MUSTANG, Texas — Editor's note: The video published above is a WFAA report from December 2021, when Cuban purchased the small Texas town of Mustang.
Ever been to Dinosaur, Texas?
No, you haven't -- because it doesn't exist. And there are no plans for it to exist, despite what you may have heard.
Allow us to explain.
Back in December 2021, Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban bought a small town called Mustang, Texas, that's located about 55 miles south of Dallas. At the time of the purchase, WFAA reported that the town had a population of 23, according to census records.
A day after reporting on that purchase, we went and checked out the town for ourselves. What did we find? Not much -- just two vacant buildings, including a former adult entertainment venue.
Our reporting further bore out that Cuban bought the Navarro County town to help the family of a friend who had recently passed away from cancer. His intentions with the town beyond that, however, remained unknown at the time.
Then, during a March appearance on "The Drew Barrymore Show", Cuban finally gave a hint toward his potential use for the Texas ghost town.
Enter "Dinosaur, Texas."
In that talk show appearance, Cuban told Barrymore that he hoped to turn Mustang, Texas, into Dinosaur, Texas, adding he wanted to put huge animatronic dinosaurs everywhere throughout the community.
It wasn't an entirely farfetched notion; Cuban had already invested in an entrepreneur named Dino Don on an episode of "Shark Tank", and Dino Don works in the robotic, life-sized dinosaur space.
"He makes the animatronic dinosaurs -- these huge dinosaurs -- that look and sound real," Cuban told Barrymore about Dino Don. "We haven't worked through it yet, but there's a chance we might change Mustang, Texas, to Dinosaur, Texas. But that's a longshot."
Cuban's appearance on "The Drew Barrymore Show" originally aired in March 2022, but his idea returned to the spotlight thanks to a re-airing of that episode last week.
So: Has Cuban made any progress on the Dinosaur, Texas, front?
Not really. In fact, Cuban flatly told WFAA on Thursday that the project is not happening.
"No," Cuban told WFAA via email. "I told Drew it was something we were looking at... but it's not going happen. That show was taped a long time ago."
Meaning? Well, those of you who were hoping to revel in a permanent (as opposed to temporary) dinosaur-themed wonderland just a short drive from Dallas are out of luck. It's not happening.
Then what is going to be happening in Mustang, Texas? That much, Cuban told WFAA, remains to be determined.
"[We're] just cleaning [the town] up right now," Cuban said. "No plans yet."