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Recently, rumors have been swirling that the Walt Disney World Resort would be shutting down indefinitely; how did this start, and how did we get here?
The Walt Disney World Resort is known to be one of the most incredible places on the planet for a Disney vacation. The Disney Resort is often better known by its moniker, “The Most Magical Place on Earth,” and has well-earned that reputation. From its incredible rides and attractions like Space Mountain and Haunted Mansion to the wonderful lands like Pandora in Disney’s Animal Kingdom theme park, it’s no surprise why this is the case.
Recently, however, there was a rumor circulating that the Central Florida theme park was going to shut down indefinitely. But is it true?
“Partners” statue in front of Cinderella Castle, Disney’s Magic Kingdom Park, Walt Disney World Resort / Credit: Disney
Related: Disney Theme Park Officially Closed
Video Spreads Rumor Disney World is Shutting Down
On November 6, a video was shared online on Facebook (initially posted to TikTok) where an ostensible Disney fan shared his views on Walt Disney World. In the video, the man explained, “Breaking news y’all, this is big news. Looks like Disney World park shuts down indefinitely. This is probably the biggest news of 2023.”
The news went viral, and fans were shocked. As USA Today reported, the Facebook video was shared more than 5,000 times in four days, and the original TikTok video was shared more than 12,000 times in five days.
Beacons of Magic, Tree of Life, Disney’s Animal Kingdom Theme Park, Walt Disney World Resort / Credit: Disney
Related: Shocking Disney World “Pooping In Line” Trend is Real?!
Why Did the Video Cause So Much Havoc?
Outside of the fact that Walt Disney World is incredibly beloved and fans would understandably be upset at this, one of the primary reasons many believed this to be true was that the poster “backed up his claims.”
He used unrelated articles from Inside the Magic posted on November 5 about the closing of Typhoon Lagoon and an article from Disney Dining from September 3 about the temporary closing of Frontierland inside Magic Kingdom to support these false claims.
In addition, he also showed viewers a paragraph of text from an Inside the Magic article posted on September 8 that read, “Due to unfortunate extreme conditions, a massive Disney resort has announced it will be closing immediately.” This article in question was about Hong Kong Disneyland, and the park closed temporarily due to severe weather caused by a typhoon.
Considering fans cannot click on links posted in a video and may not be able to see dates or details as well as they need to, it’s unsurprising many believed the man’s video.
Tower of Terror at Disney’s Hollywood Studios Theme Park, Walt Disney World Resort / Credit: Disney
Related: Disney Permanently Closing Animal Kingdom? Here’s the Truth
Ultimately, this irresponsible sharing of (old and current) news wreaked havoc among fans who believed that the park was actually going to be closing down indefinitely.
However, fans can rest assured that the park indeed remains open for all to enjoy, and it’s unlikely that it will be closing down anytime soon. This situation is humorous in that it’s not the first time this kind of rumor has made waves.
In the past, rumors spread that Disney’s Animal Kingdom was going to be permanently closed, and last year, there was a rumor that made waves that Disney would be removing Cinderella Castle. However, Disney Fanatic stepped in and fact-checked these articles, showing them to be false, just as this rumor about Disney World shutting down is as well.
