BOTTROP-KIRCHHELLEN — The final scene for the 2022 season at Movie Park Germany has been shot and the results after 204 days of park operation are impressive: Germany’s largest movie and amusement park ends the year with strong visitor numbers, nearly picking up where the successful 2019 season left off.

“We are very pleased that Hollywood in Germany was able to open its studio doors as expected and as planned at the end of March. We successfully kicked off both the spring and the summer period. After the last two years of pandemic, we could clearly see an increased demand from our guests. The Halloween Horror Festival in particular brought us excellent visitor numbers,” says Managing Director Thorsten Backhaus. “The developments of our tour operator Movie Park Holidays have also been very positive. Many guests visited us for two consecutive days and booked a night in one of our more than 50 partner hotels.”

Hollywood in Germany shone in a new spotlight this year and so the guests could look forward to more Hollywood entertainment again. The popular stunt show “Crazy Cops New York – the Chameleon” celebrated its comeback at the start of the season and after a two-year break due to the corona pandemic. Starting in July, the new magic show “Sherlock Holmes – A Game of Mystery” attracted numerous guests to Studio 7. With Christian Farla, the park was able to bring a renowned and award-winning illusionist onto the stage for this act, and the eight-week show was very well received by the audience. In addition, the Plaza Show “Hooray For Hollywood”, a jet ski show and the usual street entertainment extended the offer. The Cheerleading Championship and the Cosplay Day were also able to take place again this year.

In addition, there were further novelties to discover on set: The new “Gate 1” shop, which visitors come across right after a ride with the “Movie Park Studio Tour” coaster, now offers matching merchandise for the attraction as well as Dunkin’ Donuts specialties. A new children’s playground was inaugurated at the Santa Monica Pier in summer. Investments were also made in the park’s internal infrastructure and general appearance. Beside smaller innovations, such as freshly painted facades or themed park benches, a modern site sound system and 250 new speakers were installed in the park.

Without a doubt, the big finale of the 2022 season was the 24^th Halloween Horror Festival, which began at the end of September. With 27 event days, evil in the form of zombies, monsters and other creatures knew no mercy and haunted the ominous Horrorwood Studios longer than ever before. On some event days, Halloween at Movie Park was even sold out. “Our novelties were really well received by our guests, which motivates us even more for next year,” says Halloween Project Manager Manuel Prossotowicz. “Next season, we’ll be celebrating our 25^th Halloween anniversary, which of course we’re looking forward to with excitement. We’ll again come up with some surprises to show guests the evilest side of our Horrorwood Studios.” Immediately after ticket sales started, the horror house novelty “Hell House” was already 95 percent sold out for the entire Halloween event. It particularly won over guests with its immersive experience, taking them to a mysterious lost place that revealed the origins of the Horrorwood Studios. The high-profile, new horror live show “Madhouse – Insanity Lives Here” featuring performers from all around the world, also proved so popular with guests that it recorded a 90 percent recommendation rate. Likewise, the mapping show “Horrorwood Rises” was part of the devilish attraction menu and very well received by guests. With a total of eight horror houses, three scare zones, four shows and a live DJ, as well as around 270 scare actors, this year’s Halloween Horror Festival had grown once again. On October 1, a Special Halloween Event Day was also organized in cooperation with the US initiative Haunters Against Hate to set an international example for tolerance and equality.

Finally, Hollywood in Germany said goodbye to the year 2022 with an award-winning performance: The park made it onto the winners’ podium five times in the 2022 Parkscout Audience Awards votings, finishing first place three times: The Halloween Horror Festival was honored as “Best Event,” the stunt show as “Best Show” and the Movie Park Studio Tour as “Best Family Coaster”.

The 2022 season at Movie Park Germany has now successfully ended, but already leaves guests and theme park fans with a big cliffhanger: A big new action blockbuster is already in production! Over the course of the winter, the stunt show including set and storyline will be completely redesigned and thematically further connected to the Hollywood DNA of the park. For this, the popular Folco Stunt Team will slip into new roles and move directly to the city of Los Angeles. The premiere of the new stunt show is planned until June 2023.

The gates of the Movie Park Studios will open again on March 24, 2023.

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