ANAHEIM, California, Aug 10 (Reuters) - Walt Disney ( DIS )

unveiled several new attractions for its theme parks at

the D23 fan event on Saturday as it looks to build more revenue

from its profitable parks and cruise ships division.

It will build a new 'Avatar' experience at its Disney

California Adventure theme park, based on the second film in the

science fiction franchise, "Avatar: The Way of Water", the

company said.

A show based on the life of Walt Disney ( DIS ), featuring an

audio-animatronic figure of the company's founder, will be

opened to commemorate Disneyland's 70th anniversary next year,

one of a number of announcements at the D23 event being held

this weekend.

The company also declared two attractions for the new

Tropical Americas expansion coming to Disney's ( DIS ) Animal Kingdom

park in Orlando, Florida. One follows Indiana Jones on an

exploration of a Mayan temple. Another is inspired by the Disney ( DIS )

animated film "Encanto" and follows the character Antonio on the

day he received his magical gift. Tropical Americas is set to

open in 2027.

Actor Billy Crystal took the stage to announce an area at

Disney's ( DIS ) Hollywood Studios dedicated to the Pixar film,

"Monsters, Inc". The area, known as a land in Disney ( DIS ) theme park

parlance, will feature a suspended roller coaster designed to

simulate zooming through the door vault at the Laugh Factory,

just like characters Mike and Sulley in the film.

Pixar's "Cars" film franchise also comes to the Magic

Kingdom in Orlando, in a re-imagined area of Frontierland, with

two new attractions planned. One will take guests on an off-road

thrill ride into the wilderness beyond the film's fictional

Radiator Springs setting. Construction is scheduled to begin

early next year.

These announcements reveal how the company will begin $60

billion in capital investments, nearly doubling spending over

the next decade to improve attractions at its 12 parks and

increase cruise line capacity.

"Everything that we're going to share with you tonight

is in active development," said Disney Experiences Chairman Josh

D'Amaro. "This means that plans are drawn. This means that dirt

is moving. I just want to be clear with all the fans out there.

This isn't blue sky."

Disney ( DIS ) said it will add four cruise ships to its growing

fleet, capitalizing on an industry that has been enjoying a

rebound from the global shutdown during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The company currently has five cruise ships in

operation, and previously announced four others, including one

Tokyo-based vessel and another that will set sail from Singapore

in 2025. These new vessels will take sail between 2027 and 2031.

D'Amaro was joined onstage by the company's creative

leads to discuss Disney's ( DIS ) collaboration with video-game maker

Epic Games. The company invested $1.5 billion in Epic earlier

this year, giving Disney ( DIS ) an equity stake in the creator of

Fortnite and Unreal Engine.

Disney ( DIS ) announced new characters and stories are coming

to the online game, including Disney ( DIS ) villains as well as

characters from the Pixar superhero film, "The Incredibles," and

the Disney+ series "The Mandalorian," about a lone bounty hunter

from the Star Wars universe.

Disney's ( DIS ) parks have become a reliable profit engine, helping

to cushion the impact of declines in traditional television and

losses in its video streaming business, which last quarter

turned a profit.

The experiences unit, which includes parks, cruise ships and

consumer products, contributed 60% of the company's operating

profit in the most recent quarter - up from 30% just a decade

ago.

Disney ( DIS ) CEO Bob Iger has said the company planned to spend

$17 billion over the next decade at the Walt Disney World Resort

in Orlando.

These investments would build on such recent attractions as

Tiana's Bayou Adventure - inspired by Disney's ( DIS ) animated movie

"The Princess and The Frog" - the Guardians of the Galaxy:

Cosmic Rewind roller coaster, and the Tron Lightcycle/Run.

The company faces intensifying competition in central

Florida from rival Universal Studios, which plans to open Epic

Universe next year, adding 750 acres (303.5 hectares) to be

populated by Harry Potter, dragons from the Viking world of "How

to Train Your Dragon," classic Universal movie monsters such as

Frankenstein and Nintendo's ( NTDOF ) Donkey Kong.