It Happened So Fast And Furiously: A TikTok User Caught Some Of The First Riders Getting On Universal's Drift Coaster

There are plenty of highly anticipated theme park attractions coming in 2026, but chief among them has to be the Fast & Furious Hollywood Drift roller coaster coming to Universal Studios Hollywood. We don’t know exactly when the ride will open, beyond a general date of sometime this summer. However, we are getting that much closer to the ride as actual living humans are currently riding it, for testing purposes at least.

A video posted to TikTok was taken over the weekend from the Starway of Universal Studios Hollywood that shows a few people on board the Hollywood Drift coaster. One person has got the front seat while a couple more are sitting in the back, seemingly getting a feel for the attraction's current state.

One thing noticeably missing from the video of Hollywood Drift is any, well, drifting. The cars are designed to rotate left and right as the coaster takes corners, simulating the concept of drifting in cars. More than likely, the cars have been locked in place here as the testing is being focused on other areas of the attraction.

Theme parks traditionally shoot to have major new attractions open by Memorial Day Weekend, as that’s when summer crowds start to hit theme parks as vacations get underway. At the same time, those parks have to give people enough time to plan those vacations around ride openings, and with Memorial Day barely over a month away, it seems unlikely the coaster will make that date.

Still, the fact that the coaster is in a state that people can be on it, even if only for testing purposes, indicates the coaster will be ready for crowds sooner rather than later. Expect to see the number of people filling the coaster increase as the attraction undergoes load testing. Universal Team Members will likely also get access to previews prior to the ride opening, but by the time that happens, we should know when Fast & Furious: Hollywood Drift is going to be open for the rest of us.

The fact that the coaster actually loops around the Starway escalator is going to make this a truly unique ride experience, not only for those who are on it, but also for those who are walking by. It may be the best advertisement for a theme park attraction ever when a roller coaster goes over your head as you're riding between the upper and lower lot.

Fans closer to the other Universal theme park in the U.S. won’t have too long to wait for their own Hollywood drifting, a version of Hollywood Drift is currently under construction in the place where the Hollywood Rip Ride Rockit! Coaster once stood. That coaster is set to open sometime next year.