When seventh grader Korelai Olson first heard that Universal Studios will be permanently closing its Hollywood Rip Ride Rockit roller coaster in early September, she was heartbroken with disappointment.“I’m sad about it closing because it was my first ‘adult’ coaster,” Korelai said. “Every time I see [Rip Ride Rockit] I get a memory of when I was little, it will always hold a special place in my heart.”

Rip Ride Rockit offers a unique ride experience, as it is the only roller coaster in the U.S. that allows riders to choose the song that will play during their ride. When it first opened, the ride offered thirty songs, but it currently offers six songs each from a different genre. Additionally, the ride offers a list of about 100 secret songs that can be accessed by inputting a code into the selection screen.

“I’ve listened to Eminem, Billy Joel, the Jackson 5, Kermit the Frog and others on that ride,” junior Caelen Garcia said. “Seeing [it] go will be sad because I don’t think the replacement will have that.”

Rip Ride Rockit is the only roller coaster in the Universal Studios park that has loops along its track, differentiating it from its sister park, Islands of Adventure, which contains two rides with loops, Jurassic World Velocicoaster and The Incredible Hulk. These two coasters also operate with various launch systems, differentiating them further from Rockit, which solely relies on chain lifts and gravity.

“It’s going to further solidify Universal Studios as the weaker park compared to Islands of Adventure,” Garcia said. “Studios already relies on a bunch of indoor screen rides, and taking away this coaster is going to remove a lot of thrills.”

On Dec. 27, Universal officially confirmed the ride’s closure in a social media reply via X, stating that the ride is set to close in early September to “make room for a new experience.”

“I hope they replace it with a rollercoaster,” senior Stefania Raffaelli said. “I don’t want them to just take it down and just put an animated ride there or something, I feel like that would just be kind of stupid.”

Though Universal Studios has not confirmed what will be replacing Rip Ride Rockit, documents filed by Universal with the South Florida Water Management District indicate that Universal plans to tear down the ride and replace one that has a similar environmental footprint, meaning that it will likely be another roller coaster.

“It’s rumored to be replaced with an intamin [hydraulic-launched] coaster, so it’s not a total loss,” Garcia said. “Hopefully it [will be] Back to the Future or Ghostbusters themed.”

With plans to attend Gradventure next year, Korelai said she is nervous about how this closure will impact the rest of the park.

Hollywood Rip Ride Rockit is one of four roller coasters at Universal Studios Orlando, the others being Revenge of the Mummy, Trolls Trollercoaster and Harry Potter and the Escape from Gringotts.

“I think its [closure] is going to bring the park down a little bit adventure-wise, because there aren’t that many big roller coasters,” Raffaelli said. “There are roller coasters, they’re just not as tall or [have] as many twists as Rip Ride Rockit.”

Breakdowns and delays of the ride have become more frequent in recent years, and in November of 2023, fire crews had to remove riders from the top of the vertical lift, who had been stuck for about an hour.

“The other coasters [at Universal] are a lot smoother, newer and have launches, so it makes sense for Rip Ride to go,” Garcia said. “A lot of times when [my family] goes it’s broken down for maintenance, and the track can get rough.”

Though the ride will be closed before the Class of 2026’s Grad Bash, Garcia said he is hopeful for the future of the park.

“[I’m] definitely going to be sad not having this ride during Grad Bash,” Garcia said. “However, other coasters like Velocicoaster, Hulk and Hagrid’s are going to be able to fill the void that Rip Ride’s going to leave.”