Saudi Arabia Goes Big on Dragon Ball Z. A $7 Billion Theme Park Deal Wil Be Built In France.

A $7 billion theme park complex inspired in part by Dragon Ball Z is coming to the Paris region, in what French President Emmanuel Macron is billing as one of France's biggest entertainment investments since Disneyland Paris.

France and Saudi Arabia have agreed on a 6 billion euro investment to develop three theme parks near Cergy-Pontoise, roughly 30 kilometers northwest of Paris. One of the parks is expected to draw from the universe of the blockbuster Japanese manga and anime franchise Dragon Ball Z.

The sprawling project will be led and financed by Qiddiya, the Saudi entertainment developer backed by the kingdom's Public Investment Fund. French officials estimate the development could create about 22,000 jobs, putting its employment impact on a scale comparable to Disneyland Paris.

"Nothing like this has been seen since Disneyland Paris," Macron said in announcing the agreement on X, describing the development as a future "global destination." The deal was unveiled during Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman's two-day visit to France, where French officials said the idea emerged from discussions between Macron and bin Salman after the two discovered a shared enthusiasm for manga and Dragon Ball Z.

The agreement also gives Macron another major win for his "Choose France" campaign, which his government has used to court international companies and investors. At the latest Choose France summit in June, companies pledged billions of dollars for projects spanning technology, industry and other sectors.

For Saudi Arabia, the Paris project represents another step in its effort to build a global entertainment business as the kingdom tries to diversify its economy beyond oil. Qiddiya is already developing a massive entertainment destination outside Riyadh that includes Six Flags Qiddiya City, Aquarabia and gaming and esports facilities.

Saudi Arabia is also developing a Dragon Ball-themed park as part of Qiddiya City. The Paris-area project arrives as global entertainment giants pour billions into theme parks, betting that consumers will continue paying for immersive experiences built around major intellectual property.

Comcast has announced plans to invest more than $8 billion in a Universal resort in the United Kingdom, while Disney is undertaking one of the largest expansions in the history of its parks business. Disney previously announced plans to invest $60 billion over a decade in its Experiences division, including parks, cruise ships and other attractions.

Europe is becoming an increasingly important battleground. Disneyland Paris has dominated the region's destination theme park business since opening in 1992, but its history also demonstrates the enormous financial risks involved. Despite attracting hundreds of millions of visitors over its lifetime, the resort struggled financially for years and required repeated investment and restructuring.

That makes the scale of the Saudi-backed French project particularly notable. The development is expected to include three separate parks, although the themes of the other two have not been disclosed. The Élysée said construction will happen in stages and could take several years. No opening date has been announced.

Dragon Ball could give the project a powerful international audience from the start. Created by Akira Toriyama, the manga debuted in Japan in 1984, while the Dragon Ball Z anime began airing in 1989. The franchise has since expanded into movies, video games, collectibles and merchandise and built an enormous fan base across Europe, Latin America and the United States.