While Universal Orlando resort has been wowing theme park fans with Epic Universe, it hasn’t forgotten about the other two parks at the incredible resort. Universal Studios Florida has been working on improving itself in a big way and is a much better park since it dismantled the Rip Ride Rockit! roller coaster. But what would replace it.
Evidence indicated a new roller coaster was going to replace the dismantled one, but nothing had been confirmed. Now Universal Orlando Resort has revealed what’s coming, and another ride that’s going to join Rip Ride Rockit! on the scrap heap.
Fast & Furious: Hollywood Drift Is Coming To Universal Studios Florida
There were many rumors about what sort of roller coaster might replace the one that’s torn down. The most prevalent was that Orlando would get a version of the Fast & Furious: Hollywood Drift coaster that’s set to open at Universal Studios Hollywood later this year. In a brief press release, the resort officially confirmed that’s exactly what’s going to happen. The new coaster will open in 202.7
Normally I don’t love seeing two theme parks get the same ride, but in this case I’ll make an exception. Because while the Orlando ride will certainly include the same ride vehicles that “drift” around the track at high speed, the ride will otherwise likely be quite different. The Hollywood version of the ride is set to hap a loop that circles that parks Starway escalator, but since the Florida park doesn’t have that, the environment of the coasters will be quite different. The Florida park is advertising a 170-foot vertical “spike” that hasn’t been mentioned as being part of Hollywood version.
A roller coaster is exactly the attraction that the Fast & Furious franchise has always needed. It’s one that will surely make the current franchise attraction at Universal Studios pale in comparison, which is probably why it’s going away.
Fast & Furious: Supercharged Is Closing In 2027, And It Can’t Come Soon Enough
The news of one ride opening comes alongside the news of another closing. The same year Hollywood Drift opens, the current Fast & Furious attraction, Supercharged, will close for good.
Back in 2015, Universal Studios Hollywood opened Fast & Furious Supercharged as part of the iconic Universal Studios Backlot Tour. It was a fun little activity that broke up the experience of the tour, but it was limited in the way it could make you feel like you were on a thrill ride, because you were on a tram.
This is why it was weird that three years later, Universal Studios Florida would open Supercharged as a standalone attraction. It’s always felt out of place, and it’s never been particularly popular. You had to be a pretty serious Fast & Furious fan to find much to love about it.
I’m not a huge Fast & Furious fan, and while the attraction has some technical elements that are impressive, the experience just feels like a letdown. The Team Members in the pre-show are often the most entertaining part of the experience. I won’t be sad to see this one go away.
The version at Universal Studios Hollywood closed last year, so the writing was on the wall for the Florida attraction. The current ride is far enough away from the coaster that it’s unlikely it needs to close to make room for that. This means we could be in line for another new attraction announcement next year to let us know what will replace this one.
