Disney is making a massive change to one of the biggest attractions at their theme parks as they announced yesterday they would be doing away with the long-running Splash Mountain, and giving it a fresh theme with the 2009 film, ‘The Princess and the Frog’. This will change the ride which has been in the Disney World and DisneyLand parks for decades, and has played off the themes from the ‘Song of the South’, a 1946 controversial live-action/animated film which has long been criticized for it’s depictions of black people. Petitions from Disney fans have gained steam, and now the company has responded with the changes.

Offhand Disney produced this video of how fans of the ride are responding.

In a post on their blog, they say the new ride will be a “musical adventure” that plays the final scene of ‘the Princess and the Frog’ to the culminating kiss. They also released concept art that shows how the new characters will be integrated into the yet-to-be-made new ride.

Defunctland did a really in-depth documentary on YouTube that goes into the questionable intellectual property tied to the ride and how it became such a big success as a ride in Disney World and Disneyland.