published on in blog

Disney Parks in Japan and China Eye Expansion Opportunities

Disney’s advance into the Asian theme park market, starting with the opening of Tokyo Disneyland in 1983, has not been without stumbles and controversies, but the Disney parks in Tokyo, Hong Kong and Shanghai are now recording higher numbers across the board. 

In the third quarter of fiscal 2023, ending on July 1, Disney’s international parks and resorts segment, which includes parks in Hong Kong, Shanghai and Paris, but not Tokyo, notched a 94% rise in revenue year-on-year, to $1.53 billion. 

The Shanghai park was a major contributor to growth, one big reason being its ability to keep its gates open for the entire quarter. In the previous third quarter the park was in operation for only three days due to COVID closures.  

Related Stories

Illustration of a TV set with a desert scene with a tumbleweed blowing across the screen VIP+

Fall Season’s Scripted Reduction Bodes Badly for Broadcast TV

JOKER: FOLIE A DEUX, (aka JOKER 2), from left: Lady Gaga as Harley Quinn, Joaquin Phoenix as Joker, 2024. © Warner Bros. / Courtesy Everett Collection

Inside the ‘Joker: Folie à Deux’ Debacle: Todd Phillips 'Wanted Nothing to Do' With DC on the $200 Million Misfire

Tokyo Disney Resort, which includes the Tokyo Disneyland and DisneySea parks, is managed under license by the Oriental Land Co. (OLC), a subsidiary of the Keisei Electric Railway Co. For the first quarter of fiscal 2023, OLC reported a net sales gain of 46% to JPY117 billion ($782 million) in its theme park business. 

Popular on Variety

Tokyo Disneyland’s 40th anniversary events brought in more visitors. Also, higher sales of limited-period tickets and larger numbers of overseas guests contributed to the sterling results.

Disney provides IP to its Asian theme park partners, while ceding financial and, in the case of the Tokyo parks, management control. This arrangement started with Tokyo Disneyland, which OLC has operated independently from day one. By contrast, the two Chinese parks are joint ventures between Disney and local partners, with Disney a minority owner.

The oldest of the Asian parks, Tokyo Disneyland, racked up strong numbers from its opening, boosted by its early monopoly as the only Disney park in the region. 

Seeking to expand its theme park business further, OLC opened a companion park, Tokyo DisneySea, in 2001. Sited within easy walking distance of Tokyo Disneyland, the park featured oceanic-themed attractions unlike those of any other Disney park in the world, including a Mediterranean harbor area that re-created Venetian canals and gondolas. DisneySea was an immediate hit, reaching the 10 million visitor milestone only 307 days after its grand opening — a theme-park world record. 

Underlining its commitment to the regional market, Disney, together with its local partners, are adding attractions at all Asian parks. In November, as part of a multi-year expansion plan, the Hong Kong park will open World of Frozen, Disney’s first themed land dedicated to the 2013 animation hit.  

Also, the Shanghai park’s new Zootopia-themed area, which has been under construction since 2019, will open late this year. It will be the park’s eighth themed land and second major expansion, following the unveiling of Toy Story Land in 2018. 

Meanwhile, Tokyo DisneySea is preparing to open Fantasy Springs, an area with attractions based on the films “Frozen,” “Tangled” and “Peter Pan.” The project, budgeted at JPY320 billion ($2.14 billion), will boost the park’s total area by 20%. Set for a spring 2024 bow, Fantasy Springs will feature Anna and Elsa’s Frozen Journey, a water ride in tune with the park’s general sea theme.

These new attractions are all based on Disney animation made before the pandemic. (In the case of the 1953 “Peter Pan,” way before.) In the current decade, Disney films in general, live-action titles included, have struggled at the Japanese box office. In 2022 Disney’s biggest animated hit in Japan was “Buzz Lightyear” with JPY1.22 billion ($8.1 million). By contrast, in 2013 it was “Frozen” with JPY25.5 billion ($171 million).    

This doesn’t mean that Disney’s movie-to-theme-park-attraction pipeline is going to shut down in Japan or elsewhere in Asia anytime soon, but the company could find itself looking over its shoulder at the quickly gaining local competition. More than Buzz, Japanese teens might find more excitement in a ride inspired by Luffy, the straw-hatted hero of last year’s biggest hit in Japan, “One Piece Film: Red” ($132 million B.O.).

Patrick Frater contributed to this report.

Read More About:

Jump to Comments

More from Variety

Most Popular

Must Read

Sign Up for Variety Newsletters

By providing your information, you agree to our Terms of Use and our Privacy Policy.We use vendors that may also process your information to help provide our services. // This site is protected by reCAPTCHA Enterprise and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Variety Confidential

A Variety and iHeartRadio Podcast

ncG1vNJzZmiukae2psDYZ5qopV9nfXN%2Fjpugs2ejpby1uMign61nlJ7Ar7HYZqeaqpuoequtz5qlZpuYnruiecSxp5qmo568r3nOqaeoqqSqu6rAyJ6qZmliaIJ4gZBua29n