On the other side of Hollywood Studios at Disney World in Orlando, FL, opposite the future site of the Magic of Disney Animation, is another area of rapid development that will eventually be Monstropolis — the first ever Monsters, Inc. themed land at a Disney Park.
Since the Muppets Courtyard, home to the former Muppet*Vision 3D attraction, closed in June of 2025, Disney has been hard at work reimagining and ultimately transforming the space into Monsters, Inc.
Now, Disney World is sharing a bit more information on the story of the land as well as confirming two other major parts of the land beyond the Door Vault roller coaster, but I also got the chance to go behind the construction walls into an extremely active site to get a view of the land with my own eyes.
The goal seems to be that the moment you step through the entrance, you’re not visiting Monstropolis — you’re in it.
We’re still likely months, if not years, away from when Monstropolis will open to visitors at Disney World, but there are active hammers, drills, and elements being moved by countless workers on the site. I donned PPE and headed into a gutted building that was likely the former home of the PizzeRizzo restaurant that will soon be another eatery.
From the second floor, I had a vantage point looking down the main street to see facade work on several buildings and all the way down to the start of the Door Vault coaster.
So What’s the Story of Monstropolis?
There, I heard from Imagineers who discussed what Disney World has ultimately announced today — the Monstropolis land at Hollywood Studios will be a celebration of a new day called “H.U.M.A.N. Day,” which stands for Humans Understand Monsters Are Nice. Fans of the Monsters, Inc. universe — the original film, Monsters University, and Monsters at Work — will know that this represents the change from monsters collecting screams to them gathering laughter.
And it makes for a cohesive story as they’ll be opening the doors of Monstropolis to let us all visit. To make this happen, the city has established the Department of Human Relations — the in-world team tasked with helping monsters better understand humans as welcomed guests, and the driving force behind the invitation.
As someone who has re-watched Monsters at Work on Disney+ more than a few times, it’s a really exciting story for the land. And it fits with the overall theme of Hollywood Studios — you can become one of Andy’s toys alongside Buzz, Woody, and Jessie in Toy Story Land or live out your Star Wars fantasy in Galaxy’s Edge.
Monstropolis will let you enter the world of Monsters, Inc. to see folks like Mike and Sulley, but also other characters, and even explore other parts of the city. Yes, front and center at the end of the land will be the Monsters, Inc. company that houses the door coaster. It’s actually Disney’s first-ever suspended coaster, and it’s gone vertical with main support poles visible today.
In the run-up to that, though, you’ll be able to walk through Monstropolis and take a look at the sights, whether they be apartments or other city buildings. Chances are Disney will work on some stores and even light bite spots, but where I was standing, I saw it all starting to come together with more than a few scaffolds, and I spotted the future site of Harryhausen’s, the same sushi restaurant from the original Monsters, Inc. film, where Sulley, Mike, and Celia end up alongside a whole host of other monsters. This will likely be an immersive dining experience, at least that’s the hope. It’ll also add a permanent nod to Ray Harryhausen, a pioneering stop-motion special-effects artist.
Beyond the coaster, the Glob Theater could become one of Monstropolis’ most popular experiences near the eventual entrance of the land. While there isn’t much known about the attraction beyond the fact that it will occupy the former home of Muppet*Vision 3D, Disney has indicated it will be an immersive experience that makes use of innovative technology.
Now, that has me personally pretty excited, considering the fast-paced developments from Disney Imagineering in the world of effects, robotic characters, and animatronics at large. Remember, the BDX Droids took a year to develop, the H.E.R.B.I.E. robot for Fantastic 4 was just 90 days, and Olaf took only 4 months.
The Glob Theater will help “bring the city to life,” according to the Disney Parks Blog post, and I suspect that it might be similar to what we’ve seen from some other shows, mainly looking at Zootopia: Better Zoogether in Animal Kingdom — there, it’s a screen show with 3D elements and a very realistic Clawhauser animatronic that takes part. The visual elements were a partnership between Imagineering and Disney Animation, so here it might be Imagineering and Pixar … in fact, they’re already working together to figure out what other parts of Monstropolis look like beyond what we’ve seen in released media.
Over at the future site of the Once Upon a Studio theater at the Magic of Disney Animation, it’s teased that the characters will appear immersively around you, a nod to Disney’s work bringing paintings and photographs to life, à la the Haunted Mansion or Haunted Mansion Parlor.
What could Monstropolis actually look like?
All in all, the information shared is a good update showing that Disney is making pretty rapid progress on Monstropolis — we’re still keen for more details to be released about these immersive experiences, and, even more importantly, how technology might be used here. Could we see all-new animatronics for mainstays like Mike and Sulley on the coaster? Given Disney’s recent pace of innovation, it certainly seems possible. But might we see walkaround character robots that are new friendly monster friends? If it’s all about immersion and being welcomed into Monstropolis, I’d think yes.
And standing behind those construction walls, it’s already clear that Disney intends for Monstropolis to be truly immersive in the way the best Disney lands are. The level of facade detail already taking shape suggests this won’t just be a walk-through space between attractions — the kind of environment that could support characters peering out of windows, interactive storefronts, and other surprises woven throughout the streets. The goal seems to be that the moment you step through the entrance, you’re not visiting Monstropolis — you’re in it.
In the meantime, with Monstropolis still a ways off, there’s plenty to keep Disney World visitors busy — Smugglers Run has been reimagined with Mandalorian and Grogu over at Galaxy’s Edge, Rock ‘N’ Roller Coaster is back with a Muppets makeover right here at Hollywood Studios, Soarin’ has a fresh experience over at Epcot, and Buzz Lightyear Space Ranger Spin has been updated at Magic Kingdom. And of course, all the Monsters, Inc. media is right there on Disney+ to get you hyped for when Monstropolis finally opens its doors.
Disney still isn’t ready to share an opening date, but based on the pace of construction and the scale of what’s already taking shape behind the walls, Monstropolis is becoming much more than concept art. It’s starting to look like a real city.
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jacob.krol@futurenet.com (Jacob Krol)
