Disney’s Hollywood Studios carried out an unusual test after dark this week.
The park has spent much of the past few years reshaping its attraction and entertainment lineup, with several longtime offerings disappearing while Disney prepares new experiences for 2026 and beyond.
Unlike many of those changes, however, the latest development came without an announcement, construction walls, or a formal preview.
Instead, Disney fans noticed something happening above the park.
Fireworks Testing Spotted After Hours
Several reports on Tuesday night described large fireworks being launched at Disney’s Hollywood Studios.
The testing did not appear to form a complete show. Instead, observers reported individual shells being fired several times, with long gaps between each launch.
Disney’s Hollywood Studios is currently launching one big fireworks shell every few minutes from somewhere inside the park. Here’s a video from outside the park🤔
Disney’s Hollywood Studios is currently launching one big fireworks shell every few minutes from somewhere inside the park. Here’s a video from outside the park🤔 pic.twitter.com/MSl6f2Ittn
— Attractions 360° (@SoCal360) September 2, 2026
The shells seemingly came from the fireworks launch site across World Drive.
That detail makes the testing particularly unusual. The area has seen relatively little regular use since Star Wars: A Galactic Spectacular disappeared from Hollywood Studios’ entertainment schedule in 2020.
Disney has not announced a new fireworks show for the park.
Hollywood Studios currently offers Fantasmic! as its major nighttime spectacular – sometimes multiple times per night – while Wonderful World of Animation uses projections across the Chinese Theatre.
Neither represents the kind of large-scale fireworks show that once regularly filled the skies above the park.
There are still several more immediate reasons Disney could be testing the site.
We got more pyro tonight at Hollywood Studios! Looks like some firework testing of some sort??? Theyve shot of 4 of the same firework, about 90 seconds apart
We got more pyro tonight at Hollywood Studios! Looks like some firework testing of some sort??? Theyve shot of 4 of the same firework, about 90 seconds apart pic.twitter.com/ldDInBWZut
— RockNstardust🎸✨ (@CoasterK24) September 2, 2026
A private event connected to the Gartner IT Symposium/Xpo is scheduled to take place at Disney’s Hollywood Studios on October 20.
Disney has previously included fireworks at private events, making preparations for that function one possible explanation for the test.
The upcoming Christmas season provides another.
Jingle Bell, Jingle BAM! will return during Disney Jollywood Nights in 2026, with Disney promoting a combination of projections, lasers, holiday music, and fireworks.
Recent performances have generally used smaller-scale pyrotechnics. Tuesday’s testing could therefore be connected to preparations for the seasonal show, particularly if Disney intends to alter its effects this year.
New Year’s Eve is also approaching.
Hollywood Studios presented a countdown fireworks show on December 31, 2024, and again on December 31, 2025.
Those displays largely relied on rooftop pyrotechnics, rather than the bigger World Drive launch site apparently used this week.
For now, Disney has not said whether the latest test was connected to any of those events.
Hollywood Studios Once Had Regular Fireworks
Large fireworks were once a much more familiar sight at Hollywood Studios.
Symphony in the Stars: A Galactic Spectacular became a nightly show in late 2015, bringing a major fireworks spectacular back to the park.
It was replaced in June 2016 by Star Wars: A Galactic Spectacular.
That production combined fireworks with projections, lasers, fire, and other effects around the Chinese Theatre, turning the front of Hollywood Studios into the centerpiece of the park’s nighttime entertainment.
The show continued until Walt Disney World closed in March 2020.
Although Hollywood Studios later reopened, Star Wars: A Galactic Spectacular did not return.
The park has an even longer history with fireworks beyond its Star Wars era.
Earlier offerings included Sorcery in the Sky and the seasonal Frozen Fireworks Spectacular, while Hollywood Studios has also presented special displays for July 4 and New Year’s Eve.
That history is why the latest test has attracted attention, even if it ultimately proves to be routine preparation rather than evidence of a permanent new show.
It also comes as Hollywood Studios undergoes another significant period of change.
In 2025, Lightning McQueen’s Racing Academy was replaced by Disney Villains: Unfairly Ever After, while The Little Mermaid – A Musical Adventure opened in Animation Courtyard.
Muppet*Vision 3D and PizzeRizzo closed last year to clear space for Monstropolis.
The new Monsters, Inc. area is expected to begin opening in 2027 and will eventually feature restaurants, shops, a theater show, and Disney’s first suspended roller coaster.
Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster has also been reworked around The Muppets, while Millennium Falcon: Smugglers Run added a new mission featuring The Mandalorian and Grogu.
Another addition arrives even sooner. The Magic of Disney Animation is scheduled to open September 14.
Whether fireworks will eventually join that growing list of Hollywood Studios changes remains unclear.
Why do you think Disney is testing fireworks at Hollywood Studios?
