For decades, Genting Highlands has become a popular destination for both locals and tourists alike not only due to cooler climate but also all the attractions located up there which includes indoor and outdoor theme parks as well as the country’s only legal land-based casino. In 2013, Genting Malaysia Berhad has decided to partner with 20th Century Fox to develop a new attraction that would replace its aging outdoor theme park.
Fast forward to 5 years later, it looks like things have gone sour to the partnership though. In the USD 1 billion (about RM 4.19 billion) lawsuit that Genting has filed in United States, the company is now seeking to recoup the investment that it has poured into the project from Fox as well as its new owner, Disney.
This is because Genting claimed that Disney has apparently attempted to terminate Fox’s agreement with the company in order to preserve Disney’s family-friendly image that not aligned with Genting since it operates several casinos throughout the world. The Malaysian conglomerate dubbed the behavior as “seller’s remorse” and stated that it is not a valid ground for such termination.
According to the filing, Genting has made an accumulative investment of around USD 750 million (about RM 3.14 billion) to date into the project which is apparently way more than what Fox. Not only that, the filing also revealed that Fox World is already in the final phase of construction and is about to have its soft opening in the first half of 2019 which apparently has been delayed for so many years.
All in all, looks like it is going to be a while before Genting Highlands able to open the doors to its outdoor theme park once again.
(Source: Genting via Bursa Malaysia // Hollywood Reporter – 1, pdf // Variety)
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