But what if one of the Big Two (Disney or Universal) had gotten the chance to develop a James Bond attraction? It almost happened.
Goddard Group has posted concept art of a James Bond stunt show that it developed for Universal Studios Florida in the 1980s, before that park opened. Even better, the concept illustration is by the legendary Ralph McQuarrie, the illustrator who developed creative design for Star Wars, ET, and the original Battlestar Galactica.
The concept is clearly inspired by Blofeld's island headquarters in You Only Live Twice, with the addition of the laser from Goldfinger. The post quotes Gary Goddard:
In the illustration several things have happened by this time – all setting up the grand finale: The Giant Circular Roof has opened, the massive hangar doors have parted – revealing the nuclear warhead missiles – one of which is moving onto the gantry for launching, and the massive submarine has surfaced. In addition, Bond’s most memorable villains are gathered (via the multiple screens) to watch both his demise and the launch of the nuclear warhead that will put the two super-powers at their mercy.
Goddard did end up helping to create a few memorable attractions for Universal, though, including Terminator 2: 3D, the Jurassic Park River Adventure, and the aforementioned Amazing Adventures of Spider-Man. But fans are left with the "what if?" of that Bond show.
If you're a fan of such "what-if"s, Goddard Group has offered looks at some other unbuilt concepts from its archives, most notably a stunning Wizard of Oz theme park, as well as the Superman ride that Spider-Man started to be, before Universal switched to get the Marvel rights for Islands of Adventure instead of the rights from DC Comics.
It's fun to imagine what the theme park business might be like if there were a huge Wizard of Oz theme park outside Kansas City, if DC Comics were at Universal instead of Six Flags, and if Disney then had the rights to develop Marvel attractions at Walt Disney World. And, of course, if we had that James Bond show at Universal.
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- Brian
Disney can utilize OZ as a fantastic land since it owns the rights for its own version of Oz. I just don't know if customers care that much. Nonetheless, a new park featuring Oz, Alice in Wonderland, and among other unused properties would be a terrific addition.
Did you ever see Skyfall? What you mentioned was actually a small little theme towards the end of the movie. I wouldn't say James Bond is no longer needed, but something like this kind of stunt show would seem silly by today's standards.
BTW Roger Moore is my favorite 007.
Yeah, James Bond no longer has any relevancy to todays culture. You can tell this by the box office of the latest films in the series. :)
http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=bond23.htm
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