Plans for a US$750m (€707m, £590m) Lionsgate theme park in Georgia, US, have collapsed after the project team failed to finance the multi-million dollar attraction.
First announced in March last year, the 700-acre (2.8sq km) Avatron development at Lake Allatoona near Atlanta has been put on hold "indefinitely”, according to the developers.
The plan had been to license Lionsgate IPs including
The Hunger Games,
Step Up,
Divergent,
Twilight and
Now You See Me, with an opening date of 2019. The park proposal would have included rollercoasters and other rides based on the brands, with
The Hunger Games – filmed primarily in Atlanta – anchoring the development.
A technology-driven experience was planned for the park, with promises of a 3D avatar to accompany each guest and immersive and interactive experiences including 3D video, motion capture, 4D sensory technologies, holograms, and augmented reality. Interactivity with RFID wristbands and Kinect sensors was also touted to “transform reality into an intriguing quest of characters, folklore and legends.”
“One of our key partners had to suspend its participation,” said a statement from Avatron CEO David Garrett III, indicating financing the project was the main stumbling block.
“While many would encourage us to look at this as simply a timing situation, we are of the shared belief that no more time can be given or pushed back. Therefore, the Avatron project is being placed on hold indefinitely.”
The failed project
was part of Lionsgate’s plan to gain a stronger footing in the theme park market by licensing the
Hunger Games and its other film franchises to under-development theme parks. These include a 22,000sq m (236,800sq ft) entertainment centre in Macau,
the upcoming Motiongate Dubai and the seemingly failed Georgia project.
