Disney updated its 2026 EPCOT Candlelight Processional narrators on Oct. 6. Josh Groban and Benjamin Bratt are in for December, and Moana voice Auli’i Cravalho’s opening-weekend slot is now TBA.
Josh Groban is coming to EPCOT for Christmas.
Disney updated the 2026 Candlelight Processional narrator lineup on Tuesday, Oct. 6. Josh Groban takes Dec. 13 and 14, and Benjamin Bratt gets Dec. 2 and 3. The Disney Parks Blog lists both as new narrators, and both fill dates that had been sitting empty.
The other change went the opposite direction. Auli’i Cravalho, the voice of Moana, had been set to open the run on Nov. 27 and 28. Those dates now say “To Be Announced,” which leaves opening weekend as the only open slot on the calendar, WDWMAGIC noted.
Disney hasn’t said why Cravalho is off the schedule.
Who is narrating the Candlelight Processional in 2026?
Here’s the full updated lineup Disney posted Oct. 6:
Nov. 27 and 28: To be announced
Nov. 29 to Dec. 1: Gary Sinise
Dec. 2 and 3: Benjamin Bratt (new)
Dec. 4 and 5: Whoopi Goldberg
Dec. 6 and 7: Robin Roberts (new)
Dec. 8 and 9: Jason Kelce (new)
Dec. 10 to 12: Neil Patrick Harris
Dec. 13 and 14: Josh Groban (new)
Dec. 15 and 16: Lauren Daigle
Dec. 17 to 19: Ralph Macchio
Dec. 20 and 21: Henry Winkler
Dec. 22 and 23: Lacey Chabert (new)
Dec. 24 and 25: Jodi Benson
Dec. 26 and 27: Simu Liu
Dec. 28 to 30: Eva Longoria
So that’s five first-timers this year. Jodi Benson, the voice of Ariel, has the Christmas Eve and Christmas Day shows, which is about as Disney as a holiday booking gets.
Do Josh Groban and Benjamin Bratt have Disney ties?
Both of them do. Groban sang “Evermore,” the new song written for Disney’s 2017 live-action Beauty and the Beast, in the version that plays over the end credits.
Bratt voiced Ernesto de la Cruz, the famous singing star with a not-so-great secret, in Disney and Pixar’s Coco.
So the new guys aren’t exactly strangers to the company. Groban also brings something a little different to a show that’s mostly music, since he’s the rare narrator who could probably sing every carol on the program himself.
What is the Candlelight Processional at EPCOT?
It’s EPCOT’s retelling of the Christmas story, read by a celebrity narrator and backed by a 51-piece orchestra, the Voices of Liberty and a choir of more than 150 cast members and community singers.
This is the show’s 55th year at Walt Disney World and its 32nd at EPCOT, according to Disney, so it’s older than EPCOT itself by a good stretch.
Shows run nightly from Nov. 27 to Dec. 30, at 4:45 p.m., 6:30 p.m. and 8 p.m., at the America Gardens Theatre in the American Adventure pavilion. It’s part of the EPCOT International Festival of the Holidays.
How do you get a seat at the Candlelight Processional?
Show up early, or pay for a meal.
Regular seating is first-come, first-served, and Disney says it fills up fast. The guaranteed route is a Candlelight Processional dining package, which bundles breakfast, lunch or dinner at a select EPCOT restaurant with a reserved seat for one of that night’s shows.
Those packages go on sale Wednesday, Oct. 14. Even with one, Disney suggests getting there early, since seats inside the reserved section are first-come, first-served too.
Who will replace Auli’i Cravalho at the Candlelight Processional?
Nobody yet, at least officially. Disney’s lineup still lists Nov. 27 and 28 as to be announced.
That’s the Friday and Saturday after Thanksgiving, the first two nights of this year’s run. Somebody’s name will land in that slot eventually. Disney just hasn’t said whose.
Article compiled with the help of the Pirates & Princesses newsroom.
Pirates and Princesses is your destination for Disney news, theme park updates, and the pop culture you love. From Disney cruises and travel tips to Disney fashion, food, collectibles, and movie news, PNP covers it all. Visit us at piratesandprincesses.net for daily coverage. Follow PNP on Facebook and Instagram, and listen to the Pirates & Princesses podcast on Apple Podcasts and YouTube.
Hat Tips:
Disney Parks Blog (Oct. 6, 2026), the updated narrator lineup, show times, orchestra and choir details, and the dining package sale date
WDWMAGIC (Oct. 6, 2026), Auli’i Cravalho’s removal from the Nov. 27 and 28 dates
Laughing Place (2017), Josh Groban’s end-credits version of “Evermore”
WDW News Today (June 2017), Benjamin Bratt’s casting as Ernesto de la Cruz in Coco
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