Universal Studios Dubailand was a proposed
Universal Studios
Universal Pictures (legally Universal City Studios LLC, also known as Universal Studios, or simply Universal; common metonym: Uni, and formerly named Universal Film Manufacturing Company and Universal-International Pictures Inc.) is an Ameri ...
theme park in
Dubai
Dubai (, ; ar, دبي, translit=Dubayy, , ) is the most populous city in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and the capital of the Emirate of Dubai, the most populated of the 7 emirates of the United Arab Emirates.The Government and Politics of ...
,
United Arab Emirates
The United Arab Emirates (UAE; ar, اَلْإِمَارَات الْعَرَبِيَة الْمُتَحِدَة ), or simply the Emirates ( ar, الِْإمَارَات ), is a country in Western Asia (The Middle East). It is located at th ...
. Originally planned to be built within
Dubailand
Dubailand is an entertainment complex being built in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, which is owned by Tatweer (which belongs to Dubai Holding). When announced in 2003 it was one of the most ambitious leisure developments ever proposed anywhere in ...
, a future entertainment mega-complex, the project broke ground in July 2008 but stalled a short time later.
On October 27, 2016, officials announced the permanent cancellation of the project.
Development
Universal Studios Dubailand was a joint venture costing over 8 billion
dirhams
The dirham, dirhem or dirhm ( ar, درهم) is a silver unit of currency historically and currently used by several Arab and Arab influenced states. The term has also been used as a related unit of mass.
Unit of mass
The dirham was a un ...
($2.2 billion US) between Universal Studios and
Tatweer
Dubai Holding ( ar, دبي القابضة) is Dubai ruler Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al-Maktoum's personal investment portfolio, which owns 99.67% of the capital.
It is a global investment company, investment ho ...
, a subsidiary of
Dubai Holdings. The theme park was announced on April 30, 2007 with a theme park plan that expected to attract 5 million visitors annually and was scheduled to be completed in 2010.
The project broke ground July 27, 2008, but the
global financial crisis at the time prompted the developers to announce that they would delay further development, and push back the opening until at least the first quarter of 2012. However, no construction work on the project site has been reported since at least early 2009. By mid-2012, the only public evidence of the project is a gate bearing the Universal Studios logo.
The identity of the Dubai joint venture partner is no longer clear, as Tatweer was dissolved in mid-2010, with most of its assets merged into TECOM or other members of Dubai Holdings. In April 2011, Universal was once again in talks with Dubai officials about finishing the Universal park. By late 2012, there had still not been any construction progress on the proposed site.
In late November 2012, Dubai's ruler,
Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum
Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum ( ar, محمد بن راشد آل مكتوم, links=no; ; born 15 July 1949) is the Prime Minister of the United Arab Emirates, vice president, prime minister, and minister of defence of the United Arab Emir ...
, announced Dubai's renewed intentions to invest in an array of development projects in the desert just outside central Dubai, including
the world's largest mall and an attached Universal Studios branded "family entertainment centre."
On October 27, 2016, it was announced that plans for the Universal Studios Dubailand theme park had officially been scrapped.
Themed areas
Hollywood
The area was to be designed a lot like
Universal Studios Florida's Hollywood area. It was expected to feature a ''Mel’s Diner'' building as seen at Universal's
Florida
Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...
,
Japan
Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...
, and
Singapore
Singapore (), officially the Republic of Singapore, is a sovereign island country and city-state in maritime Southeast Asia. It lies about one degree of latitude () north of the equator, off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, borde ...
parks.
[Universal Studios Dubailand. Retrieved 19.06.10 fro]
Screamscape
Restaurant chain
Planet Hollywood
Planet Hollywood International Inc. (stylized as planet Hollywood, planet Hollywood observatory and ph) is a themed restaurant chain inspired by the popular portrayal of Hollywood. The company is owned by Earl Enterprises corporation. Earl En ...
was thought to be planning on opening their largest restaurant in the area.
New York
A heavily themed area featuring a ''Blues Brothers'' outdoor show and a ''Hooray for Bollywood'' indoor show. The area was also expected to feature an air-conditioned undercover ''Gramercy Park Square''.
There was also going to be both a trackless dark-ride shooter themed to
Ghostbusters
''Ghostbusters'' is a 1984 American Supernatural fiction, supernatural comedy film directed and produced by Ivan Reitman, and written by Dan Aykroyd and Harold Ramis. It stars Bill Murray, Aykroyd, and Ramis as Peter Venkman, Ray Stantz, and ...
and a
Men In Black
In popular culture and UFO conspiracy theories, men in black (MIB) are purported men dressed in black suits who claim to be quasi-government agents, who harass, threaten, or sometimes even assassinate unidentified flying object (UFO) witnesses t ...
rollercoaster, which would have been a clone of
The Incredible Hulk Coaster
The Incredible Hulk Coaster is a launched roller coaster located at Universal's Islands of Adventure within the Universal Orlando Resort. Designed by Werner Stengel and manufactured by Bolliger & Mabillard (B&M), the roller coaster is themed af ...
at
''Universal's Islands Of Adventure''.
Surf City
A boardwalk/beach themed area for kids was expected to feature ''
Woody Woodpecker’s Nuthouse Coaster'', a sand castle themed carousel and ''Frantic Freeway''.
It was also expected to have three attractions based on ''
Sesame Street
''Sesame Street'' is an American educational children's television series that combines live-action, sketch comedy, animation and puppetry. It is produced by Sesame Workshop (known as the Children's Television Workshop until June 2000) a ...
'' (anchored by ''
Sesame Street 4-D Movie Magic
Sesame Street 4-D Movie Magic (titled Sesame Street Presents Lights Camera Imagination! 4-D at SeaWorld and Busch Gardens Williamsburg parks, and Sesame Street Film Festival 4-D at Busch Gardens Tampa) is a 4D film theme park attraction located a ...
''), as
Sesame Workshop
Sesame Workshop (SW), originally known as the Children's Television Workshop (CTW), is an American nonprofit organization that has been responsible for the production of several educational children's programs—including its first and best-know ...
signed an agreement in February 2009.
Epic Adventures
Epic Adventures would have been the home to ''
Jurassic Park Rapids Adventure
Jurassic Park Rapids Adventure is a river rapids ride in The Lost World zone at Universal Studios Singapore in Resorts World Sentosa, Sentosa Island, Singapore.Resorts World Sentosa – Jurassic Park Rapids Adventure in the Lost World at Univer ...
'', ''
Waterworld
''Waterworld'' is a 1995 American post-apocalyptic action film directed by Kevin Reynolds and co-written by Peter Rader and David Twohy. It was based on Rader's original 1986 screenplay and stars Kevin Costner, who also produced it with Charl ...
'' and a new ''
King Kong
King Kong is a fictional giant monster resembling a gorilla, who has appeared in various media since 1933. He has been dubbed The Eighth Wonder of the World, a phrase commonly used within the franchise. His first appearance was in the novelizat ...
''
dueling roller coaster
A dual-tracked roller coaster is a roller coaster that consists of two tracks. They can be configured as racing, dueling, or Möbius loop roller coasters. Some dual-track coasters operate only one track side at a time, including Rolling Thunder ...
which would have been a clone of
Dueling Dragons
Dragon Challenge (known as Dueling Dragons from 1999 to 2010) was a pair of intertwined, inverted roller coasters in the Wizarding World of Harry Potter area of Universal Studios' Islands of Adventure in Orlando, Florida, United States. The ri ...
from ''Universal's Island Of Adventure''.
Legendary Heroes
Legendary Heroes was expected to be the home of another incarnation of the ''
Revenge of the Mummy
Revenge of the Mummy, officially named Revenge of the Mummy: The Ride, is an enclosed roller coaster located at Universal Studios Florida, Universal Studios Hollywood, and Universal Studios Singapore. Its theme is based on ''The Mummy'' film f ...
'' indoor roller coaster. It was also set to be the home to the ''Eighth Voyage of Sinbad'', a foam ball play area and ''King Tot's Oasis'' (a water play area).
References
External links
Official web of Universal Studios Dubailand(defunct)
{{Universal Studios Dubailand
Cancelled projects
Unfinished buildings and structures