Yahoo Movies Disney Reopens Hall of Presidents, Unveils Animatronic Joe Biden — Complete With Aviators
Disney Parks Joe Biden in the Hall of Presidents
Walt Disney World's Hall of Presidents has reopened to the public after months of refurbishment, offering park-goers a firsthand look at the animatronic version of President Joe Biden.
Disney Imagineers spent the past several months putting the final touches on the animatronic Biden, who debuted at the park on Wednesday and is paired with a delivery of the presidential oath of office, "recorded at the White House by President Biden himself just for the attraction," according to the park's official blog.
The animatronic Biden wears a blue suit, red and blue striped tie, white pocket square, and flag pin. And as Disney's blog explains, the Hall of Presidents' version of Biden, 78, is displayed with a few props on a nearby table, as well — "including peach blossoms to represent his home state of Delaware and a pair of aviators as a nod to his proclivity for the sunglasses."
Aviator sunglasses are a mainstay in the president's wardrobe, becoming almost shorthand for Biden himself. (As he told the Skimm in 2016, "My lord, I've been wearing aviators since I was a freshman in college as a lifeguard.")
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Each time a new president assumes office, a new animatronic figure is added to the Disney attraction, which has been at the company's Florida park since it opened in 1971.
The attraction, located in the Liberty Square area of the Magic Kingdom, was closed for nearly a year before the addition of the Donald Trump audio-animatronic figure. After closing three days before Trump's January inauguration, the attraction was scheduled to reopen in late June, in time for the Fourth of July.
Disney was at the time forced to push back the updated version of the Hall of Presidents, however, due to Trump not recording the script dialogue for his robot. The Trump figure was ultimately unveiled to the public in December 2017 (and mocked mercilessly by Twitter).
After their term has ended, the figures of former presidents remain on stage near those who have previously served, meaning Trump (who did not attend his successor's inauguration in real life) will appear alongside Biden at the most magical place on Earth.
