The first major expansion at Disney’s Hollywood Studios came in 1994 with the addition of Sunset Boulevard, an area based on the L.A. street of the same name.

The Theater of the Stars, a stage show attraction that made its debut at Hollywood Boulevard in 1989, was actually moved to Sunset Boulevard in 1994 along with its longest-running show Beauty and the Beast – Live on Stage, which came out in 1991 at the same time as the animated film on which it’s based. There were other shows playing at the theater before that, including Hollywood! Hollywood! A Star-Studded Spectacular as well as stage shows based on the Disney films Dick Tracy and Pretty Woman.

The nighttime fireworks show Fantasmic!, which I previously wrote about in my series of articles about Disneyland, has been playing at Sunset Boulevard ever since 1998, six years after it made its debut in California and replacing Disney-MGM’s original nightly fireworks show Sorcery in the Sky, which opened back in 1990 and highlighted movies like Fantasia and Mary Poppins as well as non-Disney movies like The Wizard of Oz, Singin’ in the Rain, Star Wars and Raiders of the Lost Ark.

But the landmark attraction that has been at Sunset Boulevard since its opening day, and has since become a bit like the Cinderella’s Castle of Disney’s Hollywood Studios, is the Twilight Zone Tower of Terror, one of Disney’s most popular and beloved attractions.

Hosted by Rod Serling (uncannily voiced by Mark Silverman) and allegedly based on a lost episode of CBS sci-fi anthology series The Twilight Zone, the premise of the drop tower attraction centers on an abandoned hotel called the Hollywood Tower Hotel, which closed down after an accident involving a lightning bolt striking the building while people were riding the elevator. Now the haunted building has mysteriously reopened and you, as a guest, are now experiencing the events of that night in the present day …

The 199-ft Tower of Terror is the second-tallest attraction in Walt Disney World after Expedition Everest at Animal Kingdom, but that drop still regularly scares the pants off many visitors.

In 1999, the Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster Starring Aerosmith made its opening debut at Sunset Boulevard. This coaster is the second-fastest ride in Walt Disney World behind only the Test Track at Epcot. The ride began when guests entered the offices of record label G-Force Records and afterwards entered the recording studio where Aerosmith was jamming. That’s when the band manager (portrayed by Illeana Douglas) enters the room to tell the band that they’re late for their next concert. Lead singer Steven Tyler feels bad for leaving you hanging at the studio so he invites you to accompany the band on their way to the “Forum” and gives everyone backstage passes. That’s when the ride begins. After entering Aerosmith’s 24-seat stretch limo, you zoom across the twisty streets of L.A. (not dissimilar to the actual L.A. freeway) before the rollercoaster stops and you arrive at the red carpet just in time to see Aerosmith perform. And all this happens to a killer soundtrack of Aerosmith songs, including hits like “Love in an Elevator” (which later gets remixed as “Love in a Roller Coaster”), “Walk This Way,” “Dude (Looks Like a Lady)” and “Sweet Emotion.”

At one point in the building adjacent to the Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster, an event called Club Villain opened for a few months in 2016. A ticketed dining and entertainment establishment hosted by Dr. Faciler from The Princess and the Frog and featuring appearances from Cruella De Vil, Maleficent, the Queen of Hearts and Snow White’s Evil Queen. Not a regular attraction but due to its popularity, Club Villain returned briefly in the Halloween of 2017. Although in 2019 it was officially replaced by Lightning McQueen’s Racing Academy.

This immersive show attraction based on Pixar’s Cars brings park guests face to face (face to hood?) with Lightning McQueen, who teaches you his racing skills by way of a high-tech simulator. Be on the lookout for recognizable characters like Mater, Chick Hicks, Cruz Ramirez and many others as well.

A year before the Racing Academy opened, another Pixar film not only got a few new attractions but received its own area called Toy Story Land. Although the backstory for that place goes back a few years earlier. Back in 2008, an area called Pixar Place opened at Disney’s Hollywood Studios featuring a midway attraction based on the Pixar film Toy Story called Toy Story Midway Mania! (which would replace an earlier interactive Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? attraction) before moving out of Pixar Place and into Toy Story Land in 2018.

Wearing 3D goggles, guests would board spinning vehicles travelling through virtual environments while playing mostly shooting games, including:

Ham & Eggs: knock down barnyard animals by shooting hardboiled eggs at them with Hamm and Rex (Rex was replaced by Buttercup in conjunction with the release of Toy Story 3).

Bo Peep’s Baaa-loon Pop (changed to Rex and Trixie’s Dino Darts in conjunction with the release of Toy Story 3): shoot darts at a bunch of balloons.

Green Army Men Shoot Camp: toss baseballs at plates.

Buzz Lightyear’s Flying Tossers: toss rings around the little green aliens.

Woody’s Rootin’ Tootin’ Shootin’ Gallery: shoot suction cupped darts at mine carts in a Woody’s Roundup-themed game.

The other two big attractions at Toy Story Land are Alien Swirling Saucers and Slinky Dog Dash. Alien Swirling Saucers is a whip ride where you board toy rockets with a bunch of little green aliens while “The Claw” tries to capture you. The music, sound effects and lighting all added to the chaotic and fun atmosphere. Slinky Dog Dash, according to the ride’s fictional backstory, is a rollercoaster constructed by Andy from a mega-coaster kit along with his toy Slinky Dog. But Slinky is not the only character you will see on this dash through Andy’s backyard. Don’t forget to say hi to Rex, Jessie, Wheezy and the Green Army Men too.

The last expansion at Disney’s Hollywood Studios, constructed at the same time as Toy Story Land, was Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge in 2019, three months after it opened at Disneyland in California. I won’t take up a lot of time talking about this place because I already dedicated a whole article to it in my Disneyland series and I explored the attractions Millennium Falcon: Smuggler’s Run and Rise of the Resistance in depth. The version of Galaxy’s Edge in Florida replaced a majority of the Streets of America and erased the Honey, I Shrunk the Kids playground, which is partly why the Streets of America were renamed Muppets Courtyard (and finally Grand Avenue). Just like the version in California, Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge remains a popular part of Disney’s Hollywood Studios.

That’s the end of my coverage of the basic history of Disney’s Hollywood Studios. As usual when I write about these theme parks, I hope I taught you something you didn’t know and made you appreciate the hard work and technical brilliance that goes into making them. I also hope to visit Walt Disney World one day. So I’m just glad I basically wrote myself a beginner’s guide to keep myself from being overwhelmed by the scope and size of these parks. It will be interesting to see how this park in particular compares to the real Hollywood.