Rumor Something Guardians of the Galaxy may be coming to Hollywood Studios

[RSoxNo1]

I saw a Loki t-shirt for sale in Magic Kingdom, so I guess either he can be used, or they hope a Universal exec doesn’t see.

Merch is fine, attractions are not.

 

[PJBuckeye]

I'm still waiting for them to announce the Guardians of the Galaxy Mission: Space replacement that Corless promised.

Now... now... that's no way to get invited onto his show

 

[RSoxNo1]

Now... now... that's no way to get invited onto his show

Tune in tomorrow at 9...

 

[PJBuckeye]

Tune in tomorrow at 9...

Wait, I thought I saw "E ticket Report" on a show schedule during Pete's live stream today... For some reason, I was like "nah, couldn't be"

 

[Imagineer45]

Just curious, could WDW add a Black Panther ride if they wanted it? Or would this be prohibited with Universal?

No Black Panther. The MCU characters Disney can use Florida are Guardians of the Galaxy, Dr. Strange, and Captain Marvel. Shang-Chi and The Eternals from the upcoming Phase 4 movies are also usable.

*edit: Captain Marvel is likely off-limits

As unlikely as it may be, any settlement does not need to be either-or.

Imagine that UO gets:

• to keep Superhero Island as is, with ability to upgrade attractions (to being MCU compliant), but not add onto
• a cash buy-out of the exclusivity consderably less than $1B
• to no longer pay a licensing fee

Disney gets:

• to use "Marvel" in the U.S. parks
• to build a Marvel Land in WDW (but not a Spiderman, Hulk, or Doom ride)

UO doesn't have to tear out anything or pay fees. UO gets to capitalize on the MCU version of the characters they have, if they want.

Disney gets to build what they want with just a few exceptions.

Anyhoo, terribly unlikely. Though... Universal has a lot more debt, and needs to sink huge capex into a new park (and new lands). If there's a recession... Universal may be in a crunch and willing to settle...

Universal is already allowed to upgrade and create new Marvel attractions and they are not gaining a lot here. Marvel Super Hero Island has two solid rides at IoA, so Universal is fine not doing anything, as their only annoyance is the little bit of money they have to pay to Disney. As for Universal's owner Comcast, they have more money than Disney both in terms of revenue and net income with a higher profit margin as well. Therefore, Disney will have to overpay for the characters.

I would prefer it if Disney spreads Marvel around at WDW. I understand why it makes sense to centralize it all at a one or two park resort, but there is no need for a single area for four parks. The Guardians are already at Epcot and Dr. Strange could anchor a New York section of DHS (Grand Avenue can easily be made back to NYC). If they ever get the rights, put Spiderman in the New York section of DHS, LA County resident Tony Stark could go to Sunset Boulevard at DHS, Captain America could go to the American Adventure at Epcot (although I am sure people on here would not like it), etc.

 

[MisterPenguin]

Universal is already allowed to upgrade and create new Marvel attractions and they are not gaining a lot here. Marvel Super Hero Island has two solid rides at IoA, so Universal is fine not doing anything, as their only annoyance is the little bit of money they have to pay to Disney. As for Universal's owner Comcast, they have more money than Disney both in terms of revenue and net income with a higher profit margin as well. Therefore, Disney will have to overpay for the characters.

As I mentioned in my post, what Universal gets is to upgrade their Marvel characters to the multi-billion dollar MCU franchise rather than stick with the 90's comic book version.

 

[RSoxNo1]

No Black Panther. The MCU characters Disney can use Florida are Guardians of the Galaxy, Dr. Strange, and Captain Marvel. Shang-Chi and The Eternals from the upcoming Phase 4 movies are also usable.



Universal is already allowed to upgrade and create new Marvel attractions and they are not gaining a lot here. Marvel Super Hero Island has two solid rides at IoA, so Universal is fine not doing anything, as their only annoyance is the little bit of money they have to pay to Disney. As for Universal's owner Comcast, they have more money than Disney both in terms of revenue and net income with a higher profit margin as well. Therefore, Disney will have to overpay for the characters.

I would prefer it if Disney spreads Marvel around at WDW. I understand why it makes sense to centralize it all at a one or two park resort, but there is no need for a single area for four parks. The Guardians are already at Epcot and Dr. Strange could anchor a New York section of DHS (Grand Avenue can easily be made back to NYC). If they ever get the rights, put Spiderman in the New York section of DHS, LA County resident Tony Stark could go to Sunset Boulevard at DHS, Captain America could go to the American Adventure at Epcot (although I am sure people on here would not like it), etc.

Captain Marvel is a bit surprising. She's not represented anywhere in Marvel Super Hero Island?

 

[The Empress Lilly]

Merch is fine, attractions are not.

That is an interesting point. In modern theme park thought developed after the Marvel contract, there is an overlap between attractions and show. Olliwanders, make your own lightsaber or droid, cosplay, apps that interact with the environment. Let's hope for some fun court cases!

 

[doctornick]

Captain Marvel is a bit surprising. She's not represented anywhere in Marvel Super Hero Island?

I'm fairly certain that Captain Marvel would be off limits for WDW. She's a long standing member of the Avengers. IIRC there was not any M&G or movie preview or monorail wrap for her when the movie came out which would be a pretty solid indicator that she's off the table for WDW.

 

[Imagineer45]

As I mentioned in my post, what Universal gets is to upgrade their Marvel characters to the multi-billion dollar MCU franchise rather than stick with the 90's comic book version.

I understand what you are saying, but my point is that I am not sure if it is worth the upgrade for them. The MCU upgrade would draw in more guests without a doubt, but not that many more, as Disney would undoubtedly outspend them on any Marvel area and bring in many more guests than Universal would. Marvel Super Hero Island is already a good land for IoA and blocks millions of visitors and billions in revenue from WDW, a win-win for Universal that should not be relinquished unless they are presented an over the top offer.

I'm fairly certain that Captain Marvel would be off limits for WDW. She's a long standing member of the Avengers. IIRC there was not any M&G or movie preview or monorail wrap for her when the movie came out which would be a pretty solid indicator that she's off the table for WDW.

Looking over the specifications of the contract, I think you may be correct in Captain Marvel being off-limits, my mistake. The word "Marvel" in her name would likely be a red flag.