Universal theme parks parent company Comcast released their third-quarter financial results today, and though mush of the discussion revolved around other developments, we did get a little bit of news about how the theme park business is going right now at Universal.
As expected, revenue for the most recent quarter related to this segment is down 80.9% to $311 Million and year to date is down 71% to $1.267 Billion. Of course, this is expected due to low capacity at Universal Orlando Resort and Universal Studios Japan, and of course the ongoing shutdown of Universal Studios Hollywood, which has been closed since March with no reopening in sight due to California’s theme park opening restrictions.
Unfortunately, there has been no mention of Universal’s Epic Universe which was supposed to ramp up construction this year, but has largely stalled due to COVID-19. Right now the last official word that we got on the future of this park was that it was delayed, but many have wondered if this project may have been shelved indefinitely considering current conditions. And with no official update it looks like we’ll have to just keep speculating about what is going on with this expansion for now.
Though the future of Universal’s Epic Universe is still in limbo, Comcast has confirmed that things are starting to look up for their theme park division, and they are expecting to hit a break even point in 2021, even if Universal Studios Hollywood remains shuttered due to restrictions in California. And though attendance, revenue, etc. are all down significantly year over year, with current difficulties breaking even might be the best that not just Universal, but any theme park group can hope for in the age of COVID-19.
