Disney’s Hollywood Studios quietly tested a potential park change overnight.
The Walt Disney World theme park has undergone a steady overhaul in recent years, replacing several longtime attractions while adding new entertainment, characters, and themed areas.
Lightning McQueen’s Racing Academy was replaced by Disney Villains: Unfairly Ever After, while The Little Mermaid – A Musical Adventure debuted in Animation Courtyard.
Elsewhere, Muppet*Vision 3D and PizzeRizzo permanently closed last year to make way for Monstropolis, the new Monsters, Inc.-themed land currently taking shape at the park.
The changes continued in 2026. Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster embraced The Muppets, while Millennium Falcon: Smugglers Run added a new mission featuring The Mandalorian and Grogu.
There is more on the way.
The Magic of Disney Animation opens September 14, while Monstropolis is expected to begin opening in 2027.
Once complete, the land will feature restaurants, shops, a new theater show, and Disney’s first suspended roller coaster, recreating the door-vault sequence from Monsters, Inc.
But activity spotted after hours on Tuesday suggests Disney may be testing another potential change at Hollywood Studios.
Disney Tests Fireworks at Hollywood Studios
Multiple reports emerged Tuesday night of fireworks testing at Disney’s Hollywood Studios, with large shells repeatedly appearing over the park.
Fans said Disney appeared to launch the same fireworks several times, with each launch separated by roughly 90 seconds.
We got more pyro tonight at Hollywood Studios! Looks like some firework testing of some sort??? Theyve shot of 4 of the same firework, about 90 seconds apart
We got more pyro tonight at Hollywood Studios! Looks like some firework testing of some sort??? Theyve shot of 4 of the same firework, about 90 seconds apart pic.twitter.com/ldDInBWZut
— RockNstardust🎸✨ (@CoasterK24) September 2, 2026
The fireworks seemingly came from the launch site across World Drive, an area that has seen little regular use since Star Wars: A Galactic Spectacular ended.
Disney has not announced a new nighttime fireworks spectacular for Hollywood Studios, so exactly what the company was testing remains unclear.
Currently, Hollywood Studios does not offer a regular large-scale fireworks show.
Its nighttime lineup instead includes Fantasmic! at the Hollywood Hills Amphitheater and Wonderful World of Animation, which projects Disney imagery across the Chinese Theatre.
There are, however, several reasons Disney may suddenly need the park’s larger fireworks infrastructure again.
Hollywood Studios is scheduled to host a private event connected to the Gartner IT Symposium/Xpo on October 20.
Disney has previously used fireworks during private functions, meaning Tuesday’s testing could simply have been preparation for an upcoming corporate event.
The timing also puts the testing relatively close to the beginning of Walt Disney World’s holiday season.
Hollywood Studios Has a Long History With Fireworks
Jingle Bell, Jingle BAM! returns to Hollywood Studios during Disney Jollywood Nights this year, combining projections, lasers, holiday music, and fireworks.
Recent versions of the show have relied on smaller-scale pyrotechnics, however, making the apparent use of the World Drive launch site more notable.
Disney could potentially be testing larger fireworks for the 2026 version of the Christmas event, although the company has not indicated that the show will receive a significant upgrade.
New Year’s Eve is another possibility.
Hollywood Studios brought back a countdown fireworks show in 2024 and presented another on December 31, 2025.
Those displays relied largely on rooftop pyrotechnics rather than the larger World Drive launch site apparently involved in Tuesday night’s tests.
Disney’s Hollywood Studios is currently launching one big fireworks shell every few minutes from somewhere inside the park. Here’s a video from outside the park🤔
Disney’s Hollywood Studios is currently launching one big fireworks shell every few minutes from somewhere inside the park. Here’s a video from outside the park🤔 pic.twitter.com/MSl6f2Ittn
— Attractions 360° (@SoCal360) September 2, 2026
The more exciting possibility for Disney World fans is also the most speculative: Hollywood Studios could eventually be preparing for the return of a regular fireworks spectacular.
The park once had a much bigger nighttime fireworks presence.
Symphony in the Stars: A Galactic Spectacular became a nightly offering in late 2015 before Disney replaced it in June 2016 with Star Wars: A Galactic Spectacular.
That show combined large-scale fireworks with projections, lasers, fire, and other effects centered around the Chinese Theatre.
Star Wars: A Galactic Spectacular continued running until Walt Disney World temporarily closed in March 2020. It never returned after the resort reopened.
Hollywood Studios’ fireworks history stretches back even further.
The park previously hosted Sorcery in the Sky, seasonal performances of Frozen Fireworks Spectacular, and special fireworks displays for events including July 4 and New Year’s Eve.
That makes larger fireworks at Hollywood Studios nothing new, even if their disappearance from the park’s regular lineup has now lasted more than six years.
For now, there is no confirmation that Disney is developing a replacement for Star Wars: A Galactic Spectacular or planning any permanent expansion of the park’s nighttime entertainment.
Guests can currently enjoy fireworks at Magic Kingdom and EPCOT.
Why do you think Disney is testing fireworks at Hollywood Studios?
