Universal Studios Hollywood is about to shift into high gear.
It’s official: Fast & Furious: Hollywood Drift, the park’s first high-speed outdoor roller coaster, will open in Summer 2026. And if you’ve ever wanted to feel what it’s like to drift through the Hollywood Hills at highway speeds, this is about to be your ride.
What immediately stands out to me is how beautifully this coaster integrates with the park’s layout. Universal Studios Hollywood is built on multiple levels carved into the hillside, and instead of hiding that terrain, Hollywood Drift embraces it. The 4,100 feet of aerial track weaves across the Upper Lot and even stretches over sections of the park, including the multi-level Starway escalator connecting the Upper and Lower Lots. Watching trains fly above the park with the Hollywood Hills as a backdrop is going to be a visual spectacle all on its own. The layout is impressive, ambitious, and uniquely Universal.
The attraction will be housed in a massive red brick, garage-inspired structure on the Upper Lot, setting the tone before you even board. Once inside, guests will strap into ride vehicles modeled after Dominic Toretto’s iconic 1970 Dodge Charger. That detail alone is going to hit longtime fans right in the nostalgia.
But this isn’t just a traditional coaster with a Fast & Furious theme slapped on it. Hollywood Drift features groundbreaking 360-degree rotation technology, designed to simulate the seamless sensation of drifting cars. As the train rockets up to 72 miles per hour, vehicles will spin in motion while navigating nearly 12 football fields worth of track. It’s a bold engineering move that aims to recreate the franchise’s signature street racing energy in a way we haven’t seen before at Universal Studios Hollywood.
Universal is backing the launch with a major media campaign, including a dynamic 30-second spot narrated by franchise producer and star Vin Diesel. The commercial is slated to air during high-profile sporting events such as the Winter Olympics, Super Bowl LX and NBA All-Star coverage on NBC and Peacock. That kind of national spotlight shows just how important this coaster is to the park’s future.
You can embed the official sneak peek video below:
The timing couldn’t be better. Hollywood Drift launches as Universal Pictures kicks off the 25th anniversary of the Fast & Furious franchise, leading up to the final theatrical chapter, Fast Forever, scheduled for March 17, 2028. Over eleven films and more than $7 billion at the global box office, the Fast saga has grown into Universal’s most profitable and longest-running franchise. From toys and video games to animated series and spinoffs like Hobbs & Shaw, the brand has expanded far beyond the big screen.
Now it’s taking over the skyline of Universal Studios Hollywood.
Hollywood Drift will join an already stacked lineup of attractions including SUPER NINTENDO WORLD with Mario Kart: Bowser’s Challenge, The Wizarding World of Harry Potter with Forbidden Journey and Flight of the Hippogriff, Jurassic World—The Ride, The Secret Life of Pets: Off the Leash, Despicable Me Minion Mayhem, Springfield U.S.A., TRANSFORMERS: The Ride-3D, Revenge of the Mummy, and the legendary Studio Tour.
Universal Destinations & Experiences has decades of expertise in developing next-generation roller coasters across its global parks, and Hollywood Drift feels like the next evolution for Universal Studios Hollywood. It’s not just about speed. It’s about spectacle, setting, and fully embracing that hillside footprint in a way no other park can replicate.
Summer 2026 is shaping up to be all about family.