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Create A Park: Warner's Wizard WorldBen Mills steps up with a few ideas for the Most Obvious Theme Park Concept Not Yet Built -- a Warner Bros. theme park based on Harry Potter and Lord of the Rings.
From Ben Mills
This has been a hot topic for a while on this site, and I think it's about time it got its own thread, after we talked about it here.Posted January 26, 2003 at 3:33 PM Both Lord of the Rings and Harry Potter would make excellent themes for theme parks, but as of yet, no-one seems to want to do anything, bar a minor Harry Potter attraction in Australia.
Hogwarts Quidditch-A kid's dueling coaster around a quidditch field, featuring mild drops. Journey to Hogwarts-A haunted mansion ride through the castle of Hogwarts, but on the way, you are attacked by Volde...sorry, you-know-who. Lots of Disney-style effects throughout.
Gandalf's Ride-A dark ride using animatronics that shows Gandalf riding through a forest, before being confronted by Dark Riders. Lots of special effects as he uses magic to dispatch his enemies. Rivendell Tour-A log flume journey through Rivendell, culminating in a large drop down a waterfall. They are just a couple themes I thought of. What others could be used?
Comments in chronological order. Most recent at the bottom. Scroll down to respond. From Robert Niles
Quidditch is a brilliant idea, though it'd need some creative engineering to devise ride units that look like broomsticks, while keeping the height requirement at around 48 inches. (I figure that's the lower limit for Harry fans.)Posted January 25, 2003 at 5:34 PM I'd add a walk-through maze with challenges, from "Goblet of Fire." And, of course, the park's "Main Street" would have to be Diagon Alley.
From Noel G
Great idea Ben, As I am unsure of where u hail from but Warner Bros Movie World here on the Gold Coast Australia does have a Harry Potter walk thru attraction featuring digon alley and a few of the other features ie the flying car sorry not up to speed on all of the Harry Potter paraphanelia, The Wb as far as I have heard are thinking about a major attraction to that of what u have suggested but when it comes to fruition is another thing as the Theme Parks here on the Gold Coast face a lot of local council by-laws, ie height, colour of building, sound reverberation and so on, which delays a major attraction like this for months if not a year or two. As a friend of a friend of mine who works for WB property development in the US cannot say to much but something big is in the makings for Warner Bros Movie World here in Australia, relating to either Harry Potter or Lord of the Rings the attraction build date will be more closer to the final instalment of each by what He can gather. Cheers Noel GPosted January 25, 2003 at 2:06 AM
From Coaster Enthusiast
While visiting the Warner Bros. website [http://www2.warnerbros.com/web/main/index.jsp] for ideas for this thread, I noticed two things ...Posted January 25, 2003 at 9:59 AM TWISTER is a WB film, why is there an attraction of this film (including flying cow) at Universal Studios Florida? WIZARD of OZ (Great idea for a land, BTW) is listed, but I also know this to be an MGM production!! Just curious.
From Marc-André Routhier
Dear coaster lover!Posted January 25, 2003 at 2:48 PM Just to let you know that when I visited the MGM studio park in Florida we vivited a ride called the great movie ride. There was a full animated Wizard of Oz set with lot's of animatronics Have a good day
From Ben Mills
Was that supposed to some sort of half-assed joke?Posted January 25, 2003 at 4:12 PM
From Robert Niles
Coaster Enthusiast:Posted January 25, 2003 at 5:49 PM Companies routinely license the rights to their films to other studios for theme park attractions if the original company does not have a theme park in the market. That's why you see Nickelodeon-themed attractions at Universal parks in Southern California and Orlando, where Paramount does not have parks. And why there's a Men in Black ride at Universal Florida. Warner got the rights to the old MGM library, including Wizard of Oz, when it bought Turner, who'd bought the rights to those films to stock the TNT network when Ted Turner launched it. Since Warner now has the rights to Wizard of Oz, and it fits the theme, I'd say that it should be the third "land" in this park. Ideas?
From Michael Murray
When I first visited Disney/MGM one of my early impressions is that they really dropped the ball on using Wizard of Oz. For starters, they could have a section of the park with yellow brick road walkways instead of the normal streets. Posted January 25, 2003 at 6:26 PM
From Coaster Enthusiast
Yes, MA ...Posted January 25, 2003 at 9:16 PM I've been on the Great Movie Ride @ MGM/WDW several times ... Did you know that the Wicked Witch of the West was the *first* animatronic *ever* to move as a real human being would? ... Not all hurky jerky like the presidents of the USA (and many others). A novel idea for a WoO attraction would be to synchronize the film with Pink Floyd's "Dark Side of the Moon" -- Something I did back in 1982, purely by accident, in hopes to entertain two groups ... the 'stoners' who loved the PF piece and the 'Judy Garland Fans' who ... just loved Judy Garland : / Some dumb-asterisk kept turning the volume up on the TV set. ... It seemed to juxtapose Cé la vie.
From Michelle Pilling
great idea but where? In the U.k if poss, we have the backgrounds of both movies and books.Posted January 31, 2003 at 5:28 AM
From Ben Mills
Good point, but LotR land would be based on the films (as this is Warner), and they were filmed in New Zealand (I think), so that's probably the best location. Still, who knows? The UK might get a decent park at some point, so why not this one?Posted January 31, 2003 at 2:57 PM
From Anonymous
I consider myself to be a huge Harry Potter and LotR fan, thus I have created a park I think you'll find quite satisfactory.Posted February 1, 2003 at 6:14 AM Harry's Wizarding World: Welcome to Harry's Wizarding World where you can shop on Diagon Alley or ride the following attractions. Journey to Hogwarts(motion simulator): Dobby enchants your Ford Anglia to fly as you escape from the Dursley's, almost get hit by tha train, crash into the Whomping Willow, and interrupt a Quidditch match as you meet Harry Potter himself. Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets(dark ride): After the preshow where Dumbledore, along with some more of your favorite characters explain to you how Harry has been trapped inside Tom Riddle's diary. You board another Ford Anglia and take off into the Forbidden Forest. On the ride you have a close encounter with Aragog and the giant spiders, get blasted by Tom Riddle,dive into the Chamber of Secrets from Moaning Myrtle's bathroom, help Harry escape the diary, defeat Tom Riddle and the basilisk, and fly over a beutiful Hogwarts at night. The Sorcorer's Stone Challenge(roller coaster): Soar past Fluffy, down the trapdoor, away from the Devil's Snare, around the Winged Key chamber, through the challenge of Snape, across the giant chess board, battle a giant troll, and finally crash through the Mirror of Erised to begin a twisting turning ride in complete darkness. Middle Earth: Before the time of man, there was a time of Wizards, witches, dragons, monsters, and Hobbits. The Mines of Moria(roller coaster): Escape the Balrog, cross the bridge of Khazad-Du^n, and through the tomb of Balin in a twisting, turning roller coaster in the dark. The Caverns of Isengard(dark ride): Escape the creation camp of Uruk Hai and guard place of Orcs. The Great River(log ride): Escape the Misty Mountains, encounter the Uruk Hai, and depart down a waterfall into an endless pit. Please note that shows, eateries, and shops may be added. I hope you like these rides as they are but a few of my many ideas. I'm hoping the next create a park is for a Villain themed place as the best ride I've ever made is a Villain ride. Signing off,
From T.Holland Creative
Hello Ben,Posted February 19, 2003 at 1:56 PM There is a guy (or maybe guys) who has mapped out a fairly extensive Harry Potter "virtual theme park" (link below). http://www.angelfire.com/tx5/worldofmagic/ Just before I left Universal Creative in April 2000, there was talk about Universal producing a Potter stage show. Warners floated the idea of putting Harry in the Universal park as they felt it would maximize the franchise's visibility. The stage show idea lasted about five seconds. I've read all four Potter books twice, and everytime I read them I think that Jo Rowling had theme park attractions in her mind when she was writing the books. The potential for a Potter park is obviously enormous. Hell, families would shell out fifty bucks just so their kids could get photographed with Harry, Ron and Hermione
From Robert Niles
Forget the photograph. I just want to go to a restaurant where food appears on my golden plate, course after course!Posted February 19, 2003 at 3:40 PM I wanna see a park designer figure out THAT. And when they do, I will pay handsomely to partake of it....
From Anonymous
With respect to a quidditch ride, you could also develop the ride as a simulated attraction similar to the star wars ride at Disney World.Posted March 8, 2003 at 9:28 PM The rollercoaster could also be the flying car which might be easier to simulate as a coaster car than a broomstick. Regardless, I am eager to see any company take this obviously lucrative idea and run with it.
From Jeff Arons
For the Quidditch ride, you could make a single rail roller coaster with broomsticks to ride on, each one a different type. And you could make it 4 lanes, one for each house. Of course Slytherin would need the same broomsticks, it's a good idea.Posted March 9, 2003 at 5:08 AM To the guy who posted half-@ssed: WATCH YOUR LANGUAGE And I HAVE seen both the ride and the movie Twister. The ride is crap. Its nothing like the movie, which wasn't very good to start with. A HUGE gasoline truck gets lifted, but a pickup truck stays firmly on the ground! What happened? Is Warner Brothers loosing their butts, I mean, their heads?
From Ben Mills
It's my damn thread, and I'll do what I want, you...Posted March 9, 2003 at 8:03 AM
From Jeff Arons
You better watch out, I always use the f-word in chatrooms, and I might use it on you.Posted March 9, 2003 at 10:18 AM
From Shane Falcone
Does anyone owns any theme park ride rights as of today?Posted March 9, 2003 at 12:05 PM
From Ben Mills
Lots of people do. Any rights in particular?Posted March 9, 2003 at 3:45 PM
From Anonymous
I don't know about real parks, but my brother has made several AWESOME Harry Potter amusement parks on both RollerCoaster Tycoon and RCT2Posted June 25, 2003 at 11:03 AM
From Anonymous
Don't limit the park to Lord of the Rings and Harry Potter, change it to a "Fantasy world", incorporating themes from the Narnia Chronicles, Prydain tales, Arthurian and Norse legends, the "hero & the Crown" series, the Pern chronicles, and other fantasy books and legends to accompany the "big two". It would widen your base and allow more variety.Posted June 27, 2003 at 6:21 PM
From Chris Cavanagh
More on the Hogwarts front, the Quiditch ride should be dueling, where, like IOA's Dueling Dragons, you chose witch ride you want to go on, Gryfindor (red track) or Slytherin (green track), for example. Just a thought.Posted July 1, 2003 at 12:15 AM
From Anonymous
Being a big Harry Potter fan,I really think this would be a great idea.And though I'm not too big of a LotR person,I think that there's enough of a storyling to make thrill rides.I can already see many idea's for a Harry Potter themed park...I had the motion simulator in mind for a while,and the Quidditch ride seems like fun,though I wouldn't it to be for kids only,as I'd like to ride that.I don't know much about LotR,but I have seen The Fellowship of the Ring and they have a great theme for thrill rides.I would pay a lot to go to a park like this!Posted July 2, 2003 at 6:25 PM
From John Moore
Ben, you and I would make a great team on this. I've got endless ride notes for both of those themes. How about these? The Firebolt: You are strapped to the bottom of a pole in a chair with a control panel on your restraint. When you're launched up to the top of the 463-foot pole, you can control everything you do, from diving to spinning in large circles to inverting. Zooming Broomstick: You're strapped to a pole by harness in an enclosed loading dock, When ready, you're launched 579 feet up the pole before swinging outward on a wire. Gollum's Log Ride: You're laying on your back in the log as you ride through this indoor cave. Along the way, buckets of water along with rapids and waterfalls help to make you wet as Gollum chases you for his ring. It culminates with a drop down a tunnel slide after you climb out of the log at the end. Mines of Morea: This ride is in two parts, a mine train culminating in a drop underground, then a log flume ride through the cave, and finally, a cable car ride back to the surface. Sorcerer's Stone: the Ride: This is a mine train through Hogwarts. When you reach the third floor, you ride through scenes depicting the obstacles guarding the Stone. I'm thinking of a lot more, because I'm thinking about going into ride design when I get out of school. What do you all think?Posted July 3, 2003 at 2:50 PM
From karyne dufour
Hello every one!Posted May 2, 2005 at 6:00 PM It's my first time here! I love your ideas! I'm a HP fan and I wanted to write to WB to suggest to create a theme park (or at least part of it) about Harry Potter. Of course, IM not the only one who thought about it. A Quidditch ride could be really great. We need a Diagon Alley, obviously. But I thought, as a coaster, it could fun to use Gringots, wouldn't it?
From Anthony Murphy
I like the ideas, especailly for Harry Potter. I think the Lord of the Rings needs some improvements, but the log ride sounds great. I really like everything in the Harry Potter area, espcailly the 4D ride!Posted May 2, 2005 at 8:24 PM
From Pete Brecht
I've been thinking about a Harry Potter theme park for a while. Here are a few ideas that my wife and I kicked around (in addition to the Quidditch coaster, which would be mandatory):Posted May 3, 2005 at 6:47 AM - indoor flume/boat ride based on the search for the Basilisk - Knight Bus ride. I was even thinking that this could be a round-trip across the park (a stop at each end), yet still be an exciting ride. Has there ever been a transportation ride that was also thrilling? - Hogwarts Express train ride. This could be the way to get from the parking lot into the park (a la Magic Kingdom). - minor attraction: wave swinger decked out to look like the Whomping Willow. This came to me while I was watching the 3rd movie, and the motion of the Willow really reminded me of a wave swinger. Harry Potter is obviously a very rich source of theme park ride inspiration; you could easily come up with a gigantic park full of Potter-themed attractions. One problem is that it would cost a ton of money to do it right, and it would be quite obvious if you skimped. Another issue is that I think you'd need to build this park in an environment that could pass for England in order to pull it off visually. That would limit the park season, which could be a major issue given how much this park would cost to build. I humbly suggest that it be built in my home state of Virginia, which could easily pass for England and has other major tourist draws that bring people from around the world already. :-)
From A.J. Tinloy
I love these ideas for a Harry Potter/Lord of the Rings theme park. However, one thing I would change/add is another form of the Quidditch ride. Instead of having it be a kiddy coaster, I think it would be more beneficial to the general public to make it a virtual reality experience. Similiar to that of "Ride the Comix" at DisneyQuest in Orlando, Florida. This way more people of all ages would be likely to enjoy this attraction.Posted June 21, 2005 at 10:11 AM
From Joe Saltel
The Two Towers idea is great.Posted June 21, 2005 at 12:24 PM
From Adriel Tjokrosaputro
Only 6 rides?Posted June 22, 2005 at 8:42 AM COME ON! Get the other themes! The two towers are really great!I have an idea!Just add some effects on the towers just like TOT! Quidditch is a dueling coaster fopr kids? Teenager!Not kids under 11(since Harry became the youngest Quidditch player). Isn't Batman Warner Bros' presents?
From Sherly C.
LOTR is a MUST MUST MUST. Me and my fellow LOTR fanotic were saying how cool it would be if there was a LOTR themed park. I was searching the web today to see if someone already made one and one of the hit pages was this site. I think the rivendell logflume is an awsome idea. And there should also be a wooden coaster ride through the Mines of Moria. The track should have a huge jump and then we see Gandalf falling and yelling FLY YOU FOOLS. To tell the truth, I'd much rather have a LOTR park than a Harry Potter park, even though I'm a fan of both, HP just doesn't have enough action to be an entire park itself. Where I'm already coming up with great Ideas for the LOTR park. Every guest gets a One Ring and at the end, you trow it into Mout Doom and when you leave, they give it back to you as a memo. Maybe the one ring should be the ticket! when you pass the ticket gate, they change the pure yellow ring with a ring with inscriptions to show you used the ticket!!! I hope they will make one in FL too because that would be so COOL!!Posted June 23, 2005 at 6:47 PM
From Adriel Tjokrosaputro
Here are some of my ideas for Harry Potter rides:Posted June 23, 2005 at 10:41 PM 1)Soarin' Over Hogwarts A flying simulator like Soarin' in EPCOT.People will enjoy the view of Hogwart's environment.With smell and wind at your face makes this become reality. 2)Wingardium Leviosa 3)Through The Gate 4)Saving Sirius 5)Fight With Basilisk 6)Firebolt's Blast 7)The Magic Tree's Revenge 8)The Burrow
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