It was announced at the end of 2022 that Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster Starring Aerosmith would close on February 20, 2023 for an extended refurbishment. In the end, fans actually got an extra day to ride this coaster as it actually closed on February 21.
Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster soft opened at the end of last week and has officially reopened over the weekend at Disney’s Hollywood Studios. There had been a number of rumors suggesting a retheme may be on the cards, however, we can confirm that the Aerosmith theming and soundtrack remain unchanged. The extended closure was in order to replace the launch system which was the cause of substantial downtime for this popular attraction.
With news of this extended refurbishment on the official Walt Disney World website, this naturally got Disney fans speculating further about whether the classic Aerosmith theme will be replaced with a new one.
Many Disney fans have been calling for a major overhaul for Disney’s Hollywood Studios version of Rock ‘n’ Rollercoaster for a long time but so far nothing has been confirmed by Disney. According to Screamscape, IP contracts are usually based on a 10 year period so if it was originally signed in 1998/1999 and renewed in 2008/2009 then we assume it will not be up for renewal until 2028 at the earliest, meaning that an overhaul until then is unlikely but not impossible.
At the beginning of January it came to light that due to allegations that have been made against Steven Tyler of Aerosmith that terms from the original contract which we assumed would run up until 2028 could be lifted early and Disney could exit this without penalty. We also assume that if the allegations are proven then Disney will not want Aerosmith represented in their parks and then an overhaul would be imminent.
There have clearly been signs of age on Rock ‘n’ Rollercoaster with closures in April 2022 and it therefore came as no surprise when Disney made the announcement of this extended closure to address the issues this attraction continued to experience.
We think it would make sense for Disney to seriously consider rebranding Rock ‘n’ Rollercoaster in the light of the current allegations as well as the theme now being somewhat outdated. We have taken a closer look at what the options are in our article, What’s Next For Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster? 4 Potential Options For The Disney’s Hollywood Studios Attraction.
We saw the rethemed Rock ‘n’ Rollercoaster open at Disneyland Paris in July 2022 as part of Avengers Campus. Guests now jet off on a world saving adventure with Iron Man and Captain Marvel in Rock ‘n’ Rollercoaster AVENGERS ASSEMBLE: FLIGHT FORCE.
As we already mentioned, over the last few years, many Disney fans have called for an update to this somewhat outdated IP for Rock ‘n’ Rollercoaster at Disney’s Hollywood Studios and it remains to be seen what decision Disney will make regarding this. All we do know is that Aerosmith can’t go on forever and it is exciting to think of what could be a replacement.
We asked you your thoughts on whether Rock ‘n’ Rollercoaster should be rebranded. Well, in recent weeks the results have changed from an almost clear split (53% yes to 47% no) to now when, 39% say Yes absolutely, time for something new and the other 61% say No, keep the classic Aerosmith theming. Now, we were certainly expecting more of the vote to urge towards the rebrand side of this debate especially in light of the ongoing controversy surrounding the band but it looks like a good proportion of Disney fans are staying loyal to this classic attraction and want it to remain as it is.
We would still love to hear your ideas, do you think Rock ‘n’ Rollercoaster should be rebranded? We will keep you posted of further details regarding this refurbishment as well as rumors of possible themes to replace Aerosmith in the future. Let us know your thoughts by voting in our poll or by leaving us a comment below or on our Facebook page.
