Frenzy in China for Japanese superhero Ultraman as theme parks and a hotel open – and there’s more to come

Ultraman has a large and ever-growing fan base in China, where themed attractions have been set up in Dalian, Chengdu, Zhengzhou and Shanghai
Ultraman came to China in 1993, and parents who grew up with the series ‘can feel at ease’ with their children having a familiar experience, executive says

Asia travel

Kyodo

Published: 6:15pm, 4 Jan 2024

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The Japan-born Ultraman superhero franchise has inspired a frenzy in China some three decades after it was first broadcast there, with children clamouring to get their hands on the latest merchandise, and families visiting theme parks and staying at the world’s first Ultraman hotel.

As China emerged from its “zero-Covid” policy, which heavily restricted people’s movements until early 2023, Ultraman attractions were set up in Dalian, Chengdu, Zhengzhou and Shanghai.

According to Tsuburaya Productions, which produced the programme that first aired on Japanese television in 1966, distribution of the Chinese-dubbed series on video platforms, and merchandise sales, have driven Ultraman’s popularity in China.

The Ultraman story revolves around the red-and-silver size-changing character that fights monsters to protect Earth from extraterrestrial threats. Originally from the Land of Light, he has many incarnations.

The Japan-born Ultraman superhero franchise has inspired a frenzy in China. Photo: Getty Images

During the summer holiday period, many children clad in Ultraman costumes, capes and masks visited the Ultraman area in the Discoveryland theme park in Dalian, northeastern China, which opened in May 2023.

In August at the Dalian park, a three-year-old wearing an Ultraman mask said that his favourite character was Belial, the arch-enemy of Ultraman Zero. His mother said her son became interested because all his friends play with toys from the franchise.

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The mother of a seven-year-old from Beijing said he collects trading cards and Ultraman figurines. “His father is also a fan. He began to watch the series in childhood. They often watch videos together,” she said.

The 5,000-square-metre (54,000 sq ft) area features a cinema showing a 30-minute Ultraman show, a restaurant offering food and drinks themed on the characters, a souvenir shop selling toys and other goods, a ride and a museum as well as statues of Ultraman and monsters.

A Discoveryland park official said actors appearing in the Ultraman show were trained by staff sent from Japan. To commemorate the opening of the park, a copy of an Ultraman painting by Toru “Tohl” Narita, the late designer of the series, was initially exhibited at the museum, she added.

A sculpture of Ultraman Zero stands at an Ultraman-themed venue inside Shanghai Haichang Ocean Park. Photo: Getty Images

Meanwhile, the Ultraman hotel in Shanghai Haichang Ocean Park, about a 30-minute drive from the city’s Pudong international airport, looks to cater to fans’ desire to explore the franchise’s world with its 105 rooms of different designs.

Posters and images of Ultraman characters can be seen almost everywhere – in the lobby and on the walls of the rooms and corridors at the hotel.

Children staying at the hotel can enjoy Ultraman games at a video arcade, watch films at a cinema and read related books. The hotel also offers afternoon tea in a Japanese garden with confectionery featuring the hero character.

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“I like Ultraman because he is strong. He also has a light beam,” exclaimed a five-year-old who came to the hotel with his twin brother and mother from Guangzhou, southern China. The mother said the children got to know the series through videos posted on Chinese social media.

The hotel remains popular, with more than 90 per cent of rooms reserved at weekends. Accommodation fees include a two-day admission ticket for the nearby amusement park, which also houses an Ultraman zone, a Shanghai park official said.

At peak time during China’s National Day holidays in October, the hotel charges up to 5,000 yuan (US$705) per night. The hotel tends to quickly reach full occupancy during holiday seasons, with reservations required far in advance, the official said.

Food at China’s first Ultraman-themed hotel. Photo: Getty Images

The main target clientele of the hotel are families with children up to 10 years old, but sometimes adult fans also come to enjoy greeting sessions with Ultraman characters at the amusement park, she added. In October and November, monsters joined a Halloween event.

The Shanghai park has the world’s largest Ultraman statue recognised by the Guinness World Records, measuring 10.4 metres (34ft) in height. It also plans to open a private birthday party venue for the hero-loving kids.

The park operator has said in financial documents it will “accelerate the progress of our IP-themed pavilions”, in reference to intellectual property including Ultraman areas within its parks. “We believe that this is a very successful commercialisation opportunity.”

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Tsuburaya Fields Holdings, parent company of the Ultraman producer, said in its half-year financial report in November that merchandise and licence revenues in China in the April-September period more than doubled to 2.1 billion yen (US$14.8 million) compared with the previous year.

The growth has been supported by brisk sales of toys and trading cards. The company has also said it plans to open a second character-themed hotel in the “Ultraman town” to be launched within Zhengzhou Haichang Ocean Park in early 2024 and increase the number of Ultraman areas in China to 10 by March 2025.

Masayuki Nagatake, president and chief operating officer of Tsuburaya Productions, said in an interview that the company has been focused on expansion in China and elsewhere since winning a US lawsuit in 2020 over the copyright of Ultraman in the global market.

China’s first Ultraman-themed hotel at Haichang Ocean Park in Shanghai, China in 2023. Photo: Getty Images

Nagatake said in China, where Ultraman was first introduced in 1993 and viewers have enjoyed simultaneous distribution of episodes aired in Japan over the past decade, many parents who grew up watching the series “can feel at ease” with their children having a familiar experience.

“There is no national boundary in our efforts to present stories that parents [of children] think are worth seeing,” he said.

Tsuburaya Fields has said it will release the new animated movie Ultraman: Rising on Netflix in 2024 and is considering opening similar Ultraman areas in Southeast Asia.

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