March is slowly walking out, which for horror fans seems like the longest walk ever. The long gap between the end of Halloween Horror Nights, and the beginning of the summer (when information starts to slowly leak out) is about the longest dry spell for any fan of the event. However, it looks like something may be stirring, something…evil. With constant teasing coming from the official Halloween Horror Nights Hollywood page, it seemed like only a matter of time before something would start slithering about from Orlando..and it has. Is more to come?
The official Halloween Horror Nights Orlando Facebook page has updated their images. While that seems like a bit of fanboy straw grasping, there is historical precedent here. The Facebook page usually only updates right before a major announcement. It’s been the case in the past few years of the event, especially last year. With an update of what could be considered a tease of an image, it’s plausible that we could expect an update, or announcement of some kind within the next few days. Of course, on the other hand, it could be just a way to get people talking during a relatively dead time for HHN.
Now, let’s take a look at that picture. If you’re looking for some hidden meaning, or something a little more fruitful to it, I have sad news…it’s stock image. It’s used in several different applications, including as a cover album for The Apologist. It’s a real cool image, and could lead to something more sinister, but for now, it’s just a cool image.
However, there is something else stirring. Something that could reach a little further than Halloween Horror Nights Orlando has been before?
Take a gander at the official Halloween Horror Nights splash page (click here), and you might notice something a little out of the ordinary. HHN Singapore is now apart of the official Halloween Horror Nights line up. Why not? It is hugely popular at Universal Studios Singapore, and will be in it’s 4th year in 2014. In 2013, the event celebrated it’s third year with three sisters from legend. It was the kind of thing that events in Orlando were built off of.
So, is this a big deal? While it doesn’t seem to be a big deal, it kind of is. HHN Singapore is, after all, just part of the HHN brand, so why not market it that way? Well, good point, but then there’s Universal Studios Japan. That park also has a Halloween Horror Nights event, a very successful event at that. It was the first event to use the Resident Evil game series as a haunted attraction, which was taken over a year later by Universal Studios Orlando.
(Yes, we know…Singapore was added at the end of last year)
Why isn’t Japan listed? It could be a huge number of reasons, but the most obvious reason is…Universal Singapore, Hollywood and Orlando plan on using some of the same themes and houses this year. Universal Studios Orlando and Hollywood has recently started having mazes based on the same property, during the same year. Universal Studios Orlando has even used some of the houses that originated in Hollywood. Houses like Alice Cooper, and La Llorona were transferred from Hollywood to Orlando with decent results. So, why not include Singapore in that game?
Here’s something else to think about…Singapore seems to be developing some rich characters based on folk lore and legends in Singapore. Mike Aiello, creative director at Universal, said that with La Llorona they would like to continue the “Urban Legend” series. While Urban Legends could be something from our country, we kind of suck at telling ghost stories, mostly because our ghost stories revolve around what we’ve seen in movies or have experience in our brief history as a country. Other countries, who’s history dates back to ancient times, have a rich dark and disturbing history. Countries like Mexico and the Republic of Singapore have many ancient tales that are ripe for haunted houses. In fact, Singapore’s Three sisters last year was based on old stories. Could we be seeing the three come to Orlando and Hollywood? Maybe.
Keep in mind that these are just theories and rumors, and nothing is official until Universal announces it.
One thing that we do know solidly, however, is the date range for Halloween Horror Nights 24 at Universal Orlando. This year the event will run select nights from September 19th until November 1st. While specific dates within that range have not been listed, it’s expected to run about 27 nights this year. HHN Orlando usually runs Thursday-Sunday nights until the middle of October when it runs Wednesday to Sunday nights. Check out the official Universal Orlando website for more info by clicking here!
Update 3-24-14
Universal Orlando has released the full HHN schedule, confirming 28 nights of the event.
Here is the full schedule:
Event nights are as follows:
September 19, 20, 25, 26, 27 and 28October 2, 3, 4, 5, 9, 10, 11, 12, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 29, 30 and 31November 1
The precedent holds true, a small change happens on the official Facebook page before an announcement, so be sure to like HHN Orlando on Facebook.
The official Halloween Horror Nights Orlando website has also been updated, and it confirms that there will once again be 8 houses and 2 shows. There’s also no mention of designated scare zones, but once again street experiences.
Be sure to stay tuned as we bring you more Horror Nights goodness from now until the event starts, and beyond! Also follow along with us on Twitter @BehindThrills for the latest updates.
