On the immersive coaster that debuts at The Wizarding World of Harry Potter on June 13, riders will come face-to-face with the Hogwarts gamekeeper as he tries to contain his Blast-Ended Skrewt.
Universal Creative, the team behind the theme park’s rides and attractions spent “thousands of hours” to create the animated figure and even enlisted the help of Robbie Coltrane, the actor who plays the Care of Magical Creatures professor. According to Universal, the animatronic features:
– An extensive motion profile of 24 different body movements and facial expressions, mimicking Robbie Coltrane’s exact motions as Hagrid from the Harry Potter film series
– A digital scan of Robbie Coltrane’s mouth was used to create Hagrid’s teeth
Hagrid’s entire face was meticulously sculpted by hand
– Hagrid’s costume was designed by the same team that created his on-screen wardrobe
– Robbie Coltrane recorded a custom script for Hagrid in this new adventure
– And the height of the animated figure is 7 feet 6 inches tall – exactly proportional to Hagrid in the Harry Potter film series.
“Hagrid is such an iconic character and an integral part of the Harry Potter franchise, so we were excited to develop a truly innovative and authentic animated figure to bring him to life for this experience,” said Thierry Coup, Universal Creative’s senior vice president, in a statement. “We worked tirelessly to make sure Hagrid’s full essence was captured with the utmost attention to detail for our guests to feel completely immersed in this all-new adventure.”
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This article appears in May 1-7, 2019.