The Wizarding World of Harry Potter - Hogsmeade (Orlando): Part 2

[frenzy88]

Ha, IDK how your quote got switched for hans', fixed it. But the area is bigger than just a mini-land anyways... it's bigger than Springfield, Transformers area, Skull Island. It is comparable in size to Seuss, and even Diagon Ally. It may feel much smaller, but I have pointed out in the past that is the way it is laid out. So when the question comes up "If not HP then what could possibly go there", the answer is anything they want to put there

Agreed

 

[shiekra38]

lmao, you know what i mean. It is such a small area that a well known IP would be a waste to just stick in there - atleast thats my opinions. A good renovation and ovrelay, or re-themeing it to another HP area would be ideal. What IP would you want there? Plus Mythos wouldnt have to leave if it is rethemed to 300 and it can be converted to the great hall restaurant - optimal space and you can keep it a great dining experience

I see a Fantastic Monsters land coming...otherwise..meh

 

[RickyinFL]

Playing catch-up: Zonko's replacement should definitely be something different, not just more honeydukes - it woudn't really allow Universal to sell more. Tea will sell like crazy and what a cool british experience too!

I think Ollivanders in both is fine. I'm not that bothered by it. Not everybody is going to buy the Park-to-Park ticket. So this is a way to still capitalize on those people. Like others said, perhaps over time this location will become unnecessary. But that remains to be seen. I love the idea about Albus - kinda like Storytime with Belle for the interactive story-telling element.

I wouldn't miss Dragons that much. I love rollercoasters but its probably my least favorite of the UO coasters (Hulk & Mummy at the top). Kid-friendly dark ride is my vote: no height requirement, dark, slow, no spinning, and obviously well themed with great storytelling. Make Disney REALLY shake in their boots

 

[aheying7]

As far as more Potter, as long as Diagon does well I think ONE more phase would be fine, but that's it. My dream would be for them to turn LC into something different entirely. I think phase 3 should be random additions to Hogsmede and Hogwarts. I wish they could add in the Great Hall and a few other locations into the FJ (Is that even possible?) and then replace Olivander's with something new, and finally cover up the show building once and for all. However, if they did phase three it will probably be Shrieking Shack and other money making machines in Hogsmede.

 

[DufflesMcGee]

As far as more Potter, as long as Diagon does well I think ONE more phase would be fine, but that's it. My dream would be for them to turn LC into something different entirely. I think phase 3 should be random additions to Hogsmede and Hogwarts. I wish they could add in the Great Hall and a few other locations into the FJ (Is that even possible?) and then replace Olivander's with something new, and finally cover up the show building once and for all. However, if they did phase three it will probably be Shrieking Shack and other money making machines in Hogsmede.

and maybe another ride/show that will blow us away - ton of room in poseiden. But I do agree with nate - He is right when he says there are areas with a smaller footprint. The reason I dont want it to leave is because of mythos - such a great themed restaurant. If there was a great IP that could be there, even if its HP, then I say do it! UC has not given us anything other than amazing I expect this trend to continue for the next decade. Plus If they get rid of Poseidon i think I have a creative concept for a 3rd gate:

To compete against Epcot -> Mythological/Ancient cities from around the world

Pompeii
Angkor
El Dorado
Atlantis
Babylon
Sparta etc.

Allows for original content for rides (mythological and folklore) which can inspire new movie, show concepts and merchandise.

 

[Skipper Justin]

I saw this earlier and wanted to post it. I do not know how true all the details were but I think it is very interesting.

Disney has been trying to get their hands on Harry Potter for quite a while. When the first movie was made, Harry Potter was already a phenomenon but no one knew how it was going to translate into a movie. It broke the first major rule of movies which is never work with kids……and in this movie instead of one extremely talented kid, you needed 3 extremely talented kids plus a whole school full of pretty talented kids….which in the movies is an extremely tall order…..to make matters worse, there were some conditions that JK Rowling had been insisting from the beginning including that the movie was not animated (Steven Spielberg would have been the director if she had allowed him to do it in animation), was filmed in Britain, had an all British cast, and JK Rowling would retain control of all of the characters, situations, and locations as well as strict script approval. Disney was in the bidding war for the first Harry Potter movie, but it went completely against their ethos of full control (Disney likes being able to throw the characters into their park at will, but the contract JK Rowling had made that impossible….so it was only the movie that was being bid on). Disney decided to low ball the offer since it was so risky……a bad contract, a school full of child actors, and fantasy movies had been taking a beating recently…..Warner Brothers had been in the mood of betting big at the turn of the century and that kind of mentality was paying off with really big hits and high profile failures that would at least make enough to earn their budget back….so it was really good days for them, they had solid relationships and contracts with George Clooney, Robin Williams, Jim Carrey, Stephen King, Stephen Spielberg, Denzel Washington, Ann Rice, and many other high profile names in the hopper all coming out with new materiel around the time Harry Potter was going to be in the theaters. Warner Brothers felt like it was a gamble worth making, while Disney balked (and keep in mind that during this time, the Disney parks were being run by the accountants who were trying to bleed every little expense they could out of the business).

After winning the development rights, Warner Brothers then did probably the most intelligent thing they could have done while making all of the fans beat their head against a wall thinking that it was the most spectacularly stupid thing ever thought of and hired Chris Columbus to direct the movie, who was hired because he had been so successful directing kids in Adventures in Babysitting, Home Alone, and Mrs. Doubtfire. But as it turned out, Chris was the perfect man for the job and had been wanting to take a bite out of something much better than comedies that wear on the nerves after the second viewing.

After the success of the first movie, Disney tried to get back in the game and tried to persuade JK Rowling to break with Warner Brothers, but once again, the Warners knew what they had and signed a contract with JK for all of the rest of her Harry Potter books, even the ones that hadn’t been written yet.

Disney then tried to get back in the game a different way by attempting to buy Scholastic, the US publisher of the Harry Potter Books, but Eisner had a tough time trying to sell the Disney board on the idea and I don’t think they ever got around to even making an official offer, since it would have cost the Walt Disney Company around 5-6 billion to buy the book publisher even as the book markets were starting to see major declines.

Fast forward a couple of years and Disney had somehow made the pitch that if Harry Potter wanted to live on forever, he needed to be in the Disney parks, similar to the kind of popularity that Star Wars and Indiana Jones had been having. The problem is that George Lucas is a fan of Disney and was willing to license his characters relatively inexpensively in exchange for having some creative control and a really cool ride system that no one had ever seen before. JK Rowling had no illusions that she was doing Disney a favor and not the other way around and never significantly reduced her asking price, wanted full creative control, and wanted the people working on the movie to be technical resources to make sure that everything looked exactly right. One of the more contentious issues was around entry into the Harry Potter area, which JK Rowling had insisted should be through the a magical portal at the back of the three broomsticks, something that Disney didn’t think could handle the crowds.

Negotiations went on and off again for nearly three years. Everything came to a head one weekend when JK Rowling was in Florida meeting with the Disney people and had a fairly contentious argument with the Disney staff to the point that she walked out of the meeting. Instead of heading back to the airport, JK decided to instead go over to Universal. She got to the front gate, declared who she was, and more or less demanded to see the president of the park. Within three days, Universal had agreed to just about every demand that she had made, including the price and high level ideas about where it would go in the parkm and what it would contain, and a letter of intent was signed. Designs were immediately started, approved, and construction started within 10 months. What was even more surprising about this is that Universal had just announced the closing of the Back to the Future ride to be replaced by the Simpsons, something that become much more expensive than originally planned as the voice actors had refused to do the ride unless they were paid much more than initially proposed….so Universal was betting quite a bit of their future on the success and popularity of the Simpsons and Harry Potter rides.

The rest, as they say, is history…..except for the bit that is in the future with Harry Potter being so popular in the amusement parks that Universal Studios Japan and Hollywood are lining up with their hat in their hands begging for Harry Potter to come to their park as well. While construction has not quite started for either, both are on the slate to get their Potter fix, as well as more Harry Potter love in Florida.

 

[Milla4Prez66]

So, she just showed up to Universal and demanded to meet the president? Somehow I don't think it happened that way lol.

 

[Skipper Justin]

So, she just showed up to Universal and demanded to meet the president? Somehow I don't think it happened that way lol.

Yeah, that was the most unbelievable portion.

 

[TylerDurden]

What I dont understand about that story is how JK Rowlings demands were so insane for Disney, yet theres nothing outlandish about the Universal version--you enter the land like any other regular area, no back entrance through 3 Broomsticks, no boat rides, etc. Nothing fancy. As well-themed as WWOHP is, its still at its core just a basic theme park land. Why didnt Universal have to adhere to the same allegedly preposterous demands JK Rowling had for Disney?

 

[maxairmike]

Maybe this has already been answered, and if so, my apologies, but...does anyone happen to know the brand/distributor of the pear cider sold at Three Broomsticks? I've only been able to find a UK company so far (Kopparberg), and hope to find a US distributor/seller of non-alcoholic pear cider (99.9% of the search results have been alcoholic). I find it deliciously different and it is really butting up against Butterbeer as my favorite drink.

 

[Accio Butterbeer]

I'm going to pretty much guarantee Universal Orlando brings "The Great Hall" to their parks after they see it in Hollywood. I think that's a major concept from the movies and books that NEEDS to be in the park. Plus we are spoiled as hell here in Orlando. I have no doubt we will get it.

 

[Nick]

I'm going to pretty much guarantee Universal Orlando brings "The Great Hall" to their parks after they see it in Hollywood. I think that's a major concept from the movies and books that NEEDS to be in the park. Plus we are spoiled as hell here in Orlando. I have no doubt we will get it.

Maybe eventually, but i'd expect it to be exclusive for awhile definitely. I'm actually planning on making a trip out to USH when i'm out there after it's open specifically for The Great Hall portion of WWoHP. If they bring it here, I may not go. USH desperately needs exclusive things in that park. Right now, the only main attraction there that you can't do in Orlando is the tram tour. There's literally no reason to go to USH right now imo with the content currently there if I have the choice to go to Orlando.

 

[lazyboy97o]

What I dont understand about that story is how JK Rowlings demands were so insane for Disney, yet theres nothing outlandish about the Universal version--you enter the land like any other regular area, no back entrance through 3 Broomsticks, no boat rides, etc. Nothing fancy. As well-themed as WWOHP is, its still at its core just a basic theme park land. Why didnt Universal have to adhere to the same allegedly preposterous demands JK Rowling had for Disney?

Disney wasn't willing to a land, much less one intentionally left too small without guaranteed money makers like Coke and generic merchandise.

 

[UK-Trigg]

Maybe this has already been answered, and if so, my apologies, but...does anyone happen to know the brand/distributor of the pear cider sold at Three Broomsticks? I've only been able to find a UK company so far (Kopparberg), and hope to find a US distributor/seller of non-alcoholic pear cider (99.9% of the search results have been alcoholic). I find it deliciously different and it is really butting up against Butterbeer as my favorite drink.

Magners, Stella and Bulmers are 3 others off the top of my head, although not sure if any of these are supplied in 3B. I really like it too especially over ice on a hot day.

Just remembered, Strongbow do one too,

 

[maxairmike]

Magners, Stella and Bulmers are 3 others off the top of my head, although not sure if any of these are supplied in 3B. I really like it too especially over ice on a hot day.

Just remembered, Strongbow do one too,

Thanks Roodles, but they all appear to be alcoholic. It looks like IKEA carries a pear cider (why didn't I think of that, of course they would, it seems to be a european drink), but it is of the sparkling variety, and I don't think Broomsticks is sparkling (at least, it doesn't taste like it has any carbonation to me). Maybe I'll give it a try next time I swing by there.

 

[Parkscope Joe]

"MY NAME IS JK ROWLING BRING ME TO YOUR LEADER!"

"Ok ma'm, stand here" *pages security* "We have another nut job, need back up."

 

[batsmouth]

Thanks Roodles, but they all appear to be alcoholic. It looks like IKEA carries a pear cider (why didn't I think of that, of course they would, it seems to be a european drink), but it is of the sparkling variety, and I don't think Broomsticks is sparkling (at least, it doesn't taste like it has any carbonation to me). Maybe I'll give it a try next time I swing by there.

Kopparberg do a non-alcoholic pear cider, should think all the ones listed above do non-alcoholic versions as well

 

[Quint]

Maybe this has already been answered, and if so, my apologies, but...does anyone happen to know the brand/distributor of the pear cider sold at Three Broomsticks? I've only been able to find a UK company so far (Kopparberg), and hope to find a US distributor/seller of non-alcoholic pear cider (99.9% of the search results have been alcoholic). I find it deliciously different and it is really butting up against Butterbeer as my favorite drink.

Chadwick Bay is the brand name if that helps.http://www.pointykitty.org/photos/pearcider1.jpg

 

[TomTheRiddle]

What I dont understand about that story is how JK Rowlings demands were so insane for Disney, yet theres nothing outlandish about the Universal version--you enter the land like any other regular area, no back entrance through 3 Broomsticks, no boat rides, etc. Nothing fancy. As well-themed as WWOHP is, its still at its core just a basic theme park land. Why didnt Universal have to adhere to the same allegedly preposterous demands JK Rowling had for Disney?

They did. You have to realise that the same things you see as a guest are not creative decisions. Disney is notorious for wanting to maintain very strict creative control on their projects while JK wanted hers. (Ironically this relationship is very similar to that of Mary Poppins and Walt Disney.) To give you an idea of some of the control, Rowling dictates only a very specific rail is used in the queues for the WWoHP; unfortunately this rail is produced by one company only and they tend to charge around 10K for 15ft of rail. Universal is better for working WITH an IP which is why they tend to partner with more.

 

[Teebin]

They did. You have to realise that the same things you see as a guest are not creative decisions. Disney is notorious for wanting to maintain very strict creative control on their projects while JK wanted hers. (Ironically this relationship is very similar to that of Mary Poppins and Walt Disney.) To give you an idea of some of the control, Rowling dictates only a very specific rail is used in the queues for the WWoHP; unfortunately this rail is produced by one company only and they tend to charge around 10K for 15ft of rail. Universal is better for working WITH an IP which is why they tend to partner with more.

So, they had to replace all of the railings used in the Dueling Dragons queue? Does JKR have a fetish about wrought iron or was it merely one of the options laid before her to choose from by UC?