By pepko See the before-and-after of the silhouette that park-goers claim disappeared and reappeared with what appears to be a modified hairstyle
A golden figure of Walt Disney that looks familiar in an unexpected way has become a hot topic at Disneyland this week.
As the Anaheim, Calif., park kicks off its 70th anniversary festivities, a new, colorful sculpture representing Sleeping Beauty Castle has appeared on the park’s main esplanade.
The turrets of the scaled-down castle, which was installed as a special photo opp spot, are topped with silhouettes and flags representing each of the lands in the park: there’s a steamboat for Frontierland, a carousel horse for Fantasyland, Space Mountain for Tomorrowland, and so on.
Atop the spire for Main Street, U.S.A. was a copy of the famous life-size “Partners” statue found in the park, which features Walt Disney himself holding hands with Mickey Mouse and gesturing off toward the horizon.
Park goers who saw the new miniature version of the figures were quick to point out what they felt was a strong resemblance between the man meant to be Walt and President Donald Trump, complete with a voluminous swoop of hair atop his head. Images of the silhouette in question flooded social media.
At some point in the last few days, visitors, including Instagram creator @disneyscoopguy, noticed it had seemingly disappeared, and shared videos of the empty spire.
“It appears that Disneyland has been paying attention to what people have been saying on social media, because overnight they removed one of the spire toppers,” he narrates over a video zooming in on the decoration in question, explaining many felt it “actually bore a much more striking resemblance to Donald Trump than Walt Disney.”https://www.instagram.com/reel/DJlOmtqMEJa/embed/?cr=1&v=14&wp=810&rd=https%3A%2F%2Fen33.usnews.uk&rp=%2F10790%2F%3Ffbclid%3DIwY2xjawKW1YtleHRuA2FlbQIxMABicmlkETFoM3UxTng5OExsUFhkTEpYAR79oSwJ2f0lE5lXevQmuOhXAD99y3Yonf-S3_Lr1oHKeUKM6Z__gKYXd2Q-zQ_aem_AMtBMWvTjSRW3c0jhWAv4A#%7B%22ci%22%3A0%2C%22os%22%3A2848%2C%22ls%22%3A1783.7000000476837%2C%22le%22%3A2810.5%7D
He added, “People were also quick to point out that he was pointing with one finger, instead of two in the classic Walt style.”
Disneyland did not immediately respond to PEOPLE’s request for comment.
Soon after, visitors posted that it was back, but claimed it looks like it has been slightly modified.
The same creator posted an update video, showing what appears to be a slightly flatter hairdo that more accurately reflects Walt’s hair in the original “Partners” statue. It’s not clear if any changes were made to his fingers.https://www.instagram.com/reel/DJmQ-HcvJ36/embed/captioned/?cr=1&v=14&wp=810&rd=https%3A%2F%2Fen33.usnews.uk&rp=%2F10790%2F%3Ffbclid%3DIwY2xjawKW1YtleHRuA2FlbQIxMABicmlkETFoM3UxTng5OExsUFhkTEpYAR79oSwJ2f0lE5lXevQmuOhXAD99y3Yonf-S3_Lr1oHKeUKM6Z__gKYXd2Q-zQ_aem_AMtBMWvTjSRW3c0jhWAv4A#%7B%22ci%22%3A1%2C%22os%22%3A2856.400000035763%2C%22ls%22%3A1783.7000000476837%2C%22le%22%3A2810.5%7D
“The Disneyland 70th anniversary esplanade photo op looks incredible! And they fixed Walt Disney!,” he wrote alongside the new footage.
Disneyland’s 70th celebrations began on Friday, May 16 and will continue through summer 2026 with new parades, nighttime spectaculars, decorations, merch and much more. The resort’s official opening day was July 17, 1955.