History Theatre / HalloweenHorrorNights

* EyeScream: A common trope for corpses and scareactors, one prominent recent example being a ghostly nurse from 2010's ''Psychoscarepy: Echoes of Shadybrook'', who had a pair of scissors stabbed through her eye.

** Notably in Orlando, the Caretaker and his minions often cooking up pieces of his victims and in the backstory for the Leave it to Cleaver house.

** Hollywood has the ''Klownz'' scarezone, chock fulla clowns, some of them [[ChainsawGood armed]].

* SpecialGuest: Starting in 2007, the event has licensed many different horror characters from various franchises to star in their own haunted houses. It first began with [[Franchise/ANightmareOnElmStreet Freddy]], [[Franchise/FridayThe13th Jason]], and [[Film/TheTexasChainsawMassacre Leatherface]], with [[Franchise/{{Saw}} Jigsaw]] following soon after. It was in 2012 that this practice began to become a yearly tradition, with the event going on to utilize properties like ''Series/TheWalkingDead'', ''Franchise/{{Halloween}}'', ''Series/StrangerThings'', ''Franchise/AlienVsPredator'', ''Series/AmericanHorrorStory'', ''Film/TheExorcist'', ''Film/{{Insidious}}'', ''Film/TrickRTreat'', ''Film/KillerKlownsFromOuterSpace'', and so on for numerous haunted houses.

** Out of all the [=IPs=] the event has used over the years, ''Series/TheWalkingDead'' has far and away been the most emphasized. It has appeared in the event for five years in a row and receives top billing in advertising every time. The Orlando event in particular really emphasized the series in 2013 when it made all the scarezones based around the show, with Walkers roaming around everywhere in sight.

* ZombieApocalypse: A great many houses and scarezones over the years, including 2004's ''Deadtropolis'', 2010's ''Zombiegeddon'', and of course in every appearance of ''Series/TheWalkingDead''.

* AdaptationalVillainy: In some scarezones and houses, characters who weren't villains or even malicious in their source material are antagonistic towards visitors. The Punisher, an antihero, was one of the villains in the ''Maximum Carnage'' house, while in both ''Die-In'' scarezones RJ [=MacReady=], the closest thing to a hero in ''[[Film/TheThing1982 The Thing]]'', joined the title monster in terrorizing guests. In the ''Nevermore: The Madness of Poe'' house, the vulture-eyed man from ''The Tell-Tale Heart'' and the narrator's wife from ''The Black Cat'' attacked guests while in their respective stories they were the innocent victims of AxCrazy narrators.
* AFeteWorseThanDeath: The 2022 house ''Fiesta De Chupacabra'' takes place in a remote Latin American village, where the titular festival is used to lure in tourists so they can be killed and have their blood harvested to sate the titular Chupacabra.
* AlienGeometries: Some houses, like ''A Nightmare on Elm Street: Dreamwalkers'' in 2007, had the rooms tilted or flipped around. [[Creator/EdgarAllanPoe Nevermore: The Madness of Poe]] from 2011 has a room where every surface has the narrator from ''The Tell Tale Heart'' kneeling next to the hole in the floorboards. The one on the wall immediately next to the guests hides the resurrected victim.

* AllThereInTheManual: Many of the original houses and scarezones throughout the event's history will come of as confusing to a lot of guests that haven't heard the backstories behind them on either the event's website or on the "Behind the Screams" tour.

** During his mini-show in the Icons scarezone of 2015.

* AnyoneCanDie: In 2002's ''Island Under Siege'' scare zone and ''Maximum Carnage'' house, all of the Marvel superheroes, including the likes of Spider-Man, Captain America, and Wolverine, are depicted as having been killed by the villains and their bodies strung up as trophies.

* CreepyCrows: Several houses have employed the use of them, but most notably the ''Nevermore: The Madness of Poe'' house with its section for Literature/TheRaven.
* CreepyDoll: The ''Film/DeadSilence'' house in 2007, among others. The ''Cabin in the Woods'' house in 2013 featured a number of the dolls from ''Dead Silence'', including Billy himself, in the cellar. Also, the ''Dollhouse of the Damned'' from [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin 2014]]

* DeathRow: What Bobby "The Blade" Galletta, a serial killer, is placed on in the backstory for the house, ''Afterlife: Death's Vengeance''; with the opening scene showing his execution by the electric chair.

* HumanResources: The 2010 steampunk scarezone ''Saws n' Steam'' was set in New Yorkshire after fissures in the earth dried up the oceans, forcing the steam-reliant citizens to turn to extracting water from corpses. ''Saws n' Steam ''is set after anarchy has set in the streets and people are being rounded up and slaughtered in alleys.

* ImmediateSequel: 2016's event was the first direct sequel to a previous year's event in the Orlando event's history, revealed to guests through the queue video for ''Lunatics Playground 3D: You Won't Stand A Chance''. The death of Amanda Black in The Carnage Returns show led to Chance getting arrested for the crime. With Chance in Shadybrook and Jack back in his box, Chance ends up developing a split personality to cope with Shadybrook and Jack's absense.

* InNameOnly: 2002's ''Maximum Carnage'' house was not an adaptation of the [[Comicbook/MaximumCarnage comic book of the same name]], instead featuring a completely different story that still starred ComicBook/{{Carnage}} nonetheless.

* LadyLuck: Lady Luck was the mascot for the 21st Halloween Horror Nights, which was known as "No One Beats The House (Be Careful What You Wager)". She took the form of a beautiful woman in a green dress, but also showed a more monstrous face in her other form. The scarezone "Your Luck Has Run Out" was based entirely around her.
* LateArrivalSpoiler: If you haven't seen ''Film/TheCabinInTheWoods'' before you go see the house it's based on, prepare to see a load of these. Although, considering the nature of the film, it's understandable they wouldn't even try and make it spoilerless. [[spoiler: The big "purge button" scene isn't in the maze, it's at the begining. The ending scene with the god wasn't included...but some past Horror Nights characters ''are''.]]

** 2015 shows that HHN can agree with Disney on one thing: the promotional gift given to press was a chopped off limb still firmly grasping a ''selfie stick'' with Jack's writing in the flesh demanding that they not bring one when they come to the event. Said selfie stick still has a phone attached. When the press connected it to their computers, they found a wide assortment of pictures from the unfortunate guy that got presumably got killed by Jack and Chance for sneaking into the backstage area...but not before they took a few selfies themselves.

** [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fccKXu_GOyg The video that showed at the park entrance]] at HHN 2009 was The Usher's darkly comedic takedown of disrespectful moviegoers. In 2015, one of the kills would be revisited when reenacted live in the Icons - HHN scarezone.

* VillainWorld: A theme done several times throughout the event, such as 2005's "Terra Cruentas" theme as well as 2002's ''Island Under Siege'' and ''Island of Evil Souls'' scare zones.

* ''Ride/HellsKitchen''
* ''{{Theatre/Horrorwood}}''

** Almost every ''Bill & Ted'' show features ''[[Music/{{Queen}} We Will Rock You]]'' being played to warm up the audience.

* AFeteWorseThanDeath: The 2022 house ''Fiesta De La Chupacabra'' takes place in a remote Latin American village, where the titular festival is used to lure in tourists so they can be killed and have their blood harvested to sate the titular Chupacabra.

* AttackOfTheTownFestival: 2015's ''Psychoscareapy: Unleashed'' scarezone had the Shady Brook inmates crashing a family-friendly Halloween block party.

* DaylightHorror: The event starts at least an hour before nightfall, giving plenty of time for the sun to shine over the scarezones.

* VivaLasVegas: 2012's ''Penn & Teller New(kd) Vegas'', in which an attempt by the titular magic duo to pull off the ultimate extreme magic trick -- [[TooDumbToLive catching ICBMs with their teeth]] -- [[GoneHorriblyWrong goes predictably wrong]] and results in the nuclear destruction of UsefulNotes/LasVegas, the ruins of which are now locked under a radiation containment dome and overrun by [[ILoveNuclearPower radioactive mutants]].

* ''Ghoulish! A Halloween Tale''

* UltimateEvil: Fear.
* Franchise/UniversalHorror: The Universal Monsters are one of '''the''' biggest staples of the event and have been used in some form for almost every year. HHN Orlando celebrated [[MilestoneCelebration Universal Pictures' 100th anniversary in 2012]] with the Universal House of Horrors, fittingly enough; not to be confused with the yearlong attraction at Universal Studios Hollywood that gets used as part of Hollywood's event. 2009's movie themed event featured houses based on modern revivals of ''Film/{{Frankenstein|1931}}'' and ''Film/{{Dracula|1931}}'' along with a tie-in house for the then upcoming ''[[Film/TheWolfman2010 Wolfman]]'' remake.

* Tribute Store

[[folder: Confirmed Houses, Scarezones, and Immersive Content for 2022]]

* Halloween Horror Nights Tribute Store

* ''Halloween Nightmare Fuel Wildfire''

Universal Studios Singapore and Universal Studios Japan both have their own versions, with members of the Orlando event's Art & Design Team providing guidance. Singapore's event weaves in both common Horror Nights staples (the use of Icon characters and common HHN maze/scarezone themes) mixed in with haunted attractions based in Singaporean culture. Japan's event started with a focus on licensed properties such as ''Franchise/FridayThe13th'' and ''[[Film/TheMummyTrilogy The Mummy]]'', along with J-horror mainstays [[Literature/TheRing Ring]] and Film/{{Juon}}. It gained mainstream gaming media attention in 2012 for its ''Franchise/ResidentEvil'' scarezone, complete with [[http://imagescdn.tweaktown.com/news/2/5/25806_10_universal_studios_japan_dons_resident_evil_theme_for_its_annual_halloween_horror_nights_event.jpg appearances]] from some of the franchise's most recognizable protagonists and monsters along with [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3KgVjoX94NI Raccoon City wall projections]]. It's also notable for having the first "extreme" house in the event's history worldwide[[note]]"Extreme" houses differ from regular haunted houses due to being a more "personalized" horror experience. Usually it means guests have to go in alone or with a small group and they have to sign up for it in advance, including legal waivers. There's a lot of focus on sensory deprivation and, most notably, a lot of the rules that scareactors would usually have to follow are off the table ''including'' them not being able to touch you. HHN Orlando has had ideas for extreme houses for years but they've never made it to the events themselves. Orlando's 2016 upcharge experience, ''The Repository'', is the closest to an extreme house the event has had... but while the experience was more personal and the scareactors could touch people, it wasn't any scarier than a regular house.[[/note]], with 2015's Trauma.

[[folder: HHN Orlando 2021 Houses, Scarezones, and Immersive Content]]

* ''Puppet Theatre: Captive Audience'' (original)
* ''Beetlejuice'' (licensed)
* ''Universal Monsters: The Bride of Frankenstein Lives'' (licensed)
* ''The Texas Chainsaw Massacre'' (licensed)
* ''HHN Icons: Captured'' (original)
* ''Revenge of The Tooth Fairy'' (original)
* ''Welcome to [=SCarey=]: Horror in the Heartland'' (original)
* ''Case Files Unearthed: Legendary Truth'' (original)
* ''Netflix’s The Haunting of Hill House'' (licensed)
* ''The Wicked Growth: Realm of the Pumpkin'' (original)

* ''Crypt TV '' (licensed)
* ''30 Years 30 Fears'' (original)
* ''Seek and Destroy'' (original)
* ''Gorewood Forest'' (original)
* ''Lights Camera Hacktion: Eddie's Revenge'' (original)

* ''Marathon of Mayhem: Carnage Factory'' (licensed)
* ''Halloween Nightmare Fuel'' (licensed)
[[AC:Rides]]
* ''Ride/RevengeOfTheMummy''
* ''Ride/FastAndFuriousSupercharged''
* ''Ride/TransformersTheRide''
* ''Ride/MenInBlackAlienAttack''
* ''Ride/HarryPotterAndTheEscapeFromGringotts''
* ''Ride/TheSimpsonsRide'' (select nights only)
* ''Hollywood Rip, Ride, Rockit''

[[folder: HHN Hollywood 2019 Houses, Scarezones, and Immersive Content]]
[[AC:Haunted Houses]]
* ''[[Series/StrangerThings Netflix's Stranger Things]]'' (licensed)
* ''Franchise/{{Ghostbusters}}'' (licensed)
* ''[[Franchise/UniversalHorror Universal Monsters: Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man]]'' (licensed)
* ''[[Film/{{Us}} Jordan Peele's Us]]'' (licensed)
* ''Film/KillerKlownsFromOuterSpace'' (licensed)
* ''Film/HouseOf1000Corpses'' (licensed)
* ''Film/{{Creepshow}}'' (licensed)
* ''Holidayz in Hell'' (original)
* ''The Curse of Pandora's Box'' (original)
[[AC:Scarezones]]
* ''Fallen Angelz'' (original)
* ''Spirits & Demons of the East'' (original)
* ''Christmas in Hell'' (original)
* ''[=ToXXXic=] Tunnel'' (original)
* ''All Hallow’s Evil'' (original)
[[AC:Shows]]
* ''Jabbawockeez'' (licensed)
[[AC:Rides]]
* ''[[Ride/JurassicParkRiverAdventure Jurassic World: The Ride]]''
* ''Ride/RevengeOfTheMummy''
* ''Ride/TheSimpsonsRide''
* ''Ride/TransformersTheRide''
* ''Series/TheWalkingDead Attraction''
[[/folder]]

The event contains examples of:

* PopStarComposer: 2018's ''Universal Monsters'' featured an original soundtrack composed by Music/{{Slash}}.

* TheSmurfettePrinciple: The Storyteller was the only woman among the "first batch" of Icons. This was later fixed with the addition of Lady Luck and Chance.

* TheCheerleader: Taken to a whole new level in 2016's event, which featured a band of chainsaw-wielding cheerleaders. In addition to being to being AxCrazy, each of the cheerleaders still acted like the typical AlphaBitch.

''Halloween Horror Nights'' is one of the largest annual Halloween events in the world. Halloween Horror Nights is hosted by the Ride/UniversalStudios theme parks in Orlando and Hollywood every year, with Singapore and Japan joining the yearly fun in the 2010s. The event usually runs from the start of September to the end of October[[note]]occasionally extending to the first day or two of November[[/note]]. While the Orlando event is the biggest, all events revolve are several key similarities: haunted houses[[note]]sometimes referred to as mazes, though they all have a predefined path[[/note]], scarezones[[note]]sections of the park themed with props and effects and populated with actors[[/note]], and shows. The houses and scarezones are populated with "scareactors", dressed in costumes and makeup and positioned to scare the bejeezus out of passerby.

* ''Graveyard Games'' (original)

* ''Welcome to SCarey: Horror in the Heartland'' (original)

[[folder: HHN Orlando 2019 Houses, Scarezones, and Immersive Content]]

* ''[[Series/StrangerThings Netflix's Stranger Things]]'' (licensed)
* ''Franchise/{{Ghostbusters}}'' (licensed)
* ''[[Franchise/UniversalHorror Universal Monsters]]'' (licensed)
* ''[[Film/{{Us}} Jordan Peele's Us]]'' (licensed)
* ''Film/KillerKlownsFromOuterSpace'' (licensed)
* ''Film/HouseOf1000Corpses'' (licensed)
* ''Nightingales: Blood Pit'' (original)
* ''Depths of Fear'' (original)

* ''Yeti: Terror of the Yukon'' (original)

* ''Film/ZombielandDoubleTap'' (licensed)
* ''Music/RobZombie:'' ''Hellbilly Deluxe'' (licensed)
* ''Anarch-cade'' (original)
* ''Vanity Ball'' (original)
* ''Vikings Undead'' (original)

* ''Academy of Villains: Altered States'' (licensed)
* ''Halloween Marathon of Mayhem'' (licensed)

* AbominableAuditorium: ''Halloween Horror Nights 2009'' is based around the Universal Palace Theatre, which seems to be some kind of malevolent GeniusLoci that kills people who break any/all rules of theatre etiquette while in it.

Due to the UsefulNotes/Covid19Pandemic, both the Orlando and Hollywood events were canceled due to safety concerns involving the event due to it's close up and interactive nature. 2020 would have been the 30th year for the Orlando event. More details about the cancelation can be found [[https://wdwnt.com/2020/07/breaking-halloween-horror-nights-cancelled-due-to-covid-19-pandemic-concerns-at-universal-studios-florida/ here.]]