Disney Legend Lives Out Jungle Cruise Fantasy

In early September 2022, Disney hosted its ultimate fan event, right across the street from the Disneyland Resort. The D23 Expo brings together Disney fans and Disney legends. During the long weekend, Disney hosted a number of incredible panels, giving Guests exclusive first looks at new movies, new television, shows, new attractions, and more. One of those panels was the Disney Legends panel, in which the entire main cast of Frozen — including Kristen Bell, Idina Menzel, Jonathan Groff, and Josh Gad — was inducted into the Disney Legends Hall of Fame.

During his acceptance speech, Disney Legend Josh Gad (as he now likes to be called) shared a story of when he was a young man in Los Angeles. 18-year-old Gad applied for a job to be a skipper at the World Famous Jungle Cruise at Disneyland Resort. Unfortunately, whoever was in charge of casting skippers at Disneyland didn’t think that Gad was a good fit for the role. Gad addressed the unknown person, asking them to please update his resume to read ‘Disney Legend Josh Gad.’

Well, Disney didn’t want one of its legends to leave a dream unfulfilled, so Gad recently visited The Happiest Place on Earth, where he was able to become a Jungle Cruise Skipper! During his time as a Jungle Cruise skipper, Gad told some classic jokes that the Jungle Cruise is known for, including elephants bathing with their trunks on, the backside of water, and dry humor as an elephant threatened to spray the boat with water.

As many who have ridden the Jungle Cruise know, at the end of the attraction, the skipper will usually make a joke for those who have enjoyed the trip and those who haven’t. Gad, while enjoying the iconic Disney treat — the DOLE Whip — told viewers that, if they enjoyed the video, then his name was Josh Gad. For those who did not enjoy the video, his name was Josh D’Amaro.

All I can say is, boy, am I jealous of those who got to have Josh Gad as their skipper!