Ode to Poseidon’s Fury

Poseidon’s Fury debuted at Islands of Adventure on opening day 1999 and adjusted into its current form in 2001. As guests step inside the temple, they follow their unsuspecting guide, Taylor, into an epic battle between the Greek god Poseidon and an ominous villain, Lord Darkennon.

Poseidon’s Kitsch

Poseidon’s Fury is, by and large, woefully outdated, but it’s also wonderfully outdated. The screens’ graphics recall PlayStation 2, the slow pace of the script embodies a bygone era when guests’ attention spans were much longer, and the lasers seem to scream, “Look at me! I’m a laser! Isn’t that neat?” It’s wildly kitschy, but that’s part of what gives it its charm. For some guests, this is a turn-off; for others, it’s a hidden gem, and a glorious way to spend 20 minutes.

Real talk: Poseidon’s Fury was an acquired taste for me. My first journey through the temple felt underwhelming. On a repeat visit, when I knew what to expect — an interesting but slow-paced story with special effects that were perhaps past their prime — I could appreciate the attraction for what it is, rather than what I thought it would be.

Over the past two decades, other classic headliners throughout Islands of Adventure have been rebuilt from scratch (The Incredible Hulk), reimagined with new tech (The Amazing Adventures of Spider-Man), or reinvigorated by a new neighboring attraction (Jurassic Park). Poseidon’s Fury has… not. Despite the retro appeal the attraction might hold for some guests, if Universal isn’t going to upgrade everything that makes Poseidon’s feel dated, its closure makes sense.

Poseidon’s Showstoppers

A few highlights of Poseidon’s Fury are unironically magnificent. First up, let’s talk about the attraction’s facade. I mean… come on! This is how you do it. The massive entrance into the temple immediately intrigues passersby and delicately lays out hints of its story through architectural details. Furthermore, its sheer scale and depth is just downright impressive. In an era when many modern attractions attempt to conceal their show building with a coat of paint intended to match the sky, the facade of Poseidon’s Fury remains a standard-setter of the industry. 10/10, no notes.

Then there’s the water tunnel. Oh, the water tunnel. The walkway leading into the attraction’s final room is a swirling vortex of rushing water. It’s an incredible, genuinely breathtaking effect that even the most steadfast Poseidon hater can appreciate.

A lasting jaw-dropping moment in Poseidon’s Fury comes when the final room transforms. What appears to be a small corridor blasts away its walls to become a huge cavern filled with rocks, fire, and waterfalls.

Poseidon’s Uniqueness

On its website, Universal Orlando describes Poseidon’s Fury as “an explosive undersea adventure.” For most attractions at Islands of Adventure, such a description would be reserved for a thrill ride, simulator, or roller coaster. Not so with Poseidon’s Fury.

While the storyline of Poseidon’s Fury captures the same hyperbolic peril of most Universal attractions, the attraction itself doesn’t match the story’s extremity. This is an intense, rollicking narrative that guests experience in a way that’s anything but intense or rollicking.

This makes Poseidon’s Fury decidedly unique among Orlando’s theme park portfolio. Outside Halloween Horror Nights, there’s not really any comparison of an indoor walk-through attraction with a narrative. You could maybe make a case for the ride-less version of SeaWorld Orlando’s Empire of the Penguin falling into this category. Additionally, the ill-remembered Legend of Jack Sparrow at Disney’s Hollywood Studios tried its darndest to impress guests with a walk-through experience (to no avail). Neither of these attractions, though, are as fleshed out as Poseidon’s Fury.

It’s hard to imagine Universal building something like Poseidon’s Fury today. That being said, their next major attraction shares a few things in common. In the new Villain-Con Minion Blast, opening summer 2023 at Universal Studios Florida, guests will stand on a moving walkway rather than sit in a ride vehicle. While it’s not quite the same as Poseidon’s walk-through experience, it bears a resemblance to Poseidon’s nontraditional way of funneling guests through a space.

Poseidon’s Home

Poseidon’s Fury makes its home in The Lost Continent area of the park. In May 1999 when Islands of Adventure opened, the Orlando Sentinel proclaimed The Lost Continent “probably has more variety than any of this park’s other islands.” When the park was still in development, the Sentinel wrote with anticipation about The Lost Continent’s background music. The publication said the soundtrack “conjures up mythical themes through the ancient instruments of several cultures.”

The Lost Continent previously commanded a larger footprint than its current real estate. The land formerly extended its borders into what is now The Wizarding World of Harry Potter – Hogsmeade. In this part of The Lost Continent, guests could experience the Dueling Dragons roller coaster (an opening-day attraction) and the Flying Unicorn kiddie coaster, which opened in 2000.

In 2010 when The Wizarding World re-imagined this space, Dueling Dragons became Dragon Challenge and Flying Unicorn became Flight of the Hippogriff, each with appropriate Potter theming. Dragon Challenge permanently closed in 2017 to make way for Hagrid’s Magical Creatures Motorbike Adventure, but Flight of the Hippogriff remains operating today, a remnant of Lost Continent history.

Over time, other elements of The Lost Continent slowly slipped away. In 2018, “The Eighth Voyage of Sindbad” stunt show permanently closed, and its sheltered, open-air theater remains standing and dormant today. Universal has occasionally utilized The Lost Continent for character greetings (like She-Ra from Netflix’s “She-Ra and the Princesses of Power”), but no new attractions have debuted in the area in over 20 years. With Poseidon’s Fury taking its final bow, The Lost Continent only boasts the acclaimed Mythos restaurant and some shops as the final remnants of its former self.

Poseidon’s Future

What’s replacing Poseidon’s Fury? For now, the jury’s out. In replying to inquiring fans on Twitter, Universal only said “exciting new experiences for our guests” are on the way.

If history is any indication, we may not hear anything for a while. Even after a former attraction closes, it can be months or years before Universal announces what’s going in its place. For example, Universal only revealed this summer’s Minion Blast last December, nearly a year after the attraction’s predecessor, Shrek 4-D, closed. Similarly, KidZone shuttered in early 2023 and Universal has yet to share its plans for the space at the time of this writing, despite ongoing construction. (This approach is fascinatingly different than Disney’s. Imagineering announced Tiana’s Bayou Adventure in 2020, over four years before the attraction opens in late 2024 at Magic Kingdom and Disneyland).

Looking at the official map for Islands of Adventure, there’s a lot of space for whatever Universal has in store for Poseidon’s Fury, or The Lost Continent at large. In the illustrated map below, Poseidon’s Fury is 24 and Mythos is T. You can see how Jurassic Park and Hogsmeade connect to the land nearby.

The unmarked building next to the Hogwarts Express station in the top right corner is the former Sindbad theater. The combined space of Sindbad and Poseidon’s Fury is an enormous plot to build something new. That being said, even when only evaluating the area that Poseidon’s Fury occupies, there’s still quite a bit of room to imagine new adventures for the future.

Poseidon’s Legacy

Whatever becomes of Poseidon’s Fury, Islands of Adventure is about to lose a one-of-a-kind attraction whose place in the park’s history will be remembered colorfully. In the coming days as it welcomes its final guests, Poseidon’s parting words in the finale hit different: “It is done.”