Rohde Says Bigfoot Concept Grew Into Expedition Everest as Disney Pledges Yeti Restoration

Overview

• Joe Rohde told Entertainment Weekly at D23 that an early, lightly formed Bigfoot coaster idea planted the creative seed that led Imagineers toward a Yeti-themed attraction.
• The Bigfoot iteration never advanced because it needed new themed land and much more creative work than Camp Minnie-Mickey could support under the park’s budget constraints.
• Designers folded earlier Himalayan ideas and a 1990s interest in a snow-leopard concept into a Yeti narrative and built Expedition Everest in Animal Kingdom’s Asia section, which opened in 2006.
• The ride’s large Yeti audio-animatronic stopped functioning shortly after opening and was visually substituted with strobe effects dubbed the “Disco Yeti,” and Disney said at D23 it intends to bring the figure back to life.
• Reports and company comments suggest Imagineering intends an in-place repair using modern materials and upgraded motors that could require an extended ride shutdown, but specific plans and a schedule remain unconfirmed and may take years to complete.