Spaceship Earth — it’s one of the most iconic attractions at Walt Disney World. A towering ball 18 stories high and made up of 11, 324 individual triangular panels, Spaceship Earth stands as the symbol of EPCOT. Disney fans around the world know the “big ball,” but on the inside, Spaceship Earth has so much more to explore.
Within this towering icon exists one of Walt Disney World’s most beloved rides. Disney fans young and old board “Time Machines” for a journey back to the distant past all the way into the future. Though it has undergone many changes since its opening in 1982 as one of EPCOT’s original attractions, Spaceship Earth remains as a celebration of human connection, communication, and innovation — all values Walt Disney himself held dear.
Today, fellow Time Travellers, let’s take a look back at the history of this world-famous Disney attraction. All systems are go. Linking you now to your guide …
A Little EPCOT History
Before Spaceship Earth was even an idea in the minds of Disney’s Imagineers, EPCOT was one of Walt’s ambitious ideas — and as any Disney fan will know, that’s saying something! “EPCOT” originally stood for “Experimental Prototype Community of Tomorrow,” and Walt envisioned a real functioning city full of state-of-the-art technology where innovation and creative thinking could create a better life for all. Disney guests can still see the original model for EPCOT inside the Tomorrowland Transit Authority PeopleMover in the Magic Kingdom.
After Walt Disney passed away in 1966, however, the Imagineering team, lacking Walt’s unique direction and guidance, decided that, rather than building a true working city, they would instead construct EPCOT to embody the same values that the city would have stood for: science, technology, creativity, and progress. To achieve their vision, the Disney team turned to science-fiction legend Ray Bradbury for design input and script writing for a new ride. Together, inspired by their sponsorship with Bell Systems (Yup, as in Alexander Graham Bell, the inventor of the telephone), they got to work, and Spaceship Earth began to take shape.
Spaceship Earth: A Journey Through Time
From its original version, Spaceship Earth has always centered on the theme of human communication throughout time. It’s a slow-moving dark ride that takes guests all the way back to the earliest humans communicating with cave writings and carvings, through the invention of the alphabet (Thank the Phoenicians!), past the production of the printing press, up to the invention and use of computer systems to communicate around the world and even all the way to the moon. However, though the theme of communication fueling human ingenuity has remained consistent, Spaceship Earth has been through several versions.
In its earliest days, Spaceship Earth featured narration by — well, it’s actually up for a little bit of debate. For many years, it was widely known that Vic Perrin voiced the iconic ride, but in an interview back in 2008, Imagineer Marty Sklar shared that the true original narrator was Lawrence Dobkin, who was the original narrator of the Hall of Presidents. However, many people think Marty Sklar must have been mistaken, and the debate continues today.
In 1986, Spaceship Earth completed its first update, and the new narrator was none other than Walter Cronkite, the celebrated journalist and household name. Additionally, a couple of new scenes were added to further show the importance of computer technology, and the ending of the attraction featured a newly composed theme song called “Tomorrow’s Child.”
Spaceship Earth closed for another update in 1994 and reopened featuring new narration from actor Jeremy Irons. It’s true! Scar himself accompanied riders on their travels through time. Imagineers also gave the ride an entirely new soundtrack and remodeled the ride’s ending to include miniature sets connected by fiber optic cables with blinking lights to represent working communication lines.
Finally, in 2007, Spaceship Earth arrived at its current form with narration by none other than Dame Judy Dench. It also received an all-new score once again, and, for the first time and thanks to the attraction’s sponsorship by Siemens, an interactive ending. Today, Time Travellers have the opportunity to see their own faces (photographed at the beginning of the ride), superimposed onto animated bodies living in a futuristic world of their own design — a world full of progress and ingenuity.
A Look Into the Future of Spaceship Earth
In February 2020, Disney announced that Spaceship Earth was just about to close for yet another major refurbishment. The new ride was to be called “Spaceship Earth: Our Shared Story” and feature a “story light” guiding riders through a celebration of storytelling throughout human history.
Unfortunately, however, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Walt Disney World had to close, and the planned Spaceship Earth updates had to take a pause.
For now, the attraction is still running the 2007 version, and though it may not be the most modern attraction EPCOT has to offer, its themes remain timeless.
“Here’s to the Next 30,000 Years on Spaceship Earth”
As riders reach the end of their journey through time, Dame Judi Dench comes over the speakers, “So here’s to the next 30,000 years on Spaceship Earth. While no one knows for sure what we’ll see or do, I do know it will be quite an adventure — an adventure that we’ll take and make together. See you in the future!”
Spaceship Earth stands today as a monument to Walt Disney’s values of innovation, communication, and progress. Though it has received numerous updates throughout its history, the iconic attraction remains one of the most beloved in all the Disney parks. No matter what changes come next, Spaceship Earth will remain a source of inspiration and fun for Disney fans.
What do you hope to see Spaceship Earth feature next?