The blooloop 50 Theme Park Influencer List 2018

Michael Mack is the CEO of Europa-Park and the founder and MD of MACK One. During his tenure, he has overseen ambitious growth at the park and embraced technology to improve the guest experience.

Europa-Park was one of the first theme parks in the world to introduce a virtual reality (VR) roller coaster. This has since been joined by free-roaming VR experiences including Coastiality and Yullbe. In addition, Europa-Park launched an underwater VR experience called Snorri Snorkeling VR, as well as a new streaming platform. VEEJOY offers podcasts, movies and more.

Recently, Europa-Park announced plans to release a new video game inspired by its mascots, Ed and Edda, as well as a new family attraction and a major motion picture. The new kart racing game, developed in partnership with video game developer Tivola, is based on the 2025 motion picture Grand Prix of Europe, a co-production between entertainment company Mack Magic and Warner Bros. Film Productions Germany. It also launched an award-winning immersive dining concept, Eatrenalin.

The game Ed & Edda: Grand Prix—Racing Champions brings Ed & Edda to video game format for the first time. Players will race across 12 tracks set in landmark European locations.

The Mack family lives, sleeps and breathes attractions. Thanks to Michael Mack, its efforts are more relevant and far-reaching than ever. A board member at Mack Rides, he also founded Mack Animation. These companies have been responsible for creating a number of intellectual properties that have been exploited both inside and outside of Europa-Park.

As a key part of the team that built Merlin Entertainments up into the world’s second-largest attraction operator, Mark 'Fish' Fisher is its chief development officer. “I don’t think there’s one bit of Merlin I haven’t been MD of at some stage,” he says of the company.

Fisher started his career in the industry at the age of 16, performing as a costumed character at Alton Towers. Later, in the marketing department at Alton, he would meet Merlin founder Nick Varney. Over the past decade, they have helped the company consolidate its market position through a continued focus on the development of branded experiences.

In addition to rolling out new ‘Midway’ attractions under the Madame Tussauds, Sea Life, Little Big City and Dungeons brands, Merlin has expanded the global footprint of Legoland by opening new theme parks in the USA and Asia. In 2021, Merlin started construction on the world’s largest Legoland Resort, a $1bn attraction in Shenzhen, China.

Fisher retired from Merlin in 2022

Nicolas de Villiers, president of the French theme park Puy du Fou, launched a second park in Spain in 2021.

Founded by his father Philippe de Villiers in 1976, Puy du Fou offers a unique form of live entertainment. Its shows tell historical tales on a massive scale. Large casts of people and animals perform alongside imposing sets and special effects. Each year over 2 million people visit the park’s relatively remote Vendée department location.

"Puy du Fou is a very special kind of leisure park," de Villiers told blooloop. "We are a show park, we have no rides. We are surrounded by nature and the natural environment. It’s a model that doesn’t exist anywhere else in the world as far as I know, but it’s been a huge success in France."

Thierry Coup, senior VP and chief creative officer at Universal Creative, boasts an exceptional pedigree when it comes to the creation of themed entertainment experiences. For the past 30 years, he has worked in a variety of creative roles with both Universal and Disney.

“It’s been an incredible ride for me,” he told the website of Universal’s parent company, Comcast. “Doing what I do, you feel lucky if you worked on one big attraction like The Amazing Adventures of Spider-Man or The Simpsons Ride. But I’ve worked on a half of a dozen or so, and it keeps getting better and better.”

Comcast has revealed that Epic Universe, the fourth theme park at Universal Orlando Resort in Florida, is expected to open by summer 2025. Previously, the company opened Super Nintendo World at Universal Studios Japan and Universal Beijing Resort. The Beijing destination includes the fourth global iteration of the Wizarding World of Harry Potter, one of Coup’s crowning achievements.

Since the publication of this list, Coup left Universal for a position as chief experiential futurist at JOCOUP Creative.

Tom Mehrmann previously served as the president and general manager of Universal Resort Beijing. One of the most high-profile theme park projects in the world, Universal Beijing opened to tens of thousands of visitors in September 2021.

Universal Beijing’s launch came after 20 years of planning and construction. The attraction merges popular Universal experiences with Chinese culture across seven themed lands. These include Universal’s first Kung Fu Panda land, the world’s largest Minion Land, the world’s first Transformers-themed land, and Universal’s first WaterWorld land. Additional lands are inspired by Hollywood, Jurassic World and Harry Potter.

Mehrmann began his career in the theme park industry as a groundskeeper at Knott’s Berry Farm near Los Angeles. Progressing into park management, he went on to run Six Flag Discovery Kingdom, Warner Bros Movie World (now Parque Warner) in Madrid and Ocean Park, Hong Kong.

Mehrmann had a hugely successful tenure at Ocean Park and wrote a book about his experiences, Taming the Mouse: How a Small Hong Kong Theme Park Came to Dominate Disney.

Bob Iger is responsible for one of the largest media companies in the world, as well as being a leading global player in the theme park industry. Under Iger's watch, the Walt Disney Company has significantly expanded its portfolio of intellectual property (IP). From Marvel to Star Wars, much of the IP acquired over the past decade is now beginning to find its way into Disney's theme parks and resorts around the world.

Star Wars: Galaxy's Edge opened at both Walt Disney World (WDW) in Florida and Disneyland Resort in California in May 2019. Like Pandora – The World of Avatar at WDW's Animal Kingdom, these themed lands provide a new level of storytelling and gritty immersion that is a world away from the cartoon worlds with which Disney made its name.

Mickey Mouse remains a powerful ambassador for the company, particularly in Disney's theme parks. Significant investment is now underway at Disney's parks and resorts in Paris, Tokyo, Shanghai and Hong Kong.

Disney's media content remains some of the most heavily consumed on the planet. With an even richer portfolio of IP to draw on than ever before, the company's theme parks should remain in pole position for the foreseeable future.

After a brief return to Tivoli in his native Denmark, where he originally served as CEO from 2004 to 2008, Andreas Andersen was persuaded to return as leader of Liseberg in Gothenburg, Sweden in 2019.

A former European executive director and 2018 international chairman of IAAPA, Andersen is passionate about the attractions industry. Keen not only to share his expertise with the major players, he also holds board positions at Fårup Sommerland (Denmark) and Leos Lekland (Sweden).

Liseberg is creating a new themed area called Luna Park. The first phase of the €10m project, which is home to the family-friendly Turbo and Tempus rides, opened in April 2022. Tempus is a Zamperla Nebulaz ride and features four axes that rotate. Turbo, an interactive Technical Park Sidecar XL carousel, boasts motorcycle and sidecar ride vehicles. The next phase, including Luna, a Vekoma Family Boomerang coaster, is set to launch in 2023. Luna will be the tallest and fastest coaster of its kind in the world, reaching speeds of up to 68 kilometres per hour and heights of 33.5 metres. Also set to open, as part of Liseberg’s 100th anniversary in 2023, is the Liseberg Grand Curiosa Hotel, which will be followed by the opening of Oceana Water World in 2024.

Speaking to blooloop in 2020, after his return to Liseberg, he said:

“I can honestly say that I wasn’t finished. When you leave a job like mine, there is never really a good time. But I think the timing, in this case, was especially bad, because of our expansion project.

“When the board of Liseberg contacted me about going back, it kind of made sense. They said there had been some really strong candidates, but if they gave me some flexibility regarding where I live, and how I work, would I be interested in having a dialogue? I really do enjoy Liseberg, and I think I make a difference here. It’s been very easy getting back into it.”

By leveraging several core attraction brands such as Legoland, Sea Life, Madame Tussauds and the Dungeons, CEO Nick Varney has turned Merlin Entertainments into the world's second-largest operator. With an ever-increasing footprint, it now operates 139 attractions, 23 hotels and six holiday villages in 24 countries.

The company's roots in the 'midway' (short stay) attraction business have helped it to develop efficient operations with a relatively quick return on investment. Yet Merlin has also enjoyed success in recent years at its theme parks, including Legoland, by adding themed accommodation. Merlin's 10th Legoland attraction, Legoland Korea Resort, opened in 2022.

In addition to building its own brands, Merlin is increasingly working with external intellectual property providers to bring fresh stories and characters to its guests. These include Peppa Pig-themed experiences. The world's first Peppa Pig Theme Park launched in Florida in 2022. Merlin and Hasbro are also creating the world’s first standalonePeppa Pig Resortin China, which is scheduled to open in 2024.

Varney retired in 2022

Blackpool Pleasure Beach is one of the UK's best loved amusement parks. Amanda Thompson took over the business after the death of her father, Geoffrey Thompson. Over the past decade, the park has introduced new family-friendly offerings including Nickelodeon Land and Wallace & Gromit's Thrill-O-Matic.

Blackpool Pleasure Beach opened the UK's first double launch coaster, ICON, in 2018. Its second hotel, BLVD, launched in 2019. The hotel has Thompson's signature sense of style all over it. Under her direction, the Pleasure Beach has evolved to offer an aesthetic that celebrates its past with a contemporary twist. After more than 120 years in business, it remains as one of the few large parks in the UK that is still family owned and operated.

Authenticity is key to Joe Rohde’s vision with every project he creates for Disney, the world’s leading theme park operator. Whether he’s weaving Hawaiian culture into Disney’s Aulani resort or creating alien worlds at Animal Kingdom’s Pandora – The World of Avatar, the results are spectacular.

It was as lead designer of Disney’s Animal Kingdom, Disney World's fourth theme park in Florida, that Rohde made a name for himself. He guided the creation of attractions such as Expedition Everest, as well as Pandora's Na'vi River Adventure and Avatar Flight of Passage. The latter is regarded by many as the industry's most authentic flying experience.

As creative lead for Marvel attractions at Disney parks, experiences and products, Rohde also oversaw the transformation of Disney California Adventure's Tower of Terror into Guardians of the Galaxy – Mission: Breakout! The Imagineer does not restrict his knowledge and insight to his Disney peers. His talks are as inspiring as his attractions, making him an in-demand speaker at events around the world.