There are six mazes, scare zones and countless scare actors featured at this year’s Halloween Horror Nights, along with some of the classic attractions open to give guest a break from the terror.
With Horror Nights, the everyday park was transformed into a world of terrifying excitement. Visual effects lit up the sky, fog machines and audio recordings helped to create an ambiance of fear and fun. Sounds of people screaming and frightening chainsaws echoed through the park. There were several scare zones that had actors dressed as psychotic clowns, masked murderers and all sorts of other monsters to make nightmares come to life.
Insidious: Into the Further was designed to frighten both the mind and senses. While guests waited in line, audio clips of crowing and screaming women played in the background. The entrance of the maze was through the Lambert family’s house. Scenes from both films were brought to life and actors waited to prey upon unsuspecting viewers. There were different smells that accompanied rooms which made it feel real. The smell of death lingered even after leaving the maze.
Evil Dead: Book of the Dead took place inside the creepy cabin where the group of possessed friends and demons horrified guests. In one room a girl split her own tongue open with a knife, while in another room had a bloody scene of a character getting a chainsaw to their face. There were realistic scenes of brutal deaths and torture. An abundance of blood and guts even splattered visitors at the end.
The Terror Tram lead to one of the back lots of Universal Studios where The Walking Dead: No Save Haven and Black Sabbath: 13 3D were located. While taking the short ride on the tram clips from the new season of The Walking Dead were previewed. As the tram slowed, sounds of hungry walkers were played over the speakers. When people exited the tram there were zombies waiting to feast on their flesh.
When maneuvering through the infested lot, the walkers waited around every turn. The fog was heavy and it made the bloody zombies harder to see, which added to the fright factor. Around one corner there was some heavy artillery and a cop car that featured walkers gorging themselves on a fresh kill. This lead directly to The Walking Dead maze.
The Walking Dead: No Safe Haven took place in the prison that was featured in season three of the show. The entrance of the maze started by walking in between fences that had crazed walkers on the other side that tried to break through. The theme song to the show “The Walking Dead” is being played in the background. During the maze there were infected feasting on human limbs and they popped out from hidden corners. As the patrons filed through the prison and around corners the atmosphere became tense and anxious. People could sense something scary was coming, but just didn’t know from where. Scenes from season three were reenacted throughout the maze and even the governor’s fish tank full of heads was showcased at one point. Fan of the show or not this was a maze worth checking out.
The other maze that was located on the back lot was Black Sabbath: 13. This had the longest wait time of the night and stayed that way. This maze was 3D so wearing the glasses for the extra effects was a must. The maze featured the dark and twisted music of Black Sabbath and eye-popping 3D effects, demonic creatures and original, bloody death scenes. The heavy metal music kept maze goers pumped up and ready for more action while they made their way through the warped world of neon monsters and demons of darkness.
For some comedic relief check out Bill and Ted’s Excellent Halloween Adventure. The show ran every two hours and was full of dancing, singing and profanity as Bill and Ted make their way through the land of Oz. They took inspiration from popular movies and used celebrities as the punch line to every joke. At one point they named Kristen Stewart as the wicked witch of the west. This action packed show was entertaining and helped folks gear up for the rest of Horror Nights.
Another original maze was located on the top level of Universal Studios, El Cucuy: The Boogeyman. This maze was not based on a movie so it allowed the creators to dive into their own twisted minds and produce original scenes of childhood monsters. The maze was filled with crazy costumes that brought the legend of the boogeyman into reality. The maze was narrated by Danny Trejo which added a fun vibe to the imaginative maze.
The other attraction on the top level was Universal Monsters Remix. This maze brought back classic Horror Nights monsters and put them with a couple modern cretins in one terrifyingly awesome maze. The whole experience had music from DJ Figure who added a fresh and funky vibe to this can’t miss attraction.
Along with the mazes, there were other attractions that were fun check out. Each scare zone had different monsters that jumped out to scare and even followed around their victims to ensure ultimate fright. There is an area where the creepy characters from “The Purge” were running around, waiting to take a slice out of anyone. There were also some classic Universal Studios rides open for business, such as The Simpsons Ride and Transformers: The Ride 3D which gave people a break from monsters and doom.
Make sure to get there early. Lines can be long but at the front of the line passes are available for purchase. Also, a good tip is to start at the back and work your way forward in order to make sure not to miss anything. So, if you dare, be sure to check out all the attractions at this year’s Universal Studios Halloween Horror Nights.
Halloween Horror Nights at Universal Studios Hollywood runs each weekend, now through the beginning of November.
