July 15, 2025
Provided image/Franklin Institute
The Franklin Institute will host a traveling exhibit on Universal theme parks beginning on Valentine's Day 2026. The rendering above shows animatronics from the 'Jurassic World' ride at Universal Studios Hollywood.
The Franklin Institute has set a date for its previously announced exhibit on theme park design, and it teased more details on what visitors can expect.
"Universal Theme Parks: The Exhibition" arrives at the museum on Valentine's Day 2026, though it won't be offering romantic thrills. The traveling show will display the animatronics, robotics, special effects and engineering behind Universal's movie-themed amusement parks. Visitors will see over 100 props, vehicles and other objects from rides like the "Jurassic World" water thrill at Universal Studios Hollywood and the new "How to Train Your Dragon" world at Universal Orlando Resort. (Philadelphians might've caught a glimpse of it at the portal promoting Epic Universe in May.)
They can also flex their childhood "RollerCoaster Tycoon" skills at interactive stations, where guests can build coasters, design masks and program animation using the same tools as the pros. The exhibit will span eight galleries over 18,000 square feet. Renderings reveal that at least one of those spaces will draw upon the Universal Monsters franchise, using Frankenstein, Dracula and other baddies to trace the parks' long history of frights.
The theme park exhibit coming to the Franklin Institute will include eight themed galleries. The rendering above shows a horror-themed space displaying props and other objects from the Universal Monsters franchise.
"Universal Theme Parks: The Exhibition" will make its worldwide debut at the Franklin Institute and stick around through Sept. 7, 2026, before moving onto other cities. Franklin Institute President and CEO Larry Dubinski said in a statement he was proud to add the exhibit to the "already impressive lineup of major events happening during the 2026 semiquincentennial in Philadelphia."
The museum is encouraging interested visitors to sign up for early access to tickets and exclusive updates ahead of the public sale launch on its website.
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