An American Girl Theme Park? (Why That's Probably Not Happening)
- Admin
- Jun 22, 2023
- 1 min read
American Girl is no stranger to location-based entertainment experiences, from stores to restaurants to museum exhibits to live stage shows. But Mattel, the company that owns American Girl, is trying something new. A theme park in Glendale, Arizona, which is scheduled to open next year.
Many Mattel properties have been announced to be part of this theme park, including Barbie, Hot Wheels, Thomas and Friends, Masters of the Universe and much, much more. However, American Girl has not been announced to be part of the park. And, to be honest, it probably won't.
Why, you may ask? Ever since Mattel bought American Girl from Pleasant Company in 1998, they have mostly separated American Girl from other Mattel brands, with the exception of featuring American Girl in their Mattel Toy Stores and website.
When you think "Mattel", you usually think of the toys that have "Mattel" logos on their packaging, but American Girl doesn't have any of that symbolism. In fact, if you go on the American Girl website, the only mention of Mattel is at the very bottom of the page, with the Mattel logo and a mention of the "Mattel Family of Companies".
Due to this separation, I find it very unlikely that there will be any American Girl experiences at this theme park, but if you guys think differently, let me know in the comments!
I wish...that would be so fun. Kits Treehouse playground, a fun Grace and Claudie-themed bakery, Maryellen's diner, a Joss's cheerleading session (where kids go for half an hour and learn basic steps), Lila's horseback riding, Courtney's arcade (based on Smiley's), a historical dolls walk through starting with Kaya, ending Isabel and Nicki.
i think an ag museum would be cool in it but a theme park? na neva
I agree, they probably won't add anything AG, but man they could do some really cool stuff if they did! Besides the obvious gift shops and meet and greets, I'm imagining a restaurant in Molly's house that specializes in home style cooking (turnips!), Claudie's bakery, a playground for younger kids themed around Kit's treehouse with "homemade" equipment, street entertainment featuring Melody and Motown music, and walk-through exhibits with items from the different time periods. For the flagship ride, they could make something really atmospheric, similar to "Dinosaur" at Disney World, where you're in a time machine visiting some of the girls, and somewhere along the way it malfunctions and shoots you back to 1812 where you have to help Caroline…
I don't think this will happen. Also if they did make it happen, what rides would the do? Joss's surf bus rolercoaster???? lol
Maybe that accounted for why Barbie had Funko Pop figures but not with AG?