If you take the Fast and Furious films and a rollercoaster and smash the together you get something that promises to be a high octane adventure in Fast & Furious Hollywood Drift.
Fast & Furious: Hollywood Drift is the huge new rollercoaster coming to Universal Studios Hollywood, and we now know exactly when we’ll be able to ride it. The attraction officially opens in September 2026, bringing a 72mph, 360-degree drifting rollercoaster to the Hollywood theme park.
Hollywood Drift will be Universal Studios Hollywood’s first outdoor high-speed rollercoaster and Universal says it will be the fastest coaster across its entire global theme park portfolio. It blows my mind that Universal Studios Hollywood doesn’t have a rollercoaster. I’ve been lucky enough to visit Orlando lots of times and there are so many there. Having never been to LA this whole thing about it being the first AND the fastest in their whole collection, is blowing my mind.
When does Fast & Furious: Hollywood Drift open?
Fast & Furious: Hollywood Drift opens at Universal Studios Hollywood on Wednesday 16 September 2026. The new attraction arrives during the 25th anniversary year of the Fast & Furious franchise. This isn’t the first Fast and Furious ride. I rode the Orlando ride and I have to say that while it was fun, it wasn’t the best ride ever. It had some clever tech and a great idea but it wasn’t perfect. This new Fast and Furious rollercoaster is nothing like what came before it.
How fast is Fast & Furious: Hollywood Drift?
Very. Fast & Furious: Hollywood Drift reaches speeds of up to 72mph, with riders experiencing forces of up to 3.6Gs. The coaster has 4,100 feet of track and four separate launches, taking riders over and under sections of Universal Studios Hollywood’s famous Starway escalators. Along the way there’s an inverted dive loop, twisted pretzel loop and an inverted stall. Which all sounds completely insane.
Does Fast & Furious: Hollywood Drift spin?
This is where things get particularly interesting. The individual ride vehicles can rotate 360 degrees while travelling around the track, with the movement designed to recreate the feeling of a car drifting. Rather than a normal rollercoaster carriage, you’ll be sitting inside a Fast & Furious-inspired car that can turn independently as you race around the course. To ramp it up even more, the movements of the individual vehicles are independently programmed, meaning your experience varies depending on which one you’re sitting in. That’s a good excuse to immediately get back in the queue. I have no idea how this is going to work but I imagine it will be similar to Curse of the Werewolf at Universal Epic Universe but that is a mild family-level spinning roller coaster with a top speed of 37 mph and zero inversions so this is going to be so much more intense.
Which cars are on the Fast & Furious Hollywood Drift ride?
Fans of the films should recognise these. Each train features four ride vehicles inspired by iconic cars from the Fast & Furious franchise: the Dodge Charger, Mazda RX-7, Nissan Skyline GT-R and Toyota Supra. The vehicles even have independent audio systems, with engine noises and effects designed specifically around the car you’re riding in. It’s all very Fast & Furious.
What is the Fast & Furious: Hollywood Drift queue like?
Universal, as ever, have realised that if we’re going to spend part of our holiday standing in a theme park queue, we might as well have something interesting to look at. A section of the actual coaster track races through a transparent enclosed section of the queue, meaning riders will come flying past while you’re waiting. There will also be recreations of props from the films, including the vault truck from Fast Five, Letty Ortiz’s motorcycle from F9 and the Ramp Car from Fast & Furious 6. Two huge murals from artist Tristan Eaton feature too, including one inspired by the final street race between the Dodge Charger and Toyota Supra in the original 2001 film.
Where is Fast & Furious: Hollywood Drift at Universal Studios Hollywood?
The new coaster is being built on the Upper Lot at Universal Studios Hollywood. The location is one of the things that makes Hollywood Drift particularly interesting. Universal Studios Hollywood is built into a hillside alongside a working movie studio in Los Angeles, meaning there isn’t endless space available for a sprawling rollercoaster. Instead, Universal Creative has used the terrain as part of the attraction. The track stretches across the hillside, with views across the San Fernando Valley, Universal’s movie studio and the theme park itself.
Do you need a locker for Fast & Furious: Hollywood Drift?
Yes, and this is definitely worth knowing before you join the queue. Because of the speed and forces involved, loose belongings including mobile phones will need to be stored in complimentary lockers provided within the queue. Universal do this on a lot of rides and it always works to well and is really seamless. Guests will also pass through metal detection before reaching the ride platform.
Is Fast & Furious: Hollywood Drift worth riding?
Universal Studios Hollywood already has some huge attractions, including SUPER NINTENDO WORLD, The Wizarding World of Harry Potter, Jurassic World – The Ride and the famous Studio Tour. I’ve been on all of them and they are just the most amazing rides. But its first major outdoor high-speed rollercoaster brings something completely different to the park. Could this be the ride that beats Stardust Racers at Universal Epic Universe or even Jurassic World Velocicoaster at Universal Studios in Orlando? I know they will take some beating but this could be the coaster that does it.
The numbers alone sound ridiculous Four launches. 72mph. 3.6Gs along 4,100 feet of track and then ride cars that rotate 360 degrees while drifting around the Hollywood hillside? Just wow. Fast & Furious: Hollywood Drift opens at Universal Studios Hollywood on 16 September 2026. Until I am hurtling around Los Angeles in a spinning Dodge Charger I don’t think I’ll be happy.
