An “Alien vs. Predator” theme park land was almost constructed in Malaysia, but Disney forced the project to be canceled.
‘Alien vs. Predator’ Theme Park Land
Background
The “Alien vs. Predator” land was supposed to be part of 20th Century Fox World. The theme park was announced in 2015 but after a legal battle with Disney (which officially acquired Fox in 2019), the park’s name was changed and the “Alien” land was rethemed. In 2022, the park, now known as Genting SkyWorlds, finally opened in Pahang, Malaysia.
The “Alien vs. Predator” land would have included multiple rides and a Nostromo-themed restaurant. Previously, “Alien” was represented in The Great Movie Ride at Disney’s Hollywood Studios in Walt Disney World. The franchise has also been featured at Universal Studios’ Halloween Horror Nights. However, the Genting SkyWorlds project would have given the movies the most theme park attention they’ve ever received.
AVP Galaxy has uncovered details and concept art of the canceled “Alien vs. Predator” land, including its E-ticket dark ride/coaster attraction.
AvP: Descent Into Darkness
AvP: Descent Into Darkness was to be manufactured by Dynamic Attractions. It was an “SFX” coaster made of practical set elements and screens, similar to Revenge of the Mummy or Harry Potter and the Escape From Gringotts at Universal Orlando Resort.
As seen in the ride layout, AvP: Descent Into Darkness would have included three new coaster elements. AVP Galaxy refers to them as the “Tumble Table”, the “Tilt ‘n’ Drop”, and the “Side Slide.” It also would have included a vertical drop and an outside section.
In addition to concept art and 3D renderings, AVP Galaxy also shared photos of partially completed elements of the attraction, showing how far along it was until Disney shut the land down. Alien animatronics, ride vehicles, and scenery were all under construction.
According to AVP Galaxy’s sources who worked on the ride, guests would have entered an “off-world Weyland-Yutani mining and terraforming installation” — actually a front for the company’s search for Aliens. During their search, the company discovered a Predator pyramid, which would serve as the main setting of “AvP: Descent Into Darkness.”
To get to the ride, guests would go through two separate queues. Queue A is described by AVP Galaxy as follows:
The threshold to Queue A is on an entrance passageway where guests are greeted to the WY Mining Facility, and this is divided into two lanes – Guests and an Express lane.
Themed as an industrial space, metal panels line both walls and ceiling, and the floor is ‘well-worn’ polished concrete. A row of ride columns puncture through the ceiling on one side of the queue.
Guests would then make their way into a second queue, referred to as “Queue B” by AVP Galaxy.
The ‘bio-lab,’ a clean space environment continues with the look and feel of Queue A. Both Express and Guest lanes lead through this space, finally passing by a specimen table with dissected facehuggers and a second table features facehuggers in ‘high-tech’ specimen jars. Here, there will be 2 monitors that feature grainy CCTV footage of the communications scientist conducting his check-in to the comms center/cab looking for fellow miners and technicians in another mine location. In addition, the monitors will feature stats and maps, mining activity, x-rays of specimens and corresponding bio read-outs.
Guests would then board a Weyland-Yutani vehicle for an expedition inside the pyramid. The ride vehicles were originnally supposed to have drills attached to the front. This was eventually scrapped and after a few different designs, the vehicles turned out like the one in the image on the right.
As the ride vehicle moves into the pyramid, special effects and dowm screens would give the illusion that the ride walls were moving. The track would then rotate “into position using the Tumble Table effect.” As Xenomorphs came through the walls, the vehicle would launch.
After blasting through the darkness, riders would stop in front of another dome screen, then lean forward thanks to the “Tilt ‘n’ Drop” element. Peering down into a “sacrificial chamber” riders would see facehuggers as they burst from their eggs. The track would tilt backward and riders would see an animatronic Xenomorph in a hole in the ceiling. That’s when the vehicle would move backward onto a new track section.
After intense twists and turns, riders would find themselves face-to-face with the animatronic Alien Queen.
Though hope seems lost, guests are saved just in time by plasma fire, and they escape via the “Side Slide.” At the end of the slide, they’d see the Predator who saved them with the plasma.
Riders would then experience their second launch, as they shoot outside, then re-enter the building.
The ride would end with the Predator, overwhelmed by Xenomorphs, setting off a self-destruct device. Guests would drop into the final scene where they’d be rescued by humans.
Watch a full animation of the ride experience below:
One of AVP Galaxy’s sources said the following:
It was a truly innovative coaster that fit the storyline of the IP perfectly. It would have been an extraordinary experience that would have thrilled roller coaster enthusiasts and AVP fans alike.
Guests would exit into a gift shop that featured a statue of a Predator and Xenomorph fighting
The AVP land ultimately became Andromeda Base. The SFX coaster is still under construction with the name, “Descent into Darkness.” However, Dynamic Attractions was forced to declare bankruptcy, so the opening date for the attraction is unknown.
Alien Terrorforma
The land’s second major attraction was an elevator drop ride. While the ride is currently open, all “Aliens” theming has been removed. Watch a video of the final version below.
In the “Aliens” version of the ride’s narrative, guests were Weyland-Yutani VIPs touring the terraforming tower. A WY representative named Zara welcomed guests to the location and explained the purpose of their tour.
Guests were brought into a holding area where they would board the attraction and be take up the terraforming tower, which was above a drill.
After the doors closed, screens would show a WY technician preparing guests for the launch. Then something would go wrong and guests would drop into a chamber of Xenomorph eggs. A platform below the elevator would open, causing the vehicle to slowly descend into a chamber full of Xenomorph eggs.
The elevator would then shoot to the top of the tower and the ride would progress the way most drop rides do until concluding.
The final statement from the technician is reported to have been:
We hope you’ve enjoyed your visit to Weyland-Yutani and remember… together we can discover many vast wonders, bringing high profitability to the admiration of Earth.
Even though none of the “Aliens” theming made the final attraction, the Xenomorph eggs, figures, and other props were completed. They have since been removed, but you can see them in the photo below thanks to AVP Galaxy.
See a behind-the-scenes video of Alien Terrorforma below.
Colonial Marine Outpost
The land’s story was to include United States Marines. There were also to be two rides in the land: Colonial Fighter Pilots and Marine Boot Camp Challenge. The spinning attraction and the ropes course and zipline attraction ultimately opened as Alpha Fighter Pilots and Boot Camp Training.
More ‘Alien vs. Predator’ Land Theming
To enter the land, guests would have gone through a tunnel and a chamber of Space Jockey ship. They would have been greeted by numerous alien eggs.
The Nostromo-inspired restaurant resembled a greenhouse or hydroponics lab, with plants hanging from the ceiling.
A Prometheus roller coaster was also drawn up during the early phases of the land’s development. It has not been built at this time.
Check out more artwork on avpgalaxy.net. Do you wish the “Alien vs. Predator” land had come to be? Let us know in the comments.
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