade and thePixar Block Party Bash featured film characters performing in a street party along Hollywood Boulevard and near Echo Lake. Several times each day, the "High School Musical 3 Senior Year: Right Here Right Now" show used to travel Hollywood Boulevard before performing a live street show in front of the Sorcerer's Hat.
Streetmosphere performers have been present at Disney's Hollywood Studios since 1989. They are the only opening day attraction left in the park. Theimprov troupe was originally called Streetmosphere, but later renamed to the Citizens of Hollywood. They perform magic, skits, and interact with guests multiple times a day on Sunset Boulevard and Hollywood Boulevard.
Disney's Hollywood Studios has hosted several events during the years that often draw thousands of fans to the park.
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The Walt Disney Company's original concept of the Disney-MGM Studios was to operate it as a television and motion picture production facility, as well as a theme park. In 1988, among the first feature-length movies filmed at the facility, prior to its completion and opening as a theme park, wereErnest Saves Christmas[58] andNewsies.
When the park opened in 1989, the studio/production facilities housed two major components, the first of which wasWalt Disney Feature Animation Florida, where Disney produced projects includingMulan,[58]Lilo & Stitch,[59]Brother Bear, and sequences from other 1990s-early 2000s Disney animated features. The second, larger component was Walt Disney Studios Florida, which consisted of three sound stages used for Disney projects includingThe Disney Channel'sMickey Mouse Club,[60]Teen Win, Lose or Draw andAdventures in Wonderland. Several third party productions also used the Studios, includingSuperboy (first season only, from 1988–1989), the 1988–89 season ofMTV'sRemote Control,Thunder in Paradise, a revival ofLet's Make a Deal, special broadcasts ofWheel of Fortune, airplane interior sequences for the feature filmPassenger 57, andThe Dooley and Pals Show. Music videos, several tapings forWorld Championship Wrestling (WCW), and live broadcasts ofWCW Monday Nitro were also shot there; seeWCW Disney tapings. The Post Group had a Florida-based post-production facility located on the Studio lot throughout the 1990s. All these production and post-production facilities were constructed to be an integral part of the theme park's Backstage Studio Tour as well.
A working broadcastradiostudio, used byRadio Disney and invited local broadcasters, was also located at the park, behindSounds Dangerous![61][62]
In 2004, Disney management (including CEOMichael Eisner) downsized Disney's Florida operations by closing the animation studio, laying off personnel and then moving the operations to the main animation studio inBurbank, California.[59][63]
| Year | Attendance |
|---|---|
| 2011 | 9,699,000[64] |
| 2012 | 9,912,000[65] |
| 2013 | 10,110,000[66] |
| 2014 | 10,312,000[67] |
| 2015 | 10,828,000[68] |
| 2016 | 10,776,000[69] |
| 2017 | 10,772,000[70] |
| 2018 | 11,258,000[71] |
| 2019 | 11,483,000[72] |
| 2020 | 3,675,000[72] |
| 2021 | 8,589,000[73] |
| 2022 | 10,900,000[74] |
| 2023 | 10,300,000[75] |
| 2024 | 10,333,000[76] |
In 2024, Hollywood Studios ranked ninth in the world for attendance.
..Weeks later, on January 12, Disney announced that it was shutting down its Orlando animation unit, whereLilo & Stitch had been created.
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