Disney blows a massive opportunity to keep pace with Orlando theme parks

The Walt Disney Company made a lot of announcements at their annual D23 event earlier in the month. Some of the news was met with loud applause but it was what wasn't announced that will keep Disney World chasing Universal Studios.

The new Villains Land, or whatever they opt to call it, will be a big addition to Magic Kingdom, but let's be real here: This should have been the fifth gate. Disney didn't mention a fifth gate, not at all. The billions of dollars that will be poured into all of their theme parks worldwide will not involve the creation of a fifth Disney World park in Orlando. This is despite Universal's new EPIC Universe build, which is already receiving rave reviews.

Something has happened at Disney. The innovation is still there but the vision itself is gone. Sorry Mickey but your decision making cast-member executives have gotten lazy. There is room at Disney to add another park and the lack of vision is clearly hurting them.

A land of villains is needed and has been but imagine an entire theme park based on the villains. New rides and attractions, new foods, maybe even new hotel resorts. A Hollywood Studios type designed with Disney most famous, loved, and despised antagonists. An actual, "themed" park.

A Villain park would have so much opportunity and an incredible scope of possibility. Disney could turn that park into the Mickey Not So Scary Halloween or add another event entirely of its own. A darker Christmas that is more Nightmare Before Christmas than the red and greens of a jolly, holly, holiday. All done within the "not-so-scary" Disney mentality of family first.

A new park would have given Disney a massive jump over Universal who is not only trying to take over Disney as the top destination in Orlando, but also keeping things fresh and new.

Instead, we get confirmation of the new ENCANTO land coming to Animal Kingdom. We get a Monsters, Inc. world at Hollywood Studios and a Cars adventure in Frontierland at Magic Kingdom. Is that remotely needed? In fact, do we need a Monster's Inc. area, or is that simply what might fit in the buildings at Animation Station? What happens to the Star Wars museum and meet and greet? Will they finally demo The Muppets on the other side of the park and move it there?

Disney lacks continuity these days and imagination, something it has prided itself on for decades. Nothing seems cohesive anymore, and nothing seems to align with the parks' actual themes. A 5th-gate Villains park would have been a big step in the right direction, but again, Disney got it wrong.