As of today, there’s one less Toy Story attraction at Disney’s theme parks.

Pixar has inspired plenty of Disney park attractions over the years, but Toy Story arguably has the most significant presence across its theme parks worldwide. The iconic adventures of Woody (voiced by Tom Hanks), Buzz Lightyear (Tim Allen), Jessie (Joan Cusack), and their friends have inspired attractions in nearly every Disney resort, with only two parks (Animal Kingdom and EPCOT) left untouched by the beloved toys.

Guests visiting Toy Story Land in Disney's Hollywood Studios at Walt Disney World Resort
Credit: Disney

Four parks – Disney’s Hollywood Studios, Walt Disney Studios Park, Hong Kong Disneyland, and Shanghai Disneyland – currently boast entire lands based on the series. Other parks feature individual attractions inspired by the animated films, with versions of Toy Story Midway Mania found at Tokyo DisneySea and Disney California Adventure Park.

Before there was Toy Story Midway Mania, however, there was Buzz Lightyear’s Space Ranger Spin. The first-ever Toy Story attraction opened at Magic Kingdom back in 1998. Over 25 years later, the interactive dark ride – which sees guests rack up points while trying to defeat the Evil Emperor Zurg – still remains a fan favorite in Tomorrowland.

It’s even inspired duplicates across the globe. In fact, there was a time when Buzz Lightyear’s Space Ranger Spin held a spot in every Disney castle park around the world.

Vibrant indoor amusement ride featuring colorful space-themed cars with mounted laser guns, set against a backdrop of galaxies, planets, and animated Galactic Hero figures.
Credit: Disney

Back in 2017, however, Buzz’s time came to an end at Hong Kong Disneyland, where Buzz Lightyear Astro Blasters was retired for good ahead of the addition of Stark Expo to the park’s Tomorrowland area. In its place came Ant-Man and The Wasp: Nano Battle!—an attraction that swapped space adventures for a high-tech showdown with Marvel’s smallest heroes.

Today marks the end of yet another chapter for Buzz Lightyear’s iconic ride, as another version has officially bitten the dust. Tokyo Disneyland officially closed its Buzz Lightyear’s Astro Blasters at the end of the operating day yesterday.

A family enjoys an interactive ride, with a child and two adults shooting light guns in a dimly lit, colorful arcade-style environment. they appear excited and engaged in the fun activity.
Credit: Tokyo Disney Resort

The decision to close the ride was originally announced in April when the Oriental Land Company (which operates the park under a licensing deal with The Walt Disney Company) unveiled plans to open the world’s first Wreck-It Ralph (2012) attraction in its place. It will also retheme the adjacent Planet M store.

💡 News 💡

Starting in 2026, Tokyo Disneyland will be introducing a new attraction set in the world of the Disney film “Wreck-It Ralph”!
This is an indoor attraction that is a revamped version of “Buzz Lightyear’s Astro Blasters.”

The concept art for the upcoming Wreck-It Ralph attraction hints at a ride experience similar to Ant-Man and The Wasp: Nano Battle! with familiar ride vehicles and blasters. Set within the vibrant world of Sugar Rush, the candy-themed racing game inhabited by Vanellope Von Schweetz (voiced by Sarah Silverman), this new adventure will immerse guests in a high-stakes mission.

They’ll join forces with Vanellope and Ralph (John C. Reilly) to protect Sugar Rush from an invasion of mischievous sugar bugs unleashed by the scheming King Candy (Alan Tudyk). Blending immersive gaming elements with beloved characters, this attraction promises an exhilarating quest through the colorful, fast-paced world of Wreck-It Ralph.

A group of animated characters from various video games stand together. The central character, a large man in red overalls, smiles confidently. Surrounding him are characters like a blue hedgehog, a princess, and various other colorful and distinctive figures.
Credit: Disney

With the ride’s closure, some guests have expressed concern for the remaining versions of the ride at Magic Kingdom Park, Disneyland Park, Disneyland Paris, and Shanghai Disneyland. While we’d argue that the latter two are safe for now (the ride is actually the newest ride at Disneyland Paris, while Shanghai Disneyland only opened less than a decade ago), we’ll admit that it’s not impossible the Florida or Anaheim parks will shutter their versions at some point.

Considering the fact that Disney is yet to action the long list of new additions unveiled at Disney’s D23 Expo in the summer, we suspect this is a long way off from becoming a reality – but stranger things have definitely happened in the world of Disney theme parks.

Jessie, Buzz Lightyear, and Woody from Toy Story posing with guests
Credit: Disney

Buzz Lightyear also hasn’t been Disney’s most profitable figure recently. In 2022, Pixar released its Toy Story (1995) spinoff focused on the ‘real-life’ Buzz Lightyear, which tanked so hard at the box office that the studio later laid off the executives involved in the film. The film was also not referenced in the Pixar Fest celebration at Disneyland Resort.

However, the character will soon be stepping back into the spotlight with the premiere of Toy Story 5 in June 2026. Reactions to the sequel have been pretty divisive, with many questioning the need to continue Buzz and the other toys’ stories after the already relatively superfluous Toy Story 4 (2019).

Do you think Disney should replace other versions of its Buzz Lightyear ride?

The post End of an Era: Disney Removes ‘Toy Story’ Ride From Theme Park Forever appeared first on Inside the Magic.

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