Universal’s Theme Parks, Long in Disney’s Shadow, Expand at Dizzying Pace
The New York Times
Universal is going after Disney, the industry leader, with new parks in Florida and Texas: “We want people to think of us first.”
“How high is up?”
When Mark Woodbury became Universal’s theme park chief in 2022, he pressed his lieutenants to answer that question. The former architect was not referring to a roller coaster incline.
Universal’s parks had already become a surprise growth engine for NBCUniversal, but Mr. Woodbury saw an even bigger opportunity to lift the business firmly out of Disney’s shadow. “How do we become the destination of choice in each of the markets that we operate in and in all of the markets that we choose to expand into?” he said in a recent interview.
Mr. Woodbury, 67, is starting to unveil the answers.
This week, Universal unveiled theming for a new park in Texas aimed at families and an opening date for an attraction in Nevada focused on horror fans. Those come on top of an expansion in Los Angeles and a massive theme park development in Orlando, Fla., that will open this spring. It’s considering “Wicked” attractions and a major park for Britain, too.
Comcast, which owns NBCUniversal, has not disclosed budgets for the projects, but analysts say the Orlando project alone cost roughly $7 billion.
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