By Peter Covino

Lifestyles Editor

Attached, below, is Tuesday's release from my email about Disney's big announcement to join forces with James Cameron to create a Avatar fantasy world at Animal Kingdom.

Hmmm....I will say it again...hmmmmm.

Animal Kingdom has always been a bit lacking in my estimation. There are definitely things to like, but the place just never seems fully realized to me. A whole new world will  bring excitement and more repeat business, no doubt. But Avatar?

Sure it is the box office king, but does that make it the right choice,  a project that I have seen estimated at $500 million? If anyone can do it right, Disney can, but I just have to wonder if this is just kind of Disney in "Universal has Harry Potter mode" (the biggest thing at any theme park in the past few years), while Disney's big push is a Fantasyland over populated by princesses.

Potter has so many well definined characters and an absolute legion of fans. It is a natural for a theme park settting. Avatar, has, well, a world and a kind of murky one at that. Lord of the Rings would seem to be a much better choice to bring to a theme park. Again, so many well defined characters, and infinite possibilities. It would be a theme park onto itself.

But Disney doesn't own the rights to Lord of the Rings and maybe it just wasn't attainable.  There were still other possibilities. The Transformers series have been really popular, and it is a Disney franchise. And California is getting is owned themed attraction based on the Cars movies. Even that seems more saleable with its great sets and vistas, Route 66 icon stuff and again, many popular characters.

I think I would have had more fun with the idea of building a big themed attraction around Cameron's other epic, Titanic. Everyone can have one big party at the new "land," until you hit that iceberg. And then all hell can break loose. I am only-half joking. There actually some possibilities there.

Oh well. It will be really interesting to see how all this plays out. And it is going to be a big success too, given Disney's track record. But at this point, I am just not overwhelmed. Maybe the "wow" factor will come as more plans are released in the coming months.

Anyhow. here is Disney's release from that press conference.

At a press conference at Walt Disney Imagineering Tuesday, Disney executives Bob Iger and Tom Staggs announced a long-term creative partnership with James Cameron’s Lightstorm Entertainment and Fox Filmed Entertainment to bring the epic fantasy world of AVATAR to life at Disney parks, beginning with Disney’s Animal Kingdom Theme Park at Walt Disney World Resort. With its spectacular settings, intriguing characters, imaginative creatures and strong themes of family and loyalty, AVATAR is a great fit for Walt Disney Parks and Resorts.

Cameron and his producing partner, Jon Landau, and their team at Lightstorm Entertainment will serve as creative consultants and will work side by side with Disney Imagineers to dream up experiences that will take Guests deep into worlds of AVATAR like never before. With two sequels to the record-setting first film in the works, there will be even more fascinating stories, characters and locations to explore in the AVATAR universe.

“James Cameron is a groundbreaking filmmaker and gifted storyteller who shares our passion for creativity, technological innovation and delivering the best experience possible,” Bob said. “With this agreement, we have the extraordinary opportunity to combine James’ talent and vision with the imagination and expertise of Disney.”

“AVATAR created a world which audiences can discover again and again and now, through this incredible partnership with Disney, we'll be able to bring Pandora to life like never before. With two new AVATAR films currently in development, we'll have even more locations, characters and stories to explore,” Cameron said. “I'm chomping at the bit to start work with Disney's legendary Imagineers to bring our AVATAR universe to life. Our goal is to go beyond current boundaries of technical innovation and experiential storytelling, and give parkgoers the chance to see, hear and touch the world of AVATAR with an unprecedented sense of reality.”

Disney’s Animal Kingdom Theme Park is the planned site of the first AVATAR-themed land with construction expected to begin by 2013. The park is a great fit for this project because it was created to give Guests the opportunity to experience the worlds of animals and nature – real and mythical – in new ways. With AVATAR, Disney has found the perfect opportunity to immerse Guests in one of the most compelling mythical worlds ever conceived. Disney’s Animal Kingdom Theme Park also celebrates adventure, living in harmony with nature and environmental stewardship – themes that are deeply rooted in the story of AVATAR.


“AVATAR is a uniquely powerful franchise that has global appeal with audiences of all ages. Its spectacular settings, intriguing characters, imaginative creatures and strong themes of family and loyalty make it a perfect fit for Disney,” Tom said. “We can’t wait to give our Guests the ability to journey to Pandora and explore the incredible immersive world of AVATAR in person.”

Future locations for additional AVATAR-themed lands will be determined with our international theme park partners at a later date.