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Complete Guide to Muppet*Vision 3D at Hollywood Studios

Complete Guide to Muppet*Vision 3D at Hollywood Studios

It’s time to play the music. It’s time to light the lights. It’s time to meet the Muppets at Muppet*Vision 3D in Hollywood Studios!

Take your seat in a replica of the Muppet Theater from the TV classic, The Muppet Show. Then sit back, relax, and let the laughs (and the 3D effects) fly!

Kermit, Miss Piggy, and the whole Muppets menagerie take you on a 3D musical tour of their lab to show off their newest invention: Muppet*Vision 3D. 

But in true Muppet’s fashion, nothing goes as planned!

Make sure you say “Hi-Ho” to Kermit the Frog and keep reading for our complete guide to Muppet*Vision 3D!

Muppet Vision 3D Quick Facts

  • Location: Grand Avenue, at Hollywood Studios
  • Height requirement: None
  • Suitable for: Everyone
  • Attraction Length: About 17 minutes
  • Do we recommend? Yes, for little ones (as a time filler for everybody else)
  • When to visit: Anytime
  • Lightning Lane available: Yes
  • Eligible for Early Entry: No
  • Eligible for Extended Evening Hours: No
  • Scheduled Refurbishments
  • Tip(s): The theater holds a lot of people and usually doesn’t have a long wait. It’s a good option to escape hot afternoons. Be sure to check the My Disney Experience app for hours as this attraction sometimes opens after park opening and closes before park closing.

Description: This indoor, 3D show is a fun attraction featuring The Muppets. Things happen in the theater as part of the show, making the show even more fun (especially for little ones).

Location

Muppet*Vision 3D is located in Grand Avenue across from PizzeRizzo and near BaseLine Taphouse.

muppet vision 3D location
hollywood studios map
hollywood studios map

How to Watch Muppet*Vision 3D

Muppet*Vision 3D has a Standby Line and a Lightning Lane. There is no Single Rider Line.

Do I need to use Genie+ at Muppet*Vision 3D?

Genie+ is available at Muppet*Vision 3D, however, it is not an early priority as the show features plenty of seating and Genie+ availability rarely runs out.

Be sure to check out our touring strategies for Hollywood Studios for more Genie+ advice.

Rider Switch/Child Swap

Muppet*Vision 3D does not offer Rider Switch since this show is appropriate for all ages.

Rider Switch is Disney’s system that allows guests with small children to take turns riding bigger rides, while another person/people wait with the little one.

You can learn more about Rider Switch via our handy guide.

What to Expect when you Watch

Queue

At Muppet*Vision 3D the queue is part of the experience!

entrance to muppet vision

First you’ll walk through the covered open air queue outside of the Grand Arts Theater. Check out the movie posters on the wall that pay homage to many of the great films of recent times — with a Muppet twist!

As soon as you enter the Grand Arts Theater, you’ll see a ticket window (it’s not real – no need for tickets other than your regular park admission for this attraction) with a sign that says “Back in 5 minutes key is under mat.” In true Muppets tongue in cheek humor, check under the mat — there really is a key!

Walk down the hall through “Muppet Labs”, home of Dr. Bunsen Honeydew and his assistant Beaker. Pay attention to the office doors, all featuring outlandish job descriptions that will give you a laugh.

muppetvision 3d

Then you’ll enter into a large room filled with props and boxes, all with humorous labels.

Above your head are television monitors, where you’ll watch the pre-show hosted by Scooter. As part of the pre-show, Fozzie Bear introduces a new act featuring the three “Ds”: Dorothy, Dinah, and Debbie.”

However, Debbie is sick so she is replaced by the balding Max — wearing what would have been Debbie’s show girl costume. They proceed to sing, “By the Light of the Silvery Moon,” with interjections provided by Max.

muppet vision 3D hollywood studios

Other hijinks ensue before Sam the Eagle gives the audience a safety peptalk. As the pre-show wraps up, the doors to the theater open and you’re given your 3D glasses (which are sometimes referred to as “3D Safety Goggles” because of the dangerous experiments you’ll be witnessing during the show).

Make your way into the theater, a replica of the one from The Muppet Show, and it’s time to meet the Muppets!

Accessibility Information

Since you are seated in a theater for this experience, those in wheelchairs and ECVs may remain in them. Guests using wheelchairs and ECVs will be seated in a special area of the theater. 

muppetvision 3D

Handheld captioning, assistive listening, and video captioning is available for guests.

In the Show

If you prefer to experience Muppet*Vision 3D without spoilers, make sure you skip over this section!

Statler and Waldorf welcome you to the show with their typical heckling as they sit in their usual box while donning their 3D glasses. A penguin orchestra rises up at the front of the theater as they begin to play.

muppet vision theater

You’re at Muppet Studios and Kermit the Frog is giving you a tour! To drive home the fact that this is a 3D film, Fozzie interrupts Kermit to perform a series of 3D tricks, including a flower that sprays water. As the flower sprays, you are sprinkled with water, creating a 4D effect (which is why this show is sometimes referred to as “Jim Henson’s Muppet*Vision 3D 4D”). 

Kermit then takes you to Muppet Labs where Dr. Bunsen Honeydew and Beaker have just invented a living 3D effect called Waldo C. Graphic.

But Waldo proves uncontrollable and Bunsen tries to deactivate him. Instead he sucks the entire lab up in a vacuum. Waldo survives and escapes the fray.

Fozzie returns with a flying pie but it malfunctions, hitting him in the face. Kermit then introduces Miss Piggy who sings “Dream a Little Dream of Me”.

muppet vision theater

Bean Bunny attempts to assist Miss Piggy by adding 3D effects including bubbles that actually rain down from the rafters over the audience — another 4D effect. But Miss Piggy does not appreciate the help, especially as she gets dragged off for her unplanned water skiing finale!

As a result, Sam sends Bean away and that’s when Bean meets Waldo. Together, they decide to leave the film. Gonzo alerts Kermit that Bean has taken off and they go looking for him.

Sweetums then comes out into the audience to search for him and he finds Bean on the other side balcony.

After some coaxing, Bean agrees to stay if he can help in the finale and so he is given the task of shooting off the fireworks.

kermit and fozzie bear in muppet vision

Kermit introduces the finale filled with patriotic music played by toy soldiers. Waldo bounces on their heads and one of the tuba players gets his head stuck inside his instrument which sets off a chain reaction of chaos.

Bean shoots off the fireworks as Waldo shapeshifts into a rocket. He zooms around Miss Piggy, who is dressed like the Statue of Liberty, and accidentally tears off her skirt.

Waldo then plummets into the penguin orchestra, setting off a fire in the pit.

Sweetums reappears in the audience and tells Chef to stop the projector. He puts out the fire with water, which infuriates the penguins and they decide to retaliate with a cannon.

The show ends with a real bang that will leave everyone in stitches long after you leave the theater!

Is Muppet*Vision 3D Kid-Friendly?

This show provides laughs for those of all ages. It is most definitely kid-friendly, though many of the jokes may fly right over (literally at times) your little ones’ heads.

Some little ones might not be fans of the 3D action, so keep that in mind. You can check out our guide to things that might scare little ones at Disney World.

Strollers

Strollers are not allowed in most queues or theaters at Walt Disney World, including here.

You’ll need to leave your stroller in the designated stroller parking area to the left of the entrance to the queue at Muppet*Vision 3D.

History

On August 28, 1989, Disney announced that they had an “agreement in principle” to acquire Henson Associates and The Muppets characters. As part of this acquisition, a 3D Muppets attraction would debut at the then-Disney-MGM Studios (now Disney’s Hollywood Studios) in May of 1990.

The attraction, Muppet*Vision 3D, was directed by Jim Henson and written by Bill Prady. It was filmed in Soundstage 3 at the Walt Disney Studios in January 1990.

opening of muppet vision in 1991

As negotiations were in progress, Disney came up with a concept to dedicate a whole section of the park to The Muppets which would have been known as “Muppet Studios.”

This section would not only include Muppet*Vision 3D, but also a parody of the now-defunct The Great Movie Ride called The Great Muppet Movie Ride. There were also plans for a pizza place called The Great Gonzo’s Pizza Pandemonium Parlor.

However, Henson died in 1990, before production of the film was completed and as a result the acquisition was canceled. Muppet*Vision 3D would become one of Jim Henson’s final Muppets projects, not just as its creator, but also as the voice of Kermit.

muppetvision 3d

This delayed the opening of Muppet*Vision 3D and canceled the development of “Muppet Studios”. Eventually an agreement to license The Muppets characters for Muppet*Vision 3D was reached, and it officially opened on May 16, 1991, the first anniversary of Jim Henson’s death.

Disney did open a pizza place in 1995 near Muppet*Vision 3D, but instead of the original plan to have it be Muppets-themed, it became Toy Story’s Pizza Planet.

In 2016, Disney closed the adjacent Streets of America to prepare for the Star Wars and Toy Story expansions. Pizza Planet closed but reopened in the fall of that year as PizzeRizzo.

muppetvision 3d

In 2017, Muppet*Vision 3D received a new entrance. The original Kermit marquee was replaced with a new Broadway-style sign. The name of the theater was changed to “Grand Arts Theater”.

In 2019, the Kermit and Miss Piggy mural was removed, and the exterior was repainted to match the rest of the area’s color scheme.

Other Fun Details

  • Muppet*Vision 3D was Jim Henson’s final performance as Kermit the Frog before his death in 1990. It was also the last performance for veteran Muppet performer Richard Hunt who voiced Scooter, Statler, Janice, Beaker, and Sweetums. Hunt died in 1992.
  • When you enter the pre-show lobby, you will notice the pun, “a net full of Jell-O.” If you say this quickly, it sounds exactly like “Annette Funicello,” who was one of the stars on the original Mickey Mouse Club.
key under mat sign at muppet vision
  • As you’re walking through the queue, look for the sign that says that the crew will be back soon and that there is a key under the mat. Make sure you check under the mat — the key is actually there!
  • Waldo C. Graphic, Dr. Honeydew’s first “living 3D effect,” first appeared on “The Jim Henson Hour” television show in 1989.
  • From March 2014 to December 2016, the pre-show was edited to include Constantine, the villain from Muppets Most Wanted (2014) that looks exactly like Kermit, to promote the new film.
muppetvision 3d
  • In October 2021, the majority of the pre-show was replaced with a promo hosted by Pepe the King Prawn, to promote the Disney+ special, Muppets Haunted Mansion (2021).
  • Muppet*Vision 3D was sponsored by Kodak when it opened in 1991. However, in 2012, the company declined to renew sponsorship and all references to Kodak were removed.

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