There's a story behind the first live-action appearance of the MCU's Young Avengers.
After Ms. Marvel recruited Kate Bishop in The Marvels and prior to reports of a Champions Disney+ series, the Disney Treasure cruise offered its own post-credits scene starring America Chavez (Xochitl Gomez), Cassie Lang (Kathyrn Newton), and Ironheart's Riri Williams (Dominique Thorne).
This marked the first time that MCU Young Avengers heroes crossed over on screen to accomplish a team goal.
Disney Reveals Details Behind Young Avengers Crossover
For the second-ever Worlds of Marvel restaurant, Disney delivered a brand-new show, Marvel Celebration of Heroes: Groot Remix, which ends with a possible Young Avengers preview.
Following a quick glimpse of the three MCU heroines during the show, Groot Remix concludes with FRIDAY showing Riri, America, and Cassie "celebrating their latest victory."
The exhausted trio is seen seated at a table cluttered with plates and Coca-Cola cups on the upper decks of the Disney Treasure before America Chavez asks, "Who's up for shuffleboard?"
In an exclusive interview with The Direct, Walt Disney Imagineering explained that Ironheart (whose solo series arrives in 2025) and America Chavez "teamed up to fix Cassie's dad's Quantum Cores" before they're recruited by Groot to celebrate Rocket Racoon:
"The story is that the trio teamed up to fix Cassie’s dad’s Quantum Cores, which connected to 'Avengers: Quantum Encounter,' but we are interrupted by Groot when he took over the Celebration of Heroes. Groot eventually enlisted the trio to help with the surprise party for Rocket, which included the karaoke and after party 'end tag' scenes you see in the show today."
Avengers: Quantum Encounter was Disney Cruise Line and Marvel's first at-sea show featuring Marvel Studios stars (it's also offered aboard the Disney Treasure). The show is led by Paul Rudd's Ant-Man who's giving a presentation of the new Pym tech Quantum Cores.
So not only is the MCU connected on-screen, but also within Disney's Variant MCU timeline of theme park and cruise line experiences, all of which "mirrors" on-screen canon.
Disney Cruise Line's second-ever MCU show, Marvel Celebration of Heroes: Groot Remix, is a celebratory dining experience honoring MCU heroes and where Groot attempts to shine the spotlight a neglected Rocket. In between show scenes, guests participate in Marvel trivia and to the tunes of an Guardians-style "Awesome Mix."
As for why Disney opted to include some of Marvel Studios' youngest heroes in this particular show, Walt Disney Imagineering attributed Groot Remix's "youthful tone," and how "featuring these other young characters was a fun direction:"
"We are super excited over the fan response! Because of the show’s youthful tone with Groot, we thought featuring these other young characters was a fun direction and everything aligned."
However, in the months since the show debuted, reports suggest Marvel's Young Avengers project will now be called Champions with plans to begin filming in 2026.
If so, this Worlds of Marvel tag aboard the Disney Treasure is a first-ever preview of what audiences can expect in that Disney+ series.
Also, according to Disney, there's also a Star Wars connection to this MCU team-up since the scene was actually shot "in the Stagecraft Soundstage (same one as The Mandalorian):"
"A fun fact is we shot their scene in the Stagecraft soundstage (same one as 'The Mandalorian') at the Walt Disney Studios lot in Burbank."
Walt Disney Imagineering also shared how the concept of Marvel Celebration of Heroes: Groot Remix came to be.
While Guardians of the Galaxy and its signature soundtracks were of interest from the start, it was the I Am Groot shorts on Disney+ that ultimately led Imagineers to settle on the tiny Flora Collosus as its headliner:
"We knew we wanted to give Guests two unique Marvel dining experiences on the Disney Treasure. Early in development we threw a few ideas around the Awesome Mixtape music from Marvel Studios’ 'Guardians of the Galaxy' films. It wasn’t until we saw the 'I Am Groot' animated shorts that we decided Groot should be the star of the show, with his signature mischief, humor, and heart (with his relationship to Rocket) driving the narrative."
Find out where I Am Groot belongs on the MCU Timeline here.
Imagineer Danny Hanke, who worked on both Worlds of Marvel experiences, further explained, "As a MCU fan myself, I wanted to make sure we featured as many characters as possible between the two dinner shows."
He also pointed out how Groot Remix involves "interactive trivia" for both casual and hardcore fans of the Marvel Cinematic Universe:
"One of my favorite elements of 'Marvel Celebration of Heroes: Groot Remix' is the interactive trivia. I think there’s a good representation of questions for both casual fans and hardcore MCU fans."
But as for offering "as many characters as possible" between the Worlds of Marvel's two shows, Handke teased "a cameo of a very specific multiversal variant" was slipped into Groot Remix for fans to find:
"As for ‘newer’ faces – we may have slipped in a cameo of a very specific multiversal variant in one of the show’s montage moments."
Find out did Disney swapped HYDRA for Ultron in Worlds of Marvel's Avengers: Quantum Encounter here!
Marvel Celebration of Heroes: Groot Remix is offered aboard the Disney Treasure.
