Mark September 25th on your calendar, kids. Why? Because that’s the date of the next Vivendi Universal board meeting. A day that could have a truly significant impact on the theme park world.
How so? Well, on that date, Vivendi’s new chairman, Jean-Rene Fourtou, is expected to unveil his plans to dig that corporation out from under its multi-billion dollar debt load. Among the ideas that Jean-Rene is reportedly toying with is selling off all of Universal’s entertainment assets. Which would – – of course – include the company’s theme parks.
So the big question now is: Who’s going to end up with the keys to the three Universal Studios theme parks (Hollywood, Orlando & Japan), Islands of Adventure as well as Port Aventura in Spain? (And don’t put any stock in that ***-n-ball story that ran in last week’s papers about Disney supposedly being interested in buying Universal’s theme parks. That was just a smoke screen, kids. A desperate ploy by Mickey’s PR staff to temporarily distract the financial press from the real story: Which was the Walt Disney Company’s perpetually depressed stock price. I mean, Eisner already has problems enough with the four theme parks that his corporation currently owns and operates in Central Florida. So there’s no way that Uncle Mike would go looking for more trouble [I.E. Make a serious bid for USF and IOA]).
To date, only one strong candidate has emerged: Barry Diller, the head of Vivendi – Universal’s Entertainment group. Under a proposed acquisition scenario that’s been wafting around Wall Street, Diller is supposedly considering making a play for all of Universal’s entertainment assets through his own firm, USA Interactive. Should Barry actually manage to acquire Universal’s theme parks … Well, things could get really interesting in Central Florida.
How so? You see, Diller’s a major media mogul. Not to mention being a very ambitious guy. More importantly, back in the late 1970s/ early 1980s, Barry Diller used to be Michael Eisner’s old boss back when both of these two execs were working together at Paramount Pictures. And – ever since Eisner became the head of the Walt Disney Company – these two have been in competition with one another. And that rivalry has done nothing but intensify over the past 16 years.
So now – should Barry actually become master of Universal’s universe – Orlando will probably emerge as a key battlefield. The place where these two ultra-powerful media moguls will duke it out. Each jockeying for position. Each determined to prove that it is they – and not their poser pal – who is the real top dog in the crucial Central Florida tourism market.
Of course, should Barry take control of Universal Studios and its theme park operation anytime soon, he’ll be in an excellent position to quickly bloody Mickey’s nose. How so? Well, Universal’s Creative team is currently putting the finishing touches on three brand new attractions for the company’s Orlando Resort that are sure to rival anything that Disney currently has on display.
First and foremost is USF’s “Mummy” roller coaster, which is slated to be built inside of the soon-to-be-closed “Kongfrontation” show building. Those familiar with the design work that’s being done on this high tech horror-themed thrill ride insist that this attraction will rival Disney’s venerable “Pirates of the Caribbean” ride for its attention to detail and theming. Plus this indoor coaster will reportedly feature a finale sequence that will leave guests talking long after they’ve exited the attraction.
Over in Universal Studios Florida’s old “Alfred Hitchcock: The Art of Making Movies” theater complex, a new multi-dimensional attraction is currently setting up shop. It’s a 3D film based on Dreamworks’ Academy Award winning animated feature, “Shrek.” And – given that last year’s summer blockbuster delighted in making fun of Disney – you can bet that this Universal attraction will also take a few well-aimed swipes at the Mouse. With a couple of particularly sharp pokes reserved for Disney’s theme park attractions.
Just across the street from “Shrek 3D,” another character from a recent hit feature length cartoon will soon be making Universal Studios Florida his home. It’s “Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius,” the star of Paramount Pictures’ December 2001 release (Which was recently released in the DVD and home video format). In this new attraction (Which will be housed inside of the old “Funtastic World of Hanna Barbera” simulator theater), Jimmy will reportedly take guests on a rocket-powered trip through Nickelodeon Studios.
Okay, so these three new rides should hopefully help to get tourists to return to Universal Studios Florida. But what about its next door neighbor, Universal Studios’ Islands of Adventure? This is the theme park that industry experts consistently cite as being the very best in the U.S. – with rides and theming that easily surpass anything that Disney’s currently offering – but the place still hasn’t exactly caught on with the public.
So what has Universal reportedly got in the works to up IOA’s popularity? A number of new rides and shows are supposedly under consideration for this theme park. But – given how poorly the last new “Islands” attraction was received (The recently revamped “Poseidon’s Fury” show – radically reworked late last year for a reported $10 million – has been given universally poor marks from IOA visitors) – the resort’s creative staff wants to move cautiously before committing to any elaborate new rides and shows for the park.
But what Universal has decided to do is try and trick tourists into giving IOA another try. Which is why Universal lifted its month long “Halloween Horror Nights” celebration up out of its usual base of operations within the studio theme park and plopped it down inside “Islands.” The thinking is – by using IOA as the new home for Universal’s hugely popular “Horror Nights” program – tens of thousands of Central Floridians who haven’t been back to IOA since the park first opened back in the spring of 1999 will return to the place to take part in UF’s Halloween festivities. And – in the process – these folks will rediscover the fun of the “Islands” and will (hopefully) return to the theme park again sometime after October 31st.
Universal’s Central Florida resort has all this stuff going for it. Plus the new 1000-room Royal Pacific Resort hotel (which officially opened its doorback in June). Plus all those major motion pictures that Universal currently has in the pipeline that have huge theme park promotional / tie-in potential: Next summer’s “Incredible Hulk” movie, that $100 million live action version of “Peter Pan” that’s about to begin shooting in Australia as well as Peter Jackson’s long delayed big budget version of “King Kong.”
Yes, even as Universal Studios Florida is getting ready to pull the plug on its 12 year old “Kongfrontation” attraction, Universal Studios (the actual movie-making end of the company) is reportedly getting ready to produce an all-new “Kong” movie. Jackson (Best known these days as the director of the highly successful “Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Rings”) has had a “King Kong” script that he’s been trying to get Universal to produce for years now. Well, now that Peter has proved conclusively that there’s big money to be made in big screen fantasies, Universal’s extremely eager to get in bed with Jackson and let him make his monkey movie. And – if there’s a new “King Kong” feature film in Universal’s production pipeline – you can bet that, even as the park’s tech department is getting ready to rip out the old Roosevelt Island tram-themed ride, that Universal’s creative team is already knocking around ideas for a new “Kong” attraction for the company’s theme parks.
Speaking of Peter Jackson: Here’s one reason that Disney’s infamous Imagineers envy the folks at Universal Creative: Universal has the theme park rights to use all of J.R.R. Tolkien’s “Lord of the Rings” characters to build new shows and rides around. And here’s another reason why Mickey gets jealous whenever anyone ever brings up Universal: You know J.K. Rowling’s highly popular “Harry Potter” series. Universal Studios has the theme park rights to all of those characters as well.
So – with a highly competitive new boss for Universal potentially waiting in the wings as well as all of these great new rides and shows ready to roll out – what’s the Mouse doing to get its Central Florida Resort ready to go head-to-head with a reinvigorated Universal Orlando Resort? Surprisingly, very little.
And why’s this? Well, there’s a feeling among Walt Disney Company senior management that the U.S. theme park market is pretty much tapped out. Which is why the Mouse has quietly abandoned plans to build a fifth theme park in Central Florida and – instead – chosen to concentrate the company’s efforts on expanding its overseas empire (I.E. Hong Kong Disneyland).
Oh sure, there’s the occasional new big ticket attraction like Epcot’s soon-to-be-opening “Mission: Space” ride. But that’s only because Disney was able to find a corporate sponsor with deep enough pockets who was willing to blow big bucks on this Future World thrill ride. The only problem is – “Mission: Space” ‘s original sponsor was supposed to have been the Compaq Computer Corporation. But now that Compaq has been swallowed by Hewlett – Packard, Mickey’s hoping that HP will ultimately make good on Compaq’s original deal. However, given that the computer giant is soon expected to begin laying off tens of thousands of redundant employees in an attempt to make Compaq / Hewlett – Packard merger financially feasible, it may not the smartest move right now (PR-wise, that is) for HP to be seen pouring $100 million into the construction of a theme park ride. Which is why HP and Disney continue to talk, hoping that they’ll eventually be able to hammer out a deal …
But when Disney has to spend its own money in Florida these days, it tends to go cheap and small. Which is why WDW’s ended up with these pseudo-carny rides like Animal Kingdom’s “Tricera-Tops Spin” and the Magic Kingdom’s “The Flying Carpets of Aladdin.”
The only area that Disney seems willing to spend real money on these days in Orlando is on the expansion of its still-quite-lucrative “Disney Vacation Club” operation. Which explains why 208 new time share units were just added to Disney’s Yacht & Beach Resort as well as the multi-million dollar make-over that the Mouse has in works for the Disney Institute. Virtually this entire resort becomes a vacation villa for Mickey starting in 2004.
So – with Disney distracted with expanding its overseas empire as well as its Orlando time share operation (Also given that the company thinks that it’s now okay to go cheap with any new rides and shows that it wants to add to its Central Florida resort) – is it any wonder that Universal Orlando’s staff feels that its time may have finally arrived? That – once the company gets all of its management problems straightened out – that Universal may have an opportunity here to actually pull ahead of the Mouse, to emerge as Orlando’s premiere resort.
This is why Universal Creative is reportedly developing plans for a third and fourth theme park to be built at the company’s Central Florida resort. But where will these proposed new parks (and hotels and water parks and golf courses and … ) go? UC’s supposedly looking at that 2051 acres of land along I-Drive that Universal acquired from Lockheed Martin back in 1998. This enormous piece of real estate is reportedly where Phase II of Universal Orlando will eventually rise up.
Sounds exciting, doesn’t it? The very idea that Disney might finally have some real competition down there in Central Florida? Makes you wonder what sort of E-Tickets Eisner will allow the Imagineers to unleash as the company struggles to regain dominance in the crucial Orlando marketplace? Would we finally get long-promised wonders like Dragon’s Tower, Fire Mountain and a Matterhorn for Epcot?
Right now, it’s hard to say. But things should be a lot clearer come September 25th when Barry Diller does (or does not) make his play for Universal Entertainment. Should that deal actually go through, look for things to get really interesting in and around Orlando over the next year or so.
So stay tuned, folks. This could be a lot of fun to watch.