Some ofthe best theme park rides in the world are actually based onmovies, which provide plenty of high-flying cinematic inspiration for a whole bevy of wonderful attractions. When comparing movies and theme park rides, what immediately comes to mind arefilms based on rides, such asPirates of the Caribbean, Jungle Cruise,andHaunted Mansion.However, the reverse can be just as satisfying, especially for those who are fans of the movies they take inspiration from.
Theme park rides based on movies can come in a variety of forms. Some are traditional roller coasters purpose built for vertical thrills and adrenaline-pumping sensations of speed, whereas others are more immersive experiences, prioritizing dazzling effects that transport the rider into a beautiful movie landscape ormagical Disney locale. Whatever the case,movies have continued to be a sensational source of creativity for clever theme park engineers.
10Revenge Of The Mummy
Universal Studios
It’s easy to forget just how much of a chokeholdBrendan Fraiser’sThe Mummymovieshad on pop culture back in the early 2000s, and Revenge of the Mummy is a brilliant time capsule of that era.Appearing in the Florida, Hollywood, and Singapore locations of Universal Studios, the ride is themed around theMummyfranchise, though it breaks the fourth wall in addressing the supposed “Mummy’s Curse” said to plague real-life archaeological expeditions in Egypt. As the ride begins, riders quickly find the curse to be real as the Mummy Imhotep unleashes his wrath.
Consistently placing first in the coveted Golden Ticket awards, the ride has become almost legendary among those that love movie-based rides.
Revenge of the Mummy is a great middle ground between a thrilling traditional roller coaster and a decadent studio experience, with some surprisingly intense mummy imagery not for the faint of heart. Consistently placing first in the coveted Golden Ticket awards,the ride has become almost legendary among those that love movie-based rides.The clever false ending also provides a welcome plot twist for those going in for the first time.
9Jurassic World VelociCoaster
Universal Islands of Adventure
For the most part, rides based off of movie properties tend to be on the less intense side, allowing fans of all ages and levels of adventurousness to enjoy the festivities of their favorite franchises brought to life. One glaring exception is presented in theJurassic WorldVelociCoaster at Universal Islands of Adventure in Orlando, Florida.
Certainly not for the faint of heart, the VelociCoaster lives up to its name as a blisteringly fast thrill ride with some appreciableJurassic Worldtheming. The VelociCoaster itself is presented as an actual attraction in Jurassic World, whichallows guests to run alongside the Velociraptors themselves on a dangerous journey
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Chris Pratt’s Owen Grady warns against the idea as riders queue up heedless of his warnings, strapping in for two successive high-speed launches with linear synchronous motors that fire cars off like a railgun, quickly reaching speeds of 70 miles per hour. The ride concludes with the famous “Mosasaurus Roll”, a heartline corkscrew that flings riders over Universal Islands of Adventure’s crystal clear waters at a whopping 53 miles per hour.
8Transformers: The Ride - 3D
Despite its cheesy title and theme,Transformers: The Ride - 3Dmight just be the best thing to come out of theMichael BayTransformersmovies. A dark ride taking place within the confines of an enclosed space, dressed up as a NEST operations base,Transformers: The Ride - 3D charges guests in Universal Studios Florida, Singapore, and Beijingas new recruits sent out to work with the Autobot Evac, an original creation who doesn’t appear in the movies.
As the Decepticons attack, seeking the All-Spark, Evac and his riders must do their best to improvise among the disaster. Transformers: The Ride - 3D lives up to its subtitle, with some of the most mind-bogglingly real 4-D effects of any Universal Studios ride.
From the shearing winds of Blackout’s helicopter blades to the fiery heat and sulfuric smell of Megatron’s rockets, every danger the ride conveys is quite harrowing. It’s alsoremarkable how much personality the ride is able to give its vehicle, making it hard not to get attached to the plucky Evac. In many respects, Transformers: The Ride - 3D is better than most Transformers movies.
7Harry Potter And The Forbidden Journey
Universal Islands of Adventure and Universal Studios
When it comes to movie theming, Universal’s parks are easily most famous for the wonderful Wizarding World of Harry Potter. While the lived-in streets of Diagon Alley flowing with butterbeer might be the concept’s most famous locale,the rides are just as great for transporting guests into the world of theHarry Pottermovies themselves.
The first of them, Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey, is easily still one of the best, appearing in a multitude of Universal parks around the globe. Here, riders breach the halls of Hogwarts itself in a rare muggle intrusion, being instructed to strap in to enchanted floating benches to enjoy the magic to follow.
The whole thing is a lovely, if sporadic, avalanche of sensations that truly gives guests a front-row seat to the amazing, arcane world of Harry Potter’s films.
The ride is quite a comfortable and breezy journey thatskims some of the most famous and high-flying scenes in the movies, including brushes with quidditch players, Hungarian horntail dragons, and even deadly dementors. The whole thing is a lovely, if sporadic, avalanche of sensations that truly gives guests a front-row seat to the amazing, arcane world of Harry Potter’s films.
6Hagrid’s Magical Creatures Motorbike Adventure
It’s quite remarkable that Harry Potter was able to provide inspiration for not just one, but two of the greatest theme park rides based on a movie ever conceived. A relative newcomer to Universal’s Islands of Adventure in Orlando,Hagrid’s Magical Creatures Motorbike Adventure puts more of an emphasis on traditional roller coaster excitement, more so than immersive Wizarding World set dressing.
That being said, the ride finds a fun balance between the two that sets it apart from many other movie-based rides. For one, the motorcycle cars are incredibly unique, offering distinct experiences when in the sidecar or the main driver’s seat.
As the ride weaves through some fantastic animatroniccreatures of the Harry Potter universe, it never loses its momentum while also not being too overwhelming to guests more sensitive to motion sickness. The backwards portion and sudden unexpected drop through the floor that leaves riders on a new track altogether are also wonderfully unpredictable beats.
5Avatar: Flight Of Passage
Disney’s Animal Kingdom
Pandora: The World of Avatar was a brilliant addition to Disney’s Animal Kingdom, injecting the generic safari theme of the park with a much-needed infusion of dazzling IP. It helps that the area is topped off byone of Disney’s single best rides to date, Avatar: Flight of Passage.
A comprehensive trip through the breathtaking locales of Pandora, the ride puts guests on the back of a living, breathing Banshee, soaring through the Pandoran skies. Before even entering the ride, Disney pulls out all the stops at providing an immersive landscape of Pandoran flora and fauna, already setting the mood for the ride before strapping in.
The sheer scale of verticality conveyed and the freedom of movement the ride implies really makes one feel as though they’re plummeting through the clouds, darting in and around Pandora’s beautiful Valley of Mo’ara.The 4-D elements further sell the illusion, splashing guests with water and scouring them with gale-force windsmeant to simulate the experience of an Avatar Na’vi body.
4Guardians Of The Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind
EPCOT
EPCOT was never Disney’s park that was particularly renowned for its rides, being more noteworthy for the EPCOT Food and Wine Festival. However, that changed with Disney’s acquisition of theMarvel Cinematic Universe’s movies, opening up a whole new world of possibilities for theme park rides.
Fittingly enough, the Guardians of the Galaxy find a home in the space-age stylings of the park with the Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind ride. Rocket, Groot, Gamora, and Star-Lord all join riders on an epic journey through the furthest reaches of the MCU’s cosmic setting, introducing a few new faces along the way.
Star-Lord’s affinity for 70s music from the films is also incorporated into the ride, with several possible songs that play making for a unique experience on future rides. Comfortable, exciting, and expertly-themed,Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind has slowly become a new fan-favorite of Disney parkgoers.
3Star Wars: Rise Of Resistance
Disney World’s Galaxy’s Edge
A universe as rich with lore asStar Wars' promises no end of theme park potential for Disney World’s Galaxy’s Edge land, bristling with immersive experiences tantalizing for longtime fans.The apex of the land just might be the Star Wars: Rise of Resistance ride, which takes guests on a perilous escape from the First Order.Similar to other Disney staples like the classic Twilight Zone Tower of Terror, Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance spans multiple experience types, being at once a walk-through, a trackless dark ride, a simulator ride, and a gut-churning drop ride.
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The queue re-introduces guests to major characters from the Disney-producedStar Warssequels, guiding them through a delicate Resistance mission in which they’re instructed to meet up with General Leia Organa on the planet Pacara. From there, the First Order attacks, sending the ride intoa frenzied journey through escape pods, transports, and lifts.With impressive animatronic actors that would make Walt Disney proud and some alarmingly real battle scenes that rotate through the series' most iconic Imperial vehicles, Star Wars: Rise of Resistance isn’t a ride to miss.
2Toy Story Mania!
Disney’s Hollywood Studios, Disneyland
As great and exciting as sci-fi franchises likeStar Wars,Guardians of the Galaxy, andAvatarare, sometimes it’s the charming,family-friendly Pixar filmsthat provide the best inspiration for Disney’s “Imagineers.” Enter Toy Story Mania!, a ride based off theToy Storyseries.
Popular enough to get spots in Disney’s Hollywood Studios in Walt Disney World Resort, Disney California Adventure in Disneyland Resort, and even Tokyo DisneySea at Tokyo Disney Resort,this ride has long been a favorite of frequent Disney vacationers.At first, riders are filtered through a charming queue that resembles a version of Andy’s room that renders guests on a toy scale, with Mr. Potatohead performing to keep them entertained while waiting.
From there,the interactive ride takes guests through a carnival of various toy-themed games, in which each of a given car’s three riders is cheered for and encouraged by the film’s lovable toys as they compete against one another. Combining its uniquely interactive premise with Pixar’s magnum opus franchise, there’s little not to love about Toy Story Mania!
1Tron Lightcycle Power Run
Magic Kingdom, Shanghai Disneyland
Despite not being Disney’s most recognizable or critically-acclaimed IP,TronandTron: Legacyhave provided some brilliant ideas for theme park rides at Disney, resulting in Tron Lightcycle Power Run. Interestingly enough, this ride first debuted in Shanghai Disneyland before making its way to the states years later in Orlando’s Magic Kingdom, making it one of the few great theme park rides to be tried for popularity overseas first.
The ride allows guests to strap in for an exhilarating digital race through the digital world ofTronon the backs of the iconic lightcycles. After being “digitized” in the preshow and queue, riders board the blue light cycles to compete in a deadlyrace against other colored vehicles, each leaving behind a brilliant color-coded wall of light just like in the movies.
Reaching speeds of almost 60 miles per hour, Tron Lightcycle Power Run is quite quick for a Disney ride
Reaching speeds of almost 60 miles per hour, Tron Lightcycle Power Run is quite quick for a Disney ride, leaving guests in awe at the digital grid and close-calls among the walls of the indoor coaster. Leaving behind brilliant blue blurs of light, thismovie-based roller coaster is almost as fun to watch others ride on as it is to take on.
