Movie Park Germany

The park originally opened under the name "Kirchhellener Märchenwald" in 1967. Märchenpark was run by the German family Allekötter. The park featured attractions consisting of huts in the woods where guests could press buttons to listen to different fairy tales.[1]

A couple named Hans and Ida Rosenberg bought the park after the 1976 season. They operated the park under the name "Traumlandpark". This became their second park, the first being the Tuddern safari park in Tüddern, Germany which they purchased from Mr. Löffelhardt and Mr. Schmidt, who sold the park so they could focus on their newest project, Phantasialand. In 1985, the Rosenbergs ran out of money and had to declare bankruptcy with the debt of €22 million.[1]

Wolf-Dieter Jahn from Essen, Germany and Alexandre Berthé from France, who had previously worked at the park, bought it in 1986 and reopened it in 1987 under the name "Neue Traumland". In 1989 they decided to sell the park to Bavaria Film, and it closed again on 31 August 1991.[1]

The park opened on 6 June 1992 under the name "Bavaria Filmpark". This park was originally scheduled to open in May 1991. The park closed in 1993 after not becoming very popular.[1]

In May 1994, Warner Bros. purchased the location, and began construction on "Warner Bros. Movie World Germany". The park had a grand opening on 29 June 1996 with 20,000 invited guests including Johannes Rau, Ernst Löchelt, August Everding, Gustava Everding, Michael Douglas, Sophia Loren, Ron Williams, Amanda Lear, David Copperfield, Claudia Schiffer, Chris O'Donnell, Hans Meiser and Heinz Hoenig as special guests.[2][3][4][5][6] The park opened to the general public on 30 June 1996.[1] Zeitgeist Design and Production's Ryan Harmon served as the Director of Show Development for Warner Bros. International Recreation Enterprises, where he conceived, wrote and managed the design team for Warner Bros. Movie World in Germany's worth of rides, shows and attractions.[7] Botticelli's - Atelier der angewandten Malerei and Sanderson Group were responsible for designing and painting the theming for the park.[8][9] Alan Griffith Architect and Alder Constructions were also involved in the park's development.[10][11]

At the end of 1999, Warner Bros. sold the park to Premier Parks (now Six Flags). Premier Parks continued to license the Warner Bros. Movie World name.[12]

In later years, large investments in bigger, faster, more action-packed attractions made Warner Bros. Movie World Germany no longer a crowd puller for families, but rather in the direction of teenagers and the young at heart. Families stayed away from the park, and many thrillseekers visited it. This, along with a decline in visitor numbers, resulted in Warner Bros. Movie World Germany being acquired by StarParks, a subsidiary of Palamon Capital Partners, on 3 April 2004, which led to the park reopening as "Movie Park Germany" on 19 March 2005, and having a grand opening on 24 March 2005, with the Warner Bros. theming removed from the park and replaced by newer themes from 20th Century Fox, MGM, and Nickelodeon.[13][14][15] Later themes included Van Helsing, AMC's The Walking Dead and Star Trek by CBS.

On 17 May 2010, Parques Reunidos bought the park from Palamon Capital Partners. No changes to the park's name or theming occurred.[16]

The park is divided up into 7 areas each with their own collection of attractions.[17]

Movie Park Germany features many live shows as well as a 4-D movie.[20]

• Nicktoons Character Show - Let's Party with the Nicktoons
• Meet the Moviecals Show - live show (2005-2007; replaced Bugs 'n Friends Rock'n Roll Party (2002-2004), Bugs 'n Friends Music Party (1996-2001))
• Crazy Cops New York - Action Stunt Show - a live action stunt show (replaced Crazy Cops - Action Stunt Show (2013-2016), Crazy Action Stunt Show (2005-2013), Police Academy Stunt Show (1996-2004))
• Meet the Stunt Crew
• Meet the TMNT (Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles)
• Street Entertainment in several areas of the park (e.g. Western Stunt Show, Character meeting, Marilyn Monroe impersonator)

The Halloween Horror Fest is an annual event around Halloween time that began in October 1998. It features over 250 scare actors and extra attractions like mazes and scarezones, as well as shows.

Current mazes (2018)

• Deathpital Reloaded (16+)
• Circus of Freaks (16+)
• Insidious 2 (16+)
• The Slaughterhouse (16+) (housed in the Cartoon Theatre show building since 2015)
• The Walking Dead Breakout (Operates the whole season, 16+)
• Campout (12+)
• Hostel (18+)
• Wrong Turn (16+)

Former mazes (1999-2014)

• Terror Train (housed in the Gremlin Invasion show building from 2002 to 2007)
• House of Horror (housed in the Cartoon Theatre show building from 2002 to 2008)
• The Dark Goldmine (housed in the Gremlin Invasion show building from 2008 to 2010)
• Infected (Former: The Walking Dead, based on the TV show The Walking Dead, 16+)
• Baboo Twister Club (12+)
• The Forgotten (16+) (housed in the Cartoon Theatre show building from 2011 to 2014)
• Noxam Nocere (housed in the Cartoon Theatre show building from 2008 to 2009)
• City Of The Damned
• Deathpital
• Panic Zone
• Paranormal Activity 2 (based on the 2010 motion picture; housed in the Cartoon Theatre show building in 2010)
• Knott's haunted Mountain (water ride with live scare actors. The attraction, now known as 'Bermuda Triangle: Alien Encounter', operates the whole season, but without scare actors)

During the HHF the Nickland theme area is a 'Monsterfreie Zone' (engl. 'monster free area') where children can stay at the park without being scared of the scare actors.

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Movie Park Germany.

• Official website
• Movie Park Germany at the Roller Coaster DataBase