Carousel of Progress - Spin-offs and Related Attractions

Spin-offs and Related Attractions

From October 1, 1983, until January 9, 1999, an attraction known as Horizons existed at Epcot in the Walt Disney World Resort. It was more or less a sequel to the Carousel of Progress, depicting the host family living and working in technologically-enhanced environments in the near future. During the first portion of its run, the show was also sponsored by General Electric (1983–1994). In the attraction, there was a scene where a robot was "working" in the kitchen, making quite a mess, among other things. In the background, the song "There's a Great Big Beautiful Tomorrow" could be heard. In 2009, Space Mountain featured several tributes to Horizons in its post-show.

Also in 1983, Meet the World, at Tokyo Disneyland, was an attraction that was housed in a rotating theater. It featured both audio-animatronics and video, looking at thousands of years of Japanese history. It closed in 2002.

Innoventions (1998–present), the current occupant of the building formerly used for the Carousel of Progress at Disneyland, depicts a few images from the older attraction on its colorful exterior murals, and the Innoventions character Tom Morrow sings an updated version of "There's a Great Big Beautiful Tomorrow". Banners hung from the building depict the Carousel of Progress and other past attractions, along with their inception dates. Inside, the ASIMO show features a stage set reminiscent of the "contemporary" scene in the Carousel of Progress, including a view of the Community of Tomorrow through the set's picture window. The ASIMO exit music is the original Rex Allen recording from the Carousel of Progress at Disneyland.

In the film Iron Man 2, Tony Stark promotes the "Stark Expo", a fictional version of the World's Fair. The original Carousel of Progress building can be seen on the map of the Stark Expo 2010 website as the Kodak Pavilion. The Ford Magic Skyway pavilion can also be seen nearby, north of the Fountain of Planets, incorporated as the Royal Purple Synthetic Oil Pavilion. In addition, Richard Sherman wrote the Stark Expo's theme song, "Make Way for Tomorrow Today." Also, the game Epic Mickey features the ride as part of the land called Tomorrow City.