cost about $10 million to build and the whole film would cost about $70 million. When box office results for The Distinguished Gentleman came in, Paramount ordered the budget to be cut to $55 million. Some modifications were made to the Columbia Carousel and Vortex roller coaster. Most of the Sky Whirl/Triple Wheel stunts (renamed "The Spider" for the film) were filmed in a studio. To film the exterior scenes, the motors of the Triple Wheel were left unpowered; instead, to ensure the ride did not move too quickly, some cages were loaded with sandbags to unbalance the mechanism. In this scene, George Lucas has a small part as the man Axel cuts in front of to get on the ride, also known as 'disappointed man' (this can be seen in the credits). John Singleton and Martha Coolidge also made cameo appearances in the film. Many rides that were seen in the movie including Triple Play/Sky Whirl have since been removed. Also, the carousel at the back of the park (the Ameri-Go-Round, not the Columbia Carousel) was altered. The Ameri-Go-Round carousel has since been removed and Drop Zone is now in its place. The tunnels that supposedly ran under the park are a myth as well. No tunnels run under the park, as many thought after this was released. The Alien Attack ride featured in the Wonder World theme park was in fact the "Earthquake: The Big One" attraction from the Universal Studios Florida theme park in Orlando, Florida. The "aliens" featured in the ride are suited actors (and not animatronic as suggested in the film) that closely resembled the Cylons from the original Battlestar Galactica. Other appearances Paramount's Great America was also used as the theme park Macaulay Culkin visits in the 1994 film Getting Even with Dad (which was released not by Paramount Pictures, but rather by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer). The park's inverted steel coaster "Top Gun" (later renamed "Flight Deck") was featured in a 2007 Excedrin commercial with music from The Stremes. Marriott's Great America was used in the 1983 George Lucas and John Korty animated feature Twice Upon A Time. It was used both as a background for animated scenes and for a short live-action shot at the end of the film. Incidents In 1980, a 13-year-old boy was killed and several others injured on the Willard's Whizzer roller coaster. In 1989, two boys intentionally jumped out of