It’s official – the closing date for the opening day Animal Kingdom 3D show, It’s Tough to Be a Bug, has been announced. The show that takes place inside the iconic Tree of Life will be officially closed on March 17th to make room for the new Zootopia: Better Zoogether! 3D show that was first announced at D23 back in September of last year.
It’s Tough to Be a Bug was a 3D show based on the second Pixar film A Bug’s Life, most infamously known for scaring the little ones – bugs would sting you from the benches, spiders would fall from the ceiling, and one of the resort’s most technologically advanced animatronics (for the time), the film’s villain Hopper, took center stage – well actually, stage right, but you get the idea. I first watched this attraction as a kid and I remember being absolutely terrified, but as an adult this was one of my favorite offerings in Animal Kingdom. There was never a line, it was air conditioned, and there was always an abundance of crying children. Come to think about it, that last reason might be one of the factors involved in this decision. For those of you who remember Alien Encounter, this attraction was right up there in terms of how scary it was for some kids, myself included.
It’s Tough to Be a Bug was also an offering in Disney’s California Adventure’s Bug’s Land but closed back in 2018, being replaced by Avenger’s Campus. It was up in the air if they would replace the show in Animal Kingdom considering the theater is inside of the park’s iconic Tree of Life. Zootopia also already has Disney Park presence in Shanghai Disneyland with an entire Zootopia themed land that opened back in December 2023, nine months before the new show was first announced. Will Animal Kingdom follow suit and eventually add an entire land? Only time will tell, but it would certainly make sense.
Not much about the show itself is known outside of the small details we’ve gotten from the concept art, which so far doesn’t give us anything too specific. The art features main characters Nick Wilde and Judy Hopps surrounded by some of the other characters from the movie such as Flash and Chief Bogo. Also, from the looks of the concept art, the Hopper animatronic will be replaced with a much friendlier animatronic of Officer Clawhauser. You can see the character sitting firmly in the space to the right of the stage where Hopper once resided. The fact they decided to replace one of the resort’s scarier animatronics with potentially the most wholesome character from Zootopia should tell you everything you need to know about why the decision was made to replace the show in the first place.
Are you nostalgic for It’s Tough to Be a Bug? I most definitely am, but Disney parks wouldn’t be Disney parks if they weren’t giving us new experiences. The show debuted in 1998, so it has certainly run its course. I’ll miss the original show but I’m always open to new and cool entertainment offerings – and if it eventually leads to a Zootopia land in Animal Kingdom, even better. How do you feel about the new show coming to Animal Kingdom? Let us know on our social media!
The new Zootopia show will be debuting in ‘winter of 2025’, most likely December. We will keep you updated with any new details.