Zootopia: Better Zoogether is the newest attraction at Animal Kingdom, debuting less than a year ago to, ahem, mixed reviews. Already, Imagineering is going in and adding to the show in an attempt to improve it by adding a new pre-show featuring Elaine’s boyfriend Puddy…errr…Chief Flight Attendant Patrick…errr…Brian Winddancer, the horse mayor inspired by Fabio. This features behind-the-scenes video of the addition, along with our commentary about why this is a positive change.
In case you’re unfamiliar with it, Zootopia: Better Zoogether is an all-new 4D show inside the Tree of Life Theater, that replaced the vastly superior It’s Tough to Be a Bug. That was an original Animal Kingdom attraction that closed last year after a lengthy run. Even though It’s Tough to Be a Bug was better, it had a long run and its time had come.
The concept for Zootopia: Better Zoogether has guests visiting the different biomes from the metropolis, traveling along with Judy Hopps, Nick Wilde and other characters. Zootopia: Better Zoogether draws some of its inspiration from Zootopia 2, which is one of Disney’s recent blockbusters.
When you migrate over to the Tree of Life Theater, you’ll arrive just in time to the main stage of the “Zoogether Day” festivities with familiar furry faces and new friends, like Heidi Howler, a slick-talking wolf who hosts the Zoogether Day LIVE! broadcast with excitement, energy, and quite a bit of howling.
Zoogether Day, a celebration of unity amongst the diverse biomes across the city, features special performances such as ice-skating spectaculars from the heart of Tundratown, synchronized swimming direct from Marsh Market, and tiny mouse drone shows soaring over Little Rodentia. Everything culminates in a musical finale by superstar Gazelle, which guests view from the livestream watch party.
Zootopia: Better Zoogether also features an all-new Audio Animatronics figure of Clawhauser, and updated audio/visual equipment. It’s a good ole-fashioned assault on the senses that’ll jolt you awake during the hot midday stretch after a long morning in Animal Kingdom, right as fatigue is starting to set in. Give it a watch the next time you’re in Animal Kingdom to form your own opinion, if you haven’t already seen the show.
Or, revisit Zootopia: Better Zoogether to check out the all-new pre-show featuring Mayor Winddancer…
New Zootopia: Better Zoogether Pre-Show
Walt Disney Imagineering has been working graveyard shifts at Animal Kingdom (which really means starting around sunset given park closing times) to test and adjust a brand-new pre-show for Zootopia: Better Zoogether!
The new pre-show adds a segment featuring Brian Winddancer, the horse mayor from “Zootopia 2.” The segment sets up the story before guests head inside the Tree of Life Theater. The new pre-show brings Mayor Winddancer into the celebration, welcoming guests and setting up the story conceit before the main 4D presentation begins.
Mayor Winddancer was a major character in “Zootopia 2,” and the Imagineering team wanted to bring him into the attraction due to that significance. Patrick Warburton reprises his role, voicing Mayor Winddancer for the pre-show. Animators and filmmakers from Walt Disney Animation Studios worked alongside the Imagineering teams to bring him to life in the new Zootopia: Better Zoogether pre-show.
These teams have been working on the update during overnight test & adjust rehearsals inside the theater, ahead of going live for guests. Audio, lighting, special effects, animation, and other teams went through the new sequence together to ensure proper timing and make sure every element syncs up correctly. In the video below, Imagineering indicates that this was their last overnight on the project, suggesting the new pre-show should be live as of today.
Here’s the video via Walt Disney Imagineering:
Why Add Mayor Winddancer to Zootopia: Better Zoogether?
The reasons for Imagineering adding Mayor Winddancer are likely multifaceted.
Fan-favorite Patrick Warburton just recorded a new pre-pre-show (pre-show addendum?) for Soarin’ Across America. While Imagineering had him in the studio, it’s possible–if not probable–that they took the opportunity to have him record more dialogue for Zootopia: Better Zoogether. Given that, this addition is likely a matter of opportunity and convenience.
However, it’s not as if Patrick Warburton recording new dialogue alone makes a new pre-show happen. The recording is the easy part. The animation and everything that’s been done during the graveyard shifts is more time-consuming, labor intensive, and costly.
Adding a pre-show also adds to the runtime of the show, meaning a slower turnaround and potentially fewer performances per day. Walt Disney World has been big on shortening, not lengthening, entertainment productions like this over the last decade.
Meaning there also had to be an appetite in Imagineering for updates to Zootopia: Better Zoogether already. Without having seen the pre-show in full, one thing that stuck out to me during the brief clip shared by WDI is that Mayor Winddancer speaks slower and more clearly than the main Zootopia: Better Zoogether show.
It’s possible that Imagineering has found via audience surveys that the show’s story is incomprehensible to many guests. Having the pre-show set-up could help fix that, reframing the non-stop action that’s to come so it makes more sense. That could help in making the main show more coherent and create the perception of better pacing.
I’m not going to complain about more Patrick Warburton in any attraction. He’s great as Chief Flight Attendant and I’m sure he’ll add some humor to Zootopia: Better Zoogether. If you ask me, Puddy should be doing even more pre-shows.
Accordingly, I’m not going to knock this. I’m also heartened to see Imagineering eager to revisit Zootopia: Better Zoogether. This suggests that they realize there’s an issue with the show, and want to do what’s in their power to improve it. That’s great to see!
This is the type of incremental improvement that, in the past, would’ve been difficult to get greenlit. That’s because, even though fan reactions towards Zootopia: Better Zoogether have been brutal (see our Zootopia Better Zoogether Review: Disney World’s Zoorst New Attraction of 2020s), this is one of those cases where there’s a sharp divide between the diehards and casual audiences.
This is something we covered recently in Walt Disney World Raises Guest Satisfaction by 15-20% with Ride & Resort Reinvestments, and there’s perhaps no better example than Zootopia: Better Zoogether.
Against my better judgment, I recently attended the show with a large group of first-timers. First of all, it was playing to an absolutely packed house on a random summer day on which Animal Kingdom was otherwise uncrowded. We just barely squeezed into a showing in which every single seat was taken, and we were in a rear ‘overflow’ area I’ve never seen used before.
After the show, I asked the people who I was with what they thought of Zootopia: Better Zoogether, eager to have more people to dunk on it with. I regret to inform you that most of them loved it (probably a 70/30 split in favor). Without pushing back (because what’s the point?), I asked what they enjoyed about the show, and it was pretty much all of the things that I dislike. The high-octane nature, that it covers a lot of ground and features a lot of characters, etc.
My concern with Zootopia: Better Zoogether is that Imagineering would learn the wrong lessons.
That, despite how scathing the reviews might be from diehards, it would play to packed houses and casual audiences would give it favorable guest satisfaction scores. That, for most average guests, seeing beloved characters and locations from a hugely popular new movie and beloved franchise would win out. That “it’s not that deep.”
This shouldn’t come as a surprise to fans, as the classic attractions we love are often perceived differently by casual guests, and the character-driven stuff they enjoy sometimes misses the mark for us. It’s kind of like a lot of movies and audience versus critic reviews. (As an example, there are two very different types of Adam Sandler movies. Most people will love one or the other, but definitely not both.)
Point being, Zootopia: Better Zoogether seems pretty popular with average guests and there was no clear incentive for Imagineering to invest the time and money to do this. That they were able to get this pre-show approved, in and of itself, suggests that they did not learn the wrong lesson, and leadership at Imagineering or Walt Disney World or Walt Disney Animation Studios (or all three) wasn’t satisfied with the creative quality of the show. That’s a very good thing!
At the same time, it strikes me (again, without having seen the new pre-show) as largely a symbolic victory. It’s good for what it represents and Imagineering’s willingness or power to revisit attractions that don’t quite work. That’s a positive going forward, for other projects.
The problem is that a new pre-show can help add context so the show is more coherent, but it cannot fix the sugar rush nature of Zootopia: Better Zoogether itself. The show is very chaotic and frenetic, with fast cuts and scenery changes for no discernible reason. It’s basically entertainment for the TikTok generation, with nonstop dopamine hits for short attention spans.
Zootopia: Better Zoogether is vapid and nonsensical, with unrelenting action that’s downright disorienting. There are fast cuts and scenery changes for no discernible reason; the plot is an afterthought, the show is really “about” a bunch of stuff just happening…and quickly. Zootopia: Better Zoogether doesn’t capture the heart or cleverness of the films, and anyone over the age of 12 will need to turn their brain off to enjoy this.
It is mindless fun, but on the plus side, it is fun. This is unlike Zootopia, the movie, which appeals to both children and adults, working on different levels. A new pre-show cannot change these qualities about the main show. Maybe it can add a new layer, but there’s only so much it can accomplish.
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Your Thoughts
Have you seen this show? What do you think of Zootopia: Better Zoogether? How would you rate/rank it relative to other shows at Walt Disney World? Excited to experience this during your Christmas-time trip to Walt Disney World? Do you agree or disagree with our review? Any questions we can help you answer? Hearing your feedback–even when you disagree with us–is both interesting to us and helpful to other readers, so please share your thoughts below in the comments!