Trending

Nintendo plans expansion at Universal Studios, sources say

A person dressed as the Nintendo character Mario waves (Drew Angerer/Getty Images)

ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. — It seems the Nintendo ride could be expanding to other parks within Universal Studios, sources told WFTV.

>> Read more trending news

Sources told WFTV that Universal Studios plans to eventually add more Nintendo rides and attractions to Islands of Adventure and the recently purchased 500 acres of land on the other side of Interstate 4 near Universal Boulevard.

Originally, the Nintendo project was slated to take a portion out of the KidZone section where Woody Woodpecker and the Barney rides are located.

Building permits released Tuesday include a Super Mario Land, Donkey Kong and Mario Kart at Universal Studios Florida.

Sources have said the idea is to expand on a possible film project with Illumination Entertainment, the studio behind "Despicable Me," to eventually make a Super Mario Brothers animated movie.

"Nintendo has so much to offer for them to just confine it to a small kiddie land inside an existing park to me, personally, doesn't make a lot of sense," Thom Pratt, of The Kingdom Insider, told WFTV.

Universal Orlando said it would not comment on speculation.

Japan is scheduled to open its Nintendo land in 2020.

Universal Orlando is scheduled for shortly after that.