Disney ParksWalt Disney World
Disney World Fans Speak Out on Cosmic Rewind Removal at EPCOT Park
A small but highly discussed change has hit the EPCOT theme park in Disney World.
EPCOT is one of the four main theme parks at the Walt Disney World Resort in Orlando, Central Florida. Along with Magic Kingdom, Disney’s Hollywood Studios, and Disney’s Animal Kingdom, EPCOT is perhaps the most interesting park concept in Disney’s domestic portfolio.
First conceived by Walt Disney himself as an innovative community, EPCOT eventually became the theme park it is as of October 6, following Walt’s passing. Known for its educational and inspiring nature, the park features four key areas: World Celebration, World Discovery, World Nature, and the beloved and iconic World Showcase.
While the latter features pavilions representing countries from around the world, the former Future World (now World Celebration, World Discovery, and World Nature) features a variety of attractions based on their locations. There’s The Seas with Nemo & Friends in World Nature, Spaceship Earth in World Celebration, and the park’s e-ticket ride Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind in World Discovery.
The Marvel coaster opened in 2022 and remains extremely popular with guests four years on. As EPCOT’s Lightning Lane Single Pass option and also included in the Premier Pass, Cosmic Rewind is a priority pick for many, with Lightning Lane lines often busy and standby entrances leading to long wait times — for the recent September 21 event, the wait for the omnicoaster hit 185 minutes at its peak.
The popularity of the ride has brought many changes since its opening. Recently, cast members made adjustments to the pre-show exit process, which often saw hundreds of guests vying for a spot further up the line. And speaking of the pre-show, another change has just been made. And fans have a lot to say about it.
Due to EPCOT’s unofficial title as the “drinking” park (thanks to the fan-favorite Drink Around the World activity), the pre-show at Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind often found itself tied to this profile. When Nova Corps Centurion Tal Marik (played by Terry Crews) asks guests “what they call themselves,” a guest would most certainly call out “alcoholics” or something else similarly polarizing during the pause after Tal Marik’s question.
Now, Disney has removed the pause after Tal Marik’s question, so the video footage moves straight to his next piece of dialogue. No reason has been officially given, but it’s very clear that Disney park officials are removing the chance for guests to have their say in this pre-show.
Disney World fans on social media have weighed in on the change made to the pre-show. On Reddit, many are in support of the pause removal, calling what some guests used to shout out as “cringe.”
DrOddfellow wrote:
The last time I heard someone shout alcoholics, they sounded so proud of themselves while saying it, but then they were booed mercilessly by the room with one person going “YOU’RE NOT FUNNY”
Shi was kinda funny first time it went viral in 2022, hasn’t been funny since that one person tho.
Kenny_RogersRoasters added:
Finally. The amount of cringe that people would yell that they and only they thought was funny was out of control.
One commenter noted that calling out during Cosmic Rewind is not the only annoying thing guests do in attraction pre-shows. FjordAhoy wrote:
Because people have to over exaggerate how bothered they are over nothing. Meanwhile, reciting the entire Haunted Mansion stretch room script is actually annoying because it takes everyone else out of the moment—no different than someone saying the lines in a movie to prove they’re big fans. We get it. You know the lines. Quiet.
The Haunted Mansion issue is a popular topic among Disney World guests. SittinByThePool echoed:
It’s always funny to me you have the people who yell and think they’re so cool for being obnoxious for what could be many people’s first or only time riding the ride. Or the people in haunted mansion that quote every line of the preshow loudly to show everyone how many times they’ve been. The worst people lol.
However, some were not in favor of the change, like Admiral_Austinfinity, who wrote:
This isn’t going to make a difference. In fact it just means the same people who shout something out are now going to actively talk over Terry and confuse others even worse.
While changes like this may seem small, the notoriety of this pre-show in particular has made it a hot topic of discussion in Disney World fan circles. So, what do you think?
Have you ever been bothered by other guests shouting out things like “alcoholics” during the Cosmic Rewind pre-show? Let us know in the comments down below!
