Rumors have swirled, now the truth is revealed: we Muggles will have a chance to enter the magical world of Harry Potter. Universal Orlando is building a new themed island in Islands of Adventure, a multi-attraction "theme park within a theme park" called "The Wizarding World of Harry Potter". Opening date is late 2009. Update: 2010.
Harry Potter --(is there a parent who doesn't know this?)-- is the hero of J.K. Rowling's phenomenally successful book series, which made kids love to read, read, read: her books have been translated into 65 languages with more than 325 million copies sold worldwide. Meanwhile the movies based on the books have grossed more than $3.5 billion.
Where will the "Wizarding World" be located?
Islands of Adventure -- one of two theme parks at Universal Orlando-- is currently made up of five themed "islands". The Orlando Sentinel reports that a 20-acre Potter 'island' will partly take some area from the "Lost Continent" island, and the rest from employee parking and park support outside the back fence.
At 20 acres, "Wizarding World" would a bigger than the average size of the islands. Much of "The Lost Continent" island will remain (and will stay open during construction, too.) Some attractions -- such as The Dueling Dragons roller coasters and The Flying Unicorn coaster ride-- will likely be adapted to the Wizarding World.
What will the "Wizarding World" be like?
The aim is to create an "immersive experience". Iconic locations -- such as Hogwarts castle, the Forbidden Forest and Hogsmeade village-- will be backdrops to attractions, shops and restaurants. Academy Award-winning production designer Stuart Craig -- whose worked on all the Harry Potter films -- will head up creative design.
Some attractions will re-constructed (such as, probably, the Dueling Dragons coasters mentioned above). Other attractions will be all-new. About's Guide for Theme Parks -- who's tracking the news about Wizarding World-- says that at least one new attraction will be "state-of-the-art", probably using robotic arms to give passengers a flying car ride.
Will it be good enough?
2010 is a long way off, but hopefully the results will be worth the wait. It can probably be said that never has a theme park been under such pressure to "get it right". The legions of Harry Potter fans have strong feelings about all things Wizard and all things Harry; they can be expected to be critical, and even irate if they felt that Universal had cheapened the wizard world.
Universal Orlando knows this; as President Bill Davis told the Orlando Sentinel, "We do have a responsibility to all the fans that are out there in the world that have followed the Harry Potter saga through the films and the books." He added, "We're going to be true to the books and the films, and make sure that when people come here they're going to be very, very happy with what they see."
Meanwhile, Tom Williams, chairman and CEO of Universal Parks and Resorts, promised in a news release: "We are going to devote more time, more money, more expertise and more executive talent from throughout our entire organization and creative team - as well as from Warner Bros., our partners - to ensure that this entire environment is second-to-none."
And the Queen herself (J.K. Rowling, that is) has said: "The plans I've seen look incredibly exciting, and I don't think fans of the books or films will be disappointed."
Worst case? To have fans say, "Too bad Disney didn't do it." Disney World -- which reportedly was also bidding for the opportunity to do a Harry Potter theme park-- is famed for the depth and details of its theming.
- read more about Islands of Adventure, at Universal Orlando -- as it is now!
- see About.com's Theme Parks site for more about Wizarding World of Harry Potter
- check Universal Orlando Resort: Wizarding World of Harry Potter for latest updates and artists' renderings
Photo credit: © 2007 Universal Orlando. All rights reserved. HARRY POTTER: TM & C Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. Harry Potter Publishing Rights © JKR. (s07)
