With three successful movies, two more on the way, a video game, and a number of spin-offs for both TV and cinema in the works, John Wick has been a hit for Lionsgate. Now, the company wants to turn its star franchise into a 10-story roller coaster for its Motiongate theme park in Dubai, Variety reports.
The “John Wick: Open Contract” ride, along with another coaster designed after the Now You See Me franchise, is due to open early next year in Dubai. Lionsgate have shared renderings of what both rides are expected to look like.
From the descriptions, it seems that most of the theming will take place in the ride queue. Riders will get to choose whether they want to help John Wick or hunt him, with each option taking them on a different route through the queueing area. It sounds like both options culminate in the same actual ride, however. The queue may end up being the best part for John Wick fans–it’s designed after the franchise’s iconic Continental Hotel.
“I think what’s going to be amazing for fans is to have the opportunity to walk through the lobby of the Continental and experience different key moments in the settings that took place in the films,” Lionsgate executive vice president Jenefer Brown said. “This attraction in particular is really about setting the story by putting people in this very immersive environment, and then you really get the action as you get on the coaster. It’s 10 stories high, so there’s definitely a level of intensity that’s befitting of the John Wick franchise that guests will experience.”
The Now You See Me coaster is named “High Roller,” and is themed after a casino, with riders getting to be a part of the protagonists’ heist as they move through the ride queue. Motiongate already has a ride themed after The Hunger Games, as well as a dance show based on the movie Step Up.
Though the rides are debuting in Dubai, Lionsgate has set its sights on other markets, with the goal to expand its roster of theme parks globally just like rivals Disney and Universal.
Motiongate Dubai is currently open, but operating at reduced capacity due to COVID-19–though restrictions may be lifted further by the time the John Wick and Now You See Me rides are scheduled to open. International fans will have to wait a bit longer to experience the Continental for themselves, however.
