Epcot's Guardians of the Galaxy roller coaster blasts off in first footage from inside the ride
Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind is officially on track — literally — to open this summer at Disney World's Epcot theme park.
The upcoming roller coaster's themed station took center stage in a new TikTok from the Disney Parks account that teased a first look at the ride's trains as they navigate the track inside the attraction's massive show building.
"Our guests can expect the unexpected," said Liz, a senior ride development engineer for Disney Imagineering, in the clip, which shows the coaster's spinning cars docking and embarking from the station. She added, "This innovative ride system is what we call an omnicoaster, very similar to our omnimovers like Haunted Mansion, where it [rotates and] points you to the show sets" throughout the ride's indoor course.
Taking over the former building that housed the Ellen's Energy Adventure ride starring Bill Nye and Ellen DeGeneres, Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind will allow guests to experience "[slower] speeds to take it all in, along with high-speed coaster experiences," senior Imagineer Wyatt Winter previously told EW, noting that, while the team isn't ready to reveal the coaster's initial backwards-facing launch speed just yet, the thrill factor lands somewhere between existing attractions Big Thunder Mountain Railroad and the Rock 'n' Roller Coaster.
He also said the ride features a "stand-alone" narrative set on planet Xandar that compliments the Guardians films with the inclusion of a pop-rock soundtrack, returning cast members (including Glenn Close as Nova Prime Irani Rael), and nostalgic nods to both the movies and Disney parks history.
"The idea here is the planet of Xandar has come to earth, or 'Terra,' as they call it — they're here to set up the first Other-World Showcase Pavilion," Winter said of the new themed area that will host the Cosmic Rewind coaster. "They wanted to come to Earth and reach out and talk about their people, technology, and culture. We've done that at Epcot for years, where we've had other countries come and show their cultures. As you come in, we're invited to start to learn about the similarities and how we're all connected. They want to learn as much about us as teaching all of us on Earth about Xandar."
The coaster — Epcot's first in its 40-year history — joins ambitious projects currently in development around the Orlando resort's parks, including an upcoming Tron-themed roller coaster slated to open at the Magic Kingdom, a Moana area being built into Epcot's massive overhaul plans, and the new Star Wars Galactic StarCruiser two-day themed experience at the Hollywood Studios.
Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind opens this summer at Epcot. See new footage from inside the ride's show building above.
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