Fast & Furious: Supercharged - General Discussion

[SpatulaShack]

Its estimated budget including marketing is pushing $200 million. It hasn’t even broken $300 million domestically. It’s not a flop by any means, but this type of performance can’t possibly justify bullish reintegration into the theme park. They already removed an attraction based on its much more successful predecessor!

I mean certainly against Universal's expectations it's a smash. It was estimated to open to $45 million opening weekend and it basically doubled that at $80 million opening weekend and then had great drops week over week even against Deadpool. You'd be hard pressed to find anyone in Hollywood that doesn't consider the film a huge success (especially given the pre-release tracking, the theatrical marketplace, and the fact that it isn't a superhero film, an animated franchise or Jurassic.

The international numbers aren't great but these are domestic parks we're talking about and the domestic performance is what Universal was directly concerned with anyway. It's in the top 5 films of the year and it's essentially an "original" screenplay despite the very loose tie to the original Twister.

All of that on top of the fact that it easily surpassed the domestic box office of other tentpole releases like Godzilla x Kong (which opened to the same number), A Quiet Place Day One, Bad Boys, Ghostbusters, Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes, Kung Fu Panda, etc. It was a certified sensation in 4DX to the point where they're re-releasing it in the format next week. It's Universal's biggest live-action movie of the year by far and will gross about $100 million more domestically than the last Fast & Furious film. If we can have a stunt show based on the Bourne Identity I think Twisters is on the table especially given how easily it translates into an attraction.

Will it happen? Probably not but it isn't because the film didn't perform.

 

[Clive]

I mean certainly against Universal's expectations it's a smash. It was estimated to open to $45 million opening weekend and it basically doubled that at 80 million opening weekend. You'd be hard pressed to find anyone in Hollywood that doesn't consider the film a huge success (especially given the pre-release tracking, the theatrical marketplace, and the fact that it isn't a superhero film, an animated franchise or Jurassic.

The international numbers aren't great but these are domestic parks we're talking about and the domestic performance is what Universal was directly concerned with anyway. It's in the top 5 films of the year and it's essentially an "original" screenplay despite the very loose tie to the original Twister.

All of that on top of the relatively small drops, the fact that it easily surpassed the domestic box office of other tentpole releases like Godzilla x Kong (which opened to the same number), A Quiet Place Day One, Bad Boys, Ghostbusters, Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes, Kung Fu Panda, etc. It was a certified sensation in 4DX to the point where they're re-releasing it in the format next week. It's Universal's biggest live-action movie of the year by far and will gross about $100 million more domestically than the last Fast & Furious film. If we can have a stunt show based on the Bourne Identity I think Twisters is on the table especially given how easily it translates into an attraction.

Will it happen? Probably not but it isn't because the film didn't perform.

I'm sorry, but what you're describing here simply isn't true. Many pundits were excited about the film's initial performance only to be deflated by it crashing and burning overseas. It's not a true, bonafide hit - you have to break even theatrically to really earn that distinction. It's only in the top 5 films of the year - for now, probably not for too long - because of its healthy domestic performance.

You're also understating how much the international numbers matter. They matter a great deal! And they're worse than "not great" - they're pretty bad. As Puck's Scott Mendelson just wrote today, "Twisters may gross less overseas than Warners' 2014 found-footage tornado flick Into the Storm, which complicates the story that domestic distributor Universal would like to tell about its $155 million disaster sequel."

Universal Orlando still has to think about international audiences, even as they expand with more parks overseas.

 

[belloq87]

American audiences did our part, at least.

As much as I think the attraction needs to go… I wouldn’t get my hopes up

That's fine... but then leave the attraction open until it's going to be replaced. Don't sacrifice it to a seasonal event (which hasn't affected Uni's ability to have the attraction open during regular park hours in past years, as far as I'm aware) or cost savings.

 

[Mad Dog]

I'm sorry, but what you're describing here simply isn't true. Many pundits were excited about the film's initial performance only to be deflated by it crashing and burning overseas. It's not a true, bonafide hit - you have to break even theatrically to really earn that distinction. It's only in the top 5 films of the year - for now, probably not for too long - because of its healthy domestic performance.

You're also understating how much the international numbers matter. They matter a great deal! And they're worse than "not great" - they're pretty bad. As Puck's Scott Mendelson just wrote today, "Twisters may gross less overseas than Warners' 2014 found-footage tornado flick Into the Storm, which complicates the story that domestic distributor Universal would like to tell about its $155 million disaster sequel."

Universal Orlando still has to think about international audiences, even as they expand with more parks overseas.

Yes, International is important. Basically, that's why there's a Universal park in Beijing and a Disney park in Shanghai.. Access to Chinese film distribution/theaters monopoly.

 

[TheUniC6]

When Supercharged does indeed get shuttered for good, I wonder if there will be any effort to tie whatever IP replaces it to the San Francisco area or if the area will be re-themed entirely.

 

[Alicia]

It went seasonal when Barney and Poseidon did during pandemic cuts did too and reopened then.

 

[GA-MBIT]

I think the Kurse just transfered across the Lagoon. It's gonna be a bit for F&F, I think. Simpsons and RRR sound like they're taking priority, just based on the rumors and smoke we've been seeing the past few years.

 

[Mad Dog]

I think the Kurse just transfered across the Lagoon. It's gonna be a bit for F&F, I think. Simpsons and RRR sound like they're taking priority, just based on the rumors and smoke we've been seeing the past few years.

The 'Family Kurse'......Yes.....I think you got it.

 

[DodgsonHere]

I feel like the Jaws photo op is legitimately the most popular thing in San Fran.

 

[OrlandoGuy]

It's not a true, bonafide hit - you have to break even theatrically to really earn that distinction. It's only in the top 5 films of the year - for now, probably not for too long - because of its healthy domestic performance.

It’s a little silly to make theme park decisions based on Hollywood profitability though, no? You wouldn’t argue that M3GAN is better suited for a theme park attraction because it was more profitable than Twisters.

Removing revenue f(budget) for a minute, a lot of people in this country (which, since 2020, have made up the most significant portion of the Florida parks’ attendance) have seen and enjoyed this movie. That fact isn’t negated because of how much the movie cost to make.

A bigger concern I could see would be merch potential. Within the specific examples of Twisters, there’s probably not a lot of souvenirs you could move in the exit gift shop (I remember the old show really just had stuffed cows lol). But, again, that’s a completely different metric than film profitability.

 

[Wesker69]

I feel like the Jaws photo op is legitimately the most popular thing in San Fran.

As it should be... plus it has the convenient bar next to it! Amity means friendship, but so does cocktails & JAWS photos!

Oh right.... something something "family". Ride or die!

 

[v0latilebear]

Wishful thinking on my part, but imagine they gutted this and gave us Universals version of the great movie ride.

 

[Mad Dog]

I feel like the Jaws photo op is legitimately the most popular thing in San Fran.

Sad but true. A real indictment of how worthless F&F is.

 

[SpatulaShack]

I'm sorry, but what you're describing here simply isn't true. Many pundits were excited about the film's initial performance only to be deflated by it crashing and burning overseas. It's not a true, bonafide hit - you have to break even theatrically to really earn that distinction. It's only in the top 5 films of the year - for now, probably not for too long - because of its healthy domestic performance.

You're also understating how much the international numbers matter. They matter a great deal! And they're worse than "not great" - they're pretty bad. As Puck's Scott Mendelson just wrote today, "Twisters may gross less overseas than Warners' 2014 found-footage tornado flick Into the Storm, which complicates the story that domestic distributor Universal would like to tell about its $155 million disaster sequel."

Universal Orlando still has to think about international audiences, even as they expand with more parks overseas.

It's a true hit for Universal as a company and their domestic distribution arm. Universal had no direct control over the film internationally and both the theatrical release strategy and marketing campaign overseas were handled by Warner Bros. I'm very aware of every box office pundit and they're opinions (in particular Mendelson at Puck) and the constant moving of the goalposts in order to label films failures or successes changes with the wind to the point of becoming comical. Mendelson in particular has been twisting himself ( ) into a pretzel with this one. And even then, in that very article you're quoting him he said the film, "aggressively OVERPEFORMED" and then added "In North America" to be safe but North America is the only territory Universal handled.

The "break-even" point is known only to the studios that finance the projects and I assure you they don't share those details with the likes of Scott Mendelson at Puck, Rebecca Rubin at Variety, or Anthony D'Alessandro at Deadline. International distribution deals are often confusing, convoluted and vastly different depending on the arrangements and the sub-distributors in each territory. As far as the theme park unit is concerned when looking at demand for attractions, they're interested in how many bodies entered movie theaters (total attendance / demand) whether it can move merch, and whether or not it lends itself to a theme park attraction. Whether or not the film generated a profit quickly enough to be labelled a success internationally at a competitive studio in an unrelated division isn't at the top of the list of considerations.

And while I agree international audiences can be a consideration, park attendance in Orlando is still primarily made up of Americans. Of the 75.8 million visitors to Orlando only 6 million (around 7%) were international travelers and 1.3 million of those were from Canada (considered part of the "domestic" box office anyway). The film performed well in Brazil and Mexico fwiw as well. UOR executives shouldn't really care how Twisters performed in China or Tokyo for Warner Bros. when considering projects at the domestic theme parks. My Hero Academia isn't coming to Universal Orlando anytime soon but it opened at USJ due to local demand and tastes. The executives at USJ weren't looking at how My Hero Academia performed in America when making that decision.

 

[Brian G.]

Are we really still on this?

 

[WebHead1138]

Jaws should replace FF

 

[tielo]

Fact is, the Twister attraction didn't attract many visitors for years before it closed. The same goes for Earthquake. The only ride that was still doing okay was Jaws.
I'd love to see Universal create a disaster attraction as (like monsters) they have a great pedigree in that genre. I envision a Jaws indoor ride where a harbor tour goes wrong. Jaws start to attack and a twister is forming on sea that comes closer. While hiding in a boathouse we get attracted by both the shark and the twister. A combination of physical effects and screens can make this the most intense moment in the ride. As we escape the city is flooded by the tidal wave and our boat flushes trough a crack into the street into the underground. Ceilings start to give in, you know the what I'm taking about. We eventually make it out at an exit platformer where emergency trucks and rescue helpers help you out of the boat.

 

[Disneyhead]

Fact is, the Twister attraction didn't attract many visitors for years before it closed. The same goes for Earthquake. The only ride that was still doing okay was Jaws.
I'd love to see Universal create a disaster attraction as (like monsters) they have a great pedigree in that genre. I envision a Jaws indoor ride where a harbor tour goes wrong. Jaws start to attack and a twister is forming on sea that comes closer. While hiding in a boathouse we get attracted by both the shark and the twister. A combination of physical effects and screens can make this the most intense moment in the ride. As we escape the city is flooded by the tidal wave and our boat flushes trough a crack into the street into the underground. Ceilings start to give in, you know the what I'm taking about. We eventually make it out at an exit platformer where emergency trucks and rescue helpers help you out of the boat.

I think you just described a "Sharknado" attraction.

 

[Ahmanet]

There will be at least one more F&F movie as I recall some Aquaman related cliff hanger in the last one ... and then I'd guess comes the inevitable remake of the original

Point being this lame ride hurts the image of a major movie IP , let it ride off into the sunset now