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Potential New Universal UK Park

Quantum said:
Star Wars is a declining brand so I'm not sure I'd use that one. Nintendo world is made up of multiple IPs as it Marvel to some extent.

What about a Sonic themed area? That would work well and has a strong aesthetic.
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I think a Sonic themed area would be really good. If they make it just immersive and amazing theming the same as Nintendo in Japan.
Plus Universal can show Alton Towers how it should be done with their weak attempt with the theming around Spinball Whizzer. It’s just really boring, disappointing and I’ve always felt they could have done a lot more imo.


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whats peoples thoughts on Pokemon themed land? I know there have been rumours about orlando having that IP for ages and I can not see UK getting Super Nintendo World due to epic Universe getting it
 
JT01 said:
whats peoples thoughts on Pokemon themed land? I know there have been rumours about orlando having that IP for ages and I can not see UK getting Super Nintendo World due to epic Universe getting it
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There is a UK region in the world of Pokemon, however I believe it’s in consideration to replace The Simpsons at USO
 
tayspru said:
There is a UK region in the world of Pokemon, however I believe it’s in consideration to replace The Simpsons at USO
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Yeah, that's what I heard too, but it was originally rumored to be in the Kids zone, so it just goes to show how quickly things can change. Plans get swapped around all the time, and you never really know what’s going to stick until it's officially unveiled. They could end up making some last-minute adjustments
 
Universal take risks with expanding their parks and resorts around the world but they don't take many risks with IP's. Tried and tested is definitely their trusted strategy when it comes to their themes and rides.

You can be sure that it there is a major IP used for this park we haven't see them use before it, it's likely going to be the only unique one they opt for. Be amazed if they went with half of the park on new IP's.

As a huge Tolkien nerd I'm obviously hoping for LOTR but I'd say Wicked is probably more likely if you were putting money on it sadly.

As for the rest:

Take your pick between Jurassic Park/World, Minions, Transformers etc.

Another Potterverse is said to be highly unlikely I read. Not only due to IP rights but the fact Universal don't want to stop Brits travelling to Florida in the numbers we currently do.
 
I love the argument that LoTR wouldn’t have the draw for a theme park. The 1st film came out the same time at the first HP film and it had better reviews and took a bigger box office. It’s linked to a book that has been around for a hell of a long time and now that the author is dead they can’t shout their mouth off on various culture wars that massively divide public opinion….

Add to that the book pretty much is the blueprint for modern fantasy, even those with only a peripheral consumption of the books or films would be impressed with any area themed around it. You also only really have to cover the Shire and Maybe Rivendell as themed areas and use clever transport effects if you want to take people further afield during a particular ride.

The bigger issue will be if the Tolkien estate allow the sale of the IP, I suspect unlike potter the theme park rights still sit with the estate rather than Warner (Warner bought both when they took HP, so Rowling couldn’t actually refuse the plans for Universal).

We will just have to wait and see if Universal can get the rights but if they did people from all over the globe would flock to a LoTR land.
 
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The Orlando / UK situation is fascinating. We are used to local parks choosing different rides and themes to their neighbours so as to make their offerings unique, but I don't think we've ever seen this happen across continents before.
This makes predicting which IPs they'll use incredibly hard, especially given that there's only a handful of IPs at the other Universal parks that don't feature in Orlando.

Jurrasic World I think is a safe bet, given that every version of this area around the world is unique in some way. Please include the Mack Suspended Powered Coaster but done well this time!

I'm still standing by my prediction that Potter is inevitable. Either done in a completely different way* or as the first major expansion after so many guests question why it wasn't included. In a similar way that Pirates of the Caribbean came to Florida.

* I can picture a Hogwarts Castle hotel with Hogsmeade being an offshot of the shopping (City Walk) area being an amazing way they could include this while still setting it apart from other HP attractions. If they can build it near the real train station even better!

I'm nervous about the family/kids area they might choose. Anything Nintendo would be great. I'd have loved How to Train Your Dragon but I'm almost certain that'll be off the cards for the UK because of its inclusion in Epic Universe. I'm sure they'll go for something like Minions which is fine but personally I don't see the appeal.

Wicked I think is a little too early to tell if it is a good idea. I hear people refer to it as "Universal's answer to Princesses" which I personally find a bizarre claim. Sure it shares a lot of the same themes, but the story is a lot more mature in tone. A perfect fit for Universal, but the appeal of Princesses is that young girls love them. Does Wicked hit that same demographic?

If Lord of the Rings is an option I'd definitely choose it and make it the headline IP. So much untapped potential. And I completely disagree with the perception that it only appeals to geeks. Those films came out as I was growing up, so I know they both appeal to older kids, and remain popular with adults to this day.
 
Tim said:
Jurrasic World I think is a safe bet, given that every version of this area around the world is unique in some way. Please include the Mack Suspended Powered Coaster but done well this time
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Flying dinosaur clone and I’ll get an annual pass for life.

I'm not convinced the Orlando aspect will be a major consideration. The demographics in reality will be quite different as the Florida parks are increasingly out-pricing UK families. I've seen people here mention a visit for a family of 4 costing easily upwards of 5 figures.

Not replicating the rides perhaps but i don't see reusing popular themes being an issue. Just look at Disneyland Paris, for them not to have made a "proper" park would have been ridiculous and they hardly cannibalised their audience. Universal Orlando is already now 3 (4?) theme parks so it will always be the superior experience for those who can visit, not to mention of course the weather.
 
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The general feeling seems to be that they need to have a ride themed to a British brand. Surely the obvious thing would be a British version of Race Through New York with Jimmy Fallon. How about something like, Race Through London with Fiona Bruce?

Realistically you could have Minion Land, Race Through London with Fiona Bruce Land, Sponge Bob Square Pants Land and Fox News Land, and that would give you quite a strong package of attractions.
 
I don't buy into this whole LOTR is not as popular as something like Potter or Star Wars argument. It's a huge franchise that had a strong fandom and pop culture relevance even before the Peter Jackson films came out. Even people who don't care for it and would visit any Universal park for other reasons would go into the area for a look about at least and be amazed and compelled to try some stuff out there. I was like this with Potter in 2019, I don't like it, but can appreciate how good the quality of the lands in both IoA and the regular Studios parks are, and how phenomenal Forbidden Journey was when I first rode it

Martin said:
With LotR I'd put money on if you polled every Deano in the land it would come out on top as the favourite film/series of British 'normies'. If any film themed land would get people flocking there's not many more certain.
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My brother is far from a "geek", but he adores LOTR and when I told him they could be building a land in the UK, he was buzzed. I don't really care for the franchise that much, but I'd definitely want one because I think Universal would easily do it justice

Bowser said:
Japan would definitely get anything Pokemon related first but there's rumours of that being imminent so one in the UK would be lovely.
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I couldn't imagine the opening day of a Pokemon themed area in Japan, the queue would be like a day long! You could easily base an entire theme park off Pokemon that is the size of a regular Universal park and it'd easily draw in 10 million every year


ZeldaAlton said:
I think a Sonic themed area would be really good. If they make it just immersive and amazing theming the same as Nintendo in Japan.
Plus Universal can show Alton Towers how it should be done with their weak attempt with the theming around Spinball Whizzer. It’s just really boring, disappointing and I’ve always felt they could have done a lot more imo.
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I think at one point Universal considered a whole range of video games for Epic Universe, but nixed it due to the licensing costs from all those different developers. A Sonic one would have been awesome, especially as he's popular in the UK and a great license for a looping coaster of sorts

I've said before that I would strongly prefer Universal's own IPs over stuff that is "British". LOTR is one I'd love, and James Bond I think would be really cool. But I think stuff like Paddington, Doctor Who, Aardman etc is not something I want to see in a Universal park over their classics like Jaws, ET, Back to the Future and even their modern stuff too. I will eat whatever is on my plate though if the park in Bedford is built full stop, but there is no harm in having preferences at this stage!
 
To be honest, popularity arguments aside - something like LotR would be a huge, huge undertaking to do it justice. I’d have concerns about such a massive cost being blown on that, leaving not a whole lot of cash left to build a similar level of quality into other attractions and lands to support it. I’m of course not suggesting that the place is going to be built on the cheap, but I’d much rather see a sensible cohesive resort where the whole place has that wow factor. Perhaps we could see something like that being considered further down the line as a new phase to the resort once the place is established?

There’s a lot said about the James Bond IP, but away from your stunt shows and maybe a Fast and the Furious style driving attraction (urgh), I struggle to think of anything else that would really properly translate into something really decent. With the whole premise of James Bond being set in the “real world”, it’s not really something that screams escapism in a theme park to me?
 
Craig said:
To be honest, popularity arguments aside - something like LotR would be a huge, huge undertaking to do it justice. I’d have concerns about such a massive cost being blown on that, leaving not a whole lot of cash left to build a similar level of quality into other attractions and lands to support it. I’m of course not suggesting that the place is going to be built on the cheap, but I’d much rather see a sensible cohesive resort where the whole place has that wow factor. Perhaps we could see something like that being considered further down the line as a new phase to the resort once the place is established?

There’s a lot said about the James Bond IP, but away from your stunt shows and maybe a Fast and the Furious style driving attraction (urgh), I struggle to think of anything else that would really properly translate into something really decent. With the whole premise of James Bond being set in the “real world”, it’s not really something that screams escapism in a theme park to me?
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They’re building a F&F coaster in California, they could easily tweak the concept and make it work for Bond in the UK

As for evidential support of what they may be actually be considering for park projects (free of enthusiast speculation and opinions) , New York Times interviewed the CEO of Universal Destinations and Experiences :

blogmickey.com

Report: Universal Plans on Expandifying Use of 'Wicked' IP in Theme Parks

A new report says that Universal Destinations & Experiences is exploring ways to bring the Wicked IP to life in its theme parks
blogmickey.com blogmickey.com

This quote is pertinent :

When I saw [Wicked], my first reaction was, “This is a theme park waiting to happen”

Later in the NYT article, Wicked is mentioned again, the CEO also mentions new opportunities and the reporter has then inferred this could be related to the rumoured U.K. park

So Wicked is certainly under consideration for *somewhere*
 
tayspru said:
They’re building a F&F coaster in California, they could easily tweak the concept and make it work for Bond in the UK

As for evidential support of what they may be actually be considering for park projects (free of enthusiast speculation and opinions) , New York Times interviewed the CEO of Universal Destinations and Experiences :

blogmickey.com

Report: Universal Plans on Expandifying Use of 'Wicked' IP in Theme Parks

A new report says that Universal Destinations & Experiences is exploring ways to bring the Wicked IP to life in its theme parks
blogmickey.com blogmickey.com

This quote is pertinent :

When I saw [Wicked], my first reaction was, “This is a theme park waiting to happen”

Later in the NYT article, Wicked is mentioned again, the CEO also mentions new opportunities and the reporter has then inferred this could be related to the rumoured U.K. park

So Wicked is certainly under consideration for *somewhere*
Click to expand...
I would prefer them to do a Wicked area in America. The Wizard of Oz is a cornerstone of American fiction, it would fit much better there than in here.

That being said, they have made a Harry Potter area literally everywhere other than the UK, but I guess it’s just my two pence
 
The_bup said:
I would prefer them to do a Wicked area in America. The Wizard of Oz is a cornerstone of American fiction, it would fit much better there than in here.

That being said, they have made a Harry Potter area literally everywhere other than the UK, but I guess it’s just my two pence
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It largely depends on whether they are planning to expand Epic any time soon, I don’t see it fitting as well into the other Orlando parks
 
I agree that Minion Land feels a bit underwhelming for a kids' area! A SpongeBob SquarePants Bikini Bottom-themed land would definitely be a fun alternative. However, that would likely lead to a lot of water rides, which makes more sense in Orlando’s climate. Still, there are plenty of other kids' IPs Universal could tap into for this kind of area.

As for Lord of the Rings, it's definitely more of a "geek" IP. My partner, who’s a massive gaming nerd, absolutely loves it, while I can barely get through 30 minutes of the film without getting distracted! But the world-building and fantasy elements of LOTR make it an ideal candidate for an immersive land in a theme park. You don’t have to be a fan of the IP to enjoy a well-themed land, as long as it’s immersive and the rides tell a clear, engaging story. From what I’ve seen, some of the architecture in LOTR is impressive, which would translate perfectly to theming.

As for the crossover from Orlando to the UK, I honestly don’t see much of it happening, especially with anything from Epic Universe. Universal will likely want to capitalize on that park for a good few years before considering any crossovers. But I could be proven wrong.
It’s still wild to think we’re having this conversation about the UK theme park industry, who would’ve imagined this 10 years ago?
 
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Considering that the UK Park isn't opening before 2030, and 2031-32 is a more reasonable expectation, I don't see why they won't do a crossover on day one. Epic Universe would've been open for over 5 years by then and the new Park aura would be long-gone.
 
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