Attraction Source Forum

The dust has barely settled from its latest “Despicable Me” and Super Silly Fun Land additions, but Universal Studios Hollywood announced plans to rev forward with a new “Fast and Furious”-based attraction, along with a night tour and other expansions.

Under its ongoing five-year transformation plan, the park on Tuesday announced “Fast and Furious: Supercharged,” a 3-D thrill ride within the back lot studio tour, as well as plans to run the tour at night. Both will open in 2015 and be exclusive to the Universal City park. Marking its 50th anniversary this year, the theme park is also expanding its existing “Simpsons” attraction to add new restaurants and stores based on the fictional town of Springfield.

Based off their six — seven as of next year — street-racing movies starring Vin Diesel and the late Paul Walker that have grossed more than $2 billion worldwide, “Fast and Furious: Supercharged” will close out the Studio Tour in a new 50,000-square-foot building that will utilize a 360-degree 3-D screen and hydraulics to immerse riders in a high-speed chase just like in the blockbuster movies.

“We’re redesigning the tour’s finale,” Universal Studios Hollywood spokeswoman Audrey Eig said. “There’s no retrofitting. It’s going to be an entirely new location at the end of the tour.”

“Supercharged” will do for the “Fast and the Furious” brand what a 360-degree, 3-D screen does for King Kong in “King Kong 360 3-D” toward the beginning of the tour.

Also debuting next year is the dark side of the Studio Tour — where the traditional daytime tour will also operate at night and feature an eerie visit to Bates Motel, as well as appearances by Dracula, Frankenstein and the Hunchback of Notre Dame. “Fast and Furious: Supercharged” will be part of the tour, day or night.

“‘The Studio Tour’ has been our signature attraction for the past 50 years, taking millions of guests from around (the) world on exciting behind-the-scenes excursions of an authentic movie and television studio,” Universal Studios Hollywood president Larry Kurzweil said in a written statement. “In celebration of Universal Studios Hollywood(‘s) 50th anniversary, the ‘Nighttime Studio Tour’ will complement the popular daytime experience as we continue to create unparalleled opportunities that showcase the various dimensions of Hollywood movie making magic for our guests.”

Hoping to copy the success of its sister theme park in Orlando, Universal Studios Hollywood also unveiled plans to expand “The Simpsons Ride” plaza to include restaurants and shops opening next year based on Springfield. The park also announced an official 2016 opening date for The Wizarding World of Harry Potter. Springfield and Hogwarts areas opened in Universal Studios Orlando last year and 2010, respectively, to critical acclaim and a spike in attendance.

“We do believe this is going to be a big contribution based on the significant attendance we saw in Orlando for this experience,” said Xiomara Wiley, senior vice president of marketing and sales of Universal Studios Hollywood.

Hollywood’s Springfield-themed area will be “very similar” to what Florida tourists have already experienced, and include popular “Simpsons” haunts like Krusty Burger, Luigi’s Pizza, Moe’s Tavern and Duff Brewery, Wiley said.

Specifics are under wraps for what Hollywood’s Wizarding World of Harry Potter will include and how similar it will be to the revolutionary ride design of Florida’s Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey and surrounding restaurants that serve iconic Harry Potter-theme food from the books and movies.

“The brand is very important to us, Warner Bros., and the author, so we’re going to deliver something authentic and make sure it’s up their standards,” Wiley said.

The park’s five-year plan began in 2012 with the introduction of “Transformers: The Ride — 3-D,” another immersive motion simulator that employs 3-D to pit riders in the middle of a battle between the Decepticons and Autobots. It continued with the 2013 opening of the 37,000-square-foot Universal Plaza near the park’s entrance, and this weekend’s grand opening of “Despicable Me: Minion Mayhem,” yet another motion simulator based off the popular franchise’s banana-loving minions and its nearby Super Silly Fun Land kids’ play area.

"This year's bone-chilling maze will place guests at the heart of a harrowing journey to seek sanctuary at Terminus, an elusive destination that promises community for all.

"Mirroring the terror that befell the residents of the West Georgia Correctional Facility, now overrun by savage walkers, the experience will send guests fleeing from the fallen prison into unknown territory as they once again stage a desperate battle for survival against flesh-eating walkers and ruthless humans.

"The engrossing cult favourite television series will seep into other parts of Universal's backlot, with predatory walkers prowling the secluded wooded areas of the movie studio. Terror Tram: Invaded by the Walking Dead will send guests on the daunting path to Terminus, interspersed with landmarks and walkers from Season 4, including the 'burned moonshine cabin', 'charred walkers' and 'mud walkers'."

In 2019, face Indominus rex when she makes her world premiere in the new, high-tech Jurassic World. Journey to where living dinosaurs roam the earth in the part expedition, part heart-pounding water ride based on the blockbuster film franchise.

On this river-raft adventure, get doused as a colossal Mosasaursus dives for its great white shark snack. But the real danger lies ahead when the brutal Indominus rex escapes its enclosure. Be prepared when a 50-foot Tyrannosaurs rex comes to your rescue… right before your final plunge down a treacherous 84-foot waterfall.

Drawing from the favorite elements of the original “Jurassic Park—The Ride,” this next-generation thrill ride will be a fully reimagined iteration of the ground-breaking adventure, elevating every facet of the experience. With the introduction of never-before-seen dinosaurs, enhanced storytelling, lush scenic design, an entirely new color scheme and uncompromised state-of the art technology, the ride will capture elements never experienced within a theme park.

mol7030 wrote:Hi all, does anyone know what Universal Hollywood's policy is with bags please?  Can you pay once for a locker that can be accessed in different areas of the park, or is it a paid locker that costs each time you open / lock it?  In terms of the rides themselves, can you leave bags at the side in the station free of charge?  Thanks in advance.

Swarm Chris wrote:

mol7030 wrote:Hi all, does anyone know what Universal Hollywood's policy is with bags please?  Can you pay once for a locker that can be accessed in different areas of the park, or is it a paid locker that costs each time you open / lock it?  In terms of the rides themselves, can you leave bags at the side in the station free of charge?  Thanks in advance.

When I went there in 2012 if an attraction required you to ride without a bag, there were free time limited lockers at the entrance. This is what Universal still do in Orlando, so I would expect the same to be still be true at Hollywood.

Alternatively, all day lockers would be available.