Halloween Horror Nights 2023 (USH) - Speculation & Rumors

[DTH]

Just some of my spec and some thoughts on stuff mentioned.
Y'all already know what I'm gonna say first, so I ain't even gonna say it.

- Smile - The biggest horror movie of 2022. If they work out a deal with Scream, I could see this coming with it. I feel like it's hard to ignore.
- X - I want to say I see this happening, but I feel Murdy may want to wait for the trilogy to finish out with Maxxxine. But still possible.
- Evil Dead Rise - Been mentioned before, but reverse overlay Hotel would be smart budget-wise. With them bringing back Klowns, Halloween, and La Llorona, something tells me they are very budget conscious.
- Beetlejuice - I still wanna see this, dang it!
- IT - PLEEEEEASE! It's tiiiime!
- Conjuring - This franchise has so much to work with, would be a great deal to work with Warner on getting this and IT.
- Stranger Things: Season 4 - I don't know what's going on with Netflix but I heard just about dang near everybody while at the park ask "where's the Stranger Things maze?" This is going to be on every survey. They can't avoid this one! And it's high on my personal want list, too.
- Candyman - Unless it's based on the original, I don't care, but the Jordan Peele association plus the cameo for RIP guests makes me think something is brewing.
- Hellraiser - With Disney owning it, nah.
- Barbarian - Same with this, sadly, as much as I'd want it and for them to work with Disney in some capacity.
- Last of Us - I know next to nothing about this, so I don't think it's as big as others are thinking, but I do want to see the show.
- Chupacabra - I see them bringing back La Llorona or El Cucuy again before venturing off this way.
- M3gan - Unless in a compilation maze, I don't see it happening.
- Monsters - I sadly don't see monsters coming back for some reason. The line would die so quick. Maybe we just consider it being a good run and be happy with that...

 

[JS610]

Lots of people speculating an Orlando original for next year's event. But has Murdy or anybody else stated that "trend" will continue? If it will, then I vote for Slaughter Sinema

 

[AlexanderMBush]

I'll be the first to say it. I don't think The Weeknd will get a sequel maze only because outside of Alice Cooper, those are really freaking rare at the event to get a successor.

But I will echo The Last of Us as a house. That seems like a good bet.

I'd argue if you use the foundations of AHN, you could do something really good with something like DawnFM.

Start it out with the party "Gasoline & Take My Breath", then shift to the cult "Sacrifice"; have elements of The Dawn FM Experience sprinkled as you can, and then conclude with "How Do I Make You Love Me". You can use a similar basis and structure to what After Hours Nightmares did, and albeit change the theme to focus on death and purgatory.

That said...if we are looking at cult houses...I am going to mention it: Where do we talk on Terrifier?

 

[Spookies n' Stuff]

Alright, so I'm gonna have some fun with this, and I'm gonna try and structure my speculation around trends of the past years post-lockdown. (Titles highlighted for people who wanna tl;dr their way through all my nerd-speak)

Headlining IP (Hill House, Weeknd) - The two heavy hitters I'd say have the best shot at showing up this year, in my opinion, are Scream, and Stranger Things 4. The former has been a long time coming, and with a sequel coming next year accompanying the recent requel, I'd say this is probably the best chance there's ever been to see it make its way in proper maze fashion to the event. As for Stranger Things, I don't think I really need to explain why that would be a draw. People were all over the comment sections of every HHN social media asking for it to come this year, and season 4 has arguably stirred up the fanbase the strongest since the initial season. It's possible they'd hold off until Season 5 comes around in 2024, but we'll have to see. Another guess I see being possible is Dawn FM, but I'm not really sure how I feel about it. I enjoyed After Hours Nightmare, but I feel like it might've been a one and done given how much the rights cost, unless it reaaaally brought in the profits for them this year. I honestly think Horror Made Here is well and truly dead at this point, so I'm also just gonna throw in as my long shot, The Conjuring.
Universal Monsters (Bride, Legends) - Legends won house of the year in Orlando, and I think so long as they keep doing them, we'll keep doing them too, so I think it's safe to say a UM maze of zome variety is practically assured. This one I think might possibly be the safest bet among the whole bunch. Murdy himself already said he had an idea involving the Phantom on the backburner, and I feel like we'll definitetly see that extrapolated into a full maze next year. My guess? Maybe a Phantom vs Hunchback concept, since neither have appeared since the original 2018 maze, both take place in Paris, and both are Lon Chaney films, (which doesn't actually add to the chancesof it happening, but I think Murdy would appreciate the Lon Chaney vs Lon Chaney aspect enough on a meta level to make it happen). I'd of course love to see ol' Gill finally get to make his triumphant debut, but I honestly still really doubt it. Phantom vs Gillman? We'll see I guess.
Direct IP repeat (Exorcist, Killer Klowns) - Honestly, I could really do without any straight repeats next year. The park is comparatively back on its feet, and I feel like they really shouldn't be leaning on them like they have, especially since in both cases they've fallen straight to the bottom of my list. That said, I still expect them to do it. What might they do? Well, my best guess would be, for one, the long rumored American Werewolf in London. We had this one rumored for a pretty long time this last year, up until that was upended by Halloween's announcement, but I think it still has a chance. It's a long time fan favorite in hollywood, and has shown up 3 times already between both coasts respectively. The rights holders clearly arent opposed to repeats, so I think it has a good shot. Outside of that, it's hard to say. Maybe Poltergeist? Wouldn't personally be my choice, as I'd rather it show up in the "IP Altered Repeat" slot with some adjustments, but this is another one I could see them just dusting off and plopping back into the lineup without much trouble.
IP Altered Repeat (Texas Chainsaw, Halloween) - To specify, this means a maze that is heavily based on a previous use of an IP, such as TCM 2012 and Halloween 2015, but with some modifications to update it. My best guess for what we could see here, and possibly the thing I'd most like to see here, is Trick r Treat. I'm not the first one to say it, but Trick r Treat begs for this treatment. I didnt even hate the 2018 version, but I'd still love to see it pushed further, and with Trick r Treat arguably at the height of is popularity, finally getting a theatrical release after all these years and the sequel finally in "Very active development", the iron is hot. Outside of that, maybe Insidious? It definitely doesn't have the same impact or influence it did back during the time of the first 2 entries, but I could see a repeat of 2015's with alterations to tie into Chapter 5, but I really don't expect them to go all out with a full new maze for it given the lukewarm reaction to 2017s. My second guess, and the one that's way more of a reach, is an altered repeat of the Texas Chainsaw 2003 remake. That's right, bringing Back in Business uhhhh.... Back in Business. I'm not sure if they'd do this so close to TCM being used in 2021, but with how often they've been throwing Bubba around these days, this to me is the next logical conclusion if they don't do a straight maze of TCM Part 2.
Original Repeat (Pandora's Box, La Llorona) - This one's a little tricky, since Hollywood really hasn't done that many Originals to draw from. El Cucuy is the obvious choice here, but I honestly don't expect that. Maaaaybe Holidayz in Hell but that's far too recent for my tastes. Being honest, this is the spot I see most likely being ditched in favor of more fresh content.
Fresh Original/Orlando Adaptation (Scarecrow, Hotel) - I remember there being some talk that Scarecrow wasn't actually meant to be our first carry over from orlando, and that in fact we were supposed to get a version of Dead Exposure in 2020, before it was canned for very obvious thematic reasons given the circumstances. I don't really expect to see that, but it shows that there is now a multi year precedent, and I expect it to continue. Throwing out a few ideas I could see them doing, Graveyard Games, Dead Waters, Slaughter Sinema, maybe Tomb of the Ancients? Other than Orlando Originals, I think Pueblo del Terror has a solid chance of being adapted to a Holidayz like format in Parisian Courtyard, which is the main reason I said El Cucuy doesn't strike me as a likely repeat. Maybe a spiritual successor to Pandora's Box based on Minos' Labyrinth? Personally, I'm still holding out hope that we might see an All Hallows Evil maze, as unlikely as it is.
Assorted Others/Fresh IP - I think it may depend on how the movie is recieved, but I honestly wouldn't be surprised to see Evil Dead Rise take the spot it was meant to have last year, it would be a pretty easy move, since they've technically already done it before, but I figure if they considered it enough of a draw just based on the movies release this year, the same will hold true next year. Another I think we absolutely need to see next year is Candyman. They've proven to have a healthy working relationship with Monkeypaw Productions, and Candyman was literally physically at the event this year for a photo op alone, so I think this needs to happen, if we miss out again I'll be sorely disappointed. Another thing I'm Potentially holding out hope for is Creepshow making a big return. Season 4 is releasing this next year, so I think if they wanted to, there's definitely plenty of material for them to work with between the 4 years since we last saw it represented. The new Hellraiser is also maybe possible, but given its ties to Hulu and 20th Century Fox, (both owned by disney) I wouldn't bet on it without a loophole. Another long shot, but with the major presence of the games resurging so suddenly, I could see Silent Hill making a return next year, though this is another one I could see holding off until the new film is done.

 

[chris.g]

If I’m wrong I’m wrong but I highly doubt Stranger Things comes to Hollywood ever again.

 

[AlexanderMBush]

If I’m wrong I’m wrong but I highly doubt Stranger Things comes to Hollywood ever again.

Thinking if it does, it'd be in a similar ordeal to how The Weeknd was done. All parties, onboard with the same vision and needing to do it as close to eachother as possible. Otherwise--nah, not gonna happen. As much as ST4 has the most potential to work really well for Hollywood, I think it's a done IP in general.

 

[chris.g]

Controversial because of its director - but damn if I wouldn’t love Jeepers Creepers to come to the event. Even if as a scare zone.

 

[Jaden]

I'd argue if you use the foundations of AHN, you could do something really good with something like DawnFM.

Start it out with the party "Gasoline & Take My Breath", then shift to the cult "Sacrifice"; have elements of The Dawn FM Experience sprinkled as you can, and then conclude with "How Do I Make You Love Me". You can use a similar basis and structure to what After Hours Nightmares did, and albeit change the theme to focus on death and purgatory.

That said...if we are looking at cult houses...I am going to mention it: Where do we talk on Terrifier?

Funny that my idea is similar to yours. Until I Bleed Out is the perfect intro song as After Hours Abel is dying before he is transported into purgatory with DawnFM radio being played.

And from there it would be Dawn FM, Gasoline, Sacrifice, Out Of Time (Mirror section inspired by Dawn FM experience), Every Angel is Terrifying, HDIMYLM, Less Then Zero, and Phantom Regret.

 

[MikePat]

Phantom Regret

I would be so happy to hear this song from JIM Carrey - great haunting tone for a haunted house.

 

[AlexanderMBush]

Funny that my idea is similar to yours. Until I Bleed Out is the perfect intro song as After Hours Abel is dying before he is transported into purgatory with DawnFM radio being played.

And from there it would be Dawn FM, Gasoline, Sacrifice, Out Of Time (Mirror section inspired by Dawn FM experience), Every Angel is Terrifying, HDIMYLM, Less Then Zero, and Phantom Regret.

Honestly if I had a pick:

The nightclub facade having a radio that plays Call Out My Name, Dawn FM, Wanderlust, Every Angel Is Terrifying, Save Your Tears, and I Feel It Coming, with distorted radio shifts, interludes, fake ads, and one or two new bits of dialogue written and voiced by Jim
Take My Breath (The party)
Gasoline (The clash of the Abels)
Out Of Time (distorted with the mirror sequence from After Hours Nightmare)
Sacrifice (The Cult)
How Do I make You love Me (Sewer tunnels with the Satoshi Kon inspired creature designs)
Phantom Regret Instrumental with us in the hospital from Out Of Time and How Do I Make You Love Me

 

[salismetho]

I'm just not sure if I'm ready to hear John Murdy's attempt at Jim Carrey

 

[AlexanderMBush]

I'm just not sure if I'm ready to hear John Murdy's attempt at Jim Carrey

Dread it, run from it, destiny arrives all the same.

or rather.. (voice changes to Murdy) I arrive.

 

[Jaden]

Honestly if I had a pick:

The nightclub facade having a radio that plays Call Out My Name, Dawn FM, Wanderlust, Every Angel Is Terrifying, Save Your Tears, and I Feel It Coming, with distorted radio shifts, interludes, fake ads, and one or two new bits of dialogue written and voiced by Jim
Take My Breath (The party)
Gasoline (The clash of the Abels)
Out Of Time (distorted with the mirror sequence from After Hours Nightmare)
Sacrifice (The Cult)
How Do I make You love Me (Sewer tunnels with the Satoshi Kon inspired creature designs)
Phantom Regret Instrumental with us in the hospital from Out Of Time and How Do I Make You Love Me

Oh man, if they use that Out of Time x I Feel it Coming transition like he does live, that would be so BEAUTIFUL to hear.

In regards to the facade, they’d probably do the album cover, but the radio station is a neat idea. Ideally, I’d use the moon he uses in love stadiums, so when the radio distortion shift hits, this projection happens:

Abel Tesfaye on Instagram: "how many legs does this universe have?"

1M likes, 3,588 comments - theweekndOctober 1, 2022 on : "how many legs does this universe have?"

www.instagram.com

 

[AlexanderMBush]

Oh man, if they use that Out of Time x I Feel it Coming transition like he does live, that would be so BEAUTIFUL to hear.

In regards to the facade, they’d probably do the album cover, but the radio station is a neat idea. Ideally, I’d use the moon he uses in love stadiums, so when the radio distortion shift hits, this projection happens:

Abel Tesfaye on Instagram: "how many legs does this universe have?"

1M likes, 3,588 comments - theweekndOctober 1, 2022 on : "how many legs does this universe have?"

www.instagram.com

Perhaps it's just me, but I don't think DawnFM would work as well for me in the terms of a Vinyl cover facade as opposed to After Hours. I think the nightclub makes more sense given imagery from all the DFM material so-far; and has the most potential for a diverse layer.

___

Now then, to do something I spoke of..I have a theory. And to do something unique, I'll give the simple and long answer. This is for Treatment #1, which was completed on October 13th, 2022. It is a 123 page document, that seems to place on the using of multiple languages and working them within the sake of the treatment (Requiring Murdy to learn how to understand that language in turn).

Short answer: I think we are getting a Mount Everest/Yeti house. I also think from the past comments on him writing, that this will be for Mummy Venue, which is located right next to the Chiller Plants.

Long Answer: When in looking into the matter of #1, he mentioned early on in the intent of investigating and researching for a geographical position that is not the North America. When giving his shark answers, he posted only one of two gifs (the other being when asked on if it was Scooby-Doo), and that, is of the Eyes gif. The response that garnered that reaction, is of China being the located deduced from the guessing.

The simple thought could be on Spirits & Demons of The East; as it wouldn't actually be uncommon to see this happen. Holidayz in Hell had a similar upbringing, starting as a scarezone that had all the holidays present in the same moment, and then was expanded with the postcard angle alongside Figure's backing instrumental tracks. However, what makes me think that it actually relates to Orlando, is because Michael Aiello had responded in the original post for the researching of the geographical position, sharing his knowing of what this is.

If he was to know, then surely it wouldn't be Spirit's & Demons of The East as it would have to likely be something that Murdy would approach him on.

So, why Yeti you'd ask me. Simply put: Halloween Horror Nights 2019 for Orlando had a house featured at the event, while not based in China (or Nepal), had the titular urban legend featured in a story that revolved on the Yukon. In this speculative guess, Mount Everest and rather more importantly the Himalaya's have been important for the originated placement of the urban legend of the Yeti, a creature that is ape-like in it's body construction and styling. This could allow Murdy and the Hollywood creative team to tackle more directly into how those in the East percieved and learned on the importance of the Yeti, while not shying away from the importance of the fear and fury that the urban legend was.

Could this be me grasping for straws? I'm willing and accepting to be wrong, but this has been on my mind for a while: since when he began talking about #1; and the development that would take place.

As for Mummy Venue? I believe when he talked about writing for #1, he spoke in a reply offhandedly that the treatment he was working on, was for the Mummy venue specifically. This would make sense, as Mummy Venue would be located right next to an air controlled chiller plant that could easily be the source of the air conditioning for the temperature, as it had been done for the sake of The Shining's hedge maze and Saw's Freezer scene: just adapted to be more properly with the house as a whole.

Honestly hoping I am wrong, as I want other Orlando originals, but this makes sense to me. It allows another new urban legend to be featured, allows to be the testing gauge for more proper eastern representation for Hollywood; and has a marketable creature that can easily headline due to popularity in pop culture and awareness in the eyes of the general public, much like La Llorona and El Cucuy was.

 

[Freak]

View attachment 17818

Perhaps it's just me, but I don't think DawnFM would work as well for me in the terms of a Vinyl cover facade as opposed to After Hours. I think the nightclub makes more sense given imagery from all the DFM material so-far; and has the most potential for a diverse layer.

___

Now then, to do something I spoke of..I have a theory. And to do something unique, I'll give the simple and long answer. This is for Treatment #1, which was completed on October 13th, 2022. It is a 123 page document, that seems to place on the using of multiple languages and working them within the sake of the treatment (Requiring Murdy to learn how to understand that language in turn).

Short answer: I think we are getting a Mount Everest/Yeti house. I also think from the past comments on him writing, that this will be for Mummy Venue, which is located right next to the Chiller Plants.

Long Answer: When in looking into the matter of #1, he mentioned early on in the intent of investigating and researching for a geographical position that is not the North America. When giving his shark answers, he posted only one of two gifs (the other being when asked on if it was Scooby-Doo), and that, is of the Eyes gif. The response that garnered that reaction, is of China being the located deduced from the guessing.

The simple thought could be on Spirits & Demons of The East; as it wouldn't actually be uncommon to see this happen. Holidayz in Hell had a similar upbringing, starting as a scarezone that had all the holidays present in the same moment, and then was expanded with the postcard angle alongside Figure's backing instrumental tracks. However, what makes me think that it actually relates to Orlando, is because Michael Aiello had responded in the original post for the researching of the geographical position, sharing his knowing of what this is.

If he was to know, then surely it wouldn't be Spirit's & Demons of The East as it would have to likely be something that Murdy would approach him on.

So, why Yeti you'd ask me. Simply put: Halloween Horror Nights 2019 for Orlando had a house featured at the event, while not based in China (or Nepal), had the titular urban legend featured in a story that revolved on the Yukon. In this speculative guess, Mount Everest and rather more importantly the Himalaya's have been important for the originated placement of the urban legend of the Yeti, a creature that is ape-like in it's body construction and styling. This could allow Murdy and the Hollywood creative team to tackle more directly into how those in the East percieved and learned on the importance of the Yeti, while not shying away from the importance of the fear and fury that the urban legend was.

Could this be me grasping for straws? I'm willing and accepting to be wrong, but this has been on my mind for a while: since when he began talking about #1; and the development that would take place.

As for Mummy Venue? I believe when he talked about writing for #1, he spoke in a reply offhandedly that the treatment he was working on, was for the Mummy venue specifically. This would make sense, as Mummy Venue would be located right next to an air controlled chiller plant that could easily be the source of the air conditioning for the temperature, as it had been done for the sake of The Shining's hedge maze and Saw's Freezer scene: just adapted to be more properly with the house as a whole.

Honestly hoping I am wrong, as I want other Orlando originals, but this makes sense to me. It allows another new urban legend to be featured, allows to be the testing gauge for more proper eastern representation for Hollywood; and has a marketable creature that can easily headline due to popularity in pop culture and awareness in the eyes of the general public, much like La Llorona and El Cucuy was.

Hmmmm.....you might be onto something here.

Also anyone think they're going to do another music IP house? The people speculating in Orlando's thread think we might see one but I don't. I think Weeknd was a one-and-done since that was the biggest IP they could get this past year.

 

[chris.g]

Hmmmm.....you might be onto something here.

Also anyone think they're going to do another music IP house? The people speculating in Orlando's thread think we might see one but I don't. I think Weeknd was a one-and-done since that was the biggest IP they could get this past year.

I agree….

 

[salismetho]

 

[TableYe]

I could easily see them doing an Orlando concept like slaughter cinema. It could even be in Parisian Courtyard like Holidayz in Hell.

 

[ghostsarejerks]

Just some of my spec and some thoughts on stuff mentioned.
Y'all already know what I'm gonna say first, so I ain't even gonna say it.

- Smile - The biggest horror movie of 2022. If they work out a deal with Scream, I could see this coming with it. I feel like it's hard to ignore.
- X - I want to say I see this happening, but I feel Murdy may want to wait for the trilogy to finish out with Maxxxine. But still possible.
- Evil Dead Rise - Been mentioned before, but reverse overlay Hotel would be smart budget-wise. With them bringing back Klowns, Halloween, and La Llorona, something tells me they are very budget conscious.
- Beetlejuice - I still wanna see this, dang it!
- IT - PLEEEEEASE! It's tiiiime!
- Conjuring - This franchise has so much to work with, would be a great deal to work with Warner on getting this and IT.
- Stranger Things: Season 4 - I don't know what's going on with Netflix but I heard just about dang near everybody while at the park ask "where's the Stranger Things maze?" This is going to be on every survey. They can't avoid this one! And it's high on my personal want list, too.
- Candyman - Unless it's based on the original, I don't care, but the Jordan Peele association plus the cameo for RIP guests makes me think something is brewing.
- Hellraiser - With Disney owning it, nah.
- Barbarian - Same with this, sadly, as much as I'd want it and for them to work with Disney in some capacity.
- Last of Us - I know next to nothing about this, so I don't think it's as big as others are thinking, but I do want to see the show.
- Chupacabra - I see them bringing back La Llorona or El Cucuy again before venturing off this way.
- M3gan - Unless in a compilation maze, I don't see it happening.
- Monsters - I sadly don't see monsters coming back for some reason. The line would die so quick. Maybe we just consider it being a good run and be happy with that...

I will say I was able to speak with a few of the people that create the event at a TEA mixer held at the park and I brought up the X franchise, which they had never even heard of. But we definitely discussed Hellraiser and Scream as well as Netflix properties.

 

[highdefrex]

I will say I was able to speak with a few of the people that create the event at a TEA mixer held at the park and I brought up the X franchise, which they had never even heard of.

Amazing that people can be in this industry and literally work in the realm of horror, their bread and butter, and somehow have never heard of two of the best-received horror movies of the year. (And if someone is about to chime in to say why they personally didn't like X and/or Pearl, that's not my point; my point is that these two movies did make a splash critically, so the idea that people whose job is to peddle in horror haven't even heard of them is mind-boggling.)