Okay. By now, you’ve probably already seen those two video ride-throughs of “Expedition Everest” that are currently available for downloading over at Inside the Magic. Which give you a rough sense of what it must really be like to ride this new DAK attraction, the various high points you see along the way, etc.
The only problem is … Due to the speed of the vehicle the cameraman was riding in plus the jerkiness of the camera, you never really get a clear view of the Yeti. This enormous AA figure that moves so suddenly, so fluidly that you’d swear that it was a real creature. On those “Inside the Magic” ride-though videos, all you get is a brief glimpse of a brown blur.
Well, that’s all about to change …
I can’t tell you how JHM got this picture. More importantly, I can’t (and won’t) reveal the name of the photographer. Out of concern as to what reps from the Walt Disney Company might do to this guy (or gal) when they finally got ahold of him.
All I can tell you is that JimHillMedia.com has the photo that you’ve been waiting for. That crystal-clear image of the mythical creature that you’ll find at the very heart of Forbidden Mountain …
That’s one pretty fearsome-looking Yeti, don’t you think? But wait ’til you see this thing in action. Suddenly swiping those sharp claws down at you as your train whizzes on by. Yikes!
In other “Expedition Everest”-related news, you may recall that JHM — as part of a recent “Disney Domain Name” article — suggested that Forbidden Mountain may soon feature climbers. You know? Similar to the mountain climbers who regularly scale the slopes of Disneyland’s Matterhorn.
Well, the Walt Disney Company has decided to go another way with this idea. At least for the time being, anyway. According to information that was made available to JHM about a series of auditions that were held in NYC yesterday, this “Climber Guy” project will actually be a series of short films. Movies that are being produced expressly for the Web and will soon be used to promote DAK’s new “Expedition Everest” ride.
“So what should we expect from these ‘Climber Guy’ movies when they finally start popping up on the Internet?,” you ask. Well, the storyline that Disney has tentatively mapped out deals with this 35-45 year-old mountain climber. A guy who — since he believes that he’s climbed all the great peaks of the world — is now in semi-retirement in the suburbs.
But once this guy then learns that the Walt Disney Company has built a brand-new mountain, “Climber Guy” quickly packs up his gear and heads for Central Florida. Determined to climb this new peak. So that “Climber Guy” can still have bragging rights to say that he’s scaled all of the great mountains of the world.
The audition material then goes on to describe this “Climber Guy” as being ” … a few canisters short of a full oxygen tank.” Translation: He’s a bit of a goon. Disney is looking for a white male who’s great at physical comedy. Ideally a Will Ferrell type. But they’d also be willing to consider a John Belushi type for this role.
As for this short-films-for-the-web series, there are supposed to be 12 movies in the series. Which will then be shown at these two websites:
EVERESTCLIMBERGUY.COM
MOUNTAINCLIMBERGUY.COM
And — yes — some of these films will actually be shot on location in the “village” at the base of the “Expedition Everest” ride as well as on the slopes of Forbidden Mountain itself. And I’m told that one of the running gags of the series will be — once “Climber Guy” is actually up on the mountain, that is — how the Yeti keeps stealing this guy’s supplies, sabotaging his equipment, etc.
Though — given how fierce this creature actually looks up close …
… I don’t assume that he’ll be getting much actual face time. Maybe a few quick glimpses of just the Yeti’s hands slipping into a shot to steal some food and/or untie the “Climber Guy” ‘s shoelaces.
FYI: There’s also some talk of “Climber Guy” doing personal appearances at the theme park and/or popping up on ABC television shows like “Good Morning, America.” So just be aware that this made-strictly-for-the-Web stuff could eventually wind up being a very big piece of the “Expedition Everest” promotional campaign.
So what do you think? Both of JHM’s pictures of the Yeti as well as this “Climber Guy” website promotional campaign? Does this info make you that much more eager to experience “Expedition Everest?”
Your thoughts?
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