Banana! Universal Villain-Con Minion Blast ride construction update
The Universal Orlando Resort is in the middle of a flurry of upcoming projects, from an annual passholder lounge to an all-new theme park. But the next ride to open? That would be Villain-Con Minion Blast at Universal Studios Florida.
Universal Studios Florida is not only getting a new first-of-its-kind attraction with Villain-Con Minion Blast, it’s going to be part of a new Minion Land with a new Minions Café too.
Villain-Con Minion Blast construction appears nearly complete
At the top of the attraction’s soundstage, you can see the building is now named Soundstage V (for villains). The main billboard style posters are already up, featuring Scarlet Overkill, El Macho, Balthazar Brat (Bratt), and the iconic Victor Perkins (Vector).
The attraction is scheduled to open summer of 2023, and is still behind walls, but Universal is also known for subtle openings.
It appears the Villain-Con Minion Blast ride entrance signage is complete and we assume the exterior posters are all now installed. If so, behind these construction walls could lurk a nearly complete ride, which according to Universal, will be an all-new experience.
The 2015 “Minions” film featured Orlando
Before Villains-Con Minion Blast was ever announced, the Minions visited Orlando for Villain-Con in the 2015 animated film, “Minions.” Therefore, it makes perfect sense for this Universal Orlando Villain-Con Minion Blast ride to make its way to Florida.
Villain-Con Minion Blast will be an all-new type of ride
The Villain-Con Minion Blast attraction will combine screen technology, gaming interactivity, and elaborate physical sets to create a game-based adventure where guests will face familiar villains and tons of mischievous Minions from Illumination’s films in a whole new way.
Guests who are up for the challenge will grab an interactive blaster and step onto a motion-based pathway to put their skills to the test. They’ll wind and glide through various scenes where they earn points by blasting a variety of items and causing as much mayhem and destruction as possible.
A fun detail is the signage for the two merchandise shops. Super Silly Stuff on the left; Evil Stuff on the right. That structure with blue coverings in the background is the upcoming Minion Café.
Upcoming Minion Café
Previously just the Despicable Me Minion Mayhem ride, this section of Universal Studios Florida will soon become a Minions land featuring two rides, merchandise shops, and a Minion Café.
There hasn’t been much announced about this café, but rumors suggest it will be a character dining location, complete with a buffet. Universal currently has Marvel character dining at Universal Islands of Adventure.
It would make sense for Universal Orlando Resort’s original theme park to have its own character dining, especially with characters as popular as the Minions. This dining location could also possibly offer characters like Gru, Vector, Margo, Edith, and Agnes, especially since we saw all these characters in the now retired Universal’s Superstar Parade.
As you can see above, brickwork is underway for this upcoming dining location. An opening date for the Minion Café has not yet been announced, but we assume it will open after Villain-Con Minion Blast.
There is a temporary “The Super Mario Bros. Movie” photo op in the park, near this section of Minion Café that is sticking above the construction barriers. This upcoming eatery used to the Universal Studios’ Classic Monsters Cafe (full interior tour at the link).
Minion Land construction changes the park
With the construction progress of the new Universal Orlando Villian-Con Minion Blast ride and Minion Café has come a new, very vibrant paint job for Transformers: The Ride – 3D. We do not yet know if more will be added to this backdrop.
It can be assumed that a new backdrop will be painted onto this now bright blue facade. Perhaps we’ll see cartoon looking clouds or part of Super Silly Fun Land. There is also a lot more to be done for the exterior of this café. Only time will tell as we wait to see this new eatery in the park.
Alicia Stella caught an important bit of the construction efforts, aligning this portion of work with rumors for a Bake My Day dessert shop.
As stated, the Universal Orlando Resort is currently undergoing many projects, from this Universal Studios Florida Villain-Con Minion Blast ride and Minion Café, to the Universal Islands of Adventure Annual Passholder Lounge and upcoming projects at Lost Continent, to the absolutely massive Universal Epic Universe theme park project.
