Debi Derryberry, who voiced daughter Patricia in Magic Kingdom’s Carousel of Progress since 1994, will voice Grandmother when the reimagined show reopens in late spring 2027.
The kid from Carousel of Progress is grandma now.
Debi Derryberry, who voiced Patricia, the daughter, in the Magic Kingdom show for more than three decades, is coming back for the reimagined version as Grandmother. Walt Disney Imagineering announced the casting on Oct. 4, calling her “a familiar voice“ returning to the attraction.
She’ll be heard when the updated show opens at Walt Disney World in late spring 2027.
Who is Debi Derryberry?
She’s the voice of Jimmy Neutron. Derryberry played the boy genius in the TV series and movie, and she’s also voiced Wednesday Addams in the 1992 animated The Addams Family and Coco Bandicoot in the Crash Bandicoot games.
Carousel fans know her as Patricia, the daughter in the version that opened in 1994 and ran until the show closed this summer.
Who voiced Grandma in the old Carousel of Progress?
Two people, depending on the scene. Mary Cervantes voiced Grandmother for most of the old show, and Janet Waldo took over the role in the final act.
Waldo was the voice of Judy Jetson on The Jetsons, which fits pretty well for a show about the future.
Now one actress is doing the part, and she’s moving up two generations to do it. Patricia was the kid. Grandmother is, well, the grandmother.
Who else is in the new Carousel of Progress cast?
Disney announced in August that Bryan Cranston will voice John, the dad, and Jamie Lee Curtis will voice Sarah, the mom.
Cranston is an Emmy winner, best known for Breaking Bad. Curtis is a Disney Legend.
They replace Jean Shepherd and B.J. Ward, who voiced John and Sarah in the 1994 version. Shepherd, who also narrated A Christmas Story, was the dad’s voice for over 30 years of Magic Kingdom visits.
Disney hasn’t named who will voice the rest of the family yet.
When does Carousel of Progress reopen at Magic Kingdom?
Late spring 2027. Disney hasn’t given an exact date.
The show had its last day on July 5, 2026. It’s the biggest overhaul since Carousel of Progress arrived at Magic Kingdom in 1975, after starting out at the 1964-1965 New York World’s Fair.
Every scene is getting replaced with a new time period:
Opening scene: Walt Disney himself, as a new Audio-Animatronic figure.
Act 1, summer 1969: The family watches the Apollo moon landing.
Act 2, Halloween night 1985: Sarah takes center stage for the first time.
Act 3, New Year’s Eve 1999: The family rings in the new millennium.
Act 4, the future: A home with a helpful robot and space travel.
What did Disney show at the D23 Carousel of Progress panel?
The Grandmother news came out of a D23 event at Disney’s Contemporary Resort on Oct. 4, where Imagineers talked about the update.
They showed a new Audio-Animatronic toucan that will interact with Walt in the opening scene. It’s inspired by the old TV special Disneyland Goes to the World’s Fair.
The ceramic pumpkin head from the old show is coming back too. It’ll show up in the new Halloween 1985 scene, which is about the most natural home a pumpkin could ask for.
Props and costumes from the show were on display too.
Will the “Great Big Beautiful Tomorrow” song stay?
Yes. Disney said back in May that “There’s a Great Big Beautiful Tomorrow“ stays in the new show.
The Sherman Brothers, Richard M. and Robert B. Sherman, wrote it for the original 1964 version at the World’s Fair.
The song stays put. Patricia just got a promotion.
Article compiled with the help of the Pirates & Princesses newsroom.
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Hat Tips:
Walt Disney Imagineering (Oct. 4, 2026), the social post announcing Derryberry as Grandmother
WDWMAGIC (Oct. 4, 2026), the late spring 2027 reopening and the new scene lineup
Laughing Place (Oct. 4, 2026), the D23 event details: the toucan, the returning pumpkin and the displayed props
TheWrap, Drew Taylor (Aug. 16, 2026), the Bryan Cranston and Jamie Lee Curtis casting
WDWInfo (May 28, 2026), Disney’s confirmation that the theme song stays
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