Can you believe we’re almost halfway to Halloween 2022 already? Noting that reality kind of helps me deal with the fact that Universal Orlando Resort is already selling single-day tickets for Halloween Horror Nights. But with the absence of concrete announcements for any of the 10 houses or five scare zones promised for this year, I’m probably not alone in wanting to see some announcements drop. That sort of anticipation is even more notable following a recent exchange between the social media presence for HHN and its Orlando home.
It all started with a "grave" (get it?) sounding tweet from the Halloween Horror Nights Twitter account, which gave Universal Orlando the opening needed to provide some quick and topical snark. Since today is a Monday, and that phenomenon hits us all differently, one of the homes to the famous festival of fall frights struck back quick. Here’s what Universal Studios’ Florida based park had to say in response:
Easy on the Monday morning, Chad.April 4, 2022
What you’ve just witnessed is the theme park PR version of family members poking at one another on the Internet and using the popular Internet term "Chad" to do it. Halloween Horror Nights is the kid pulling the strings, or in this case, holding the Halloween Horror Night keys. Listening to only the finest goth music, while waiting for when it’s allowed to announce something official, the horror couldn’t be more real. Meanwhile, Universal Orlando’s social media feed comes off like the "sibling” in the next room who’s focused on getting jacked for the 2025 opening of Epic Universe. You're still in the same family, kids.
If you ask any questions about what exactly will be taking the place of Fear Factor Live, which is slated for demolition, all Universal Orlando Resort will do is ask you to spot them for the next reps. After which, they’ll totally answer your questions. Metaphor aside, the digital comedy act you read above feels indicative of Universal Parks customers patiently waiting for news on Halloween Horror Nights, and the slowly frayed nerves that might accompany that anticipation.
For theme park enthusiasts who are huge fans of this spooky season tradition, they might be thinking they too are embodiments of “the horror” that comes with the uncertainty of just what to expect. If Halloween Horror Nights is going to start stirring the pot on the internet, the least they can do is start spilling what sort of haunts await those brave enough to buy a ticket. The official HHN account did drop what looked like a tease for an Alien based maze, so a little bit of an official assist would be lovely.
After all of the fun and excitement of Halloween Horror Nights 2021’s houses, wanting to know what 2022 will bring isn’t a crime, is it? I want to know what comes next, but patience is obviously something we’ll all need to exhibit in the meantime. Here’s hoping that the answers we all seek start to drop, and soon, as single-day tickets are currently on sale for 2022’s Halloween Horror Nights event at Universal Studios Orlando.
Set to run between September 2nd and October 31st, there’s some whispers on the internet rumoring Jordan Peele’s 2022 movie release Nope as one of this year’s potential houses. Whether that’s true or not, the movie will be in theaters on July 22nd.
