A few buildings of Art of Animation were originally built to be the second half of the Pop Century resort. They were going to be the ‘Legendary Years’ half of Pop Century. But construction was shut down after Sept 11, 2001. It wasn’t until 2010 that Art of Animation was announced and began. Two buildings in The Little Mermaid section were the original ‘Legendary Years’ buildings.

• Finding Nemo: The Finding Nemo section of the resort is themed with the ocean setting featured in the film, with underwater plant and animal decorations throughout the buildings. This is the first area of the resort, which opened on May 31, 2012.

• Cars: The Cars section of the resort is themed like the Cozy Cone Motel that was featured in the film. Resort buildings are themed with the movie's characters, including Lightning McQueen, Sally, Mater, and Luigi and Guido. The second section of the resort opened on June 18, 2012.

• The Lion King: The Lion King section of the resort features a "natural" setting, such as that found in the wild. The third section of the resort opened its doors on August 10, 2012.

• The Little Mermaid: The Little Mermaid section of the resort is themed with 600 cutout objects on resort balconies. "Under the Sea" decorations are incorporated throughout the section. This section of the resort has exterior walkways, where the other sections have enclosed interior walkways between the rooms. (This section uses two buildings that were originally built for Pop Century's "Legendary Years" section before construction halted, which left them unfinished.) It opened on September 15, 2012, as the fourth and final section of the resort.