Massive Fire Breaks Out During Fantasmic Show At Disneyland

A major incident just took place at Disneyland as guests stood in awe as flames engulfed a massive 45 foot tall animatronic of Maleficent caught on fire. The figure of the Sleeping Beauty villain in her dragon form (Nicknamed ‘Murphy’) was part of a scene in the Fantasmic show where Wizard Mickey used his magic to defeat her.



But it appears that his powers to too great, as when the giant animatronic began to spit flames some of the material caught on fire, spreading across the outside layer until the whole animatronic was engulfed in flames. It felt like a scene out of a hellish nightmare as the metallic skeleton stood in the roaring fire.

Guests were able to catch the incident on film and posted pictures and clips of it online:

Maleficent Dragon caught fire during last night’s performance of Fantasmic! at #Disneyland.
pic.twitter.com/16h0SG0USg

— ThrillGeek (@thrillgeek) April 23, 2023

Maleficent Dragon caught fire during last night’s performance of Fantasmic! at #Disneyland.
pic.twitter.com/16h0SG0USg

— ThrillGeek (@thrillgeek) April 23, 2023

This video shows the moment the fire started:pic.twitter.com/mDG4yyIBBE

— Scott Gustin (@ScottGustin) April 23, 2023

🚨#UPDATE: Heres Footage showing the moment before the whole dragon caught on fire in Disneyland pic.twitter.com/rzfACUQekB

— R A W S A L E R T S (@rawsalerts) April 23, 2023

Fire at #Disneyland! Saw this from the Mickey & Friends structure. Can't tell exactly what part of the park it is at though. Maybe Rivers of America? pic.twitter.com/apgBfGoF7a

— BeckfordDesigns (@DesignsBeckford) April 23, 2023

I don’t know who this guy is but he is a legend for this 🤣💀 #fantasmic #Disneyland pic.twitter.com/5YfcJpTxyH

— Rebecca Saryan (@chubecca) April 23, 2023

So sad seeing Murphy go out tonight. Rest well sweet prince. 😭 #Disneyland pic.twitter.com/wZPyRWFGPT

— Amusement Labs (@Amusement_Labs) April 23, 2023

As of writing, nobody was apparently hurt.

Following the incident, Disney representatives made the following statement regarding the situation:

“During the final showing of Fantasmic at Disneyland park on Saturday evening, the dragon caught fire. Anaheim Fire & Rescue quickly responded and the fire was extinguished.”

“All cast members were safely evacuated from Tom Sawyer Island. Due to smoke and wind, attractions near the island were safely evacuated of any guests, and the cause of the fire remains under investigation at this time.“

Hopefully cast and crew will be able to determine the cause of the fire and are able to take measures to prevent such occurrences from happening again. It honestly could have been a lot worse had the flames been within proximity of a gas tank.



With such destruction caused by pyrotechnics it makes you wonder if the thrill of seeing real fire is worth the risk. With today’s technology they could try hologram techniques to produces a much safer environment.

Hopefully something like this doesn’t happen again. R.I.P. Murphy the Dragon.

Source: Deadline