'Halloween Horror Nights' Returns To Universal Studios Hollywood

STUDIO CITY, CA — After a 2020 hiatus due to the nightmarish coronavirus pandemic, Universal Studios Thursday announced they will once again spook guests at their Hollywood theme park with "Halloween Horror Nights." This year, Netflix' brooding series "The Haunting of Hill House" will take over the theme park beginning in September, bringing with it mazes, ghosts and plenty of other ghastly features.

Scenes from the Netflix series will be featured throughout the maze, including the omni-powerful Red Room – the heart of Hill House – and the infamous Hall of Statues, where deceptive powers overtake everyone who enters.

Apparitions will appear around every corner, from William Hill – The Tall Man, whose towering stature overwhelms everyone he encounters; to The Ghost in the Basement, who feverishly crawls throughout the bowels of the House in search of his next victim; to The Bent-Neck Lady, whose disturbing scream and ghastly appearance invoke a constant state of unnerving dread.

The bravest of challengers can opt for the "Haunting of Hill House" mazes, where individuals will have to escape the estate's eternal stranglehold or be forced to wander the endless halls forever.

“I have loved Halloween Horror Nights for so long,” said Mike Flanagan, Creator, Director and Executive Producer of “The Haunting of Hill House.” “Some of my favorite memories of Halloween were made at Universal Studios, screaming and laughing with my friends. It is such an honor to be included among such fantastic Haunts, and I’m so glad that fans will be able to walk the halls of Hill House this Halloween. This is – without a doubt – one of the coolest things that’s ever happened to us at Intrepid. We are so excited to visit the Red Room again – we hope to see you all there!”

“Mike Flanagan has elevated the horror genre with his supernatural thriller, ‘The Haunting of Hill House,’” said John Murdy, Executive Producer of “Halloween Horror Nights” at Universal Studios Hollywood. “We continuously challenge ourselves to raise the bar with each maze we create, and we look forward to creating a unique experience for our guests that combines both the psychological and visceral twists from the series. The goal is to make our guests feel as if they are walking in the footsteps of the Crain family, re-living all the horrors that they experienced.”

Last year's festivities were cancelled as the theme park was closed due to the pandemic. Halloween Horror Nights debuted at their Orlando location in 1991, before arriving at Universal Studios Hollywood in 1997.

Currently, guests are no longer required to wear masks, although the theme park asks non-vaccinated guests to wear their masks while inside the park. Guests are also encouraged to continue social distancing while at the venue.