The freak frenzy fest of the year is back in Orlando.
Friday is the first of many terror-filled nights to come in the next few months, as the 35th anniversary of Halloween Horror Nights takes over Universal Orlando until Nov. 1. Universal promises this year’s event will blend legacy with blood-curdling scares — all culminating in the 2026 theme “Infernal Carnival of Nightmares.”
Here’s what to know about this year’s lineup.
Halloween Horror Nights houses
As always, the event boasts 10 haunted houses comprised of a mix of original concepts and franchise-themed madness.
New this year are houses themed after the films Sinners, Hellraiser, Evil Dead Burn and the final season of Stranger Things. We’ll also slink our way through an Ozzy Osbourne: Prince of Darkness tribute house.
The Sinners house will be themed around Club Juke, referencing the club created by the main characters of the film, twins Smoke and Stack, and will feature vampire scare actors. Guests will go through the house, trying to evade the vampires and make it to morning.
For the first time ever, Hellraiser makes a HHN appearance with a haunted house that will feature scenes and beloved characters from Hellraiser, Hellbound: Hellraiser 2 and Hellraiser 3: Hell on Earth. Longtime fans will also be excited to hear that Doug Bradley (Pinhead) will voice his character for the haunted house.
The Evil Dead Burn house is themed after the horror franchise’s sixth film of the same name, which was released this year. It’ll immerse fans in the horrors of the Necronomicon, the film’s demonic book made of human flesh, and its terrifying grasp over the world of Evil Dead.
The Stranger Things 5 house covers the conflicts and battles of Season 5 of the decade-long Netflix original series. Sets inside the house include the Wheeler residence, laboratory, military base, Upside Down and The Abyss, all featured in the fifth and final season of Stranger Things.
Honoring the legendary rocker, Ozzy Osbourne: Prince of Darkness will take fans through 45 years in the life of one of rock music’s biggest icons. The house will serve as a “non-traditional memorial,” the park says, taking guests on a journey through his solo career. Fans will be taken through dungeons and ruins before boarding the “Crazy Train” into the world of Osbourne’s musical oeuvre. Scares and frights are inspired by the covers of Osbourne’s Diary of a Madman, Bark at the Moon, Black Rain and The Ultimate Sin.
The Jack & Oddfellow: Chaos & Control house brings guests face-to-face with the ringmasters Jack the Clown, one of Horror Nights’ original icons, and his long-running rival Dr. Oddfellow, as it details the icons’ feud and a constant battle for power. The two eventually realize that more disorder can ensue if they work together to terrorize guests.
The H.R. Bloodengutz house brings a returning HHN character back from the grave. H.R. Bloodengutz made its first appearance at HHN in 2011 and has yet to make a return, other than for special events at Universal Hollywood. For the first time in 15 years, Lawrence “Larry” Kurtzberg, a late-night horror reality-show host who was a star until he began playing his role a bit too seriously, is back.
Other houses include Cybergoria, Madlands: Caged Cannibals, and Invasion: Alien Abduction.
Halloween Horror Nights scare zones
New scare zone Fortnitemares promises to drop park attendees into a Halloween-inspired battleground called Freaky Fields, originally featured in Fortnitemares 2024. Sprinkled throughout the zone will be familiar characters and objects like the Battle Bus. New characters, exclusive to Halloween Horror Nights, will also be making their debuts.
Have clown trauma? Still have nightmares about the 2016 clown sightings? Oh boy, do we have a spot for you! The Downtown Clowntown scare zone is exactly what it sounds like: filled with clown-themed panic and horror.
Halloween Horror Nights happens select nights Aug. 28 through Nov. 1, 2026. Tickets and expansion packs, including a deeper look into frights and the making of HHN, are available at halloweenhorrornights.com.
