A creature mentioned in the Harry Potter books, but never seen in the films, is finally coming to life in a new theme park ride.
Blast-Ended Skrewts—part-manticore, part-fire crab creatures bred by Rubeus Hagrid—are being realised for the first time in live-action as part of Hagrid’s Magical Creatures Motorbike Adventure, a new ride coming to The Wizarding World of Harry Potter at Universal Studios Orlando this summer.
The creatures are mentioned many times in J.K. Rowling’s books (most notably as an obstacle for the champions of the Tri-Wizard Tournament to defeat during the hedge maze in Goblet of Fire) and made it into a video game, but never the movies. That means for most fans, the ride will be the first time they ever see one. And here it is via Universal Parks.
Crab legs, scorpion tail…yeah, clearly a creature only Hagrid could love.
The Skrewts are real-life animatronics and join a bunch of other creatures on Hagrid’s ride, such as Fluffy the three-headed-dog, a centaur, and Cornish pixies, just to name a few. The ride opens June 13.