If you're anything like this writer, you've no doubt seen all the clips and exciting developments from Universal's newest addition, Epic Universe. While this is certainly big news for fans of Universal Studios, it might mean some serious crowd competition for the House of Mouse.
With all the latest controversy surrounding some of the recent live-action remakes, it might be time for Disney to start funneling that money back toward the theme parks, especially since Walt Disney World has been living off Disneyland's scraps for years. While Disney has a lot of growing to do, there is one alteration they can certainly keep in mind.
The more the merrier, fixing Disney's rides
Previews for Epic Universe have been loaded with ride footage, primarily from Monsters Unchained: The Frankenstein Experiment in Dark Universe, and the Ministry of Magic attraction. While these rides all look incredible, they have one thing in common that could significantly cut down on wait times.
As pointed out by @walruscarp on TikTok, one of the stand-out features of the ride is its large capacity. With reportedly nine trains hosting eight people on a ride that seems to be constantly in motion (similar to Disney's Haunted Mansion) this will undoubtedly devour crowds.
While no official specs from Universal could be found at the time of writing, it does bring up something Disney should pay attention to. Disney not only needs more gripping attractions, but ones that can hold more people as well.
According to the Disney Food Blog, some of the highest-capacity rides include fixtures like the People Mover (transporting guests at 4,600 people per hour) and both Haunted Mansion and Pirates of the Caribbean run at 3,200 people per hour. Although these are classic rides, Disney needs to step things up if it truly wants to compete with Universal.
With new additions coming to both Magic Kingdom and Hollywood Studios in the form of a Disney Villain expansion and a Monsters Inc. area, Disney truly needs to expand its horizons. In a perfect world, this would mean a fifth park in the mix, but it doesn't seem like that will be the company's endgame.
Additionally, while Epic Universe certainly LOOKS good, that doesn't mean it will be 100% successful during its opening runs. Summer is just around the corner, and anything can happen once those vacation crowds turn the place into an absolute swamp of people.
In this writer's opinion, Disney knows how to handle its crowds much better than Universal, and that's Epic's Achilles heel. However, if rides like those previously mentioned can truly eat through guests in a large enough quantity, things might be crumbling at the Magic Kingdom.
Epic Universe officially opens on May 22, 2025.