A Deep Dive Into Wizard of Oz Theme Parks
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 7 ก.พ. 2025
- The Wizard of Oz franchise is one of the best recognized around the world, so why hasn't it been incorporated into more theme parks and attractions despite being in the public domain? With a recent store opening in Universal Studios Florida that is themed to and celebrates the release of Wicked, it made me wonder why the land of Oz is not better represented in parks around the world. Today, I wanted to explore how this property has been implemented in themed experiences, from the Wizard of Oz exhibit and theming in the early MGM Grand, to how Disney incorporated the film into the Great Movie Ride, to an entire Land of Oz theme park in North Carolina. I also took a look at the ambitious but cancelled Wizard of Oz theme park that would have been built in Kansas and explore what this property might look like if Disney or Universal decided to adapt it.
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I know that the land of Oz in North Carolina isn’t the most typical theme park but I highly recommend it to any true theme park nerd. It’s like stepping into a Time Machine.
It so unique. You can opt in to take a ski lift to the entrance, and it’s often very foggy, especially in the morning. It felt like I was being transported to oz. I couldn’t even see the chair in front of me it was so foggy and then I was dropped off in the land of oz. Full of acapella singing, dancing and fun character actors that are doing an incredible job. It was such a unique experience, I’ve never been to anything comparable
Yeah, I would definitely like to try going there one day.
I work there! It’s no longer a cappella performances, and can confirm, the foggy days are the best 😊
I still miss the Great Movie Ride, and not building Runaway Railway onto the old animation building was a mistake.
That’s Disney for you. They still won’t fix the people mover or fully using the unfinished Japanese pavilion
But they’ll waist 400 million of a Star Wars hotel that shuts down within a year
There were amazing animatronics. It's a shame that attraction was closed.
Building it into the animation building is GENIUS!
@ - aye. They could have used the old animation tour as part of the queue.
they refuse to do anything with the animation building/launch bay, that would've been the perfect spot for monsters inc land too but they just have to go and shut down jim henson's legacy instead 🤦🏻♀
I grew up in Kansas in the 90s and always heard an Oz theme park would come to the state. Instead, we got a deadly water slide.
My eyebrows visibly raised when I read this comment. Unfortunately, you’re not wrong. (I hope you get a non-lethal Oz park at some point!)
The sets in Wicked, especially Emerald City, already look like theme parks. It would be so easy to adapt that world for Universal Studios.
Yeah I think wicked could easily be the sole inspiration for a theme park 🤷♀️
I agree, and with the popularity of Wicked it would make the most sense. People also already have an emotional connection to Elphaba flying so doing a Soarin’-style ride is a no-brainer!
And they built practical sets that may be reusable in a park.
I used to be a “Tour Guide” actor in The Great Movie Ride in the early 2000s. That part of the video brought back so many great memories! Thanks!
I was one of the land creative directors for the original Landmark Entertainment concepts done in the early 90s. It was fun and we were all disappointed when it didn't go through.
Are there any details I missed or got incorrect? For something that seemed so ambitious, there doesn't seem to be much information about it out there.
I’m sure you are correct. The design changed when it weren’t from Landmark to GG company. It was not to be a very high budget park by today’s means. Mostly catalog rides and medium theming. Think old Magic Kingdom Fantasyland style.
Epic Universe would actually be a pretty great place for a land dedicated to the Oz.
Or islands. In Wicked's universe the land of oz is essentially an island surrounded by desert.
I am not sure since the WB park in Australia is getting a wizard of Oz land soon but i suppose WB has worked with universal before on harry Potter
@liamcollinson5695 So long as they're reaping royalties, it just means less money they have to spend on construction and maintenance.
@m1lk0meda Well Oz being separated from outside world by an impassable desert goes right back to original books. But it was fun seeing it acknowledged in the movie and gives the land a clear border for themed area.
What I'm still surprised hasn't been done yet is a streaming series that attempts to faithfully adapt the book series (not just the first one). This could help widen the general public's knowledge of Oz lore beyond the most memorable scenes in the MGM film and give anybody trying to use Oz in a theme park a lot more possibilities.
I agree, I think something like that would be interesting
I have loved Oz since I can remember--at 7 I became a member of the International Wizard of Oz Club and lived for each issue of the Baum Bugle, so it gives me no pleasure to throw this out there but... I don't think you *could* do a faithful adaptation of the books. The series is based on whimsy, not so much drama--there's a reason why more faithful adaptations of the later books never seem to work. I'd be interested though I guess in a series that tried to capture the tone (it seems like we've had so many dystopian versions, etc...)
Wouldn't be surprised if the success of wicked caused this to finally happen!
One problem in terms of the Oz IP is that in the public consciousness (besides Wicked), The MGM film "The Wizard of Oz" is THE image of the world of Oz that people tend to focus on hence why constant adaptations are weighed down on the nostalgia of that film (Disney's Return to Oz is one example)
Return to Oz is a masterpiece
True; one of the biggest complaints I keep hearing with Wicked is "Where are the ruby slippers? why are they silver?"
@@DarMar106 silver is superior anyway
I mean, that film is owned by WB, and Universal currently has a relationship with WB when it comes to theme parks. Y’know, because Harry Potter.
Then again, with Skull Island, Universal has proven that if there’s a PD property they can adapt into a theme park land, it’s typically with a version they themselves own. For reference, Skull Island is based on Universal’s King Kong movie from 2005. Not the original 1930s version or the current MonsterVerse version, both of which are under WB.
@TacomasterStudios The Kong does not look like the 05 version. How do you know that it's from that exactly?
Ok thank you, theme parks attempts at Oz have always been fascinating. Sad you didn't mention the inclusion of Emerald City in the Disneyland Paris version of Storybookland Canal Boats. That believe is being replaced with a scene depicting Up
Ah, I completely forgot about that. I'm disappointed that I didn't think to include it
I hope the Wicked store reignites the need for more movie tiein attractions like in the 90's and early 2000's. Cali gets them all the time, but the best we get are tribute stores. I would love to more of those.
I've been to the Land of Oz many times and as a child when it first opened. They do a fantastic job gets better every year. There is also a WOZ museum and immersive experience thats pretty interesting in Cocoa Beach, FL.
To give some context for the Oz park in NC: It's open for a VERY brief time each year (12-15 days total) with only limited tickets for any given day. It seems to also be selling through those tickets regularly. So, yeah, it's probably quite well-loved. It's also ANNOYINGLY hard to go visit.
The Wizard of Oz land set to open at Movie World (Warner Bros/Village Roadshow) seems exciting with the Kansas Twister coaster and The Flight of the Wicked Witch Coaster
I was pulled out of the audience to participate in the magic show at the MGM Grand, back in the 1990's. It was, indeed, a good show and worth seeing.
Two Wizard of Oz Theme Park Facts… 1.The scene in the Great movie Ride was originally supposed to be Dorothy and friends meeting Oz in his Big Head projection. My fiancé, Ron Schneider ( of Dreamfinder fame) recorded the Wizard’s voice for that scene but it was scrapped for budgetary reasons.
2. New Jersey’s Six Flags Great Adventure was built as a standalone park by Warner Leroy, the son of Mervyn Leroy, the producer of the 1939 movie. He intended the fantasy are of the park to be a Wizard of Oz complete with the Wizard’s balloon. Although he did not end up making Great Adventure into the Emerald City or Munchkin land, many of the buildings including the carousel enclosure, Yum Yum Palace, and Granny’s Chicken demonstrate the theming that was developed for the Wizard of Oz theme.
One of the problems is that 90% of Oz material is from an early 20th Century series of children’s books that most people don’t even know exists.
It would be like making a fairy tale theme park based on all the fairy tales that aren’t household names. I’d go, but I don’t think others would.
Yea I think that any current interest in Oz would be really temporary.
Ah, that's why I think it could work. Enough people recognize Oz and certain locations and characters, but if Universal wanted to expand on that, they certainly could. I don't care about the Fantastic Beasts films, but Universal's Parisian Wizarding World does look really interesting. The name draws people in, but the product speaks for itself.
@@PoseidonEntertainment Yes, but also remember, that movie / story is simply not very popular outside the English-speaking world. They used to have an Oz scene in the canalboats ride in Disneyland Paris' Fantasyland and I will always remember European children asking their parents what the green castle is all about and the parents not being able to answer because they don't know either.
@@byswiss That's interesting, but it makes sense. Still, I have to imagine that a massive Emerald City facade anchoring a land would be intriguing to people.
@@byswissAre you sure? My understanding is that Oz, at least the MGM film is one of the most famous movies worldwide.
I certainly wouldn't have called it unknown here in Europe. Perhaps even more in America in comparison but that probably goes for many Disney films aswell. The Paris attraction still has that scene as far as I know.
Perhaps younger kids weren't as familiar I guess but has had a resurgence and is always somewhat known compared to some fad franchises its probably not a bad theme park choice.
As an Aussie, I'm cautiously optimistic for Movie World Australia's Wizard of Oz area opening by the end of the year.
The two coaster rides within it are very family oriented which is a bit of a bummer if you hoped for something more thrilling. Still, if the area is immersive and the rides are proper crowd pleasers, then that's not a bad outcome at all.
How familiar are you with the MGM film? I wondered if Oz was only familiar to American audiences because a lot of people pointed out in my Seuss Landing video, that the Seuss books aren't really known outside of the U.S. I got the impression that Oz was the same, so I was surprised to see it coming to WBMW.
@@PoseidonEntertainmentCan confirm that Oz is very popular here in Oz!
@@PoseidonEntertainment I had it on VHS so I grew up with it! I have a copy on blu ray now, I genuinely think it's still one of the best examples of films feeling "magical". It's still a hugely known IP here and I think the Wicked play and two films (assuming it's two) will only make it even more known for newer generations
@@PoseidonEntertainmentThe MGM film is huge down here as it is in America. Remember watching it as a kid on VHS in 2006
I actually went to the Wizard of Oz magic show at the MGM Grand as a kid. My dad went on stage and participated in one of the illusions
Dude, Islands of Adventure would be the place to have an Oz themed land with The Lost Continent going away. Forget about Zelda, Islands of Adventure is supposed to be all about literature and their adaptations (King Kong being the odd one out). Imagine going from the wacky whimsy of Seuss Landing into the equally vibrant but slightly askew Land of Oz, and then dovetailing into the more serious Wizarding World of Harry Potter. Maybe they blend too well together, you don't really have some of the stronger contrasts other parts of the park may have, but maybe that could also be its strength because now there's a bit of a visual continuation between the areas, and the Lost Continent had a ton of space to incorporate a number of iconic locations.
Yeah, I can see that being a contender too, although with the strange layout of that area, I think it limits what the land could be
4:03 16:43 It's Been 85 Years Since L Frank Baum's Masterpiece The Wizard Of OZ The Movie Was Released In Theatres Back In 1939 Just Before The Second World War Began. Thanks Mate. PS Stephen Schwartz's Masterpiece Wicked Is Now Playing In Cinemas In The UK As Well Too. Old School Times Man. XXxxx 🇬🇧 🇦🇺 🇺🇸
Another great ' Poseidon' worthy video essay! Keep up the great work!!
As someone who has grown up in NC, and a visitor to Tweetsie Railroad on the regular, Land of Oz has been on my radar for YEARS now. Robbins also had a hand in developing what is known today as Dollywood (originally the extremely questionable "Rebel Railroad"), so the Robbins family has been involved in the Appalachians of East TN and Western NC for many, many years now.
The family actually still owns Tweetsie, and has continued to grow the park year after year.
(BTW, if you need some more recent Tweetsie footage for your videos, your welcome to use some of my footage from my channel.)
I thought about mentioning RR, but I didn't want to derail the Oz theme of the video. I only mentioned Tweetsie to provide context that there was prior attraction development. It is definitely a place I would like to visit eventually though and I would like to plan an extensive south-east U.S. trip sometime past 2025.
@@PoseidonEntertainment It's a great little park! Those coal-fired locomotives are an experience! Tweetsie, for a family park, while maybe not as grand as say... Carowinds in Charlotte, is still an amazing experience.
As an NC resident and frequent Beech Moutain visitor, I will say that even here in NC, Land of Oz is somewhat of an underground, little-discussed attraction. I hope to visit Autumn at Oz eventually and finally see the park for myself.
I've been many times they are doing a fantastic job now.
Disney should try again with the Oz IP with a series of animated Oz movies that are musicals and a potential theme park land to tie in with the animated Oz movies!
I doubt that’s going to happen with their past box office flops and with the Wicked movie being out. They won’t be able to do much without everyone’s main Wizard of Oz movie being the Warner Bros movie and Elphaba being misunderstood and being the main Wicked Witch of the West backstory from here on out
I absolutely LOVE Return to Oz. It’s weird, bizarre and utterly fantastic!
I wanted to love the novel Wicked, but it is supremely boring and dense. The Broadway Musical told the story in a much more palatable way, and the fact that author Gregory Maguire didn’t care for the musical, leads me to believe he did it wrong, but Stephen Schwartz did it very right!
I keep seeing advertisements for a Wizard of Oz Experience here in Seattle, but I’m too concerned it’s gonna be like that Willy Wonka scam experience that went viral lol
You should see the work print
@ workprint of what?
Gregory Maguire actually loves the musical tho. And he loved the movie version too. He's very open about allowing the adaptations to do whatever they want with his IP as long as the main message is still the same.
@@AuthorCertifiedGoof Return to Oz
What's the Seattle experience? It looks like an escape room from what I could find, or is there something else?
That was a great video. Fantastic exploration!
Ah what, I actually liked the 2013 movie, well the little porcelain doll most of it, that scene really got to me, but I guess I can understand what you mean.
It’s not a bad movie but it definitely got lost in the shuffle among other fantasy blockbusters from the same time period
Loved the video! And I agree that Wicked shouldn't be at the forefront. Subbed.
Honestly, with the success of Wicked, it would be a gold mine if someone actually created this theme park and resort. Even the younger generations are falling in love with The Wizard of Oz all over again, as well as Wicked. One could only hope. 😏
i distinctly remember the last time i ever rode the great movie ride i sat in the last car in the very back row, and i looked back at all the scenes as we left them, and i VIVIDLY remember looking back at the empty munchkin land and being sad that it would be gone. i really hope someday we can get something like that dark ride set but on a much larger scale...
I doubt that Disney would be the one to build it because I think they've lost the point of themed entertainment. Too many people say that wanted an updated "Disney Movie Ride", but it wouldn't have celebrated cinema as an art form more broadly.
@@PoseidonEntertainment oh yeah i completely agree, i think if anyone could do it it would be universal, the stuff they're doing for epic universe looks so much better than the stuff disney has been doing lately
I remember going to the MGM hotel one as a kid, I thought I imagined that place! I also remember they had a big Beatles themed area there as well.
You may be thinking of the Mirage hotel which had the Beatles themed show by Cirque du Soliel “Love” which also had a Beatles museum.
@@pault5557 no this was definitely in the 90s, I was very little. But I also might be remembering another theme park somewhere since they were everywhere during that time.
The book 'Wicked...' which the musical is based off is the ONLY book I ever started and just could not finish. The writing style is just... so... frustrating. I really wanted to READ it... but finally said f-it. I have seen 'Wicked' on stage 5 times in 4 cities (twice in Chicago) and love it. I will see the movie soon! :)
I was in the MGM Grand when it was still 'OZ' and it was very, very cool. I miss it! Been there hundreds of times since and I can still picture the statue with Dorothy and crew! :)
Brother you are not alone. I couldn’t get through it either.
I read the book before the musical came out, but I think the musical actually hurts the potential audience for the book a lot because they're completely tonally different. I always call the musical the Disney version of the book, because it basically did to Wicked what Disney did to a lot of classic fairytales and made them way less dark and more family-friendly with singing and dancing.
I expect a lot of people who are now picking up the book expecting it to be like the movie are going to be disappointed.
@@catellala Just got back from seeing the film. I agree with everything your saying. I felt the film helped bring the story back towards the tone of the book. Just a little-but enough to give some context to the plight of the animals better then the play did. I enjoyed the film.
Can I please ask what was wrong with the book ? I heard that it was A LOT darker, but can you give me some examples about the writing ? I want to try to read the book without any expectations or comparisons of the musical.
@@Oneasianpersuasion Purely the writing style of the author. You can find a sample of the book online I'm sure. :)
Believe it or not, there was a Wizard of Oz JRPG for the DS.
I have to play it some day.
I got to see the oz Las Vegas thing when it opened. And I also remember the great movie ride as well
The last time that I went to Disneyland Paris, I rode the Storybook Land Canal Boats. I was so excited to see that they had a diorama representing the Emerald City.
I also know that there was a plan to build an Oz theme park in Buffalo, NY. This was announced around 2004. Unfortunately, it never happened.
When I was a kid, The Wizard of Oz was my favorite story. I always dreamed of designing a theme park that would transport guests into the Marvelous Land of Oz. I always wished that the Kansas park hadn’t been canceled. It looked amazing.
3:11 the little girl falling 💀💀
STOPPPPP🤣🤣🤣
Sometimes people point out stuff that happens in my footage that I don't really catch myself. It's always interesting because I'm never really looking at what other people are doing.
flash warnings - 12:04 - 12:11, 13:54 - 13:59 (a bit lesser than the first but im not taking my chances), 14:18 - 14:25 -- for my photosensitive friends
first to view, first to like, first to comment - first time ever!!! Happy Holidays PE!!!
Glad they passed up the Sunflower Armory plans for *checks notes* Schlitterbahn, Verruckt was one of the scariest rides I've ever encountered but glad it's gone. Lol the space in Kansas is going to be a Panasonic battery factory now.
The site, though- it's ludicrously contaminated. That and the (former) Kansas City Plant (WWII/nuclear stuff after) just wildly so.
Was Schlitterbahn located on that site?
@@PoseidonEntertainment Different sites! There's an entertainment complex plus the Mattel park in the general area Schlitterbahn stood, plus some retail development. It's all close to the Kansas Speedway/a large entertainment complex with a soccer stadium and others. From my understanding, the financial incentive (the STAR bond) created for the proposed theme park was then used to attract Schlitterbahn.
I think your perspective on Wicked might be a little too narrow considering you’ve only seen the 1st half of the story and haven’t read any of the Wicked books. It’s weird to consider it fan fiction because you wouldn’t say the same about Disney’s Little Mermaid. Gregory Maguire pulls a lot from the original source material in his books about Oz that could be adapted in other formats including Animation. It’s short sighted to scoff at the potential Wicked has as an IP. Universal is considering expanding the story with the rest of Maguire’s books which has multiple magical characters including other witches. Wicked’s popularity isn’t a negative for a theme park land and its particular brand of Oz would standout from anything Disney could’ve done with it.
Even then Wicked has a lot of potential beyond these two movies if Universal chooses to take it. I think Disney could pull off a Oz theme land, but at the same time I would rather have them not do it. Especially since the Disney Oz movies are not as good as their others movies like the animated movies, Pixar, Marvel and Star Wars.
Maybe, but I don't understand your comparison to The Little Mermaid. To my knowledge, it's an adaptation of the original story but makes significant changes that better fit a different vision. Wicked is fan fiction in the sense that it works off of older material and purposefully recontextualizes it while still attempting to fit into that same world, at least loosely. You're right that I've never read the Wicked books, but the world building of the film abandons that rustic Americana that makes the older stories interesting to me.
The ending scene of the Great Movie Ride was also supposed to contain the “Big Head Oz” scene where Oz threatens Dorothy and her friends but they ran out of money. My fiancé (the original Dreamfinder from JII) recorded the Wizard’s lines for this scene, but they were never used.
I saw wicked last night and said to myself, this would be a great expansion land for epic universe
I walk talking to a friend recently and she suggested that Oz take the place of Lost Continent in IOA, could be a good repurpose for the land reusing the Poseidon Fury building for a show about meeting with the Wizard.
great video! didn't know about the concepts that could have been reality!
This was INCREDIBLE!!! You ate with this 👏👏👏
While I can kind of see what your saying about 'american culture' with the witches hat, I don't really understand what the problem is, your giving an American context to a musical which says the hat is from her grandmother, there isn't really anything deep (at least in my opinion) about it. Quakers weren't explicitly American either, but in terms of wicked, it is used as a way to prank her, but when it goes wrong, Glinda owns her mistakes and helps her embrace the hat and her clothing style, there is a bond forged from it, that sticks with a deep level between the two for the rest of the musical. I just don't think the criticism you made is as deep as your trying to make it seem. Otherwise, a great video!
agreed
Yeah, maybe I didn't explain it well, but essentially, I think that the way that Wicked retcons a lot of lore and iconography makes the world building kind of generic. I think that an Oz land rooted in late 19th century culture is a lot more interesting.
@@PoseidonEntertainmentBut it didn't retcon anything did it? It just gave an inuniverse origin to the hat that never had one before. The real life inspiration is interesting but it still remains unchanged as the inspiration right?
Love the history of it❤ it’s so interesting ❤❤❤❤😊
Awesome as always, Posey! For me, I miss the Great Movie Ride so much it hurts, but the MGM vegas hotel's theming has a special place in my heart because my dad visited it in 1996 and bought SO MUCH wizard of oz stuff for me (I was born in 1995) that my early childhood was inundated with memorabilia from that place! I didn't realize how short the wizard of Oz theming was there, it's crazy to think such a small blip of Oz history effected me so much.
Edit: Epic Universe expansion to an Oz land is super third eye open. Especially if it roots itself in the books. If the Universal Movie Monster area is anything to go by (Where it's inspired by the old film but does its own thing) this is a space that would be the proper place to pull it off.
The wizard of oz could be a whole theme park. Btw the novel wicked and the musical are very different
I saw Wicked Act 1 and it was a great film. Can’t wait for Act 2. Oz and Theme Parks to together quite well. I mean Epic Universe looks like something out of Oz or The Emerald City with Celestial Park.
Yeah, it's giving off 19th century World's Fair inspiration, so I agree that there's an aesthetic connection there.
Hope Universal gets to build a Wicked land in Epic Universe complete with a "Defying Gravity" suspended rollercoaster that allows guests to feel like they're flying with Elphaba on her broomstick around the Emerald City.
That or they rethemed the Hulk rollercoaster or turn it into a flight simulator in the veins of Harry Potter and seating similar to E.T, but instead of bikes it’s brooms
@kbraven7007 I'm thinking more of a Phantasialand F.L.Y type ride.
I have been to the land of oz in NC and I loved it
I desperately need an Oz portal at Epic Universe! ShizU, Munchkinland, the Emerald City, KiamoKo. It would be wonderful.
I want to go to the North Carolina Oz
The best Emerald City experience was at Baltimore’s short lived indoor theme park “Power Plant”; while not an official OZ product, it created an atmosphere identical to the Emerald City in Return To Oz. It was also about a fictional inventor and had other Oz-esque attractions. Anyone remember this?
Ah, I mentioned that in the 90s video/series and completely forgot about it
@@PoseidonEntertainment yeah, if you search for the old commercials you can see the influence, an Oz like face on a giant screen; a tin man animatron, and tons more
Ozsome job!! You were very thorough & informative. I am glad you mentioned the Kansas Land of Oz project that never came into existence. With Wicked bringing Oz back into the public's attention, maybe there will truly be a Magical Land of Os, someday!
Whoa the park has well coasters, cool
Disney did plan to build an Oz addition to their Storybook Land, but didn't. They did add an Oz element to their Storybookland boat and train ride at Disneyland Paris. And Disney Imagineer Tony Baxter had an idea to build an Oz land back behind Frontierland after the Disney film Oz the Great and Powerful was announced.
There's an area based on the Wizard of Oz coming to Warner Bros Movie World in Australia this year including a dueling/racing shuttle coaster called Kansas Twister and a suspended family coaster called Flight of the Wicked Witch
Havent had time to watch the full video yet, but surely he mentions this, right?....
0:51 “Um, Actually” The Emerald City used to be one of the scenes on Disneyland Paris’s Storybook Canal Boats.
Great Job with this, there is a rich history of Oz themed 'things' in parks, but somehow the definitely Oz themed land has never been built
Perhaps Universal will do it, who knows?
If the Wizard of Oz section of WB movie world is successful I see it being expanded in the future. Not sure why we can’t get a movie world here in the states, I don’t see myself ever going to Australia
The shade thrown at Disney 😂
I’d love to see an indoor Wizard of Oz theme park in Kansas!
I seen the Wizard of Oz many times is my favorite movie haven’t seen the new wicked movie yet but I will don’t know when it’s that theme park seems fun
Great video. I really hope universal builds a wicked attraction. I just got passes for universal for Christmas so I’m going to be closely watching to see if a wicked attraction will come or a land perhaps an expansion to epic. Can you do a video on muppet vision next I’d like to know your opinion on it.
I really think that universal studios both Hollywood and Orlando should have a wicked land 💚💚💚💖💖💖
Admittedly the image of an emerald green portal with a yellow brick road leading to the land of Oz popped into my head towards the end of that video. A truly fleshed out Oz would make a unique addition to one of those expansion plots at Epic Universe. Somewhere bright and colorful as Super Mario World with the magical whimsy of the Wizarding World. And admittedly they won't be opening with a spot that's explicitly friendly to young kids and their families...
Is HTTYD and SNW not family friendly? The Celestial Park carousel and splash pad are not for younger children?
@PoseidonEntertainment I was thinking something in the vein of Seuss Landing or Kidzone/DreamWorks Land, but true.
There actually was a wizard of Oz scene at phantasialands Hollywood tour, a retheme from "the birds" because that one was too scary
I felt like I was forgetting to mention a few things and I'm disappointed that I forgot about that lol
As a born-and-raised North Carolinian, I just hated how the 1939 film has a monopoly on OZ adaptations in the US
Wicked at Epic Universe Please!!
Glinda out of the kindness of her heart kept giving Elphaba gifts which make her appear Wicked. Are people born Wicked or do they have Wickedness Thrust Upon Them?
I appreciate the Wizard of Oz movie as nostalgia as a kid, and the return to Oz movie as a darker take on Oz. I don’t see a Land in an Theme park as an idea that will be successful. In my opinion.
See Wicked. Amazing set designs.
@ not sure I can take 3 hours of a part 1 musical
Universal's Dark Universe and Disney's concept of a Villains Land seem to indicate that audiences might be excited for something dark. Even the Wizarding World is kind of dark in places, so I think that a grittier, stranger Oz would be very appealing as long as the most iconic characters are included.
Fun fact: the Wicked Witch animatronic in The Great Movie Ride was the first A100 figure which you can now see in Smuggler’s Run as Hondo Anaka!
Is that Hondo, or were parts just reused? He appears to have a much larger range of movement.
@@PoseidonEntertainment legend has it, that is the Wicked Witch redressed and reprogrammed, there’s a moment when he does something with his hand that looks like a move from the witch!
Do read the book. Don't see the play or watch the movie without reading first (I've just watched the movie and liked it. I also saw the play a while ago but couldn't follow along because the sound system was so loud you couldn't hear anything). What Gregory Maguire did with the world of Oz is fantastic. The Play and Movie omits so much of Elphalba's (The wicked Witch of the West) childhood and her parent's own wickedness. The Play and Movie could have been called Glinda (sorry, Galinda) instead. Read the book if you love the concept of Oz.
I've read it. It wasn't my favorite. A book detailing a (admittedly minor in the original book series) villain's sad back story and the political realities of Oz kind of dampened the wonder and whimsy of the original book series. I think I'd rather just read Baum's books again.
During “one short day” in the wicked movie you can fully see a epic universe style portal as the entrance to the emerald city, I think the first expansion to epic universe will be oz
That or they put it in the Marvel area, all they would have to do is retheme the buildings and rides to the Emerald City or Shiz university or something.
Along with the Great Movie Ride, a Wizarding World of Oz could be a nice compliment at Disney Hollywood Studios, under Eisner that is.
I find it curious the NC Oz doesn't get in trouble for using the Ruby slippers.
i always wondered this too but i think they must have rights for it? the character's costumes are based on the mgm movie too.
Disney should try another Oz movie again, but it’ll make for an interesting reboot of the original Oz stories.
they really should bring back the Great Movie Ride and make Universal Orlando about, y'know MOVIES. I guess it is, but every ride feels so half baked and old.
Problem with OZ is, it'd be too big As a singular "land." you have to represent - Kansas for a Tornado Ride, Munchkinland, Emerald City and The Witches Dark Forest and Castle. If you want to do it right.
I wonder if it’s still there the park I would love to go there
Sunflower Ammunition plant has a sign out front depicting oz and the yellow brick road
Land of Oz is temporarily closed on Google maps... Is that cuz it's winter time ? I would love to go visit.
Also, 11:18 it kind of makes sense that it was a magic show since the Wizard didn't actually have magic, but he was a magician and used tricks and deception.
Land of Oz only has a seasonal operating period and I believe it's pretty short
The problem is the conflict of having two 'magical/wizarding' worlds in Universal Studios. It would adversely compete for attention and ultimately resources, leading one franchise withering on the vine. I do believe there is rich potential there, as the iconography of Oz provides a steampunk style fantasy setting.
The other issue is the open nature of the rights associated with Oz. As any theme park could develop their own Oz-style entertainment property creating confusion in the public. Which is why most studios don't really mess with it too much.
This Wicked movie does pay homage visually to the original movies and the amount of focus on creating a thematic link with the original film in the musical nature give an interesting opportunity. The problem is that Wicked subverts a lot of the original characters to push a romantic story. You would have to retcon so much to create a tangible world. It would be a lot of work.
If they were to create a land of Oz, I would say maybe 'Lost Continent' or the un-used expansion area in Epic. I agree Universal is the best shot they would. The problem is mass market appeal. But the musical aspect of it really resonates with the female audience, and there's something to be said about harvesting that...
Okay… so we’ve got a character that can be killed by water. What attraction should we put in her land?
I know!! A rapids raft ride! 😂
lol not sure what the thought was there
Great video like most Disney fans I loved the Great Movie Ride at the then called Disney/MGM Studios and loved seeing the Munchkin scene of the ride at this time. That being said seeing how Disney is removing the Muppet Vision 3D in favour of turning it over for a Monsters INC land; I do not see Disney creating a decent Wizard of Oz land. What I mean is a decent OZ land with Oriental Land Company capital and OLC creative Disney Imagineering. I still feel the fandom is there for a Wizard of Oz land. But it would be done better by Universal especially after seeing video snippets of Epic Universes Dark Universe The Wizarding World of Harry Potter - Ministry of Magic. They put a lot of love in these lands from the architecture to the animatronics. Unlike the controversial new building near the Haunted Mansion at Disney which is really missing the Disney finesse. Seeing how Wicked just came I feel Universal the at this time would be the best choice to create a theme park in Epic Universe.
This is the video I've been yearning for.
Disney Parks had one more Oz representation, the storybook railroad features/featured Oz
Oz should take over the Simpsons land in Universal Orlando!!
To be honest if Universal does a Wicked land, I think I can see the Marvel area being rethemed to it. I mean they could easily turn it into Shiz or the Emerald City and with the Hulk rollercoaster could be an Elphaba roller coaster connecting it to Defying Gravity. While turning Spider-Man into something more family friendly that’s Wicked theme like it could be a story where the riders are going on an adventure with Elphaba and Glinda and the Storm ride to Glinda. I don’t know about Doctor Doom though, maybe something Madame Morrible related?She can manipulate weather and make the drop ride themed to it. With shops, meet and greets and maybe even a live stage show. I mean there is the rumor of them removing Marvel, the Wicked movie being a box office hit and Disney leaving the area in animators courtyard wiredly untouched for something and the pavement of both Avengers Campus in California and the area near Star Wars launch bay is surprisingly similar. I mean why remove the Muppet area for a Monsters inc land, when they have a big canvas to work with in the other side of the park right near Toy Story land? Sure they could put it in Epic Universe, but all of these coincidences make it possible. Especially if Simpsons land is turning to Pokemom land and they are probably going to go wild on Ninetendo and they are obviously going to add more Wicked in the parks, especially if the song writer and script writer of both musical and movie are thinking of sequels beyond part 2. So they will have a lot of things to work with, especially if Wicked is going to continue being this popular in both the movies and Broadway.
My issue with the Australian development is that they needed a good dark ride, but instead have gone with two rollercoasters. I guess you gotta go with what you can afford.
Yeah, it just seems kind of whatever. It's weird that the IP doesn't have an existing dark ride anywhere.
@PoseidonEntertainment literally the park needs a good dark ride. They have two, but Scooby Doo Spooky Coaster is amazing but it's currently closed till 2025, and the Justice League ride is really terrible. They need a third, and Wizard Of Oz would have been great.
If anyone could recreate Oz in a believable, immersive way, it would be Universal. They need to be able to use original Oz too though. I don’t want them to commit the same failure Disney did with Galaxy’s Edge
We might get the first OZ in the UK as universal would need a unique reason for people to check it out.
Is Oz a series familiar to people in the UK? When I produced my video on Seuss Landing, a lot of people brought up the point that Seuss is only really familiar to Americans. Is the Wizard of Oz better known?
In Disneyland paris their was a small scene with the Wizard of Ozz in their version of the Storybook ride now it has been replaced with UP (Yes i know it is small thing XD)
Yeah, I was aware of it but forgot to write it into the script to my disappointment.
I know this wouldn’t happen, but I actually feel like Oz would fit well in Islands of Adventure since that park is already based on literature
If wicked even gets close to a billion I think we can for sure expect a land in epic universe or in another park. Simpsons I also think is highly likely since a replacement for the Florida also works to replace the one in Hollywood and also the outside facade can easily be turned into the emerald city
That or they replace Marvel with Wicked.
I do think the Simpson's building should be demolished and the land expanded back away from the lagoon. It appears that there's room to do it.
@@PoseidonEntertainmentI don’t think they are going to do a Wicked land in Simpsons land, if anything they will probably used the space for Pokémon
@@kbraven7007 I don’t think wicked is big enough to replace marvel and having marvel also hurts their competition. Simpsons isn’t the same case since that contract has an expiration date, Marvel can stay in Islands of Adventures for as long as the want.
@@Gael-qk5gw I’m just saying from the rumor of it being removed, the fact that they want to bring Pokemon to Universal and the whole Muppetvision being replaced by Monsters Inc when there’s a piece of land at animator’s courthouse of an outdated Star Wars attraction. All of it can’t be a coincidence, it’s clear Disney is planning something for that land and why would they replace Muppets when they have a perfect area for a coaster in the launch bay? Universal also removed Marvel from Japan, Disney added Guardians of the Galaxy to Epcot, had Loki merchandise in the gift shop (he’s considered as a Thor and an Avengers character) and they have a Doctor Steange meet and greet in Hollywood Studios. Plus if Lost continent becomes Zelda, Simpsons becomes Pokémon and Epic Universe just opening that it would be too soon to put a Wicked area and if they do it then we’ll have to wait who knows how many years, then Marvel’s the only place they could do it. If they are considering the future beyond part 2, then they will have a lot of things to work with. I mean the Hulk rollercoaster is already green and they can simply create a pre show and base it on Defying Gravity, all they really have to do is retheme the buildings and make attractions based on Wicked whether it’s The Emerald City or Shiz or something.
I was wondering where is the park is located at?
6:22 Interesting, you say it's fanfiction but does that fit considering that Oz is no longer "IP" but public domain, owned by everyone?
If having a different author is the issue the Famous Forty were written by Ruth Plumly Thompson, not Baum but are considered "CANON" despite the new authorship
Are the books outside of Baum considered canon? I haven't read them, but what I think makes something fan fiction is when a world is taken and recontextualized to become something else outside of the canon, just as with Wicked.
@PoseidonEntertainment as far as I remember the original 40, aka The Famous Forty, ar considered canon. So basically anything Baum & his immediate successor Ruth Plumly Thompson ar official however the Estate does commission "authorized" sequels iirc what authorized means when permission is not required? I dunno
I guess it's a broader point about how we see art as private propery instead of as Art. We're not very far from people calling mythology or fairy tales as IP.
Fun fact his son did try to continue the Oz books himself but his own mom took him to court and kept it unpublished for decades.
The ride seems fun I don’t know, dear animal, electronics, or real people.