Disney Announces Villains Land Coming to Magic Kingdom
Haunted Attraction Network
Connecting the global Haunted Attraction industry through education, news, and events.
At this past weekend's D23 Expo, Disney Experiences announced that a new Disney Villains-themed land will be coming to the Magic Kingdom park in Walt Disney World (Orlando, FL). The area will be part of the park's largest land expansion ever (in addition to two new Cars-themed attractions in Frontierland). While specific details about the land have yet to be unveiled, two new attractions are planned for the area, along with dining, shopping, and more.?“Since the beginning, our Disney Villains have given us endless possibilities to tell new stories,” said Disney Experiences?Chairman Josh D’Amaro at D23. “In this new land, you’ll see storytelling on a grand scale that only Disney can deliver...Disney Experiences is embarking on an accelerated path of ambitious growth and innovation...?With so many great Disney stories to tell, we’re excited to bring an unprecedented number of new projects to life in the near future.”
Hauntathon 2024 Applications
The Haunted Attraction Network’s “Hauntathon" is?a 61-day celebration of haunted attractions. In 2023 we broke records with 140 million views from horror and Halloween fans worldwide.
Hauntathon 2023 explored haunts of all sizes, from the legendary to the unsung, through videos, podcasts, virtual visits, and even VIP in-person experiences. Presenting daily content from Sept 1 through Oct 31, the group of 9 programming partners helped raise awareness of the haunted attraction industry, giving viewers unparalleled peeks into more than 70 haunted attractions worldwide.
The Haunted Attraction Network and Hauntathon 2023 were featured on television with?NBC’s California Live?and?Fox 2 Detroit, and on national radio with?Marketplace.
2024's Programming Partners include Attractions Magazine, Sharp Productions, Kevin Heimbach, the Haunted Attraction Association, and The Scare Factor.
We have a few spots left for 2024. Please apply below if you're an owner or marketing team member looking to have your haunt featured.
Regardless of being accepted into the Hauntathon, all haunts are welcome to send The Haunted Attraction Network their press releases and news for us to feature in our weekly newsletters and podcast. Email [email protected] with your news.?
Halloween Horror Nights Hollywood?(Universal City, CA) announced the last of their haunted house lineup for the 2024 season - The Weeknd: Nightmare Trilogy.?The Weeknd returns in a new haunted house spawned from After Hours, Dawn FM, and a horrifying new tale. Get ensnared by the most iconic moments inspired by his music videos and live performances. This joins 7 other haunted houses - The Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Legacy of Leatherface, Universal Monsters: Eternal Bloodlines, Insidious: The Further, A Quiet Place, Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire, Monstruos 2: The Nightmares of Latin America, and Dead Exposure: Death Valley - along with the Terror Tram: Enter the Blumhouse experience. The 4 sinister scare zones include: Luchadores Monstruosos, Murder of Crowz, Chainsaw Punkz, and Skull Lordz. Lastly,?The Purge: Dangerous Waters stunt show returns to thrill audiences with fiery feats. Halloween Horror Nights Hollywood runs select nights from September 5th - November 3rd. Tickets are on sale now.?
Halloween Horror Nights Orlando (Orlando, FL) announced their final scare zone of the 2024 season - Enter the Blumhouse.?Run a terrifying gauntlet of Blumhouse characters. This is a new kind of horror, from The Grabber to M3GAN dancing into your nightmares. This joins 4 other terrifying scare zones: Duality of Fear, Demon Queens, Swamp of the Undead, and Torture Faire. The event's 10 haunted houses include - A Quiet Place, Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire, Insidious: The Further, Universal Monsters: Eternal Bloodlines; Monstruos: The Monsters of Latin America, Slaughter Sinema 2, The Museum: Deadly Exhibits, Major Sweets Candy Factory, Goblin's Feast, and Triplets of Terror. Experience a thrilling show with Nightmare Fuel: Nocturnal Circus, and enjoy a plethora of scary good food & drinks and themed merchandise throughout the event. Halloween Horror Nights Orlando runs select nights August 30th - November 3rd. Tickets are on sale now.?
SeaWorld San Diego (San Diego, CA) announced a thrilling lineup of new scare zones, entertainment, and performances for Howl-O-Scream 2024. Joining returning fan-favorites?Deadly Toys and The Graveyard are four new scare zones: Terrors of the Deep (filled with deadly sea beasts and eldritch horrors), Ripper Row (where the infamous Jack the Ripper terrorizes the streets), Red Moon Revelry (plagued by a bloodthirsty cabal of vampires), and All Hallows Harvest (where cursed scarecrows are intent on harvesting bodies and souls to feed their dark desires). Three new Vile Vignettes -?staged scenes designed to terrify unsuspecting visitors - also join the line-up: Fall of Atlantis, Hunter's Oath, and Songs of Old Halloween. Guests looking for an entertaining break from the event's 5 haunted houses, 6 scare zones, and 6 vile vignettes can sit for an all-new theatrical performance, Monster Stomp! Watch Jack the Ripper take the stage in this modern rock and rhythm spectacular, combining electrifying percussion, dancing, and singing. Stay tuned for more announcements, entertainment, new themed food and bars, hidden speakeasies, and more. Tickets are on sale now starting as low as $34.99 for Single-Night General Admission.
An all-new aerial drone show - Monster Skytacular - is coming to Brick-or-Treat at?LEGOLAND Florida Resort (Winter Haven, FL) this Halloween season. For the first time in LEGOLAND Florida Resort’s history, 500 individual drones will soar high over Lake Eloise to end every event night with a great show. The state-of-the-art drones will feature intricate, synchronized patterns and combine the excitement of fireworks, seamlessly uniquely blending LEGO and technology. Brick-or-Treat takes place select dates September 13th - October 27th. The event includes trick-or-treating around the park, a dance party, spellbinding shows and entertainment, characters in their Halloween best, themed food, and more. Tickets are on sale now.?
Mickey's Not-So-Scary Halloween Party began at Walt Disney World (Orlando, FL) on August 9th. This separately ticketed after-hours event fills the Magic Kingdom park with a spooky atmosphere and frightful fun select nights through October 31st. Mickey and Minnie Mouse greet guests in brand-new neon spiderweb attire at this year's event. Guests will also be able to spot more Disney villains across the park than ever before, and Bruno Madrigal will make his first-ever appearance at the party. Various fan-favorite activities return, including Trick-or-Treating throughout the park, Mickey's Boo-to-You Halloween Parade, and Disney's Not-So-Spooky Spectacular fireworks show. And make sure to catch the infamous Sanderson Sisters at the Cinderella Castle stage for?Hocus Pocus Villain Spelltacular performances. While some dates - including Halloween - are currently sold out, tickets are still available for select dates starting at $129 - $199.?
U.S.?Haunts & Events
Netherworld Haunted House (Stone Mountain, GA) has unveiled?two new haunts for its 28th Season of Screams: Wake the Dead and Mr. Grendel's Birthday Party of Horrors. "This year’s attractions go completely above and beyond," said co-owner Ben Armstrong in a statement to WSB-TV Atlanta. "Wake the Dead and Mr. Grendel’s Birthday Party of Horrors both have wildly elaborate scenes, some truly terrifying new monsters and classic favorites that we think will haunt visitors long after they’ve left.” In Wake the Dead, vampires, wraiths, and the restless dead battle apocalyptic warriors for the ultimate prize – primordial energy that can save the world or destroy it. In Mr. Grendel's Birthday Party of Horrors,?ancient medieval monsters disguised as jesters and clowns invade the secret government base known as the BOX to feed on the captured cryptids imprisoned there and to celebrate Mr. Grendel’s Birthday as only they can – with lots of blood. Netherworld Haunted House is open select dates September 20th - November 9th. Tickets are not yet on sale - pricing and options will be announced later this summer.?
Silicon Valley Haunt Investors announced a 50% acquisition of All Hallows Eve Terror Town (Williamsburg, OH), leading to the creation of Cincinnati Fear Fest.?Cincinnati Fear Fest will be an immersive Halloween festival featuring multiple haunted attractions, secret bars, vendors, live shows, and food. New highlights include the Town of Bravado, a free-roam main street lined with eerie shops, vendors, and spine-tingling shows. In the coming weeks, three haunted houses will be revealed. Guests will brave two scare zones: Welcome to Bravado and Twisted Harvest: Fields of Fear. Guests 21+ can experience magic & mystery at two secret bars - The Whispering Vines and Hush Hush Hooch Hideaway. Tickets are on sale now, starting at $19.99 - $32.99 for general admission with fast pass upgrades for $11 and Secret Bar Creep Passes for $10.?
CBS's GHOSTS is partnering with Creep LA?(Los Angeles, CA) to create a 60-minute immersive experience inspired by the hit TV show. Guests will take a spirited journey to a place where ghosts come to life in unexpected ways. On select dates October 4th - 27th, 6 brave groups of only 15 souls each will venture into the dark and twisted world of Creep LA: GHOSTS. Tickets will go on sale on September 9th at Noon PDT.?
Field of Screams Maryland?(Olney, MD) is gearing up for?another spooky season with new attractions?on select nights from Friday, September 27th - Saturday, November 2nd.?Field of Screams Maryland?features the Slaughter Factory Haunted House and 55 spine-tingling attractions along the flagship Super Screams Haunted Trail—a one-hour walk through sinister woods dotted with one pulse-pounding attraction after the next. New for 2024 is the?Steelhead Asylum, where the lingering spirits of madness remain eternally trapped in smoke and flames. The 18-acre compound also features over 30 bonfires, games, and tasty concessions. Tickets are on sale now starting at $24 for General Admission.
A few weeks ago, disaster struck?The Mystic Museum?(Burbank, CA) when someone stole their Crypt Keeper figure.?They contacted the community for help locating it, and the story went viral - in less than a week, the figure was returned.?They are throwing a?Crypt Keeper Homecoming Dance to thank the horror community. The event takes place at The Mystic Museum on Saturday, August 31st, and will feature a DJ, drinks, and more. General Admission (does not include museum exhibit entry) is free for those who RSVP in advance. VIP entry tickets are $20 and include?exhibit entry and complimentary Homecoming photos taken by Rawl of the Dead.
Zombie Joe's Underground Theatre Group (North Hollywood, CA) brings back Urban Death Tour of Terror select nights September 27th - November 1st. Part twisting haunted house and part theatre attraction, Urban Death Tour of Terror's monstrous freaks are back to terrify and shock audiences to their core.?After facing the spine-chilling and often risqué maze upon entrance, guests will be treated to a captivating live show consisting of shocking and bloody wordless vignettes and physical performances. Guests will then face frightening new creatures hiding within a reversed version of the?Tour of Terror maze on their way back into the real world. Tickets are on sale now for $23 in advance, $28 at the door.?
International?Haunts & Events
A new immersive theatre event is coming to the Cloverdale Fairgrounds in Surrey, BC, on select nights from September 27th - November 3rd:?Dreadworks Haunted House.?Dreadworks Haunted House represents a collaborative venture between Alexander J. Baxter and the Jonkman family, co-founders of Somnara Studios. Baxter and The Dreadworks team, hailing from the acclaimed Constellate Films, brings a wealth of experience in the horror genre. Joining the Dreadworks team as a co-owner of the haunted house is Ken Honigman of the acclaimed Anmore Manor, which is closing this year.?Make-up artist Shelly Baxter, renowned for her work on notable shows such as?Creepshow?and?Two Sentence Horror Stories, will lead makeup and SFX. Guests will enter the?shadowed realm of Somnara, where the DreadWorks factory forges nightmares under the rule of the corrupted Dream Lord, X’aroketh. Celestia, the Hero and Dream Sentinel, calls on visitors to join her quest to dismantle the factory and restore the dreamscape. Step into your role as a hero in this cinematic adventure, where your bravery shapes the legend of this dark and enchanting world. The experience will feature a 4D sensory experience, film-quality production, and advanced tech integration - including projection mapping, AR technology, and more. Tickets are on sale now starting at $60 - $75.?
Food & Beverage
As the Halloween season approaches, The Hershey Company has revealed delicious new products for 2024.?Savor the spirit of Halloween with Kit Kat? Ghost Toast. The classic, crisp wafers are wrapped in a new cinnamon toast-flavored creme, delivering a hauntingly satisfying experience.?Howl in delight with Reese's Werewolf Tracks. Featuring a combination of vanilla-flavored creme, milk chocolate, and peanut butter, you can sink your fangs into snack, standard, and king sizes.?Enchant your celebrations with special edition bars inspired by the world of Harry Potter. Finally, Twizzlers unveils their first-ever Halloween shape - adorable cherry-flavored Twizzlers Ghosts.?
Retail
Many big box retailers are rolling out Halloween merchandise earlier than ever before. A recent article in Crossroads Today explores how retailers and consumers react to this new Summerween trend. Despite consumers?showing more signs of financial stress, seasonal goods have been one area where consumer spending has not slowed. "It’s clear that consumers have been interested in buying Halloween products earlier and earlier,” said?Laura Champine, senior consumer analyst at Loop Capital Markets. She proposes?that by?selling Halloween goods earlier, stores are?hoping it will decrease the likelihood of having to discount unsold merchandise in November. Analysts such as?Joe Feldman, a senior retail analyst at Telsey Advisory Group, however, do warn that just because consumers have been increasingly jumping at the opportunity to get an earlier start on the Halloween shopping season, doesn't mean it will continue this direction forever.?“At some point, it could snap back."