Harrison Ford Returns as Indiana Jones in Animatronic Form for Disney’s MYTH OF THE JADE SERPENT Attraction
Indiana Jones may have hung up the fedora on the big screen, but Harrison Ford isn’t completely finished with Dr. Jones. Disney is bringing Indy back for a massive new adventure at Walt Disney World, and this time Ford is becoming part of the attraction himself.
During D23: The Ultimate Disney Fan Event, Disney revealed a ton of new information about Indiana Jones and the Myth of the Jade Serpent, the upcoming attraction being built for the Tropical Americas land at Disney’s Animal Kingdom.
Along with its title and wild new storyline, Ford confirmed he will serve as the model for the attraction’s Indiana Jones Audio-Animatronics figure.
That makes this a pretty cool piece of Disney history. While Indiana Jones has appeared in Disney attractions for decades, this will be the first Disney attraction anywhere in the world where an Audio-Animatronics version of the character actually features Ford’s likeness.
Ford delivered a message to fans during the Disney Experiences presentation, thanking everyone who has joined him through his many adventures as Indiana Jones before revealing that he was used as the model for the new figure.
Imagineers Michael Hundgen and Chris Beatty later showed off the digital model being used to create the Audio-Animatronics version of Indy.
It’s a great way to keep Ford connected to a character he has played since Raiders of the Lost Ark hit theaters in 1981. Guests won’t simply be exploring an Indiana Jones-themed environment either. Dr. Jones will be right there as part of an entirely original adventure created specifically for Animal Kingdom.
Indiana Jones and the Myth of the Jade Serpent will send riders beneath the ruins of an ancient Maya temple, where Indy is investigating a mysterious location near a cenote, an underground cave that was once filled with water.
According to the legend established for the attraction, a passage near the cenote leads directly into the Maya Underworld. Unfortunately for everyone climbing aboard, it’s also protected by the Tsukán, a gigantic serpentine creature.
The adventure really gets moving when riders are accidentally pulled through a portal and dropped into the Underworld. From there, they’ll have to survive monstrous bats, enormous scorpions, fire, snakes, and whatever other nasty surprises are waiting beneath the temple.
The Tsukán won’t be some creature that briefly pops up and disappears. Beatty revealed that riders will encounter it multiple times throughout the attraction, eventually leading to a major final confrontation.
Disney also showed the enormous Tsukán Audio-Animatronics figure, and the thing absolutely dwarfs the Imagineers standing next to it. The team is sculpting the creature by hand in an effort to give it a more convincing physical presence. Considering Indy’s famously complicated relationship with snakes, making this monster gigantic feels appropriately cruel.
Disney Imagineers are also putting a lot of work into the cultural foundation of the attraction. Rather than treating Maya civilization as generic adventure-movie decoration, the project is being developed with input from archaeologists, anthropologists, and Maya experts.
The ride will explore Maya culture and its connection with the natural world, which gives the Indiana Jones concept a strong thematic connection to Animal Kingdom. Guests will also see original Maya artwork created for the attraction, while the temple itself is already under construction.
Imagineers have traveled to locations including Honduras as part of their research, studying the region’s culture, folklore, architecture, and native artistry. One particularly important source of inspiration has been Copán, one of the best-preserved cities from the ancient Maya civilization.
That research should help give the attraction its own identity instead of simply recreating locations or sequences from the Indiana Jones movies. The basic setup still has all the ingredients you want from an Indy adventure, including archaeological mysteries, ancient legends, supernatural danger, underground temples, enormous creatures, and an escalating series of terrible decisions.
The attraction is one of the centerpiece projects for Tropical Americas, the new 11-acre land coming to Disney’s Animal Kingdom. Disney originally announced the area at D23 in 2024, when then-Disney Experiences Chairman Josh D’Amaro revealed plans for the major expansion.
The most exciting part may be that Disney isn’t simply recycling an Indiana Jones movie plot. Imagineers are building a new chapter around the character while still leaning into everything fans love about him.
We’re getting Ford’s Indy, an ancient temple, a portal to the Underworld, monstrous bats, giant scorpions, fire, archaeological mysteries, and a colossal supernatural snake hunting everyone down. It sounds like an awesome ride!
Ford may have finished his movie adventures as the legendary archaeologist, but somewhere beneath a Maya temple at Walt Disney World, Indy will still be getting himself into trouble.
