JenM
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Apr 23, 2007
- Messages
- 2,275
I was thinking the same thing. Not knowing anything about Harry Potter I assumed it was geared more towards a male demographic. And if that is the case, Disney is taking a real gamble saturating the park with Princesses and Fairies right now.
Harry Potter has a huge female fanbase to (me, for one). Honestly, with kids I would say it was equally popular with both boys and girls.
I saw the 5th movie on opening night, and one of the funniest parts of the night was being behind a group of 10/11-year-old girls dressed in Hogwarts robes raving to the point of hysteria about the movie and the final book, which was due out in a week. The funniest part was watching one of them finally exclaim "I WISH I HAD A TIME TURNER SO I COULD JUST GET THE BOOK NOW!!!"

We thought these girls came to the movies together - no, they met on the line. And they were all telling each other what HP stuff they had at home...which says something about the merchandising as well, considering that stuff is currently flying off the shelves at IOA.
If this is true and Disney is rethinking this Fantasyland expansion (and I hope it's true), I've got to be thinking they want something that will be as successful in merchandise sales as much as a theme park experience. If the Fairies franchise has peaked, or only appeals to certain demo, it's definitely worth rethinking for something better.