Disney Changes Iconic Song, “Let It Go”

On November 20, Hong Kong Disneyland officially opened a brand-new land at its Resort — World of Frozen! It is the first land at a Disney theme park that is completely devoted to the hit 2013 film. Guests will be able to see Anna, Elsa, Kristoff, Sven, Olaf, and even Oaken in this gorgeous new area. There are new attractions, mouthwatering dining options, new shopping areas, and amazing character meet and greets.

While the new World of Frozen does have a new attraction — Wandering Oaken’s Sliding Sleighs — it also has an attraction that guests who have visited Walt Disney World Resort will recognize. Disney Imagineers brought Frozen Ever After from EPCOT to Hong Kong.

Frozen Ever After brings guests on a gorgeous boat ride through Elsa’s frozen castle. Though it is incredibly similar to the EPCOT attraction, there are some noticeable differences — including some of the most advanced animatronics Disney has ever created. Guests who have ridden Frozen Ever After at Hong Kong Disneyland may have also noticed that Disney decided to do something surprising. They changed the lyrics to one of its most popular songs of all time — “Let It Go”.

During the attraction, when guests enter Elsa’s ice castle, she is singing the iconic song. However, instead of saying, “It’s time to see what I can do…”, Disney changed the words to, “It’s time to SHARE what I can do…”.

Frozen director and writer Jennifer Lee spoke to Entertainment Weekly and said that the decision to change the words was a conscious one they felt they needed to make. The film’s original songwriters, Robert and Kristen Anderson-Lopez, worked with Disney to make the change.

“I feel like it’s about making you feel like you’re part of the story now. That’s the point of all the lyric changes in this. Kristoff [also sings] “For the First Time in Forever” [in the ride], and it’s like, they’re a family, too,” Lee adds. “We never want anything with Frozen to be like, don’t touch it, because it’s not what Disney is about. People want to take those characters into their lives, and everyone has their own relationship with those characters. You want to push it, celebrate it, and make it more and more accessible.”

Lee said that the decision to change the lyrics came in 2018, as Disney was working on bringing the film to life on Broadway. Changing the lyrics was a subtle way to make the guests a part of the actual story.

While Hong Kong Disneyland will be the only Disney theme park (for the time being) with a World of Frozen land, it will not be the only Disney theme park with a Frozen-themed area. Tokyo DisneySea is currently undergoing major construction as Disney Imagineers create a new area called Fantasy Springs. Fantasy Springs will have a dedicated Frozen area, although it will not be as large as World of Frozen.

Tokyo Disneyland does have its own version of Fantasyland, and Tokyo DisneySea’s Fantasy Springs will be a new expansion of the classic land. Fantasy Springs will not only have an area dedicated to Frozen, but there will also be areas dedicated to Peter Pan (1953) and Tangled (2010). The Frozen area is expected to have its own version of Frozen Ever After, but it will be called Anna and Elsa’s Frozen Journey.

Will you be heading to Hong Kong to visit World of Frozen? Let us know in the comments!