Wrestlemania 33 is in Orlando this weekend with the theme of 'The ultimate thrill ride' and a set that looks very much like universal studios; New Look at the Wrestlemania Set
Do you think its right to assume that there is a behind the scenes agreement between the two to use the likeness?
If so, who would be paying who for the honor?
Tweet
Thanks for that insight Will! Robert, do you have any extra thoughts on this?
Having been to a couple of Wrestlmanias myself, including one in Orlando, I can confirm that it is a HUGE deal, even if people make fun of or scoff at professional wrestling. The WWE sells event packages around the globe, and fans flock to the host city from all over not only for the main event on Sunday night, but lots of other events that occur throughout the week. There's the WWE Hall of Fame induction ceremony that occurs the night before, there are numerous appearances and a fan festival that take place throughout the week leading up to Sunday night, and it all culminates with Monday Night Raw the evening following the PPV.
Something not mentioned above that further links Wrestlemania to theme parks is the WWE's use of high definition projection during last night's event (in the middle of a match on the ring), just like what Disney does on their Castle shows, Fantasmic!, and World of Color.
The WWE obviously wanted to link their marquee event to the theme park industry (not one specific park though), and I wouldn't be surprised if the event returns to Orlando in the future. This is the 2nd Wrestlemania to be staged at Camping World Stadium (formerly known as the Citrus Bowl) in the past 10 years, and the WWE has been considering Orlando as a potential physical home for their Hall of Fame.
Thanks Russell,
It was interesting to see that they featured Jimmy Fallon in the crowd, mentioning that he was in Orlando to try out his new ride at Universal Studios
This discussion has been archived and is no longer accepting responses.
I don't think there's an official deal in place but the Wrestemania set admittedly does appear to be somewhat inspired by Universal. This is probably more coincidence than anything though WWE and Universal are contractually connected already as WWE's television shows all air on NBC Universal networks and have for the past several decades with the exception of one, five year period. so who knows.
It's disappointing the Wrestlemania festivities haven't received more coverage on this and other sites that cover the theme park industry in Orlando. I remember an article about how having the NFL Pro Bowl in Orlando would effect tourism and Wrestlemania is a much larger event that brings in significantly more people from around the world to the host city. In fact, the bidding process to host Wrestlemania now rivals that of the Super Bowl as its such a boom for the local economy. I'm curious how the event and its week-long festivities have impacted attendance and revenue at the parks.