D23 Confirms Dreamfinder Is Returning to EPCOT With Figment

Dreamfinder is officially returning to EPCOT alongside Figment. It’s the announcement that closed the D23 Entertainment Showcase and was arguably the most welcome announcement amongst Figment fans. The much-loved pair will be reunited as part of a new journey into imagination. It is a significant reversal for a character who disappeared from EPCOT's main attraction in 1998. Disney has not yet announced an opening date, closure timetable or enough detail to assume exactly what will replace the current Journey Into Imagination with Figment.

Is Dreamfinder really returning to EPCOT?

Yes, in a move many fans have longed for for nearly two decades, Dreamfinder is returning to EPCOT and the figment ride. This means that the current ride will be reimagined.

Dreamfinder was one of the two central characters in EPCOT's original Journey Into Imagination, appearing alongside the purple dragon he created from sparks of inspiration. Dreamfinder and Figment were the hosts of the attraction from 1983 until 1998. When Journey Into Imagination was replaced, Dreamfinder disappeared.

Figment eventually returned in the current Journey Into Imagination with Figment, which opened in 2002. The present attraction instead follows Dr Nigel Channing, played by Eric Idle, as Figment causes chaos through the Imagination Institute's sensory laboratories.

With this announcement Disney Park experiences have made the decision to do something EPCOT fans have been asking Disney to do for decades: put Figment and Dreamfinder back together. This is arguably a strategic move by Disney experiences, who are keeping nostalgia in the parks for die hard fans, while also brining in newer IP based attractions like an Encanto ride.

Is Disney replacing Journey Into Imagination with Figment?

The closing few moment of the Entertainment Showcase saw Neil Patrick Harris appear as a Dreamfidnetr animatronic to the loudest applause of the night. This short moment announced a new journey involving Figment and Dreamfinder, but exactly how extensive the attraction replacement or reimagining will be was left unknown.

Here’s the moments before it happened:

Is Neil Patrick Harris the new Dreamfinder?

Neil Patrick Harris has not been announced as the new Dreamfinder, although he did say on stage that he only agreed to do the show if they bought back his favourite audio-animatronic. Obviously, this is for entertainment and not an announcement, but it’s led to a lot of rumours circulating. At this point, that’s all they are.

Harris hosted the Horizons: Disney Experiences Showcase and is a well-known fan of Figment and classic EPCOT.

When will the new Figment and Dreamfinder attraction open?

Disney have not announced, an opening date, a closing date for the current ride, or the concept for the reimagining just that it’s happening and Dreamfinder is coming back. Given Disney also announced a Spaceship Earth reimagining, and dedicated a larger portion of the showcase to this news, it is fair to say that the Spaceship Earth reimagining will likely come first. before any work begins on Journey Into The Imagination With Figment.

Magic in a Minute

Dreamfinder's return is a big announcement for classic EPCOT fans, especially those who remeber the original version of the attraction with Dreamfidner. Any British Figment and Dreamfinder fans deciding to make a return trip to Walt Disney World to experience the new version, need to wait until more news emerges. Dreamfinder is coming back, but now we need to know where his new journey with Figment will take us, and when it begins.