Photo/Illutration An image of "The Studio Tour Tokyo" facility (Provided by Warner Bros. Japan)　‘Wizarding World’ and all related names, characters and indicia are trademarks of and (C) Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. - Wizarding World publishing rights (C) J.K. Rowling.

The deal to bring a Harry Potter theme park to Tokyo has been sealed, with less than two weeks to go before the Toshimaen Amusement Park, the attraction it will replace in the capital’s Nerima Ward, is scheduled to close for good.

Seibu Railway Co., which owns the land, and Warner Bros. Japan announced Aug. 18 they had reached an agreement to open the Potter attraction billed under “The Studio Tour Tokyo” in the first half of 2023, after the Toshimaen Amusement Park, which has operated there since 1926, shuts on Aug. 31.

The Tokyo theme park exploring the massively popular films will be the world’s second, following “The Studio Tour London,” in the British capital opened by Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. in 2012, which has reportedly attracted more than 14 million visitors.

The theme park’s facilities, which will include recreations of film sets from the Potter movies, will be constructed on an area covering roughly 30,000 square meters of the Toshimaen site, which totals around 210,000 square meters.

Costumes worn by characters in the films and props will be on display at the new attraction, where visitors can also wander around inside the film sets.

Sculptures of magical animals depicted in the movies will grace a garden created in open spaces in front of the park’s entrance gates.

Harry Potter’s enormous fan base in Japan led Warner Bros. to consider creating a Potter theme park here. The U.S. film distributor discussed the venture with Itochu Corp., which came onboard as a mediator.

Ann Sarnoff, chairman and CEO of Warner Bros., said Harry Potter theme parks “offer fans of all ages a unique way to get closer to the films and truly immerse themselves in the Wizarding World.”

The Tokyo metropolitan government announced in June that other parts of Toshimaen and its surrounding areas would reopen as “Nerima Joshi Koen” (Nerima castle ruins park).

Seibu Railway and the Tokyo metropolitan government will have discussions to build park facilities step by step on the land that is not earmarked for the new facilities.

Takashi Goto, chairman of Seibu Railway, said the company is “also considering various sales promotions, including renewal of Toshimaen Station, in order to revitalize the areas along Seibu line, by which we try to offer added value to the local community.”

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