South Florida Sun-Sentinel (Sunday)
All Halloween Horror Nights houses, scare zones announced
Universal Orlando has unleashed details about every haunted house and all scare zones for its upcoming Halloween Horror Nights at Universal Studios Florida. Visitors will encounter the new “Exorcist” movie, go underground for classic monsters and meet Dr. Oddfellow in multiple ways at the theme park.
There’s also a shout-out to an original Islands of Adventure attraction incorporated into one of HHN’s five original haunted houses.
Universal identified three of the 2023 houses over several months. But rather than a drip-dripdrip method of releasing the remainder of attractions, on Friday it dropped the entire lineup of mazes and scare zones plus other information about the event, which kicks off Sept. 1.
The 10 houses this year, starting with the newly revealed, include:
The Exorcist: Believer, based on a film of the same name that’s set to be released Oct. 13. The house’s story includes a street market in Haiti, a threeeyed doll, a demonic portal and a pair of 12-year-old girls who “exhibit unsettling
behavior,” according to Universal’s news release.
Universal Monsters: Unmasked, which will feature the Phantom of the
Opera, Dr. Jekyll, Mr. Hyde, the Hunchback of Notre Dame, the Invisible Man and their Catacombs home.
Yeti: Campground Kills, set in a 1950s campground infested by multiple Yetis.
Bloodmoon: Dark Offerings with human sacrifice and focused villagers.
The Darkest Deal, where a blues musician sells his soul for fame before being dragged to Hades to meet others with similar arrangements.
Dueling Dragons: Choose Thy Fate, which at least in name is a reference to IOA’s Lost Continent roller coaster, which later became Wizarding World of Harry Potter’s Dragon Challenge before being removed to make room for Hagrid’s Magical Creatures Motorbike Adventure ride. Universal’s house description includes Merlyn, Enchanted Oak, a castle and warlocks turned into dragons of fire and ice.
Dr. Oddfellow: Twisted Origins, a collection of oddities (“grotesquely distorted animals and freakish fiends”) in a Dust Bowl setting.
Previously announced houses are based on the fourth season of Netflix’s “Stranger Things,” “The Last of Us” video game and the killer doll TV show “Chucky,” which now has an expanded house name of Chucky: Ultimate Kill Count.
The five scare zones have a common thread: Dr. Oddfellow, who Universal refers to as a Halloween Horror Nights “legend.” They include:
Dr. Oddfellow’s Collection of Horror, where HHN visitors will see “the devious legend.”
Dark Zodiac, where Dr. O turns the zodiac signs into creatures.
Jungle of Doom: Expedition Horror, where Oddfellow’s experiments are nature-animal hybrids.
Vamp ‘69: Summer of Blood, where a music festival is crashed by vampires.
Shipyard 32: Horrors Unhinged, where the doctor’s monsters have escaped from crates.
Other new items revealed by Universal on Friday include:
A new stage show called “Nightmare Fuel Revenge Dream” with aerial performers, pyrotechnics and “the beat of metal and electronica.”
Peacock’s Halloween Horror Bar (themed drinks, nightclub setting, photo ops, location not announced).
Dead Coconut Club, the return of Universal CityWalk’s reimagined Red Coconut Club.
Tribute Store with a horror comic book theme.
A ticketed Taste of Terror event, which will run select nights between Aug. 10 and Aug. 26 and preview select menu items for the event.
Halloween Horror Nights is an after-hour, extra-ticket fright fest held on 48 select nights between Sept. 1 and Nov. 4. Tickets, including multinight passes, are now on sale. For more information, go to halloweenhorrornights.com/orlando.