Disneyland ultimately backed out of plans to include aerial drones in the “World of Color” water show after U.S. government regulations placed restrictions on the nighttime spectacles featuring flying robots that Walt Disney Imagineering helped pioneer.

Walt Disney Imagineering Vice President for Parades and Spectaculars Steven Davison spoke about Imagineering’s pioneering work creating drone light shows with Intel’s Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Group during a D23 panel at the Anaheim Convention Center in August.

“We originally worked with Intel when they first brought the drones out,” Davison said during the Magic After Dark panel at D23. “They were supposed to premiere at this water thing across the street we won’t talk about.”

The first Intel drone show debuted in Germany in 2015, the year “World of Color: Celebrate” opened at Disney California Adventure as part of the 60th anniversary celebration of the Disneyland Resort.

The Disney Springs outdoor shopping mall — Disney World’s version of Downtown Disney — hosted the “Starbright Holidays” show in 2016, which used 300 Intel drones.

“We did a lot of pioneering work on this initially,” Davison said. “Actually a lot of copyrights on it that we don’t even enforce because so many people are using these.”

Disneyland Paris has been pushing the envelope with nighttime drone shows like “Disney D-Light” and “Disney Electrical Sky Parade.”

“There’s so many restrictions in America with the use of drones,” Davison said. “We’re finally getting a chance to actually look at them and use them.”

Marvel Entertainment hosted a “Deadpool and Wolverine” drone show in July during Comic-Con in the skies over San Diego.

Disney has filed patents for cutting-edge drone concepts — including drone-controlled puppets and 3D drone displays that mimic fireworks shows.

Where could Disneyland and Disney California Adventure add a nighttime drone show? The nightly fireworks shows, “Fantasmic,” “World of Color,” the skies over Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge and Avengers Campus, or even above the Main Street Electrical Parade, are just a few places where the entertainment team could introduce drones.

Universal Studios Hollywood, SeaWorld San Diego and Six Flags Magic Mountain have all hosted nighttime drone shows.