In Comcast’s first quarterly earnings call since the opening of Epic Universe, the company said revenue at its Universal theme parks jumped by 18.9 percent compared to the same time period in 2024.
“We’re pleased with the early results as Epic is already driving higher per cap spending and attendance across the entirety of Universal Orlando Resort with strong food and merchandise sales and minimal impact on attendance at Universal Studios Florida and Islands of Adventure,” said Comcast president Mike Cavanagh.
He added that the third Universal Orlando park “is trending in line with our expectations.” Some Disney-centric bloggers, including Blog Mickey, have portrayed early attendance caps and lower crowds on some days at Epic Universe as a sign the park was failing to meet expectations on attendance.
Adjusted earnings for the theme park division were up only 4 percent year-over-year, which Cavanagh said were limited by the costs of soft-opening Epic Universe. The park didn’t officially open to the public until May 22.
Comcast CEO Brian Roberts said to analysts later in the call, “Not many companies on the planet could take the decade it took to build maybe the finest theme park in the world and we’re looking forward to doing that over time in the London area,” referencing the Universal resort in the U.K. that is now in the planning stages and tentatively scheduled for a 2031 opening.
Cavanagh said that outside Orlando, Universal’s overseas parks are performing well. But for Universal Hollywood, he said, “We do continue to experience pressure in Hollywood, and we think it will be a couple more quarters until we lap that.”