Halloween Horror Nights 2023 Speculations and Rumors: Orlando Edition

With Halloween Horror Nights being just four months away, there have been a lot of rumors swirling around the community fanbase. Luckily, we recently received a speculation map from Horror Night Nightmares, a reputable source for several years for Halloween Horror Nights information. I don’t know how they do it or who they know, but they’re usually pretty accurate. Although, this speculation map is interesting… to say the least.

Let’s dive into it.

So far, the only confirmed house that we have is Chucky; based on the 2021/2022 series created by Don Mancini that is based on the Child’s Play franchise. I wasn’t super thrilled about this because I’m not a “huge” fan of Chucky, but after watching the series, I really gained a new appreciation for that little man. I can definitely see why their creative team wanted to bring this as an intellectual property, I think it’ll translate into a house super well.

For our second possible IP (intellectual property) we have Demon Slayer. This one really caught me off guard… this would be the first time the event would have a house based on an anime. I’m familiar with the anime itself and some of the characters, but I have never actually watched it. I do think it would be a little difficult to bring these characters to life and I’m not sure how likely it is that we will get this as a house, but it would definitely draw in a different crowd that maybe wouldn’t normally go to the event otherwise.

Next up on the map for discussion is another IP, and that is The Exorcist: Believer. Now this I can really get down with. We’ve had The Exorcist (based on the 1973 film) as a house in previous years in both Orlando and Hollywood. Unfortunately, I never got to see this house in person, but maybe this year I’ll get a taste of what it was like. The Exorcist: Believer is set to be a direct sequel to the original film and isn’t supposed to release until October 13th, 2023, a whole month after the event begins… That is what really makes me question its validity of becoming a house. Unless they release the new film a bit earlier, it would be a little odd to have a house based on a movie that hasn’t been released yet. Although, it would be great marketing to make people want to go see it.

Continuing to follow along the IP train, we have Naughty Dog: The Last of Us. Let it be noted that on the map, they have this as a house and a scare zone. In my opinion, I could see this coming to fruition more than some of the other IPs I’ve previously discussed. I do find it odd that they would have it as a house and a zone, but then again they did something similar in 2019 with Rob Zombie’s House of 1000 Corpses and also having a scare zone dedicated to his 1998 album “Hellbilly Deluxe.” This would not be based on the new and super-successful HBO series The Last of Us, but rather the video game also with the same title created by Naughty Dog Games.

For the last of our IP houses, we’re left with Universal Monsters: Paris. We’ve seen some form of a “Monsters” house for the last four years such as: “Universal Monsters (2019)”, “Universal Monsters: The Bride of Frankenstein Lives (seen in 2020 and 2021)”, and last year “Universal Monsters: Legends Collide (2022).” I know I said before that I could see The Last of Us coming, but THIS I can 100% see being brought to HHN. It’s simple, they have all the rights to the classic Universal Monsters so it’s easily accessible, and most of the event-goers enjoy seeing these creatures brought to life. It’s a win-win.

You’ll see that there’s a house with a “Top Secret” stamp. This has caused quite an uproar as a lot of people are in hopes that Netflix hit series Stranger Things will be returning and showcasing its fourth season. There was a 10-minute video posted on the Halloween Horror Nights YouTube page that seemed to hint at Stranger Things and possibly a new (or returning) icon for the event as well.

As far as original houses go, we don’t have too much to work with other than some different symbols/designs mashed together. Personally, none of them really piqued my interest other than the Gothic style/Salem-inspired structure and pentagram.

Hopefully, we get some legitimate announcements soon. While doing some research on last year’s event, on May 17th there was a house announcement for Universal Monsters: Legends Collide, and then two more announcements in June and July as well. Maybe there will be some sort of trend here… But for now, see what you can decipher from this video. Happy Haunting!

Stay up to date with “The Dark Side Of Pop Culture” by following MacabreDaily on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter.