First Look at New Alien Airlock & Hyperspace Scene in Buzz Lightyear’s Space Ranger Spin at Magic Kingdom

Walt Disney World has shared a sneak peek at changes to Buzz Lightyear’s Space Ranger Spin, revealing more of the reimagined ride in Tomorrowland at Magic Kingdom. This covers details of the updated scenes, along with our predictions for a reopening date, and more.

In case you missed it, Walt Disney World already revealed that Buzz Lightyear’s Space Ranger Spin in Magic Kingdom will resume operations in Spring 2026. This came as part of Walt Disney World’s Full Calendar of Dates & Details for Reimagined Rides, Areas & Attractions Coming in 2026.

Still no specific reopening date or even month, but this is noteworthy because it’s the first time Walt Disney World has so much as shared an opening season for Buzz Lightyear’s Space Ranger Spin. This one was less of a known-quantity than Big Thunder Mountain Railroad before, as there were previously no hints whatsoever as to when it’d reopen.

Shortly after releasing the timeline, Walt Disney World pulled back the curtain more on the opening scene featuring Buddy. She’s the support bot at the beginning of the attraction who ensures that guests are confident in their skills before starting the mission.

Here’s video of Buddy in action:

Meet Buddy 💫 the new support bot coming to Buzz Lightyear’s Space Ranger Spin at @WaltDisneyWorld ✨ pic.twitter.com/LSXCCxtX3F

— Disney Parks (@DisneyParks) December 25, 2025

Imagineers describe Buddy as being the most optimistic and encouraging friend that you can imagine having; a youthful kid energy trapped inside a big robot body. She has a feeling of play, make-believe, and going on an adventure with your hero. Buddy going into the attraction also means that she’s now part of the Toy Story universe according to Imagineers, which seems to hint at the possibility of seeing her in future films.

As part of a new segment on Good Morning America previewing what’s new & next at Walt Disney World in 2026, Imagineering shared another new look at Buzz Lightyear’s Space Ranger Spin:

FIRST LOOK at Buzz Lightyear’s Space Ranger Spin’s major updates, reopening this spring at Walt Disney World’s Magic Kingdom! 👀

• A new alien figure opens the airlock

• All-new animation in the space battle scene

• Buzz Lightyear joins us in the space battle scene pic.twitter.com/FVkWI0PGlW

— Drew Smith (@DrewDisneyDude) January 10, 2026

Wyatt Winter, Executive Producer at Walt Disney Imagineering shared a new scene featuring the Little Green Men aliens opening an airlock so guests can head out into space and start battling Emperor Zurg. Winter revealed that guests won’t have to face Zurg alone–that Buzz Lightyear will join guests in the battle.

Here’s another video of the refreshed hyperspace scene outside the airlock:

NEW: Walt Disney Imagineering shared an up-close look at the updated “Hyperspace” scene on Buzz Lightyear’s Space Ranger Spin! 🚨

This scene now features all-new animation and targets for the first time when the attraction reopens this spring at Magic Kingdom. pic.twitter.com/NhYPqgc8iG

— Drew Smith (@DrewDisneyDude) January 10, 2026

As you might recall, Imagineering upgraded the projectors and other equipment in this old ‘wind tunnel’ before the reimagining was even announced. That was completed overnight last spring, but didn’t result in much of a material difference to the attraction since the footage was still old and dated-looking. With this reimagining, brand-new media is replacing the old Zurg battle in the reimagined Buzz Lightyear’s Space Ranger Spin!

Shay, Visual Effects Designer at Walt Disney Imagineering, discussed the new projection technology in the hyperspace tunnel sequence and shared that they’ve been doing tests in the wind tunnel room for the last year and a half to make sure they had the very best media for the scene. (That explains why the projectors were updated ahead of the project, as opposed to during the downtime–they’ve been working on it longer!)

“We are adding so many new elements to this,” Shay said of the hyperspace scene. “We’re introducing Buzz for the first time. Zurg is out there in hyperspace, releasing all of these space mines, which we get to score more points by firing on.”

Tasha Sounart, Creative Director of Theme Parks at Pixar, collaborated with Walt Disney Imagineering on the hyperspace tunnel. She shared that she first got her start at Pixar animating on Toy Story 2, and has a real fondness for Buzz and friends.

Sounart explained the technical challenge of animating for the curved hyperspace tunnel: “We’re actually projecting onto a tunnel. We’re not used to animating something in a tunnel, so we actually created a grid that we could animate on that’s all flattened out, but then when we get it projected, it all looks normal.”

Shay emphasized that “Pixar is amazing” and the best at what they do. He shared that Walt Disney Imagineering was lucky to be able to work with so many animators on the reimagined ride.

Earlier this week, Walt Disney Imagineering filed a construction permit for new signage at Buzz Lightyear’s Space Ranger Spin, seemingly confirming that the attraction’s facade will get a much-needed facelift ahead of its Spring 2026 reopening.

The Notice of Commencement lists “Install Signage” as the scope of work, with Design Communications assigned to the permit. This company is a frequent collaborator with Imagineering on marquees and signage throughout Walt Disney World.

It’s not the least bit surprising that the exterior is getting work. Many other Tomorrowland attractions have received new cleaner and simpler signage to streamline the land’s look and restore its original mid-century aesthetic. We’d expect something similar with Buzz Lightyear’s Space Ranger Spin.

Thankfully, we might add. We were getting a little worried that Imagineering had “forgotten” about the old facade, which is Spirit Halloween caliber. It’ll be interesting to see whether physical walls or planters go up to conceal the work, or if it’s all accomplished during overnight shifts. The old cardboard style cutouts could probably be removed pretty quickly.

As for a specific reopening date of Buzz Lightyear’s Space Ranger Spin in Spring 2026, it’s hard to say. Our previous expectation was that this wouldn’t reopen until the start of summer at the earliest, so anytime in March or April is ahead of schedule from our perspective.

With Spring 2026 being the reopening season, Spring Break will be the obvious target. That starts in mid-March 2026 with Central Florida and some out of state districts, and peaks in the week leading up to Easter (April 5, 2026).

Normally, the very obvious target date with a Spring 2026 opening timeline would be about one week before Easter. That would put the likely return date in mid-to-late March 2026. If Walt Disney World is trying to time the returns of this and Big Thunder to coincide, it’s possible both return around March 13, 2026. If there’s a single date that’s most likely at this point, that’s it.

However, our guess is that the two attractions won’t reopen on the same date unless Walt Disney World gets really lucky. That might be the goal, but there are just too many moving parts; it’ll end up being a race against the clock for one or both attractions.

The more likely scenario is that these two attractions are going to open as soon as they can open. Simple as that. If the stars align and they’re both ready around March 13, 2026, that would be optimal. But if one or the other is ready much earlier–or later–the other will not be held up on that basis. The capacity is simply too important to Magic Kingdom between Presidents’ Day and Easter.

Not only that, but we don’t know exactly what’s being fixed and what’s being ignored during this Buzz blasters project. There’s easily a year’s worth of updates and improvements that could be made in the aging attraction. The extent to which those are addressed (or not) and whether Walt Disney World has invested a lot of resources (and labor) into this refurbishment dictates when the ride will reopen more than anything else. And we don’t know any of that.

The existing show scenes could stand to be spruced up, with new props added and others swapped out.

When previously discussing a potential reimagining to this attraction, we pointed out that Tokyo Disneyland just closed its newer, better, and meticulously-maintained version of Astro Blasters. Ship some of that stuff to Orlando–there’s gotta be a treasure trove of props and figures that could enhance the Magic Kingdom version.

The indoor queue could also use a refresh, making the space less drab and unpleasant–perhaps with better show lighting (lasers!) and more durable materials so it can stand up to the abuse kids throw at it. The whole attraction could use a power wash and fresh coat of paint. There is a thick layer of dirt and grime on everything, and it’s been that way for a while.

Ultimately, it’s fantastic that Imagineering is giving Buzz Lightyear’s Space Ranger Spin the love it deserves. This is a low-risk/high-reward project that could make this the best or second-best Buzz blaster ride in the entire world. At minimum, it should become the best in the US.

Honestly, my only disappointment here is that Walt Disney World is reopening the ride in Spring 2026 as opposed to taking more time on the refurbishment. I know that’s bound to be an unpopular opinion among WDW planners who are visiting in Spring 2026, but I’d prefer Imagineering have as much time as possible to fix or update everything that needs it, and have this be a Cool Kids’ Summer debut instead.

This could be a major upgrade that breathes new life into the reimagined ride and turns it into one of the more popular attractions in Magic Kingdom–a top 5 wait time and tier two Lightning Lane pick. It’s really hard to imagine this being a downgrade–it’s really more a question of just how much of an upgrade it’ll be.

Imagineering has a lot of ‘singles and doubles’ style projects on its plate right now that are similar to this, and I’ll be very curious to see how they deliver. After scattershot results in other projects that have been initiated during the post-reopening era, this gives creatives a chance to “prove themselves” to fans. It’d be nice to restore some lost goodwill and confidence in Imagineering before they get to the big new additions that are part of Walt Disney World’s 5-Year Plan.

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Your Thoughts

Thoughts on the reimagined Buzz Lightyear’s Space Ranger Spin reopening in Spring 2026? Hoping for a modernized attraction with better gameplay, a new show scene, and more? Do you agree or disagree with my assessment that a longer closure would be better? Any questions we can help you answer? Hearing your feedback–even when you disagree with us–is both interesting to us and helpful to other readers, so please share your thoughts below in the comments!