Universal Destinations & Experiences (UDX), creator of yearly favorite Halloween Horror Nights, has announced the first four houses for Universal Horror Unleashed. The company’s first-ever year-round horror experience is set to open in Las Vegas in 2025.
In a darkened warehouse on the edge of Sin City, a relentless spectacle of horror is rising: Universal Horror Unleashed. “For decades, Universal’s masters of horror have created some of the world’s most frightening films and events. Now, guests can experience it all in a year-round, fully immersive horror experience. The fears only felt in movies will come to bone-chilling life,” the official press release reads.
The four houses are Universal Monsters, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, Scarecrow: The Reaping, and Blumhouse’s The Exorcist: Believer.
What’s interesting about this line-up is that all of these properties have been introduced in Halloween Horror Nights in years past. Universal Monsters frequently pop up in the annual festivities (as you can imagine). There’s a “Texas Chainsaw Massacre”-themed house in this year’s crop of titles. Blumhouse’s “The Exorcist: Believer” was part of the fun last year. And – deep cut – Scarecrow: The Reaping was a house at HHN in Orlando way back in 2017.
It’s unclear how these houses will be altered/updated/expanded, but the press release states that “they are intense and feature elevated moments where the horror surrounds guests in unimaginable ways.” Eep!
Surrounding the houses are four “sinisterly themed and immersive areas, featuring unique live entertainment experiences.” Additionally, there will be restaurants and bars featuring “horror-centric food and drink offerings.” There will also be seasonal events and exclusive merchandise opportunities.
Universal Horror Unleashed is the anchor tenant in a 20-acre expansion of AREA15, an immersive entertainment district that is also home to Meow Wolf’s Omega Mart and immersive distillery Lost Spirits (among others).
“Universal’s rich history in the creation of the horror genre drove our desire to bring a year-round horror experience to the incredible entertainment offerings in Las Vegas,” said Page Thompson, president of New Ventures for UDX, in a statement. “We’re thrilled to have our award-winning Creative and Entertainment teams working tirelessly to bring these terrors to life in 2025.”
The Las Vegas project is part of a series of ambitious regional projects, which also includes a family-friendly Universal Kids Resort set to open in Frisco, Texas, in 2026.
