Disney executive chairman Bob Iger says the company may implement new procedures to screen visitors when their theme parks reopen after the coronavirus pandemic, including taking attendees’ temperatures. (A high temperature is a symptom of COVID-19.)
Iger informed Barron’s that, as Disney did after 9/11, new safety measures and additional scrutiny will be needed to guarantee customer safety even if it means they will have to wait in line longer to enter the theme parks. A return to normalcy, Iger explained, will only be achieved if customers “feel comfortable that they’re safe.”
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“Just as we now do bag checks for everybody that goes into our parks, it could be that at some point we add a component of that that takes people’s temperatures, as a for-instance. We’re studying very carefully what China has been trying to do in terms of their return to normalcy,” Iger said.
“And one of the things that’s obvious is they’ve conscripted a large segment of their population to monitor others in terms of their health. You can’t get on a bus or a subway or a train or enter a high-rise building there — and I’m sure this will be the case when their schools reopen — without having your temperature taken.”
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Disneyland and Disney World remain indefinitely closed after Disney scrapped their initial hopes of reopening their U.S. theme park resorts at the end of March.
For attractions you can look forward to in the future when the parks reopen, get all the details on Disneyland’s upcoming Marvel-themed expansion, Avengers Campus, and the land’s new Spider-Man ride featuring Tom Holland.
Disney recently announced a slate of new release dates for their movies postponed due to COVID-19, and have pivoted to releasing some of their titles, like Onward, earlier than expected on VOD. The studio also scrapped plans to release Artemis Fowl theatrically, opting to debut the film on Disney+ instead.
Source: IGN.com Disney May Check Visitors Temperatures When Parks Reopen