Disney World's Top Rival Needs a Better Sophomore Season

It's now been a year since Comcast (NASDAQ: CMCSA) officially opened Epic Universe, the first major theme park to open in the U.S. since 2001. The new gated attraction opened with hope, hype, and a dash of hubris. For all that is great at Epic Universe -- and when it does excel, it's next-level fantastic -- it still feels incomplete.

It will get there. Comcast has gone too far to not commit to correcting the shortcomings at Epic Universe. Meanwhile, Disney (NYSE: DIS) can rest easy. Fears that the media stock giant would suffer a decline in turnstile clicks or have to sacrifice margins to keep its Florida resort from fading against Comcast's spotlight haven't materialized.

Image source: Comcast's Universal Orlando Resort.

Curse of the werewolf

With a full year under its belt, Comcast has a good feel for what has to happen at its newest theme park. Epic Universe is now up against the cruel summer of highs and lows that ultimately crashed the gated attraction's honeymoon.

The uptime and reliability of some of its flagship rides have to get better. It was also exposed for having too many of its experiences at the mercy of shutdowns for heavy downpours or nearby lightning strikes. It's Florida. It's summer. Universal should've known better.

When it's not the foul weather shutting down most of the rides, the hot sun with the park's poor shade profile, and the vast number of stairways to get through can wear down guests. There are more steps at Epic Universe than an IKEA assembly manual.

After a half-dozen visits through the first few months of the park's public-facing existence, I haven't felt the urge to return since September. I'm not the only one with mixed feelings about Epic Universe. It is the worst-rated attraction on Trip Advisor between the seven theme parks operated by Disney and Comcast in Florida. It isn't even close.

1. Universal Islands of Adventure: 4.6 of 5 stars
2. Magic Kingdom: 4.4 stars
3. Animal Kingdom: 4.4 stars
4. Universal Studios Florida: 4.3 stars
5. Epcot: 4.3 stars
6. Animal Kingdom: 4.3 stars
7. Epic Universe: 2.4 stars

Source: TripAdvisor.com

Monsters unleashed

The gap between Epic Universe reviews and the rest of Central Florida's top draws is wide. It's narrower, but still substantial on other review portals, including Google Reviews and Yelp. Financially speaking, it doesn't matter in the near term. Comcast got what it needed. For a company whose flagship cable television and broadband connectivity businesses are in a perpetual state of decline, it's been a beacon of growth.

Revenue for its theme parks business has posted year-over-year growth of 19%, 22%, and 24% in the first three quarters of Epic Universe's full operations, respectively. Even more impressively, adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA) have risen 13%, 24%, and 33%, respectively. The growth has accelerated in every subsequent quarter, with the business's profitability outpacing top-line jumps in back-to-back reports.

The comparisons will naturally get harder as we lap the first year of operations, but the early results are promising. It's not moving the needle just yet. Theme park revenue accounts for less than 8% of Comcast's overall results in its latest quarter. Disney's experiences segment -- consisting of its theme parks, cruise ships, and smaller consumer products business -- accounted for 38% of the top-line results at the House of Mouse. Comcast's theme parks delivered 7% of the quarter's adjusted EBITDA, compared to Disney's experience business at 57%.

It's still a big step for a company whose larger businesses are standing still (or worse). Comcast knows Disney's playbook. Does anyone remember when it tried to buy Disney in a failed hostile bid 22 years ago? A thriving theme park business is a key piece in the flywheel for its studio and streaming operations.

Mine-cart madness

Will the financial success stick if the overall reviews don't follow? Investing in Comcast didn't pay off last year. The shares fell 20% in 2025. This year has been kind to high-yielding stocks as a safety haven, but Comcast, with its 5.5% yield, has tumbled another 15% in 2026. Disney stock hasn't been a winner either, but over the past year, it has fallen by roughly half of Comcast's 27% slide.

The silver lining is that it's currently panning for gold. It's the only major theme park in Central Florida that doesn't currently offer an annual pass. Revenue per capita is much higher than its peers', largely because the capacity isn't there to accommodate the influx of visitors on cheaper daily admissions if annual passes or discounted one-day tickets were widely available. If lines are long and reviews aren't glowing now, the obvious fix is to build out more weather-resistant E-ticket attractions before those less-lucrative floodgates open, to drive incremental revenue. This appears to be in the works.

There is activity taking place on the park's expansion pads. Nothing has been announced, and it will realistically be at least a year or two before a major addition arrives. However, the reinforcements that should have been there all along are coming. With Disney World planning major ride additions to open annually for the foreseeable future, tourists continue arriving in Central Florida. Both fierce rivals can still win, but Comcast needs to step up its expansion game at Epic Universe and offer details and target opening dates. It's one way to turn sour reviews into sweet expectations.

Rick Munarriz has positions in Walt Disney. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Walt Disney. The Motley Fool recommends Comcast. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.