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Friday, Mar 29, 2024

NBC Universal Synergy Seen in New Attraction

Be afraid. Be very afraid. NBC’s reality television show “Fear Factor” is being turned into a “Fear Factor Live” attraction, slated to open at Universal Studios Hollywood in early June. “Fear Factor Live” will mark the first time a reality show has been turned into a theme park attraction. The attraction is one of the first synergies from a deal completed last May, that formed NBC Universal by combining the assets of NBC, part of General Electric, with those of Vivendi Universal. NBC Universal is 80 percent owned by General Electric and 20 percent owned by Vivendi. Much like the reality show, the willing participants, who have to audition for a spot, will compete against each other in a series of contests designed to see who has the least amount of fear. The attraction bills itself as “taking guests out of their comfort zones and placing them in unfamiliar territory as it preys on basic human fears.” Accordingly, it will feature contestants withstanding electric shocks, swimming past slithering eels in a giant water tank, consuming chocolate-covered insects and being swarmed by a box filled with emperor scorpions. Each “Fear Factor Live” performance will involve the participation of up to 18 guests with as many as 144 guests participating on a daily basis. Universal Studios hopes that this will produce a vastly different viewing experience every time. John Murdy, the creative director for Universal Studios Hollywood, maintains that the attraction is one more in a long line of Universal Studios attractions being created out of television shows and films. “Universal Studios regularly introduces new attractions based on popular movie and television productions. As a theme park designed to offer our guests a behind the scenes look at the many aspects of the Hollywood entertainment industry, ‘Fear Factor Live’ is a natural fit,” Murdy said. “It will showcase the complexities of the reality television show on which it is based and immerse our guests in the process, from audition to participation.” John Robinett, the senior vice-president of Los Angeles-based Economics Research Associates, an entertainment leisure and consulting firm, believes that the potential for converting reality shows into theme park attractions is relatively limited. “Quite a few of the reality shows will be tough to turn into an attraction. Fear Factor is one that you can. It will depend on the nature of forthcoming reality shows and how convertible they are,” Robinett said. “The film business has clearly produced a lot of content that’s fairly easy to convert and Universal has probably been the best operator in terms of converting film property into attractions. They have a very strong track record. We’ll have to see how it pans out.” While one shouldn’t expect a “Bachelor” reality theme show attraction any time soon, Murdy hints that the company is considering other reality options. “We are continually exploring ways in which to integrate various movie and television productions into the theme park and will entertain all opportunities that make sense,” Murdy said. “Fear Factor Live builds upon the phenomenon of reality television and gives our guests an opportunity to participate in one of the genre’s most popular shows.” One can only speculate whether or not the attraction will be a success but Robinett gives credit to NBC Universal for rapidly capitalizing on natural synergies between the two companies. “There’s always this hope that when you combine a media company with a theme park, there will be some synergies. This is an early example of the deal between NBC and Universal,” Robinett said. “Kudos to them for pulling this off so fast. Sometimes the expectation for the synergies is higher than the synergy themselves. It’s a good sign that they have turned it around so quickly.”

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