How to watch Class Action Park, harrowing new documentary explores the "world's most dangerous theme park"
The park was closed in 1996 after personal injury lawsuits led to the closure of increasing numbers of rides.
HBO will look at New Jersey theme park, Action Park, in new documentary Class Action Park.
The film explores the thrills and the dangers of the Tri-State area amusement park, which attracted a daring crowd in the 80s and 90s before its risky reputation eventually led to its downfall with multiple visitors dying or being seriously injured while attending the park.
Here's everything you need to know about the documentary.
How to watch Class Action Park
The film premiers on HBO on August 27th.
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What is Class Action Park about?
The documentary explores the now-closed New Jersey waterpark, Action Park, which became infamous in the 80s and 90s for its deadly rides.
The theme park was opened in 1978 and closed in 1996 after personal injury lawsuits led to the closure of increasing numbers of rides.
Over the years, the poorly designed and questionably tested creations at Action Park claimed a handful of lives and caused lots more fatal injuries.
The bulk of the film focuses on the rides at the park created by the late Gene Mulvihill. As the documentary reveals, Mulvihill was a colourful, loud personality who according to the documentary wasn't shy of "breaking rules".
In one clip, a contributor says Gene was refused insurance, so created his own insurance company and insured himself.
Throughout the film, viewers learn some rather shocking information. For example, park employees tested the unfinished Cannonball Loop – a water slide that ends in a full-blown upside-down loop – after Mulvihill offered anyone who dared to try it $100.
Another jaw dropping scene reveals many of the later testers emerged from the slide bearing bloody gashes from human teeth stuck to the slide's interior walls that were left behind by previous testers.
Including interviews from the likes Chris Gethard, Alison Becker, Seth Porges, and others, the tone is kept pretty comical in the midst of the more horrific things that happened at Action Park.
However, this tone changes to a more serious one, with the detailed descriptions of each ride, as well as emotional interviews with family members of one of the people who died in an Action Park attraction.
The duality of Action Park is possibly the whole reason why it stuck around into the mid-'90s, and the movie highlights that point over and over again.
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Is there a trailer for Class Action Park?
There is, and it's not for the faint-hearted.
Multiple patrons died while visiting the park and over the years, multiple visitors were “electrocuted” or “decapitated,” suffered a “fractured vertebrae,” were “impaled on the bowl,” or “had a heart attack" interviews in the clip reveals.
Comedian and former Action Park patron Chris Gethard also states in the clip: “Nobody should ever be the second person to die in a wave pool. Close the f*****g wave pool!”
You can watch the full trailer below.
Class Action Park premieres on HBO on August 27th. If you’re looking for more to watch, check out our TV Guide.
