Will Tim Burton's Alice in Wonderland Mean a New Ride at Disneyland?

If you haven't seen the new trailer for Tim Burton's visually stunning "Alice in Wonderland", then you you might want to see it here: disney.go.com/disneypictures/aliceinwonderland/, starring Johny Depp as the Mad Hatter, and Mia Wasikowska as Alice, this gothic version of the children's story popularized by Disney's animated version released in 1951 is guaranteed to be a box office success.

However, given that this new version of Alice's trip down the rabbit hole is being produced by Disney, and that Disney will likely promote the film in their theme parks leading up to its release, the question is how will the 1951 animated version of Alice mesh with Tim Burton's vision, which is rumored to be based more heavily on the literary work by Lewis Caroll?

This question is interesting because Disneyland, in Anaheim California, already has two attractions based on their 1951 animated feature, the Mad Hatter's Tea Cups, and a dark ride, called Alice in Wonderland where guests can board fiberglass caterpillars and ride through various scenes recreated from the animated film. Given that the look and feel of Tim Burton's Alice is more like a Dr. Zeus creation than a children's animated feature set to please 1950's sensibilities, it seems doubtful that Disney would change their beloved Alice in Wonderland attraction to feature an audioanamatronic based on Johny Depp's Mad Hatter.

However, fans will note that the uber popular Depp did have his likeness inserted into the equally beloved Disneyland attraction, Pirates of the Caribbean, as the popular Captain Jack Sparrow. Indeed, Depp signed on to star in Disney's Pirates of the Caribbean films in part because he wanted his children to be able to see him in an attraction at Disneyland.

Because of the expected popularity of Tim Burton's latest film, which will also be offered in Imax, I think that the increased popularity in all things Alice will also serve to boost interest in Disney's already existing Alice in Wonderland based attractions and souvenir products. Indeed, on any given day in Disneyland teenagers mill about attractions wearing foam Mad Hatter hats based on a film that was released decades before they were even born.

Since Tim Burton's Mad Hatter might be considered even more stylistically in tune with today's audiences, I am sure that commercially available reproductions of many of the items of clothing that will be showcased in Tim Burton's re-imagining of Alice's Adventures will be available in stores throughout Disneyland, as well as online.

While Disney may not want to permanently change the layout of their Alice in Wonderland ride to showcase Tim Burton's highly stylized Alice, they may conjure up a "Tim Burton Alice in Wonderland overlay", which would temporarily replace some of the 1950's characters with their present day counterparts. Odd this may sound, Disney does this annually with their Haunted Mansion attraction, which during the Winter becomes a homage to Tim Burton's Nightmare Before Christmas, which has itself become quite popular with the fans.

Sadly, Walt Disney World in Florida is blessed with only one Alice in Wonderland attraction, the Mad Hatter's Tea Cups which is a fairly simplistic ride which allows guests to spin themselves silly in reproductions of tea cups from the 1951 animated feature. Rumors abound that Walt Disney World may also get their own full-length Alice in Wonderland dark ride, rumors that will doubtlessly increase after Disney's newest Alice in Wonderland version is released.

It will be interesting to see how Tim Burton's Alice becomes incorporated into the pantheon of Disney characters.

Sources: Alice in Wonderland (1951 film) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alice_in_Wonderland_%281951_film%29