The Great Movie Ride

Description And Comments

Entering through a re-creation of Hollywood's Chinese Theater, guests board vehicles for a fast-paced tour through soundstage sets from classic films including Casablanca, Tarzan, The Wizard of Oz, Alien, and Raiders of the Lost Ark. Each set is populated with Disney Audio-Animatronic characters, as well as the occasional human, all augmented by sound and lighting effects. One of Disney’s larger and more ambitious dark rides, The Great Movie Ride encompasses 95,000 square feet and showcases some of the most famous scenes in filmmaking. Life-size animatronic sculptures of stars, including Gene Kelly, John Wayne, James Cagney, and Julie Andrews, inhabit some of the largest sets ever constructed for a Disney ride.

In early 2015, as part of an agreement with Turner Classic Movies, the Great Movie Ride’s preshow film trailer and ride-film finale were updated with commentary from TCM host and film historian Robert Osborne. In addition, the finale was entirely reedited with a mix of classic clips, new scenes from previously featured films, and a handful of more-recent movies. (Refreshingly, this is the first Disney movie montage we’ve seen in a while that gives Tangled more screen time than Frozen.)

The updated preshow and finale are first-rate—it’s the attraction’s meat that merits a “meh.” Don’t strain yourself searching for signs of improved animatronics or new effects in old sets, much less any all-new scenes.

Touring Tips

• This attraction offers FastPass+ Group A.

It’s rare to see waits of more than 30 minutes at The Great Movie Ride except during peak season. For one thing, it’s an interval-loading, high-capacity attraction; for another, many of the clips don’t ring a bell with anyone under age 40. Actual wait times usually run about one-third shorter than the times posted. Great Movie Ride is a good option for day-Fastpasses.

Attraction Overview

The Great Movie Ride Wait Times

This chart shows you roughly how long you'll wait for The Great Movie Ride when you visit on a day with a given Disney's Hollywood Studios Crowd Level. The blue bars represent the average "peak" wait time (that is, how long the line will be at its busiest). The bottom and top black lines represent the range of peak wait times to expect (for you fellow nerds out there: it's the 5th percentile and 95th percentile of peak wait times). Please note that these are estimates, and for a better forecast for your travel dates, see The Great Movie Ride Wait Times.

Attraction Photos

Special Comments

• This attraction may be frightening for children.

Elaborate, with several surprises.

Special Needs

• Handheld Captioning Available
• Assistive Listening Devices Available
• Audio Description Devices Available
• Must Transfer To Standard Wheelchair

Additional Resources

• Great Movie Ride (StudiosCentral.com)

Other Attractions in Hollywood Boulevard

• Disney Movie Magic
• Mickey & Minnie's Runaway Railway
• Wonderful World of Animation