10 Things You May Not Know About Mickey & Minnie’s Runaway Railway

1. Farewell To an Old Classic, and Hello To a New One

Mickey & Minnie’s Runaway Railway is based on the short films that have become popular on the Disney Channel. It is housed in the Chinese Theatre, the former home of The Great Movie Ride.

2. It’s Hard To Believe

The attraction stars Mickey and Minnie, and, as incredible as it may seem, this is the first time the pair have headlined their own ride-through attraction! How is this possible? One reason is that Mickey and Minnie have never starred in their own feature-length film, as opposed to other characters like Dumbo and Winnie the Pooh. Their attractions are set in the locations of the film’s story: the big top, the Hundred Acre Wood, and so on. Mickey and Minnie have always simply been a part of Disney, so coming up with an attraction story that would be instantly recognizable proved problematic.

3. Mickey’s Comeback

Inspiration eventually came from the “Mickey Mouse” TV series that began airing on the Disney Channel in 2013. The popularity of the series led to the “The Wonderful World of Mickey Mouse,” which premiered on Disney+ on November 18, 2020, Mickey’s 92nd birthday. Fans loved the new shorts, which sparked the idea for a new Mickey-based attraction. The premise of the new attraction was that Guests would be watching the premiere of a new Mickey Mouse cartoon, “Perfect Picnic.” As you enter the theater, you’ll see Mickey, Minnie, and Pluto set off for Runnamuck Park. They pass Goofy, who is serving as the conductor of a train. Goofy inadvertently allows the train to go off on its own…and mayhem ensues.

4. Putting You In a Real Life Cartoon

Several new technologies were employed to bring the cartoon world of Mickey Mouse to life. One of these is projection mapping, in which video imagery is projected onto three-dimensional moving objects. You can see this put to use on the Mickey and Minnie figures that turn and move…and talk! The characters are meant to resemble their hand-drawn counterparts, which has the effect of putting you right in the middle of a real-life cartoon.

5. Running Amuck

Another technological innovation that was incorporated into the attraction was the trackless ride system. Runaway Railway was the second Walt Disney World attraction with this type of movement, the first being Rise of the Resistance. The technology has since appeared in other attractions, including Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure (but that’s a rodent tale for another time!).

6. Which Way Are We Going?

Unlike vehicles that are locked to a dedicated track, trackless vehicles can be programmed to go anywhere and turn to face in any direction. This means that no two experiences will be the same, so you can ride the attraction multiple times throughout the day and have a different experience each time. Vehicles can also move in many directions – backward, forward, side-to-side, in arcs and circles – so you might start out at the beginning of the train but find yourself behind other cars as you progress through the story.

7. Hang On!

One thing that trackless vehicles do not handle well is a drop since the cars are all on level ground. But Imagineers have other tricks up their sleeves. Motion simulators, 3D visuals, and projection mapping can all be used to make you feel as if you’re moving over hilled terrain or sailing down a waterfall. You can see other examples of this at Rise of the Resistance and Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure.

8. A Throwback to Steamboat Willie

The attraction is an homage to traditional animation techniques, and to take that concept to the next level, Imagineers used recordings of actual sound effects rather than digital reproductions. For example, Goofy’s train whistle is the same tri-tone whistle used in Steamboat Willie, Mickey’s first film with synchronized sound, released in 1928.

9. Secret Details

Speaking of that iconic year, look for a nod to it within the attraction, as well as 1901, the year of Walt’s birth. You can find these numbers over some of Runnamuck Park’s tunnels. References like these aren’t the only secrets you’ll find here. Runaway Railway purportedly has the most Hidden Mickeys of any attraction to date!

10. We’re Not In Kansas Anymore

You’ll also find several homages to the Great Movie Ride, the attraction formerly located in this building. The Carnival scene features a poster for “The Great Moving Ride,” while the tornado sequence is a throwback to “The Wizard of Oz” portion of the attraction. See if you can spot the mailbox reading “No Place Like Home” among the debris.