More Disney Characters Debut at Hollywood Studios as Magic of Disney Animation Nears
The best theming at Disney is the kind you find, not the kind you get shown.
That is why the Walt Disney Studios Lot at Disney’s Hollywood Studios works. Since the courtyard opened in May, Imagineering has been slipping character statues into spots most guests walk straight past. A cat on a roof ledge. A cricket on a sign. A monkey climbing through store signage.
Nothing gets announced. It just shows up.
And it keeps happening.
Three new statues have joined: Bolt, two Dalmatian puppies from 101 Dalmatians, and Meeko from Pocahontas.
With The Magic of Disney Animation opening September 14, there are nine days left. So the obvious question is whether more are still coming.
The New Ones at Hollywood Studios
Bolt sits in a patch of grass with two Dalmatian puppies, staged mid tug-of-war.
One end of a bone is in Bolt’s mouth. A puppy has the other end. A second puppy sits nearby watching.
The details land. Bolt has the wide eyes and raised tail from the film, and the puppies keep the spotted coats and oversized floppy ears.
New character statues have been added to the Walt Disney Studios Lot area at Hollywood Studios!
— BlogMickey.com (@Blog_Mickey) September 4, 2026
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As we get closer to the September 14th opening of The Magic of Disney Animation, characters continue to leap off the page pic.twitter.com/KOQAB5BPrq
Imagineers placed the group in the grass just right of the centerpiece Sorcerer Mickey hat.
Meeko stands upright on his own patch of grass, one paw holding a red and white striped popcorn box, the other digging in.
Perfect pose for him. Meeko’s whole personality in Pocahontas is food obsession, and giving him theme park popcorn instead of corn is the joke that makes it work here specifically.
Everyone Else Out There
The full courtyard lineup:
- Pua and Thumper in the grass near the entrance
- Jiminy Cricket atop a directional sign
- Lucifer from Cinderella on a ledge, teeth bared, staring up at Zazu
- Cinderella’s bluebirds near the Studio Theater sign
- Diablo from Sleeping Beauty with the bluebirds
- Mochi from Big Hero 6 curled up on a roof ledge
- Sir Hiss from Robin Hood sharing a railing with Fru Fru from Zootopia
- Jaq, Gus, and Timothy Mouse as a trio, with Timothy holding a feather quill
- Zazu from The Lion King is watching from above
- Ray from The Princess and the Frog on a lamppost
- Abu from Aladdin is climbing through a store sign
The Pairings Are the Point
Almost none of this arrangement is accidental.
Lucifer, glaring up at Zazu, is a cat and a bird from two different films, positioned so the predator dynamic reads instantly. Diablo sitting with Cinderella’s bluebirds is the same gag.
Sir Hiss and Fru Fru on a shared railing put a 1973 villain beside a 2016 supporting character. Works because both are small, both talk constantly, and both would absolutely be gossiping.
Jaq, Gus, and Timothy Mouse combine Cinderella and Dumbo into a mouse convention.
These are not statues. They are small jokes, and they pay off for anyone who slows down.
Why They Are There at All
The lineup extends the open house concept behind The Magic of Disney Animation.
The idea is that Walt Disney Animation Studios characters have taken over while their animators stepped out. That is why they are on signs, railings, and roof ledges instead of pedestals. They are not exhibits. They wandered out.
Imagineering doubled down in late August with an “Open House” banner at the attraction entrance, staged with Mickey Mouse, the Mad Hatter, Flounder, Tinker Bell, Moana, Minnie Mouse, and Robin Williams’ Lost Boy.
How It Got To Hollywood Studios
- July 2025: Disney announces the Walt Disney Studios Lot concept, replacing Animation Courtyard
- September 25, 2025: Animation Courtyard permanently closes
- April 2026: Sorcerer Mickey hat installed atop the attraction entrance
- May 20, 2026: Courtyard opens, attraction still behind walls
- Late August 2026: Open House banner installed
- September 14, 2026: The Magic of Disney Animation opens
Three and a half months of an open, evolving courtyard while the main attraction stayed closed.
More Before September 14?
Probably.
Statues have been trickling in rather than arriving all at once, with new figures appearing months after opening. Nothing suggests Imagineering is finished, and nine days is plenty of runway.
The open house premise also has no ceiling. Any Walt Disney Animation Studios character fits, which is an enormous library to keep pulling from.
Visiting before the 14th? Walk it slowly. Visited back in June? Walk it again.
