Avatar Land probably seemed like a good idea four years ago, when James Cameron struck a deal with Disney and 20th Century Fox to bring an Avatar-themed addition to Florida’s sprawling Walt Disney World. Not content with the 3-D renderings in his films, the physical world of Cameron’s vision will be built on the remains of Camp Minnie-Mickey, the character-greeting area of Disney’s Animal Kingdom.
Variety has the first look at Avatar Land, which seems to consist mainly of knockoff Chihuly sculptures and James Cameron looking at miniature foliage with his serious director eyes. Besides some glowing blue and purple sea-anemone mushrooms, there’s also a blue and green glowing sidewalk that looks like a paint-spattered version of the light-up sidewalks found in Epcot’s Innoventions area. The rendering of what the park will eventually look like appears to borrow a lot of inspiration from the park to which Avatar Land will be adjoined, the Animal Kingdom, down to the big tree and lush vegetation.
The park is slated to open in 2017, coinciding neatly with the release with the first of many Avatar sequels. Avatars 2, 3, and 4—which Cameron has been shooting simultaneously—continue the love story of the Naʼvi and Hollywood corporate synergy.