We bring you a lot of stories every single day. Sometimes it’s hard to keep up. So in case you missed anything from our feed, we have rounded up all our stories in one place to get the news at a glance. Here is your Daily Recap for Friday, August 25, 2023.

Walt Disney World

EPCOT

• An EPCOT Cast Member escaped from an attempted kidnapping in the park’s parking lot, according to an Orange County Sheriff’s report released this week.

Disney’s Hollywood Studios

• Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance experienced extended downtime today, and had not opened from the opening of Disney’s Hollywood Studios throughout the day until nearly 6:00 pm in the evening ET. Over in Magic Kingdom, Pirates of the Caribbean was also down for most of the day, only opening for the last hour of today’s regular operating hours.

Walt Disney World Resort Hotels

• The Boulder Ridge Cove Pool at Disney’s Wilderness Lodge will close for a brief refurbishment in September.
• Starting August 27, Florida Fresh Floral will begin providing floral and gift services for Walt Disney World Resort guests.

New Merchandise

• A new sweatshirt that showcases the iconic wallpaper design from the Haunted Mansion is now available at Memento Mori in Magic Kingdom.
• Walt Disney World has a unique new “Star Wars” Loungefly purse inspired by McDonald’s Happy Meal boxes.
• A new “Star Wars” activewear collection features the full Aurebesh alphabet.
• We spotted a few new pins today, featuring “Big Hero 6”, “A Goofy Movie,” and the head mouse himself.

Other Walt Disney World News

• David Duffy, the Vice President of Entertainment for Disneyland Paris, is leaving the resort to become Live Entertainment Vice President for Walt Disney World Resort.

Disneyland Resort

• Judge Doom from “Who Framed Roger Rabbit” and Yokai from “Big Hero 6” will be added to this year’s Disney Villains lineup at Oogie Boogie Bash.
•  A new “Cinderella”-inspired wedding carriage is coming soon to Disneyland Resort.
• Disney Parks has provided another look inside Tiana’s Palace ahead of its grand opening on September 7, 2023.
• Pacific Wharf at Disney California Adventure is poised to officially become San Fransokyo Square on August 31, 2023, and we scoped out all the newly finished details guests can already see.
• We shared some new photos of the Luxo ball lights and other decor being added to the Paradise Pier Hotel as it transforms into the Pixar Place Hotel.
• A new Ahsoka MagicBand+ is available at Disneyland Resort.
• Disney is honoring one of their long-forgotten classics, “The Black Cauldron, “with a MagicBand+ in the 1980s Disney100 Decades Collection.
• We got a bird’s eye view of the Paseo & Centrico Mexican Restaurant construction at Downtown Disney District.
• The Magic Key Holder exclusive mirrored Mickey-shaped sipper is now available. 

Tokyo Disney Resort

• You might want to invite this dragon to the party, as a new Maleficent Dragon shoulder plush is coming soon to Tokyo Disney Resort.
• Tokyo Disney Resort will also debut a new Autumn Storybook Collection featuring Gelatoni merchandise on September 7.

Entertainment and Media

Disney+

• “Doogie Kamealoha, M.D.”, the Disney+ original series, has been canceled after just two seasons.

WDW News Today

No Disney World Annual Passes for Employees, 4 Massive NEW Rides Are Almost Here (News Today)

That’s it for today; we hope you enjoyed this Daily Recap. Thanks for stopping by, and we’ll see you tomorrow!

For the latest Disney Parks news and info, follow WDW News Today on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram.

The post EPCOT Cast Member Escapes Attempted Kidnapping, Rise of the Resistance and Pirates of the Caribbean Suffer Day-Long Technical Difficulties, & More: Daily Recap (8/25/23) appeared first on WDW News Today.