I’ve been covering theme parks for almost a decade now, and in that time awesome rides have opened, new food festivals have begun and more; however, there’s never been anything that is quite at the scale as Epic Universe. Which means Universal rolled out the blue carpet for a wide slew of celebrities to try out some of the rides and various attractions as the park prepared to officially open its post-preview gates.
Listen, I spend time geeking out about theme parks nearly constantly, so I have a great gauge about what insiders are into. However, the nice thing about talking to some celebrities is they are (usually) less plugged in to the same information, and it’s nice to get a fresh perspective on what people are excited about.
I spoke with actors and creatives from How To Train Your Dragon, Harry Potter’s George and James Phelps, and even WWE Superstar Cody Rhodes about what they were most excited to do in the parks, and the answers ranged wildly. Here’s some stuff you have to try.
There’s Lots Of Love For The Dark Universe From Cody Rhodes (His Wife Brandi), Jeremy Slater And More
While lines at Ministry of Magic have been so long they've queued around the land, it's really common to hear influencers most excited about Dark Universe and the awesome tech-heavy Monsters Unchained: The Frankenstein Experiment ride. I got to go on it twice, and it was truly a blast, and it was great to hear enthusiasm from some of the celebrity guests Universal invited, too.
When I spoke with WWE superstar Cody Rhodes, he mentioned he and his wife really enjoy Halloween Horror Nights, and had even had a memorable date there once. He's been off the air since Wrestlemania 41, which means he has some downtime right now, and so the couple popped down because Brandi was super enthusiastic about the Frankenstein-themed ride.
She [Brandi] wants to go ride Frankenstein, the Monsters ride. That's [why we're here].
No one had more enthusiasm for Dark Universe than Jeremy Slater, the writer of the upcoming Mortal Kombat 2 and creative mind behind the Moon Knight and Umbrella Academy TV series. It wasn’t a huge shock the Thread: An Insidious Tale co-writer would be super enthusiastic about checking out Darkmoor, but it was still fun to hear a celeb be so enthusiastic about this particular section of the park.
I grew up being a Universal Monster kid. So to see them brought to life with just such love and respect and just on a ride that’s so much fun. I rode it a dozen times. This is the most incredible park I’ve ever been to. It’s the greatest rides I’ve ever seen. And we’ve been to every theme park in the world, more or less at this point. There’s nothing like Epic Universe.
Slater and his wife Melissa also noted they'd been on all the rides "a dozen" times at the point they spoke with me. (Epic Universe has been open in previews for some time now.) They're huge theme park enthusiasts and even got married on the Universal Studios backlot, but it's Monsters Unchained he keeps going back to. (It's worth noting she loved How To Train Your Dragon land the most, though.)
Finally, I spoke with Antonia Carlotta, the great grand-niece of Universal's creator Carl Laemmle, who is continuing with work in the parks. She actually talked about the kinship with the storyline in Monsters Unchained, which features Victoria Frankenstein trying to continue her own family's legacy, so there's a really personal tie-in for her.
I went to to the Dark Universe today. I loved the Dark Universe. It was really cool getting to see these monsters come to life around me. I saw Doctor Jack Griffin, The Invisible Man, out in the world. I rode Monsters: Unchained Twice. I’m absolutely obsessed with it. I feel a certain kinship with Victoria Frankenstein, who’s working to continue her family’s legacy and her great grandfather’s work.
Wandering the Dark Universe is one of the best parts, too, and I'm glad she ran into The Invisible Man, though running into Igor is pretty fun, too.
Surprise, The Harry Potter Guys Liked An Attraction More Than Ministry Of Magic
There's no doubt Battle At The Ministry of Magic is a great, engaging ride (if you're able to get on it), but if you were to ask James and Oliver Phelps, there's actually something else in the Paris-themed section of Epic Universe that's a must for longtime Potter fans. And no, I'm not talking about the butterbeer crepes. When I initially asked, James was pretty excited to talk about Ministry because it's a great ride:
I was gonna say the Ministry, cause that was awesome. The Monsters [Unchained] one, just the technology. I also really the show in the Wizarding World with the animals and everything!
However, once we really got down to it, the general consensus amongst the two brothers was that Le Cirque Arcanus was the attraction that should really be most worth it for fans, with Oliver Phelps explaining why it works so great.
You gotta go back and watch it, you gotta go back and watch it. Go and do it. It’s a proper show. But again that show’s really well thought out. It’s not just rides: sit on a rollercoaster, sit on an immersive thing, ride. It’s actually an experience.
Shows run throughout the day, and if you get a break, you can purchase a wand and use the time to try some spells.
The How To Train Your Dragon OG’s Absolutely Loved Isle Of Berk Coming To Life
I spoke with some of the cast and crew about Isle of Berk and Director Dean Deblois and others were honestly shocked this part of the park really came to fruition. Tuffnut Actor Justin Ripple spoke about the "scale" of seeing his animated series really expand into the theme park space and how if he thought it was big, kids "must feel" that it's "giant." (I can confirm, it's giant.)
When it comes to the rides, there's only one that stands out for him (despite Ruffnut & Tuffnut's Fyre Drill being his namesake).
My character has a ride, it’s Fyre Drill, but my favorite ride, officially is Hiccup’s ride. I mean the wing gliders you get encouraged to do stuff, but Hiccup [rocks].
I got to ride Hiccup's Wing Gliders both during the day and the night, and it's a thrilling, mid-tempo coaster adventure with some surprises (no spoilers!) along the way, though if you try Fyre Drill I can guarantee you'll be soaked on a hot day. So, no hate there either.
How To Train Your Dragon author Cressida Cowell was trying to work up the courage to ride the third big Isle of Berk attraction: Dragon Racer's Rally, a swinging ride that takes you high up into the air. It's a cool ride because you can ride it at your own pace and can either attempt to aerially flip upside down or ride at a more relaxed low tempo pace. Or as Cowell put it: '
The kids can meet Hiccup. I met Hiccup. I met Toothless. I have not gone on the winged one. I must do that. I have to make myself. I’m going to try and do it tomorrow. People have said it’s the closest thing to riding a dragon.
So, really pretty much all of the attractions at HTTYD were getting a bit of love during the opening preview event, and that's not even counting "The Untrainable Dragon" show or the meet-and-greet with Toothless.
Elsewhere, I was a little surprised there wasn’t a bit more love for the dueling Stardust Racers coasters, but AGT’s Howie Mandel and How To Train Your Dragon's Ripple both mentioned the ride among their favorites, saying they absolutely “loved” it, though they’d only been able to do one side when we spoke. And Justin Ripple was excited to do it again at night when the ride essentially glows in the dark:
Now [it’s dark] you’ve got the lights and music!
Overall, a lot of different big ticket Epic Universe rides were getting a lot of love.
It’s a surreal feeling to randomly get on the Ministry of Magic ride and sit by Deal or No Deal Island’s Joe Manganiello. However, it’s also nice to know the things we regular people enjoy are still awe-inspiring to people that regularly engage in all kinds of out-of-the-ordinary opportunities. I think it really shows the power of theme parks to spark joy and bring us all back to a place that feels magical and new.
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