It’s always a bit magical to see Disney fans meeting their favorite characters for the first time within the various theme parks. It’s a whole other level of charming when it’s Josh Gad, the voice of Frozen's Olaf, meeting the self-walking, talking Olaf animatronic in World of Frozen at Disneyland Paris. The Disney Legend recently took a stroll through Arendelle, chatting with the pint-size snowman who has a wide variety of responses, all in Gad’s own voice.
It’s all very meta for one of Disney’s most popular animated characters and very in line with the actor’s past playfulness in the parks, which you can get a sense of in the YouTube series where he headed up the Jungle Cruise ride and took on other cast members' jobs. I can’t imagine how surreal it must be to see a character that you are so deeply connected to just freely walking around on its own, waving its arms, blinking, and saying your own recorded lines back to you. You can see Gad’s reaction in the clip below:
Opening at Disney Adventure World back in March 2026, The World of Frozen is the second Frozen-themed land, after the first one opened at Hong Kong Disneyland in 2023. And while the robot has been a hit since it started appearing in Disneyland Paris, Olaf has had some operational hiccups, the most notable of which being when it froze, fell onto its back, and detached its magnetic carrot nose. Thankfully, things seemed to go smoothly when the Beauty and the Beast star experienced the li'l guy in action himself.
I personally had the pleasure of also meeting the free-roaming Olaf audio-animatronic, having gotten a preview demonstration of how it works at Walt Disney Imagineering, prior to its debut in Paris. Disney Parks have been working on robots for a few years, and the two-legged BD-1 droids that walk around Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge sure are cool, but Olaf pushes the technology in every way. Sure, his verbal responses are prerecorded, but when you’re talking to the lovable snowman in the moment, it’s easy to get caught up in the magic. I totally understand Josh Gad’s clear delight.
The Frozen franchise, of which the films and spinoffs are streamable with a Disney+ subscription, is immensely popular, so it’s no surprise that the first character of this type to be brought to life within the theme parks is Olaf. He’s easily lovable and his personality is infectious. We know that Frozen 3 is officially in the works and is set to be released in 2027, and hopefully that will mean that the Olaf animatronic will get some dialogue updates in the future.
P.S. If you’re wondering exactly what that is that Gad is eating in the clip, if you make your way to Disneyland Paris, be sure to get the Everlasting Snowflake shortbread dessert at the Nordic Crowns Tavern.
