Halloween Horror Nights 2025 (USH) - Speculation & Rumors

[viking_wizard_eyes]

I deal with entertainment law all the time. Only thing that matters is money. And Six Flags ain't shelling out more. They literally don't have the budget, that much is apparent. Nothing is enticing about what they have to offer whether it's in regards to fan outreach, tourist outreach, merchandise sales, commercial showcasing, repeat business, new fan conversion, international market, or literally anything -- they do not have the fanbase loyalty or numbers to sustain or make any declarations bigger than Universal's, whether that's here in Six Flags' Valencia, Texas, or New Jersey. Any and every IP will go where the most money is being offered, even if it meant staying there for freakin' 10 years - Walking Dead is a prime example of that. It also worked out major deals to be in multiple places at the same time because they were a big enough entity to do so -- it literally is that simple. Work with the big dogs or don't, even if exclusivity isn't on the table.

Six Flags snagged those properties up cheaper than they usually are because Universal offered them nothing. Universal is trying to expand, I totally get that, but the product is so much weaker now. It has nothing to do with "oh we've been going a long time and I'm used to it" -- Knotts is over there getting BETTER recently and I've been going there for 25 years. There's a major decline and even the GP is starting to notice it. It's time to start hitting some panic buttons and shelving out big bucks for some crazy big draws that'll stop people from saying "oh that sounds cool" and back to "oh that sounds scary."

Let's not forget the fact that one single person has been spearheading this thing for almost two decades now. With all due respect, new blood is needed to throw some fresh freakin' ideas onto the table. I'm not saying Murdy needs to quit, step aside, or even be just a consultant -- but he needs to share this process with multiple other people in order for this to work. How many times is he typing into his treatments, "and then uh...he rips off the face of his victim and...shows the guests running by! YEAH, that's it!" We all KNOW there's so much more HHN can be doing, even with their rules, regulations, and standards they have set, even with the guilds in place, but we're just ignoring it because "uh, yeah, The Last of US, cool! Weeknd, alright!" Far and wide, the haunt industry is growing and this event itself is growing, but it is using the same techniques over and over again -- REFUSING to grow not because it can't, but because it all stems from ONE person's imagination!

You're contradicting yourself left and right here. I digress because we're way off topic, but I'll just say that I'm personally extremely confident that if Universal had their way -- could literally just snap their fingers and get whatever they want -- then HHN would be nothing but show-stopping marquees and cool, horror-dork deep cuts year after year. It would be Suspiria and Alien and The Conjuring and The Fly and Twin Peaks and It and Scream and Fright Night and Phantasm and The Ring and everything/anything else people would die to experience.

But for a wide variety of reasons, that's not possible. The reality is Universal -- and any other organization trying to run an IP-driven haunt event -- has to play within boundaries beyond their control, and you can either accept that or not!

 

[Jerroddragon]

I'll also say....while I know its not always going to draw a billion people...IPs like Ghost busters have there place at these events

Not everything has to be OMG so scary to fit Halloween. The event is meant to celebrate Halloween right? Also you want IPs that draw some none horror fans as well

This is like we know a business, and I'm not saying make all things fun but I love we normally have like one fun house like Ghost Busters, Clowns from outer space...etc. Its also why I like having on Classic Monsters house...sure its not that scary but the vibes are always off the charts fun

 

[Jake S]

I'll also say....while I know its not always going to draw a billion people...IPs like Ghost busters have there place at these events

yeah, I personally think an event as big as horror nights is well served by having a diversity of experiences. if i want something more traditionally horror focused, there are loads of grassroots haunts worth checking out - especially in southern california.

 

[chris.g]

That's the only aspect I will disagree wholeheartedly on. Ghostbusters (IMHO) has no place at the event that pushed boundaries in the SoCal haunt scene in the first place. It removes the immersion for me, but has also signaled to me that HHN will likely never be what it once was in delivering content that could be grotesque and uncomfortable so long there is something that totally isn't.

I feel more alienated from HHN in recent years and that's fine, whatever, they won't lose sleep over a fan not forking over money for something that fits the bill, but I also don't necessarily feel as if I'm wrong as to why HHN is just not "it" anymore.

 

[viking_wizard_eyes]

That's the only aspect I will disagree wholeheartedly on. Ghostbusters (IMHO) has no place at the event that pushed boundaries in the SoCal haunt scene in the first place. It removes the immersion for me, but has also signaled to me that HHN will likely never be what it once was in delivering content that could be grotesque and uncomfortable so long there is something that totally isn't.

I feel more alienated from HHN in recent years and that's fine, whatever, they won't lose sleep over a fan not forking over money for something that fits the bill, but I also don't necessarily feel as if I'm wrong as to why HHN is just not "it" anymore.

I'm . . . so confused by this. I've been plenty vocal about Ghostbusters and similar IP, but HHN is and always has been a theme park event. There's never been a time where it was -- or even aspired to be -- edgy or boundary-pushing from a content perspective. They've pushed the boundaries of design and construction and presentation, for sure, but making people uncomfortable has never been the objective, like ever. Even when things are their most extreme, it's designed to be a thrill in the same way as riding a ride; not to disturb or alienate the guest.

Look, people have a lot of nostalgia for this event. My guess is you're recalling a time when perhaps you were more impressionable than you are now because this recollection is just completely inaccurate.

 

[chris.g]

I meant to root my argument more in reputation, and yes, youre right - it is definitely an era where it was much more impressionable and I even said so a few pages back, that for HHN fans of old, the era where "stronger" horror IPs were a thing is gone and we just have to accept it.

I just think that having an IP like Ghostbusters completely removes this reputation, hell, I even thought this was an issue when Krampus was an IP during Hollywood's best year ever. And I think it's fair to have this assessment and say that GB makes one think the event isn't "scary" at all anymore, and devoid HHN of its thrilling, tense atmosphere. A family property just doesn't do that for an event that was the destination for this according to its season, and it's only gonna get less enticing for people like myself to want to care.