Epic Universe Delayed or Canceled Due to Coronavirus

Projects in the theme park world are being scaled back across the world, and it is difficult to know the number of attractions that will never get built following the economic effects the coronavirus is having on the tourism industry.

Today we are discussing the likelihood that Universal's Epic Universe, the upcoming third theme park at Universal Orlando Resort, may never get built.

The construction on this project has been delayed not only until after the theme park closures end, but until after the economy recovers. Not to overreact, but this could legitimately be years depending on how long it is until a vaccine is discovered.

If the park is delayed that long, it is very likely that the park that gets built will look nothing like the current plans and concept art.

Economic downturns kill theme park projects in every park. The doomed Disney Decade of massive expansions to every Disney Park in the world was killed by Euro Disneyland's failure. Universal's Islands of Adventure expansion plans were undercut by 9/11.

Delaying this, unfortunately, could mean it never happens. Universal currently could really use a third park to make themselves a week-long resort like Disney. After the coronavirus, fewer people are likely to be traveling to Orlando. It may no longer be worth it to build an entirely new theme park for less people to go to.

Orlando can only support so many major theme parks. At the moment they could probably use another highly themed park on the level of Epic Universe. After COVID19 they may not.

We are going to have to wait and see but it is looking like Universal will not be seeing a third park for a longer time than we thought, and that park may not be the Epic Universe we thought we were getting.