The Future of Lost Continent (Poseidon Fury closing May 9)

[Alicia]

My immediate thought is, "Would Waterworld be a defining, marketable attraction that brings in the GP to continue the ridiculous ROI that Universal has enjoyed for the better part of a decade now?"

...Is Bourne? O:

 

[Scott W.]

It doesn't matter as long as the product is good. And we already know Waterworld is legitimately great.

It still needs to be marketed.

We know it's great but you said that 10% of guests have heard of it, the other 90% could still think it's a crap show.

Making a great attraction is one thing but you still need to get people through the gate.

Anyway, I'm not a fan of it coming to UOR. Let Hollywood keep something unique for the domestic parks and it's not enough to retheme a whole land around.

 

[JungleSkip]

It still needs to be marketed.

We know it's great but you said that 10% of guests have heard of it, the other 90% could still think it's a crap show.

Making a great attraction is one thing but you still need to get people through the gate.

Anyway, I'm not a fan of it coming to UOR. Let Hollywood keep something unique for the domestic parks and it's not enough to retheme a whole land around.

They just opened a show based off Jason Bourne. It’s clear they don’t care if the show is gonna be good.

I also wouldn’t retheme a whole land off it. I’d put it over at TL Theater area

 

[Legacy]

...Is Bourne? O:

Bourne isn’t a twenty-five year-old movie widely considered to be the greatest cinematic flop in history.

 

[Nick]

Bourne isn’t a twenty-five year-old movie widely considered to be the greatest cinematic flop in history.

And yet they're building a mini-land based off it in Beijing. Whenever I hear WaterWorld mentioned today by movie critics/film fans, people always mention the USH show right alongside it now.

 

[JungleSkip]

Bourne isn’t a twenty-five year-old movie widely considered to be the greatest cinematic flop in history.

Does anyone *remember* Waterworld at this point? Like, Universal could announce the show, make no mention of the movie, and most people would probably think “Cool, a new stunt show.”

 

[Cup_Of_Coffee]

If I was building a Zelda land, especially one based off Breath of the Wild, I wouldn't even build Hyrule Castle

Fair, there are many options. Also doesn’t need to be from BoTW either. So many options which is why I want Zelda almost the most lol

 

[JungleSkip]

Fair, there are many options. Also doesn’t need to be from BoTW either. So many options which is why I want Zelda almost the most lol

It would almost assuredly be Breath of the Wild. By far the franchise’s biggest seller, biggest cultural impact, and receiving a direct sequel the next few years

 

[shiekra38]

Fine, I'll settle for a Waterworld B&M Giga

 

[belloq87]

The only Zelda attraction I'd be really enthused about would be a Haunted Mansion-type spooky dark ride themed to the aesthetics of the dungeons in the original NES game.

But that's almost assuredly not the approach Universal would take.

 

[Legacy]

And yet they're building a mini-land based off it in Beijing. Whenever I hear WaterWorld mentioned today by movie critics/film fans, people always mention the USH show right alongside it now.

Beijing isn’t the US. The Chinese market for American movies was still nascent in the 90s, so that country has no connection at all to the film.

And for Americans who may not know the film, they can google it and see:

IMDB - 6.2 / 10
Rotten Tomatoes - 46%
Metacritic - 56%

Scroll down further, and the first two articles presented call it a “damp squib” and “cinemas biggest flop” in their headlines.

Conversely, Bourne Identity is sitting at 7.3 on IMDB and 83% on Rotten Tomatoes. Jason Bourne, the latest film and lowest rated of the movies is still just higher than Waterworld’s critical reception.

The US is far less likely to be interested in the franchise.

 

[Nick]

Beijing isn’t the US. The Chinese market for American movies was still nascent in the 90s, so that country has no connection at all to the film.

And for Americans who may not know the film, they can google it and see:

IMDB - 6.2 / 10
Rotten Tomatoes - 46%
Metacritic - 56%

Scroll down further, and the first two articles presented call it a “damp squib” and “cinemas biggest flop” in their headlines.

Conversely, Bourne Identity is sitting at 7.3 on IMDB and 83% on Rotten Tomatoes. Jason Bourne, the latest film and lowest rated of the movies is still just higher than Waterworld’s critical reception.

The US is far less likely to be interested in the franchise.

I really don't think IP matters for a stunt show. A stunt show is a stunt show. Very few are going to see Bourne because of the Bourne IP. As long as a stunt show is good, people will pack in. Especially when the Universal parks have very few shows where you can actually sit down and take a break. A great IP could make a terrible stunt show whereas a terrible IP (waterworld) makes a great stunt show.

 

[OhHaiInternet95]

Waterworld and Bourne = In-house IPs = relevance matters less

 

[SkiBum]

Beijing isn’t the US. The Chinese market for American movies was still nascent in the 90s, so that country has no connection at all to the film.

And for Americans who may not know the film, they can google it and see:

IMDB - 6.2 / 10
Rotten Tomatoes - 46%
Metacritic - 56%

Scroll down further, and the first two articles presented call it a “damp squib” and “cinemas biggest flop” in their headlines.

Conversely, Bourne Identity is sitting at 7.3 on IMDB and 83% on Rotten Tomatoes. Jason Bourne, the latest film and lowest rated of the movies is still just higher than Waterworld’s critical reception.

The US is far less likely to be interested in the franchise.

I remember watching it on VHS and afterward going, "Huh, Costner can make a stinker!" I have never understood the love of a Waterworld stunt show but I am just not a big fan of shows, either. Might change if I had an opportunity to see it myself.

 

[Legacy]

Waterworld and Bourne = In-house IPs = relevance matters less

It matters less, but it still matters. Universal owns Timecop, Smokin’ Aces, and Death Race, but no one is expecting any of those to get a stunt show.

 

[Nick]

It matters less, but it still matters. Universal owns Timecop, Smokin’ Aces, and Death Race, but no one is expecting any of those to get a stunt show.

The difference is WaterWorld has proven to be a kickass stunt show which you seem to just want to dismiss due to the fact that it's WaterWorld and that alone.

 

[Legacy]

The difference is WaterWorld has proven to be a kickass stunt show which you seem to just want to dismiss due to the fact that it's WaterWorld and that alone.

I know it’s kick ass. We know it’s kick ass. Random parent from not-Orlando planning their first ever family Universal vacation doesn’t know that. And, frankly, new attractions are intended more for them than us.

 

[JungleSkip]

I know it’s kick ass. We know it’s kick ass. Random parent from not-Orlando planning their first ever family Universal vacation doesn’t know that. And, frankly, new attractions are intended more for them than us.

They just built a Stunt Show based on Jason Bourne. No one is planning their vacation around Jason Bourne

 

[Nick]

They just built a Stunt Show based on Jason Bourne. No one is planning their vacation around Jason Bourne

Exactly. Stunt shows are the cherry on top of a vacation. Only in the case of maybe Indiana Jones does it maybe move the needle in terms of booking a vacation, but that's only because people probably think it's a ride. If someone was doing trip research and searched "Waterworld universal" they would find a bunch of videos of an awesome show.

Sometimes, lesser known IPs just work because they provide an awesome experience. Tron. Song of the South. Rocky & Bullwinkle. Popeye. Borne. Ratatouille. All are examples of IPs that are either: not great movies/problematic (Tron/SotS), out of the public eye (Rocky&Bull/Popeye) or just sort of forgotten modern movies (Borne/Rat). Yet they all make perfectly fine attractions.

None of those IPs I named would sell a vacation but their rides will still have long waits. You know why? Because in the end, most people don't care about IP. They just want to get on some damn rides or see a show maybe.

 

[belloq87]

Also, WATERWORLD may have been a giant financial flop, but it's actually a decent adventure movie. Being overlong is its biggest sin.