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ORLANDO, Fla. — Universal Studios Florida has kicked off its annual Halloween Horror Nights event earlier this year with a “record-breaking” 48-day lineup of after-hour scares.
Fox News Digital got a preview of what visitors can expect when they stop by the Orlando theme park between 6:30 p.m. to 2 a.m. each night, from interactive horror sets to live entertainment, a unique limited-time menu and more.
This year, park guests can test their bravery at 10 haunted houses and five scare zones, where trained actors do their best to frighten visitors.
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“We are always paying attention to our guests, paying attention to fans, paying attention to pop culture,” said Matthew Flood, a senior show director for entertainment, creative development and art and design at Universal Studios Florida, in an interview with Fox News Digital.
Matthew Flood, show director at Universal Studios Florida, talks Halloween Horror Nights production with Fox News Digital as the event kicks off earlier than usual. He stands in the “Stranger Things 4”-themed haunted house. (Cortney Moore/Fox News Digital)
“This event does want to deliver something — a wide variety of things for guests to find the thing that they love,” he continued. “We are always looking for the best properties, the best original houses, the best scare zones, so that everybody who comes will have the thing that terrifies them that they’re a fan of. That’s what makes this fun.”
Halloween Horror Nights Haunted Houses
Guests can walk through 10 different haunted houses. Some are based on popular horror movies and TV shows, while others are original creations dreamed up by Universal staff.
The Exorcist: Believer
Horror movie fans who enjoy the 1973 supernatural cult classic “The Exorcist” will be able to preview the sixth installment of the horror franchise, “The Exorcist: Believer,” which is slated to bow Oct. 13.
Universal’s “The Exorcist: Believer” haunted house gives horror film fans a preview of the upcoming movie. (Cortney Moore/Fox News Digital)
Visitors walk through a Haitian street market and find a doll that leads them to a demonic portal where sinister spirits possess two girls. The original film has been dubbed the scariest horror movie of all time by many in the last 50 years.
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“The Exorcist: Believer was definitely both intense and gross as promised, but it was still a good haunted house and definitely the scariest one so far,” wrote one theme park visitor on X, formerly Twitter, on Sept. 8.
Stranger Things 4
Fans of Netflix’s hit series “Stranger Things” get to walk through pivotal moments of the show’s fourth season, which aired in summer 2022.
Universal’s “Stranger Things 4” haunted house transports guests into the Netflix series’ fourth season. (Cortney Moore/Fox News Digital)
Guests get to face terrifying creatures, including demogorgons and demobats, and season four’s main antagonist, Vecna, who doles out deadly curses through his blood-red Mind Lair.
The Last of Us
Video game fans and newbies can experience the award-winning action-adventure video game “The Last of Us” (2013), which has been turned into a live-action HBO series starring Pedro Pascal as Joel and Bella Ramsey as Ellie. The first season debuted in January of this year.
Universal’s “The Last of Us” haunted house brings the award-winning video game to life. (Cortney Moore/Fox News Digital)
Haunted house visitors get to walk through post-apocalyptic Pittsburgh as a fungal virus has overtaken the city and watch as the game’s protagonists, Joel and Ellie, fight their way through the violent and mutated infected.
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Chucky: Ultimate Kill Count
The “Child’s Play” horror comedy franchise comes to life with the “Chucky: Ultimate Kill Count” haunted house — a first-time takeover for the killer doll.
Universal’s “Chucky: Ultimate Kill Count” haunted house gives the killer doll a spotlight. (Cortney Moore/Fox News Digital)
Guests try to escape from Chucky as he executes murders from the cult classic films and comes up with new ways to slaughter all in the name of regaining fearsome respect. The haunted house debuts one year after the “Living with Chucky” documentary.
Universal Monsters: Unmasked
Twentieth-century horror film buffs get to witness a battle between four iconic villains from Universal movies, including “Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde” (1913), “The Invisible Man” (1913), “The Hunchback of Notre Dame” (1923) and “The Phantom of the Opera” (1943).
Universal’s “Universal Monsters: Unmasked” haunted house includes “The Invisible Man,” aka Dr. Jack Griffin. (Cortney Moore/Fox News Digital)
Visitors are transported to an underground labyrinth below the streets of Paris and see the collateral damage left behind by the feuding foes.
Dr. Oddfellow: Twisted Origins
Universal’s iconic Halloween Horror Nights character Dr. Oddfellow makes his return with a haunted house that reveals the evil circus ringmaster’s dark start.
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Universal’s “Dr. Oddfellow: Twisted Origins” haunted house explores the dark beginnings of the soul-stealing, immortal ringmaster. (Cortney Moore/Fox News Digital)
Visitors walk through Dr. Oddfellow’s Carnival of Thrills, set in a rural Midwest town during the Dust Bowl, and get to see how the soul-stealing ringmaster first gained his immortality with “Dr. Oddfellow: Twisted Origins.”
YETI: Campground Kills
Universal brought back its fan-favorite abominable snowman haunted house with “YETI: Campground Kills,” a sequel to the theme park’s “YETI: Terror of the Yukon” (2019).
Universal’s “YETI: Campground Kills” haunted house features a family of vengeful abominable snowmen. (Cortney Moore/Fox News Digital)
Visitors are transported to a 1950s campground in the Rocky Mountains where a family of bloodthirsty yetis attack as they seek vengeance.
Dueling Dragons: Choose Thy Fate
Longtime visitors of Universal Islands of Adventure can go down memory lane with “Dueling Dragons: Choose Thy Fate,” a haunted house modeled after the theme park’s retired Dueling Dragons rollercoaster, which operated from 1999 to 2010.
Universal’s “Dueling Dragons: Choose Thy Fate” haunted house features a combative fire and ice dragon, inspired by the theme park’s old ride. (Cortney Moore/Fox News Digital)
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Guests can get to watch the nostalgic battle between the park’s fire and ice dragon and choose their own sinister end.
The Darkest Deal
A celebrity-inspired urban legend becomes reality with Universal’s “The Darkest Deal,” where the fictional character, Pinestraw Spruce, a 20th-century blues musician from the Mississippi Delta, sells his soul for musical glory.
Universal’s “The Darkest Deal” haunted house depicts a fame-seeking blues musician agreeing to a soul exchange with a mysterious collector. (Cortney Moore/Fox News Digital)
Unfortunately, for Spruce, he and the guests that witness his story quickly learn that some deals are more than you bargain for.
Bloodmoon: Dark Offerings
Visitors walk through a Colonial-era village of moon worshipers with the “Bloodmoon: Dark Offerings” haunted house.
Universal’s “Bloodmoon: Dark Offerings” haunted house shows a murderous, moon-worshipping village as they track down non-believers. (Cortney Moore/Fox News Digital)
Members of the bloodmoon cult attempt to kill nonbelievers during a fall harvest festival, and guests try to escape their clutches.
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Halloween Horror Nights Scare Zones
Guests get to walk through five scare zones, which are immersive event spaces where scare actors taunt and spook visitors in themed areas of Universal Studios Florida.
This year, Dr. Oddfellow plays a central role in each scare zone.
Dr. Oddfellow’s Collection of Horror
Universal’s “Dr. Oddfellow’s Collection of Horror” scare zone shows the villain unleashing his spooky followers. (Universal Studios Florida)
On Illumination Boulevard, which is located near the front of the park, Dr. Oddfellow welcomes visitors while his carnival followers — the Oddfellow Oddities — intimidate all those who walk past.
Vamp ’69: Summer of Blood
Universal’s “Vamp ’69: Summer of Blood” scare zone is where vampires quench their thirst and watch live entertainment as the fictional music festival goes on. (Cortney Moore/Fox News Digital)
In the New York section of the park, visitors stumble upon “Vamp ’69: Summer of Blood,” a scare zone where hordes of vampires take over a 1969 music festival.
The area is filled with thirsty vampires, terrified concertgoers and vampire slayers.
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Jungle of Doom: Expedition Horror
Universal’s “Jungle of Doom: Expedition Horror” scare zone features terrifying plant creatures. (Cortney Moore/Fox News Digital)
In the Central Park section of Universal Studios is “Jungle of Doom: Expedition Horror,” a scare zone where visitors navigate their way through a jungle temple that’s filled with terrifying animal and plant creatures.
Dark Zodiac
Universal’s “Dark Zodiac” scare zone features evil zodiac characters, including a sharp-pincered Scorpio. (Cortney Moore/Fox News Digital)
In the Hollywood section of the park, guests enter a dark dimension and come face-to-face with malevolent zodiac signs. Doomed fates are foretold through the representations of the 12 horoscope characters.
Visitors also have to watch out for chainsaw minions who aid the evil zodiac.
Shipyard 32: Horrors Unhinged
Universal’s “Shipyard 32: Horrors Unhinged” scare zone is where monsters escape crates and take over a foggy shipping yard. (Cortney Moore/Fox News Digital)
In the San Francisco part of the park, visitors stumble upon “Shipyard 32: Horrors Unhinged,” a scare zone that depicts a 1940s shipping yard where nightmarish monsters are housed in crates. Some escape and menace guests.
Halloween Horror Nights Menu
Universal Studios Florida is offering “Specialty Eats n’ Drinks” for Halloween Horror Nights, which are themed after the haunted houses, original Universal characters and the overall spooky-fall season.
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Fox News Digital previewed 10 of Universal’s Halloween-themed menu items, including:
The FEDRA Ration Bar and the Left Behind Ravioli, two dishes based on “The Last of Us” video game.
Yuri’s Favorite, a peanut butter jar inspired by Yuri Ismaylov from “Stranger Things.”
Dr. Oddfellow’s Carni”EVIL” Dog, a colorful hot dog that’s topped with unexpected ingredients.
Other meals include the new Al Pastor Torta, a sandwich inspired by the Day of the Dead; the Surfer Boy Vegan French Bread; the Cheddar Jalapeno Hellfire Club; and the African Lentil and Potato Sambusa Coffin. Cocktails and desserts are also available.
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Universal Studios Florida’s Halloween Horror Nights event will run through Nov. 4 on select nights, while Universal Studios Hollywood’s Halloween Horror Nights event will run through Oct. 31, also on select nights.
Universal Studios Florida’s Halloween Horror Nights event will mostly operate from Wednesday to Sunday, while Universal Studios Hollywood’s Halloween Horror Nights event will mostly operate from Thursday to Sunday.
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Cortney Moore is a lifestyle writer on the Lifestyle team at Fox News Digital.
