Universal's Epic Universe General News & Discussion

[joelbryant11]

A major win for all involved! Happy that people will start getting jobs back for this.

 

[PerceptiveCoot]

I'm hoping we get more updates over the years if this is Universal's only big project for the next few years. Can't pretend this is just a churro stand.

 

[RevFreako]

I wish those lists had breakdowns by country, so we can see US numbers. No doubt things like Pokemon are huge in Japan, but anyone who tried to sell an Anpanman land since it's the 6th biggest franchise would probably be fired on the spot. I have trouble believing Pokemon is bigger than Mario in the US. Not saying it's still not a big deal, but it does not have the cultural relevance here that many of the other IP's on that list do. At the end of the day the US parks might be international destinations, but they are mainly going to cater to US customers.

I would counter this argument with the fact that every IP in Kidzone save Fievel has remained relevant in Brazil/Latin/South America, which is arguably a big factor in why the IPS were never overlaid for so long.

 

[Magic-Man]

Woohoo!

 

[shiekra38]

Someone should tell Comcast that Theme Park Twitter cancelled Epic Universe

 

[OhHaiInternet95]

Someone should tell Comcast that Theme Park Twitter cancelled Epic Universe

Can you really blame them though? Think about what the industry has had to go through in the last twelve months.

 

[GAcoaster]

Watch for a news story on WESH 2 today. I just drove past the EU site and they were setup in the median of Destination Parkway by the construction entrance.

 

[Brian G.]

Can you really blame them though? Think about what the industry has had to go through in the last twelve months.

Yes. Cause everyone that was plugged in said it was literally paused and they are taking a wait and see approach to the pandemic before making any decisions.

 

[GAcoaster]

Hmmmm...

 

[xxbrothawizxx]

I kept the faith. This is earlier than I expected them to do so though. Maybe they'll be working on a slower time table. Glad to hear it. It's going to be such a major shake up in the Orlando market.

I really hope this will reactivate the forgotten side of 192 ultimately.

 

[Brian G.]

Hmmmm...

probably this:

 

[GAcoaster]

Yep, that's a scoop! I wonder if Mayor Demmings let something slip he wasn't supposed to?

 

[JungleSkip]

Yep, that's a scoop! I wonder if Mayor Demmings let something slip he wasn't supposed to?

He also revealed it was delayed until 2024 last year in April a month or so before they shut things down entirely

 

[joelbryant11]

Us/Universal when it’s finally “early 2025”

 

[OrlandoGuy]

Universal has actually performed better than all of the Orlando theme parks through the pandemic from a financial perspective. Epic Universe coming back wasn’t in doubt for monetary reasons. I think the biggest implication here is that there’s optimism for a tourism turnaround in Orlando relatively soon. Any further delays to the park would’ve been more about external factors than internal. Seeing that there’s confidence to proceed with a major new attraction is great news for everyone in the Orlando economy.

 

[Bobharlem]

Watch for a news story on WESH 2 today. I just drove past the EU site and they were setup in the median of Destination Parkway by the construction entrance.

Construction resumes at Universal Orlando’s Epic Universe theme park

Construction on Universal’s fourth theme park was halted in July due to the coronavirus pandemic.

www.wesh.com

 

[SeventyOne]

I kept the faith. This is earlier than I expected them to do so though. Maybe they'll be working on a slower time table. Glad to hear it. It's going to be such a major shake up in the Orlando market.

I really hope this will reactivate the forgotten side of 192 ultimately.

Given that it's 15 - 20 minutes away on a good day, I wouldn't count on this doing anything other that driving it into further obscurity.

Unless you meant I-Drive? Maybe right around Sand Lake but probably no further north than Carrier, which is where it really gets seedy. And that feels a stretch. I think the main effect this will have is destroying sleepy little Universal Blvd (construction on the Chik-Fil-A across from me got under way last week). Central FL Pkwy area hotels may see a boom as well.

 

[JPRA513]

Fantastic news! Cannot wait to see this take shape.

 

[Happytycho]

Early 2025 isn't too surprising...

Given the year+ delay and the need to spool back up again, it's hard to see how anything earlier than late 2024 would have been possible. And with no other projects in the pipeline and a desire to get SNW open, there's no reason they would have pushed beyond summer 2025. So "early 2025" fits nicely into the logical window.

 

[Nick]

I really was never in doubt as to if this was happening or not. Comcast spent too much money re-acquiring the land for them to not go through with the park. It was just a matter of when.