HHN Hollywood Speculation/News - 2015

[deadbydawn]

So, why did they decide to bring the trams back this year?  I was getting used to the long walk building anticipation and didn't really mind it at all.  I'm sure some people got annoyed by that, but I'd prefer getting a little extra exercise to losing an additional maze because people don't want to walk.

According to John, there were surveys done last year and an overwhelming amount of people said they would rather have the express tram as opposed to walking. 

Oh yea, I forgot to mention this the other day when the website updated... Why the hell is TWD featured as the main imagery for the event when it is ONLY a maze this year? Yes, yes I know "BIGGEST. MAZE. EVER."  It doesn't even advertise that. And honestly, if you count the folds of the tent viewing the aerial image, it really isn't that much larger than the other tents (yes I counted). I just think its kinda stupid to be using TWD as the main focus on the site when it isn't for the event.

It may not be the main focus of the event this year, but it is something that the general public will get excited about. I am sure that is why they are pushing it out there. 

 

[Wesker69]

I understand that, but it doesn't make it any less dumb. And really, from a marketing perspective, using something you've used the previous 3 years is NOT the best way to sell something, no matter how much the GP may like it. They should be pushing the event in a new way. Of course this just brings me back to the whole "overall encompassing theme" concept that Murdy seems to be opposed to doing.

If Hollywood used the Usher or Director (better than 2006) every year in some way to promote the event, it wouldn't be so bad because with all of the IPs, it would make sense. Or rather than recycling 2 of Orlando's icons (fun fact: The Director was created by marketing, A&D had to make it work because it wasn't the direction they had planned for 2003), it'd be nice to see an all new icon or theme associated to films created "The Prop Master" or "The Film Vault", "The Archives of Horror"... something..

*shrugs* Just sick of seeing TWD front & center... its lazy..

 

[BruceTheShark]

I understand that, but it doesn't make it any less dumb. And really, from a marketing perspective, using something you've used the previous 3 years is NOT the best way to sell something, no matter how much the GP may like it. They should be pushing the event in a new way. Of course this just brings me back to the whole "overall encompassing theme" concept that Murdy seems to be opposed to doing.

If Hollywood used the Usher or Director (better than 2006) every year in some way to promote the event, it wouldn't be so bad because with all of the IPs, it would make sense. Or rather than recycling 2 of Orlando's icons (fun fact: The Director was created by marketing, A&D had to make it work because it wasn't the direction they had planned for 2003), it'd be nice to see an all new icon or theme associated to films created "The Prop Master" or "The Film Vault", "The Archives of Horror"... something..

*shrugs* Just sick of seeing TWD front & center... its lazy..

Hahaha. We are talking about the same place advertising F&F as a full on ride in it's marketing. It goes back to my wordy post, corporate decisions in the interest of what will bring in the most money. I would love to see The Director return, imagine if the new Creative Director used The Director to be self aware of the event and make his triumphant return to "fix" everything. It would play so well with stereotypical Hollywood director images. "I had a vision, I had art, but THEY took it away from me. Turned it into some big corporate joke, stripped of it's substance!"

 

[Ulis clement]

Wesker,Think of this..IT COULD be cheaper as well

Recycling props,Reusing same maze,Props,Using the same map,Advertising,Commercial etc.

 

[alias8703]

I understand that, but it doesn't make it any less dumb. And really, from a marketing perspective, using something you've used the previous 3 years is NOT the best way to sell something, no matter how much the GP may like it. They should be pushing the event in a new way. Of course this just brings me back to the whole "overall encompassing theme" concept that Murdy seems to be opposed to doing.

If Hollywood used the Usher or Director (better than 2006) every year in some way to promote the event, it wouldn't be so bad because with all of the IPs, it would make sense. Or rather than recycling 2 of Orlando's icons (fun fact: The Director was created by marketing, A&D had to make it work because it wasn't the direction they had planned for 2003), it'd be nice to see an all new icon or theme associated to films created "The Prop Master" or "The Film Vault", "The Archives of Horror"... something..

*shrugs* Just sick of seeing TWD front & center... its lazy..

That may be your personal feelings but the bottom line is, it's the highest rated show on television and is a HUGE draw. Way bigger than anything else they have this year and it's going to help them sell a ton of tickets.

You might not like it but I wouldn't call it lazy... Lazy would be them using the same maze unchanged year after year and promoting that. They change it up every year because of how popular it is and how badly people want to see it. It's a perfect fit.

 

[Wesker69]

YES! That would be the best way to handle an icon for the event. Poke fun at what its become! I'd love to see the Director properly used. His 2006 Hollywood debut was the closest. I'll need to look up Singapore since I can't remember what they had done.

and um.... they do recycle props, same mazes... and have used the same commercial/advertising more than once as well... so whatever point you're trying to make, it failed.. you only stated facts  Last year was my first year attending Hollywood and even I could point out props/sets from previous years that I had only seen in videos on youtube (that should NOT be possible!.... although certain exceptions can be made to this).

I've seen & heard people who LOVE TWD (no idea why), say they are over it being used at HHN and don't want it back. I see more people demanding other IPs & less excitement at seeing TWD. Doesn't matter how much you change it up, TWD still offers the same thing every time (I loved last year's house here because of the great scareactors, but it was still TWD. I had to suffer 2 years of crap in Orlando. including an entire full park takeover in 2013)... And TWD being used 4 years in a row is actually very lazy to rely on to sell your event & get people to come. That is not how you run a business or best "the best". Universal has yet to be innovative compared to A LOT of haunts around the world. Which is why I despise corporate/marketing (on both coasts).

 

[upsidown]

According to John, there were surveys done last year and an overwhelming amount of people said they would rather have the express tram as opposed to walking. 

Lol, I'd rather walk than wait in line for a tram.  I love the idea that, in a theme park where one is walking around all day long, that an extra bit of walking becomes an issue for people.  Plus, we were walking INTO the backlot. Come on, that was cool.

I didn't get to ride the tram to the backlot the year they did that.  I had VIP that year and had the personal tram instead.  So, perhaps someone could answer this for me.  How long was the wait, in general, to take a tram to the backlot that year?  In fact, how will having the backlot tram impact early entry?  Will that bottleneck everyone heading there at park opening?

It just seems inconvenient to me.  Stuck waiting in line (for a vehicle to take you to another line). Then waiting in line for a return trip.  As opposed to making constant forward progress toward the mazes by walking.  It would be nice to have the option to walk if one wanted to.

 

[hhnfan1997]

Lol, I'd rather walk than wait in line for a tram.  I love the idea that, in a theme park where one is walking around all day long, that an extra bit of walking becomes an issue for people.  Plus, we were walking INTO the backlot. Come on, that was cool.

I didn't get to ride the tram to the backlot the year they did that.  I had VIP that year and had the personal tram instead.  So, perhaps someone could answer this for me.  How long was the wait, in general, to take a tram to the backlot that year?  In fact, how will having the backlot tram impact early entry?  Will that bottleneck everyone heading there at park opening?

It just seems inconvenient to me.  Stuck waiting in line (for a vehicle to take you to another line). Then waiting in line for a return trip.  As opposed to making constant forward progress toward the mazes by walking.  It would be nice to have the option to walk if one wanted to.

The longest I waited for a backlot tram back in 2013 was 5 minutes. I did early entry once that year, and there was a backlot tram waiting for us when we got downstairs. We got through Black Sabbath and Walking Dead, and we were back in the park by 7:10. I understand why people may have been annoyed by the walk last year, but I enjoyed it once they added the walkers and lights. Personally, I think it would be cool if they did a Face-Off/Figure scare zone with music and cool lights in the long tunnel to the Metro Sets. 

 

[William]

I've seen & heard people who LOVE TWD (no idea why), say they are over it being used at HHN and don't want it back. I see more people demanding other IPs & less excitement at seeing TWD. Doesn't matter how much you change it up, TWD still offers the same thing every time (I loved last year's house here because of the great scareactors, but it was still TWD. I had to suffer 2 years of crap in Orlando. including an entire full park takeover in 2013)... And TWD being used 4 years in a row is actually very lazy to rely on to sell your event & get people to come. That is not how you run a business or best "the best". Universal has yet to be innovative compared to A LOT of haunts around the world. Which is why I despise corporate/marketing (on both coasts).

As much as you and some others may hate it, it draws crowds. The Walking Dead has simply become a cultural phenomenon. Every year that it's been brought to HHN in the form of a maze, it's harbored some of the longest waits at the event. It might be"lazy" marketing, but it works.

 

[Wesker69]

Its the "safe" route though. They could easily draw huge crowds with other IPs (or even well executed & marketed original content)... Relying on TWD is as bad as Universal relying on the event name to sell itself, which has been a problem since Comcast took over.

Marketing the same thing year after year (even if its changed up) is not smart for business, no matter how popular it may be. It becomes familiar and stale, even when there is a variety of other things present.

 

[deadbydawn]

And really, from a marketing perspective, using something you've used the previous 3 years is NOT the best way to sell something, no matter how much the GP may like it.

I disagree. They have the rights to one of the biggest television shows around, it only makes sense to push that out there as much as possible. That makes complete sense to me. 

The Walking Dead won't be at Horror Nights forever, but while it is here, I expect to see it as the centerpiece for marketing. 

 

[BruceTheShark]

YES! That would be the best way to handle an icon for the event. Poke fun at what its become! I'd love to see the Director properly used. His 2006 Hollywood debut was the closest. I'll need to look up Singapore since I can't remember what they had done.

If I remember correctly that was how Chucky was used when he was the icon of the Terror Tram. He started the fires on the backlot and was taking revenge on the studio for giving up on his movies. It would be a bold move that would likely never happen, but it would be a great way to introduce a new vision for the event (aka creative director).

Has anyone seen anything about the Eyegore Awards? I went for a few years and really enjoyed them. Up until they moved it to the Castle Theater.

 

[alias8703]

YES! That would be the best way to handle an icon for the event. Poke fun at what its become! I'd love to see the Director properly used. His 2006 Hollywood debut was the closest. I'll need to look up Singapore since I can't remember what they had done.

and um.... they do recycle props, same mazes... and have used the same commercial/advertising more than once as well... so whatever point you're trying to make, it failed.. you only stated facts  Last year was my first year attending Hollywood and even I could point out props/sets from previous years that I had only seen in videos on youtube (that should NOT be possible!.... although certain exceptions can be made to this).

I've seen & heard people who LOVE TWD (no idea why), say they are over it being used at HHN and don't want it back. I see more people demanding other IPs & less excitement at seeing TWD. Doesn't matter how much you change it up, TWD still offers the same thing every time (I loved last year's house here because of the great scareactors, but it was still TWD. I had to suffer 2 years of crap in Orlando. including an entire full park takeover in 2013)... And TWD being used 4 years in a row is actually very lazy to rely on to sell your event & get people to come. That is not how you run a business or best "the best". Universal has yet to be innovative compared to A LOT of haunts around the world. Which is why I despise corporate/marketing (on both coasts).

dude you sound like a child who didn't get the toy he wanted for his birthday.

Just because you don't like something and found 1 person to agree with you doesn't mean that's the be all end all of the topic. 

You are most certainly in the minority here. Not to mention this event isn't "FOR" people like you who watch videos of the mazes on youtube or read about the event on forums etc.

It's for people who actually go to the event. The general public.

Just because you have your panties in a twist doesn't mean that for most people this isn't excellent news that the highest rated show on television and most popular horror property in the world right now is coming back as a completely new experience.

It's fine to not like something but don't let your opinion drive you to saying things that are foolishly untrue.

 

[Ulis clement]

3 weeks away from hhn

Orlando isn't even done announcing their houses

Meanwhile,Singapore,Japan & Hollywood are..

 

[Wesker69]

1- I do attend the event, have attended for the past 10 years, kept up with it since the late 90s.

2- TWD isn't a horror property, it is a drama that features zombies. Being highest rated, doesn't make it "good" either. There are plenty of movies that make crap ton of money at the box office & are #1 in theaters, but it doesn't mean they are "good movies".

3- Having high expectations for an event from Universal shouldn't be considered a negative. Settling for just anything (like 4 years of TWD), is why so many people have become disenchanted with HHN & have looked elsewhere for their haunt fix. Raising prices & repeating content isn't something to encourage.

 

[deadbydawn]

2- TWD isn't a horror property, it is a drama that features zombies. Being highest rated, doesn't make it "good" either. There are plenty of movies that make crap ton of money at the box office & are #1 in theaters, but it doesn't mean they are "good movies"

The Walking Dead is indeed a drama - no argument there. However, it absolutely falls into the horror category as well. 

 

[alias8703]

1- I do attend the event, have attended for the past 10 years, kept up with it since the late 90s.

2- TWD isn't a horror property, it is a drama that features zombies. Being highest rated, doesn't make it "good" either. There are plenty of movies that make crap ton of money at the box office & are #1 in theaters, but it doesn't mean they are "good movies".

3- Having high expectations for an event from Universal shouldn't be considered a negative. Settling for just anything (like 4 years of TWD), is why so many people have become disenchanted with HHN & have looked elsewhere for their haunt fix. Raising prices & repeating content isn't something to encourage.

1. You said you've been once in the past 4 years.

2. It is a Horror/Drama. You honestly can't deny that it's horror lol. And it is the highest rated because of how great it is. I know TONS of people who HATE horror and blood and scary movies who LOVE the walking dead. 

3. Theres a difference between having "high expectations" and just complaining about something you haven't even experienced yet because you dont wike it

This years event will probably only grow from last year and have more people attending than ever before. So let's wait for the numbers on that one instead of just assuming something is going to fail because you don't happen to be happy with the line up.

also... Resident Evil, going by your logic, is just an action movie with zombies and creatures.

 

[Alexshow.]

Hes referring to the games..I think. RE from the early games were pretty scary, until some of the more recent RE titles..

 

[William]

There's no need to become hostile while presenting a counterargument . Let's stay open-minded, respect each other's opinions, and move on, please.

 

[Ryan]

Yes, please no name calling to add on to what William said. Let's all be adults here.