WARNING: The following contains spoilers for Jungle Cruise, now available in theaters and on Disney+ Premier Access.
Beginning life as a Disney Parks attraction, Jungle Cruise has been transformed into a feature, which goes a long way toward translating the tone of the ride. In fact, the film even has a well-placed recreation of part of the ride in the opening sequences, and features some pretty deep-cut references to the original parks from which it hails -- including a surprisingly unique reinvention of one character.
Jungle Cruise introduces a modern take on the original ride's Trader Sam, reinventing a horribly offensive element of the ride as a more fleshed-out character.
In the world of Jungle Cruise, Frank (Dwayne Johnson) is a boat captain who brings tourists through a seemingly treacherous Amazon River menaced by dangerous wildlife and ruthless "headhunters." However, as some of the guests on his tour notice, many of these elements are just part of a staged performance. The "fearsome hippo" that attacks the boat is actually a rickety model that springs out of the water when Frank activates a minor mechanism. Meanwhile, the local tribe is revealed to be in on the routine, playing up an over-the-top act for the tourists while in reality working with Frank. They fire darts at the passengers and seemingly endanger them to sell the experience, but Frank is quick to offer affirmation when he doesn't think anyone is looking.
The tribe later appears during Frank's trip alongside Lily (Emily Blunt) and her brother MacGregor (Jack Whitehall). During their venture down the river, the trio encounters the group, who demand the arrowhead relic Lily has. She refuses to hand it over, stealing a spear and appearing willing to fight for it, which none of the actually quite peaceful villagers feel inclined to do. This is when the leader of the group -- Trader Sam (Veronica Falcón) -- reveals herself. Complaining about the routine to Frank openly, she quickly reveals that she's his long-time business partner. She also turns out to be connected to the tribe that Lily's arrowhead originates from, with her ability to translate it being key to discovering the path towards the Tree of Life. Trader Sam stands by Frank and helps provide MacGregor some medical assistance -- but bails as soon as the villainous German aristocrat, Joachim (Jesse Plemons), arrives on the scene with his sub.
Trader Sam is actually a reference to an element from the same Disney Parks attraction upon which Jungle Cruise is based. The ride, which opened in 1955, featured a headhunter character named Trader Sam. Widely criticized, the character appeared at the end of the attraction with a number of shrunken heads in his hand. Trader Sam was recently removed during renovations of the ride, along with the other headhunter characters, in an effort to be more sensitive to indigenous peoples.
Over the years, Sam's connection to the mythology of the park grew, expanding to include Trader Sam's Enchanted Tiki Bar -- a popular restaurant and bar at the Disneyland Hotel. The character is also connected to the Society of Explorers and Adventurers, an overarching connection to other Disney Parks attractions, which is reportedly being developed into a Disney+ series by Ron Moore. It's interesting, considering how the original portrayal of the character was removed this past year, that the new Trader Sam is given not just a distinct character and part in the tongue-in-cheek "scam" of the Jungle Cruise Frank captains, but is also established as a shrewd but friendly leader, and the chief of her tribe. Beyond being another shout-out to the original parks, it's also a clever way to recontextualize and reinvent the concept.
Directed by Jaume Collet-Serra, Jungle Cruise is based on Disney Parks' classic attraction of the same name. The film is now playing in theaters and available to stream through Disney+ Premier Access.