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Watch the trailer for Escape From Tomorrow and you'll wonder how they got permission to shoot such a strange, nightmarish movie at Disney World. Answer is, they didn't.Randy Moore shot his distorted-funhouse version of the "happiest place on earth" on the sly while he and his small crew posed as tourists.
Since it features iconic Disney characters and rides, like It's a Small World (which always struck us as pretty nightmarish, even before that Simpsons parody), it seemed likely that Disney would shut it down. The company has always fiercely protected its brand (again, as parodied on The Simpsons, where Mr. Burns's lawyer points out that the phrase "the happiest place on earth" is trademarked).
The trippy indie premiered at Sundance earlier this year, where, Worst Previews reports, "Disney representative were heard saying that Escape From Tomorrow will never be released anywhere."
However, EW reports that Cinetic's Producers Distribution Agency announced plans to release the film in theaters and on VOD on Oct. 11.
The film follows Roy Abramsohn, who learns he's been fired from his job while on vacation with his family at the park and begins seeing disturbing visions.
It's not to be confused with Disney's own planned movie Tomorrowland, which will star as an inventor George Clooney and Hugh Laurie as the villain and be directed by The Incredibles' Brad Bird. Its synopsis: "Bound by a shared destiny, a bright, optimistic teen bursting with scientific curiosity and a former boy-genius inventor jaded by disillusionment embark on a danger-filled mission to unearth the secrets of an enigmatic place somewhere in time and space that exists in their collective memory as 'Tomorrowland.'"
The Simpsons got away with its parody by placing the action in "Duff Gardens," where Bart dares Lisa to drink the water in the "It's A Small World"-esque boat ride. After she does, she has an LSD-type tripout, ultimately proclaiming "I am the lizard queen!"
Editor's note: We originally reported the movie was filmed at Disneyland, not Disney World.