Glen Close Returns as Cruella at Disney's Villains Land

The roar in the hall came before the reveal — a gasp, then a standing ovation — when Glen Close stepped out in Cruella's unmistakable silhouette at D23. Age seemed irrelevant. The coat. The stare. The mischief. For a few electric minutes the room fell under the spell of a villain who refuses to be anything but unforgettable.

Disney's new Villains Land is being pitched as a pilgrimage for anyone who's ever cheered a bad guy. Set inside Magic Kingdom, the concept leans into a darker fairy tale: a forest threaded with secrets, and at its heart a wishing well twisted by an ominous power. That corruption is the magnet that draws Cruella, Maleficent, the Evil Queen and Ursula — icons who arrive not as cameos but as co-conspirators determined to claim whatever that well promises.

Two headline attractions were teased alongside Close's appearance. One is a high-speed coaster anchored around Maleficent and her shadowy castle, designed to throw riders into the kind of airborne chaos those wings imply. The other, called Mirror Realm, promises a classic dark ride that pushes guests through a hall of enchanted reflections — the kind that rearrange reality and reveal uncomfortable truths when you stare long enough.

This is more than rides. Disney says Villains Land will be dotted with shops and restaurants dressed in villainous flourish — think glamorous decay, theatrical menus and immersive design choices that keep you on edge between attractions. The initial tease landed in 2024; now, with fresh images and cast moments, the project feels less like a rumor and more like one of Magic Kingdom's most deliberate gambles yet.

Glen Close's appearance was part nostalgia, part stamp of approval. She first donned Cruella's persona in the 1996 live-action 101 Dalmatians and returned for 102 Dalmatians. Seeing her at D23 felt like a thread connecting Disney's live-action history to the park's next chapter — a wink to longtime fans and a challenge to a new generation to love a villain on their own terms.

Ambition is the word that keeps popping up among designers. Villains Land aims to extract charm from menace, to make darkness feel carefully curated rather than merely scary. Will it work? Can the house of mouse sell danger with the same polish it reserves for princesses? If the first public moments are any guide, Disney is leaning hard into the answer.

For now, the images, the concept art and the surprise entrance by a living legend are all we have. But one thing's clear: Disney is building a place where bad behavior is the attraction. Are you ready to step into the shadows?