Hollywood Dream: The Ride opened on March 9, 2007, as the first major roller coaster built for Universal Studios Japan in Osaka. Manufactured by Bolliger & Mabillard, the $50 million attraction helped drive a sharp jump in park attendance and net income during its debut year, cementing its place as one of the resort’s signature thrill rides.
What sets Hollywood Dream apart from other B&M sit-down coasters is its onboard sound system: each of the five trains carries 36 riders who select one of five songs from a control panel before launch, with LED lighting synced to the chosen track. Since 2013, Universal Studios Japan has also run Hollywood Dream – The Ride – Backdrop, which sends trains over the exact same track layout but with riders facing backward, turning a familiar course into an unpredictable one.
Stats at a Glance
- Park: Universal Studios Japan
- Manufacturer: Bolliger & Mabillard
- Opened: March 9, 2007
- Height: about 144 ft (44 m)
- Top speed: about 56 mph (90 km/h)
- Length: about 3,900 ft (1,200 m)
- Inversions: 0
The Ride Experience
Riders climb a chain lift before a roughly 141-foot first drop, then wind through a layout with a maximum vertical angle near 50 degrees at speeds up to 56 mph, lasting about two and a half minutes per lap. Because the coaster carries no inversions, the ride leans on sustained speed and airtime moments across its long, sprawling circuit rather than loops or corkscrews.
The defining feature remains the Dream Tracks sound system, letting each rider pick their own soundtrack for the run, similar in concept to Hollywood Rip Ride Rockit at Universal Orlando. During seasonal events, such as the annual One Piece Premier Summer campaign, the audio menu has swapped in limited-time story tracks tied to the anime crossover.
A Park Milestone
As Universal Studios Japan’s first headline coaster, Hollywood Dream was central to the park’s early 2000s push to diversify beyond movie-based dark rides and boost repeat visitation. Introduced in March 2013, the Backdrop mode proved popular enough that Universal kept it in rotation as a recurring offering, running the same physical track as the standard layout but with riders seated facing the rear, so the drops and turns arrive without warning.
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Hollywood Dream: The Ride FAQs
Who manufactured Hollywood Dream: The Ride?
Bolliger & Mabillard, the Swiss firm known for B&M coasters worldwide, built Hollywood Dream: The Ride, which opened at Universal Studios Japan on March 9, 2007.
Does Hollywood Dream: The Ride have any inversions?
No. It is a non-inverting B&M sit-down coaster that focuses on height, speed, and its rider-selectable soundtrack rather than loops or corkscrews.
What is Hollywood Dream – The Ride – Backdrop?
It’s a rider-backward mode introduced in 2013 that runs on the exact same track layout as the standard ride, not a separate course, so guests experience the same drops and turns in reverse and without warning.
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Photo: Jeremy Thompson from United States of America / CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.