Disney is one of the biggest names in entertainment and there’s a level of quality that comes with the Disney brand. From classic animated features to the relatively newer relationship with Marvel comics and Star Wars brands, the company puts its best foot forward and supplies young and old fans with visual feasts. The company’s many theme parks are no different, taking the fantastic characters off the screen and bringing them to life for visitors. One would think that immersive VR experiences would be at home in a Disney park. CEO Bob Iger reportedly thinks AR is better suited for the Disney treatment.
When it comes to the incredible work being done in Disney Parks, Iger feels putting on VR headsets would be an inferior substitute or “ersatz”, as quoted in a report from the LATimes. He’s apparently even told his team not to give VR any thought at all.
“What we create is an experience that is real,” he says. “When you walk into Cars Land, you feel you’re in Radiator Springs because of what we’ve built — not only the attention to the detail, but the scale.”
Plenty of theme parks are using VR to enhance their experiences either by promoting the park to far-flung potential visitors or adding headset options to existing rides like the Kraken at Seaworld, but Iger’s perspective is an interesting one. There’s no official reveal of Disney AR content, but the Times reporter noted that Iger spends Tuesday afternoons at one of their engineering labs wearing a headset that allows him to hold a lightsaber and fight a stormtrooper. With that, let your imagination run wild.
