Epic Universe — Universal Orlando's newest theme park — opens this week. From rides to restaurants, here's what you can expect from the five new 'worlds.'
Universal Orlando is unveiling its first major amusement park in over 20 years.
Known as Epic Universe, the new theme park opens to the public on May 22 and will allow guests to explore five distinct worlds that are each inspired by renowned franchises. Celestial Park, a world dedicated to the heavens, stars and constellations, serves as a gateway to the four other worlds: The Wizarding World of Harry Potter: Ministry of Magic, Super Nintendo World, How to Train Your Dragon: Isle of Berk and Dark Universe.
Universal's Epic Universe is the latest amusement park to join the Universal Orlando Resort's multiverse. Universal Studios Florida opened in 1990, followed by Universal Islands of Adventure in 1999. Construction for Epic Universe began in 2019, was paused in mid-2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic and resumed in early 2021. The park took an estimated eight years and $7 billion to build.
Here's what visitors can expect from each of Epic Universe's five worlds.
Recognized as the central hub of Epic Universe, Celestial Park is filled with astrology-based motifs. Offering an in-depth exploration of constellations, stars and the heavens, the park connects the other four worlds together — and features its own two attractions.
Constellation Carousel gives guests the opportunity to 'ride the constellations' themselves. The ceiling of the ride is a Star Tracker that features rotating celestial star patterns. Stardust Racers, the other ride in this world, is a dual-launch roller coaster that races across the cosmos. Guests board 'a comet' and travel at speeds reaching up to 62 mph along twin tracks that intersect and invert around each other.
Celestial Park also features a nightly light and water show at the Cosmos Fountain, celebrating each of the five worlds. Dining options include Atlantic, an 'undersea' restaurant with glass walls that resembles a large Victorian aquarium.
Filled with shops, restaurants and streets reminiscent of 1920s Paris, the Wizarding World of Harry Potter: Ministry of Magic invites fans of the franchise to immerse themselves in the magical Parisian atmosphere of the Fantastic Beasts movie franchise.
After encountering fantastic beasts, guests can then travel from Paris to the British Ministry of Magic in the 1990s via the Métro-Floo, to witness the trial of Dolores Umbridge. On the ride, known as Harry Potter and the Battle at the Ministry, fans will embark on adventures with Harry, Ron and Hermione and will journey deep within the ministry's departments.
'This ride is an industry game changer,' one TikToker said. 'The scale of this ride will have your jaw on the floor from the moment you enter.'
The Ministry of Magic, complete with its golden statues and stately elevators, is covered in more than 125,000 subway tiles in five colors. One Harry Potter fan revealed on TikTok that she waited over five hours to get on the ride.
Guests can also devour some Paris-inspired eats at cafés like Café L'air De La Sirène, Le Gobelet Noir and Bar Moonshine.
According to an early Epic Universe attendee, to enter Super Nintendo World guests must ride a green escalator, which will then lead them to two separate lands: Super Mario Land and Donkey Kong Country. Replete with mushrooms, pipes, coins and piranha plants, the vibrant scenery bears an uncanny resemblance to the whimsical, virtual landscape on which it's based.
'The way that it's built, you really can't see out of the area where you are,' a reporter told NPR upon visiting the park. 'It's like you're inside a game completely.'
In Super Mario Land, guests can re-create the magic of Super Mario Kart by racing alongside their favorite franchise characters on Mario Kart: Bowser's Challenge, before taking a spin on Yoshi's Adventure to search for glowing eggs throughout the Mushroom Kingdom.
With its tropical backdrop of majestic waterfalls and luscious foliage, guests are also welcome to ride Mine-Cart Madness, a roller coaster that careens through Donkey Kong Country and seemingly soars from one 'broken' track to another.
To power up before venturing into another world, park attendees can visit Toadstool Cafe for burgers, soups, salads and desserts made by the one and only Chef Toad.
Boasted by Universal Orlando as having 'fire-breathing fun' for all ages, How to Train Your Dragon: Isle of Berk immerses guests in the astounding village of Berk, where Vikings and dragons coexist with one another. Bringing the fictional world of How to Train Your Dragon to life, Isle of Berk features 30 animated and static dragons, representing 17 disparate dragon species from across the globe.
'It was important to have an even distribution of eye candy, so the dragons are tiered from complicated to simple to static,' Katy Pacitti, an executive producer of the Isle of Berk world, told Attractions Magazine.
For some Epic Universe attendees who've yet to watch the How to Train Your Dragon films, the world's 'level of detail' has piqued their interest.
Attractions here include the show The Untrainable Dragon, where a 1,100-pound Toothless with a wingspan of nearly 27 feet soars above the audience, a roller coaster known as Hiccup's Wing Gliders, a dragon racing trainer ride called Dragon Racer's Rally and a competitive water adventure known as Fyre Drill.
Guests also have the option to eat like a Viking at Isle of Berk staples like Mead Hall, Spit Fyre Grill and Hooligan's Grog & Gruel.
Dracula. Frankenstein's monster. The Bride of Frankenstein. The Invisible Man. A land made for 'the goths and horror freaks,' as one TikTok user put it, Universal's classic movie monsters roam free in Dark Universe's Village of Darkmoor.
'You are watching where the movies went. The land itself could be considered a sequel to the original films. We took everything from the original films and used that as the basis for all of the continued storytelling,' Patrick Braillard, a Universal Creative show writer, said at New York Comic Con.
In addition to themed-dining experiences like Das Stakehaus, De Lacey's Cottage and the Burning Blade Tavern, where monster hunters hang out, guests can explore the catacombs that lie beneath Darkmoor by way of Monsters Unchained: The Frankenstein Experiment. The ride, which features some of Universal's 'most technically advanced animated figures' they've ever created, sees Dr. Victoria Frankenstein return to the Frankenstein Manor to continue her great-grandfather's ill-advised experiments. Dark Universe has also received praise for its subtle attention to narrative detail.
Curse of the Werewolf, Dark Universe's second attraction, is a spinning roller coaster that ravages through a darkened forest at up to 37 mph, in an effort to escape from a pack of bloodthirsty werewolves.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Screen Geek
3 hours ago
- Screen Geek
Ethan Hawke Returns In First Trailer For 'Black Phone 2'
The 2021 horror movie The Black Phone became a surprise horror hit for Blumhouse based on the short story of the same name by author Joe Hill. Because the film was such a hit, earning $161.4 million on a budget between $16-18 million, a sequel was greenlit several years later. Now the full trailer for the follow-up – titled Black Phone 2 – has been released by Universal. Interestingly, the new sequel revolves around the characters from the first film, with the roles having been aged up to reflect the increased age of the actors. Ethan Hawke also returns to play The Grabber, the brutal antagonist of the first film, which this trailer depicts in a more Freddy Krueger style fashion. Here's the official trailer for Black Phone 2 : This trailer for Black Phone 2 puts an emphasis on the tense atmosphere that the film will feature, with an emphasis on its snowy winter setting, something which is a change from the original. Likewise, the footage is grainy and dark, with the signature use of filmic imagery that is enough to make viewers' blood run as cold as the wintery shots depicted. The cast for Black Phone 2 , as the trailer features, includes returning cast members Ethan Hawke, Mason Thames, Madeleine McGraw, Jeremy Davies and Miguel Mora. For Hawke's character, given his fate in the preceding flick, it looks like his role as The Grabber has expanded into a more supernatural threat. Scott Derrickson returned to direct the follow-up for Blumhouse and Universal which was once again written by C. Robert Cargill and Derrickson. The two seem to have cracked a great idea that made producing a sequel a worthwhile endeavor. Black Phone 2 is scheduled to hit theaters later this year on October 17, 2025. Stay tuned to ScreenGeek for any additional updates regarding this highly-anticipated sequel to the horror hit The Black Phone as we have them.
Yahoo
14 hours ago
- Yahoo
King Charles Hits Back at Harry by Cozying Up to David Beckham
The royal family knows that a well-crafted picture speaks volumes. King Charles' invitation for David Beckham to appear alongside him at the Chelsea Flower Show on Monday is a very clear rebuff to his son, coming just days after reports that Meghan and Harry had sought to build ties with Beckham's son Brooklyn and his wife Nicola Peltz, the daughter of billionaire MAGA investor Nelson Peltz. Brooklyn Beckham, like Harry, has fallen out with his birth family (English-born soccer player David and his wife Victoria, the designer formerly known as Posh Spice) in a highly publicized feud. Sources have said that Brooklyn believes he is suffering from 'generational trauma' in language that will be familiar to those who have followed Harry and Meghan's very public argument with the Windsors. The parallels between the Beckham and Sussex family feud don't stop there: Meghan and Nicola have been blamed in some quarters for having turned once-favored sons against their families. It emerged last week that Brooklyn and Nicola had dinner with Harry and Meghan recently, and are said to be offering their support to the couple. Well, it now appears David has some support of his own: the king and queen. Beckham was warmly greeted by Charles and Camilla on the opening day of the high-profile Chelsea Flower Show in London, and the king asked if Beckham had received a 50th birthday gift of a rose bush that he and his wife sent him. 'You got it, didn't you?' Charles asked, according to the Daily Mail. Beckham replied: 'It was incredible! Thank you, it was very kind.' Last week, as the rumors gathered pace about a Brooklyn/Harry team up, Kate Middleton stepped out in a chic Victoria Beckham dress, clearly showing which side she is on. Beckham and Harry once shared a strong friendship; Beckham was seen as a good influence on Harry in his wilder days and they had several nights out, with William, in happier days. However, their relationship reportedly soured when Harry and Meghan accused David and Victoria Beckham of leaking stories about them to the media. The Beckhams strongly denied these accusations.
Yahoo
14 hours ago
- Yahoo
Harry Hates the Royals So Much He Nearly Changed His Name
Prince Harry's family feud takes a new twist In a stunning sign of the depth of the estrangement between Prince Harry and the Royal Family, it has emerged that the Duke of Sussex seriously considered dropping his royal surname in favor of his late mother's maiden name, Spencer. Sources told the Daily Mail that Harry raised the idea during a trip last year to the United Kingdom for the funeral of his uncle, Robert Fellowes. During the visit, Harry stayed at the Althorp Estate with his maternal uncle, Charles Spencer, the ninth Earl Spencer and brother of the late Princess Diana. Spencer famously delivered a confrontational speech condemning the royals at her funeral in which he referred to Harry and William as her 'blood family.' According to the Daily Mail's well-connected social columnist, Richard Eden, Harry reportedly sought advice on legally changing his surname from Mountbatten-Windsor to Spencer, a move that would have amounted to a very symbolic severing of ties with the House of Windsor. While the report says that Spencer talked Harry down and the idea is not expected to go any further, the fact that Harry seriously explored it underscores the ongoing toxicity of his relationship with the royal family, particularly his father, King Charles; his brother, Prince William; and his stepmother, Queen Camilla. According to a friend of the duke cited by the Mail, 'They had a very amicable conversation and Spencer advised him against taking such a step.' The friend added that Earl Spencer pointed out the legal and symbolic hurdles, warning that such a move would not only be complex but would likely deepen already raw tensions with Harry's family of origin. Had the change gone through, it could have affected not only Harry's public identity but also the names of his children, Archie and Lilibet, both of whom currently use the surname Mountbatten-Windsor—a hybrid of the Queen's family name and that of Prince Philip, who adopted the Mountbatten name upon becoming a British subject in 1947. Had Harry moved forward with a surname change, his daughter, Princess Lilibet, whose middle name honors Diana, would have become Princess Lilibet Diana Spencer. Such a gesture would have been particularly painful to King Charles, who holds the Mountbatten legacy in high regard. Louis Mountbatten, the first Earl Mountbatten of Burma, was a beloved mentor to Prince Philip. The Queen and Prince Philip decided in 1960 to designate Mountbatten-Windsor as the family name for their direct descendants. In his memoir Spare, and in numerous high-profile interviews since, Harry has laid bare what he sees as the coldness and dysfunction at the heart of the royal household. His allegations have included neglect, press manipulation, and emotional cruelty—claims that have harmed the Windsors' carefully curated public image and fractured personal relationships behind palace doors. Names and titles are a fraught issue for Harry and Meghan Markle. The couple were granted the Duke and Duchess of Sussex titles by Queen Elizabeth on their wedding day in 2018, and their children were officially recognized as Prince and Princess following Charles's accession to the throne. But their ongoing use of royal titles has often been called hypocritical. Harry's office has been approached for comment. Markle 'steps back' from her weird jam business The unfathomable and chaotic progress of Meghan Markle's branding empire continued this week with a bizarre interview with Fast Company magazine in which she implied she might not restock her online As Ever store anytime soon. Fast Company makes much of the fact that As Ever products such as jam and flower sprinkles sold out in 45 minutes, without making the very obvious point that a) this is an easy outcome to engineer by not having much stock and b) not having anything available for your customers to buy when you have momentum is generally considered bad business. Incredibly, it appears Meghan now 'wants to take a step back' from the logistically complex business of actually selling stuff. Already? Why, yes! Fast Company says her plan during this stepped-back phase is to 'gather data from the launch and figure out exactly what As Ever could be,' adding, 'She says she's planning to announce new products in the first quarter of 2026.' What? Meghan is quoted as saying, mysteriously: 'I want to really focus on the hospitality angle of As Ever, but as we take the learnings, we can understand what the customer's needs are seasonally.' Clears as mud? Good.
