‘Mistakes Were Made.’ Fans Are Noticing One Detail About Splash Mountain’s New Tiana Replacement Ride That’s Already Falling Apart

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2021 was a significant year for Disney Parks, with both Walt Disney World and Disneyland debuting Tiana’s Bayou Adventure – a revamped and redesigned version of Splash Mountain. Despite encountering more than the usual amount of controversy, it can still be considered a major success, as most park visitors seem to appreciate it. Yet, it’s not without its flaws; the newest ride at Disney World is facing some issues.

A video on TikTok is rapidly gaining popularity, revealing a problem with Tiana’s Bayou Adventure. More precisely, the seam connecting the head and neck of one of Louis the alligator’s animatronics has torn apart, resulting in an unsightly gash on the alligator. You can see it for yourself here:

@brandon.paints.the.parks

Still rode it twice 🤙🏽🤙🏽🐊

♬ original sound – Brandon Paints the Parks

The original video was reposted on Twitter, with a comment noting “Mistakes were made.” It’s been suggested that the reason the animatronic wore out so quickly (it had only been running for less than nine months) might be due to using felt for Louis’ skin instead of something more durable like rubber or latex. This material could have provided greater resilience and also better resembled alligator skin, which would have likely prolonged the lifespan of the animatronic.

It’s not surprising that the animatronic material is wearing out due to its continuous use in a watery environment for long hours. Despite their impressive technological nature, Tiana’s Bayou Adventure audio-animatronics are pioneering new ground since much of what they do hasn’t been attempted before, introducing an element of uncertainty or ‘X-factor’.

Simultaneously, one can only cross their fingers that all factors were considered during the creation of the system. The peculiarity experienced by just a single animatronic robot might suggest an unusual imperfection in the materials used. However, resolving this issue could prove costly and it’s uncertain whether it can be addressed quickly or if the entire robot would require replacement.

On more than one occasion, a substantial issue has been uncovered post the grand opening of a popular attraction, and that’s exactly what happened with Rise of the Resistance at Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge. At both Disneyland and Walt Disney World, this attraction features three moving blasters, but for most of its operation, these have remained inactive. This indicates there were design flaws from the start. However, the blasters at Disneyland have been recently fixed, causing quite a stir. Although they’re still not working in Florida, it appears that a solution is imminent.

It’s possible that Louis may experience something similar in the future. While there might be some temporary solutions, a more substantial overhaul seems necessary for a lasting update. Repairing the current damage could potentially lead to it recurring again within nine months. Therefore, we might see Louis in this condition for an extended period until they can address the root cause of the damage.

It’s intriguing to observe whether a similar occurrence takes place at Disneyland, as Tiana’s Bayou Adventure debuted at Magic Kingdom initially. The Disneyland counterpart followed approximately five months later. If this pattern suggests a design issue, it might manifest in the other attraction this summer.

2025 brings many exciting plans to Disney World, but it seems there won’t be a large-scale, brand-new attraction. Instead, the most significant new ride is actually an upgrade to Test Track at Epcot. Given this, it might be wise to prioritize fixing Louis, earlier rather than later.

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2025-03-04 07:13