Oysterhead00

I think there will be at least 2 originals on the tour as they like to show off their stuff. The Chance house has to be included (and I think it's 90% sure NOT to be 3D) because having an Icon's house not be part of the tour really sucks. If you're going to see Chance on billboards, store displays, commercials, etc, etc, etc and then not have her house be part of the tour that's not gonna work. TWD will probably be included as it always is and this year shouldn't be any different, especially being a "Best Of" house. And that's fine by me as I like the lights on tour of the house better than the at night house itself because of all the eye candy of seeing how they rebuilt iconic scenes from the show. My guess would be: Tour 1: Chance, Krampus, and TWD Tour 2: Cobweb (has to be included given how proud A&D are of it) and then a rotating 2 out of 3 for TCM, Exorcist, and Halloween II. It would be the "old school" tour. Halloween II might be a bit boring, so I think it would be a backup if either of the other IPs were being worked on that day. That's just my (un)educated guess. Not thought as to what's where, or having too many tents on one tour, or anything else like that. Just what I'd expect at this point.

McDie - Hope this is clowns! Killer Klowns ripoffs would be best. A murderous Ronald McDonald instantly comes to mind when I saw this. Everybody is a bit unnerved by clowns. I agree that Goat sounds like Greatest Of All Time so maybe some best of's. Though Red (Hearts and Diamonds) and Black (Clubs and Spades) makes me think of playing cards. Or maybe something around royalty. Something like Black Death and Mask of the Red Death? Regardless, having 2 with the same unique word in them has me really curious. Always thought having independent scare zones in close proximity that did their thing for 40 minutes and then invaded each other (aka both converged into middle ground) and stalked each other along with you. A double populated zone for a short period of time. Revving sun...I think Legacy said the chainsaws would be something you'd least expect so maybe something like young (aka vertically challenged scareactors) trick or treaters with chainsaws? Or, maybe nothing chainsaw related since that would be a roaming horde with the Chainsaw Drill Team. Interstellar Dreaming has to be the Chance one. Maybe like Seven or whatever with 2 casts of different characters. One for each of Chance's personalities. Wish it was something like the Gray Aliens. Those things freak the hell out of me. Always thought I'd run out of the park screaming if they had a big eyed alien house...that would have to be scareactors in all black outfits with a gray alien on top of it and all blacklights so you wouldn't see anything, then a moving alien that makes no sense since it's too skinny to be a person. That would be intense. Hell, with Disaster closed down they probably have a big ass UFO and Alien sitting around waiting to be used :} Evolutionary Turning Point...King Kong or Planet of the Apes. Ha ha ha, just kidding....well, mostly. Rumors of Penn and Teller's involvement has died down and we're 99% sure there won't be a house or show with them...so how about a Nuked Vegas scarezone?

Too bad it's an original...or else I'd be tempted to think it was Predator. A Requelling...jungle...collecting skulls as trophies....new sequel in the works. Edit: Roanoke is the only house I can remember with a cannibal theme. One of the weaker houses of recent memory, doubt they'd choose to do it. The picture doesn't scream cannibal to me...but I didn't watch the snapchat to see it in context or anything.

Plus their Halloween is "different" than ours and announced at the same time. Maybe just the ending???? Still, announcing a house at different times, even if only similar by name, seems a bit odd. Might be why Legacy and Company are afraid to say anything is 100% as more things are still in flux than is usual.

Sorry for my budget rant before, I've been known to go down a "Celebrity Net Worth" Rabbit Hole at times and got carried away So Hollywood is getting TCM too and it wasn't a dual announcement? I honestly don't really pay attention to Hollywood...is this unique?

It really would be fascinating to see...but it's all the little things you don't see or think of. All the scareactors and most concession workers are unskilled labor. Not an insult at all, but they hold open auditions for the scareactors and the people in the concession industry probably aren't making a whole lot either. But every shift change is led by someone, some type of management/supervisor/etc that they had to invest in training and they'd have to get paid a more significant wage. There is surely a fire marshall on duty. There's the trained fire crew. There are pyrotechnics at Bill and Ted and possibly another show that have to be done/overseen/loaded by a licensed pyrotechnition. The amount of electricians on call for the houses has to be pretty extensive. There have to be licensed rigging experts for anybody doing any special entrances or anything. Sign linguists for the shows. Pretty sure anybody on stilts is a "performer". I don't know if SAG rules and wage scales apply since this isn't a movie/TV show, but Jack & Chance actors are surely in the union so that could be a chunk of change. Operations managers and supervisors for regular park stuff up the wazoo. Ride maintenance staff on duty. First Aid and medical on duty. There are a row of ambulances back by the tents that are busy all night long. The amount of people cleaning up litter, emptying garbages, cleaning rest rooms, cleaning up puke from the drunks, cleaning up at the end of the night. Rooms full of people running real time analytics on the park, monitoring cameras, dispatching people, etc. Whatever kind of "command center" they have. And of course, all the makeup specialists, costume designers, tailors, etc that have to be on staff every night. Etc, etc, etc. The list goes on and on. And if the Maintenance, Concession, etc staffs are regular park staff working extra hours, then Overtime would come into play....plus their base pay would most likely be higher to begin with versus added seasonal help. Then, there's the big ticket items like insurance. I'm sure regular park insurance for regular daily operations doesn't cover a night operation, with obstructions/hazards on the street, scares that could result in cardiac arrest, copious amounts of drinking encouraged by the event, foggy streets obstructing your view, etc, etc, etc. That has to be a pretty penny! Also, curious about the liquor licensing. I know for most places, it's based on maximum occupancy of a building. Not sure how that works for themeparks. Not to mention that at night, you have access to many areas off limits during the day adding more square footage and I would assume a higher premium? Added beer stands and especially liquor stands, not sure how that works. Might be included in the theme park classification, might be an added charge for event time. All this is off the top of my head, no research at all, I could easily be wrong about a Fire Marshall on Duty or any of the Insurance/Alcohol stuff I'm making up, etc. But it's interesting to just think through what a huge operation it is...and lumping together all these specialists thinking their total salary is the same as the "unskilled labor" of the scareactors is a gross underestimation.

I know there is a 0.000000001% chance of this even possibly mattering a tiny bit....but after the whole Scream Fiasco seeing something about this on TV made my heart jump just a bit. http://www.fox.com/the-exorcist Widely regarded as the greatest horror movie ever made, “The Exorcist” broke box office records and terrified audiences around the world. Now, more than four decades after the Academy Award-nominated film, THE EXORCIST returns as a TV series. Directed by Rupert Wyatt (“Rise of the Planet of the Apes”), THE EXORCIST is a propulsive psychological thriller following two very different priests tackling one family’s case of horrifying demonic possession. FATHER TOMAS ORTEGA (Alfonso Herrera, “Sense8,” “The Chosen”) is the new face of the Catholic Church: progressive, ambitious and compassionate. He runs a small but loyal parish in the suburbs of Chicago. He has no idea that his quiet life is about to change forever. Meanwhile, on the other side of the world, another priest finds himself locked in a life-and-death struggle with evil. FATHER MARCUS BRENNAN (Ben Daniels, “Flesh and Bone,” “House of Cards”) is a modern-day Templar Knight, an orphan raised since childhood by the Vatican to wage war against its enemies. Father Marcus is everything Father Tomas is not: relentless, abrasive and utterly consumed by his sacred mission. Caught in the middle is the RANCE family, members of Tomas’ parish. On the surface, they’re a normal, suburban family, but all is not as it seems in this household. The patriarch, HENRY RANCE (guest star Alan Ruck, “Spin City,” “Ferris Bueller’s Day Off”), is slowly but surely losing his mind. Eldest daughter KATHERINE (Brianne Howey, SCREAM QUEENS) has become a recluse who refuses to leave her room. Her younger sister, CASEY (Hannah Kasulka, “The Fosters”), thinks she’s hearing strange noises coming from inside the walls. And mother ANGELA (Academy Award and Golden Globe winner Geena Davis, “Commander in Chief,” “Thelma & Louise”) has been plagued by recurring nightmares, each more frightening than the last. Angela believes there is something in the house, a demonic presence, growing stronger by the day. Desperate, she begs Father Tomas for help, unwittingly setting the naïve young priest on a collision course with Father Marcus. Separately, each faces an insurmountable task, but together they become the only hope against an evil force that has been mobilizing for centuries.

I remember seeing something on Modern Marvels or Build it Bigger or Secrets of XYZ on Discovery that the Magic Kingdom spends over $4 MILLION per day on employee wages alone (and this wasn't in HD so it has to be at least 5+ years old). That doesn't include any power bills, fuel, communications, production costs, equipment, etc, etc, etc. Granted, HHN is infinitely smaller...but 30-40M for the whole event seems really low to me given all that it entails.

I've never done the Keys to the Kingdom tour so I have no idea what it is, but since Disney doesn't have houses that you walk through I'd assume it would be completely different seeing how rides work? Plus, you know, the blood and severed heads and all. https://www.flickr.com/photos/132902777@N08/albums/72157659105945170 The photo album above is from Jack's house last year to give you an idea of what you do. You walk through the house as a group (you can hang back as much as you want to take pictures with nobody in them), with the lights on, with a guide telling you all kinds of stuff about the event, the houses, construction, etc as well as easter eggs you surely missed every other time you walked through the house. Like in this album, you'll see a Munsters family photo...that was hidden behind a big piece of machinery that a scareactor hid behind. Absolutely impossible to see while you are in the house, but the guide points it out. He pointed out Hershel's severed head from a previous TWD house being reused, and a bunch of other reused props which is pretty cool. Last year, the guide "snuck" us in the back door to take a picture with one of the AWIL Werewolves as that house wasn't on our tour which was really cool, and then he also went behind the scenes to show us the controls for the bear, how it worked, and then he operate it / posed it for pictures which was great. When in Asylum in Wonderland, he kept having us go through boo holes and peek behind the curtain to show us how close the Shrek sets were and how close you were to the other theater with all the little kiddies in there during the day not realizing there were mutilated bodies mounted to the wall about 5 feet away from them He also showed us the different kinds of triggers for the scareactors to queue sounds/lights/etc. If you aren't into taking pictures, it might seem a bit expensive for a walk through...but for me it's worth every penny and more. Also, our tour guides last year were the best we've ever had (One was the main guide who did the whole presentation...the other was a lady who pretty much hung back to make sure nobody snuck away and answer some questions for the more photo-oriented people like me). Some are a little more by the book than others, and some take great pride in what they do and bring it to a whole other level. The AM or PM tour is 3 houses, and last year they announced what they were but other years they've rotated. They're always subject to change if there's some maintenance needed in the house on the day of your tour. If you do both tours, you do 6 different houses with an hour-ish break for lunch (last year, we were dropped off in Springfield and met up there an hour later). EDIT: It should go without saying that if you are going to the event multiple nights, you should go a full night of the event first to see the houses as they are meant to be seen, then do the tour the next day to learn all the secrets, and then go back that night to see the houses in a whole different light. I also find I get more scares AFTER doing the tour, because I'm busy looking for the easter eggs and concentrating on comparing the lights on vs off stuff so the scareactors get me really good

Do we know if this rumor is true? Only because I looked up the original post and they said it was from someone in the group. I know NOTHING about it/them, but sounded like they were a touring group type thing and we have the (I think official) auditions for dancers for a second show at Orlando. Doesn't seem to line up to me. Of course, I LOVED the Death Drums that most people hated...so I'd probably like this. Ha ha ha. (Of course, my age is an early twenties kid plus a late teenager combined)

Well, technically, that happened at the end of Season 5 so I would say it's game...except I thought there was a reason why there have never been any real characters from the show in the maze. There have been signature zombies, and little "tributes" to characters like Daryl's crossbow, but never anybody really from the show. So unfortunately, I wouldn't count on Neagan showing up. But a generic dummy with his head bashed in with the bat still stuck in it could certainly be a possibility. Or like Daryl's crossbow, just have Lucille sitting up against a wall in a corner somewhere.

Considering HHN starts a couple weeks BEFORE the new season of TWD...I wouldn't expect to see a dummy that looks like ??????? with their head bashed in or anything along those lines. I would expect absolutely nothing, but suppose if there's a "Signature Zombie" who died a unique death and has nothing to do with the story, it's possible they could have something like that. I would guess the ratio of fans who've read the comic only, to those that have watched the show only (like me) is 1:10 so I wouldn't expect any scenes from a signature location this year since it wouldn't make sense for at least a couple weeks to 90% of attendees.

I know what you're talking about....if you have a gopro or something really light, you can wrap it around a railing or something. The event has a "strict" no selfie stick policy, and some security people will surely classify it as such. With security, it's "you never know". I've had security as crazy as telling me that "no bags, means no bags" and telling me that my glucometer (I'm diabetic) bag, roughly the size of a thick wallet, wasn't allowed and I'd have to bring in my tester, finger stick, and test strips in my pocket. I was annoyed at that one and asked for their supervisor to make a scene (sorry people in the line behind me) and an Orlando police officer came up, saw what it was about, and told the security I was good to go. I was going to make a scene as earlier in the week, I was told my camera case for a tiny compact camera that had a belt loop wasn't allowed. So I just went to another line and their security just had me unzip it so they could look and let me right through. That same year, I saw people going through security with full backpacks. It really depends which line you go through and how serious the security person is. Your best bet is to go to the park for the day and do the holding pen thing, that way there's no issue with security. Or, scope out the lines for like 5 minutes and see which ones are going through fast and/or carrying items and then hit up that line. EDIT: I should add, I haven't gone through event security in like 4 or 5 years as we get there early and go to a holding pen to avoid the fiasco. Not sure if they've gotten better at their jobs or not.

OK, let me confess at first that this thread is self serving since I hope it generates questions (like what I'll ask) and advice (mine is pretty useless) for taking pictures at the event. I got my first non-point and shoot camera last summer and have been learning on the fly, doing some photo workshops, and stuff like that (but no classes). But, an event like this, is REALLY out of my wheelhouse. I've PM'd a few people who have taken awesome pictures of the event, have gone out and gotten a f/1.8 35mm prime lens as a result, and stuff like that. Questions I have and would love to hear any info/guidance from anybody: Can you bring a tripod into the event? I know of at least one person who has, but wondering if anybody knows what the deal is with them. I always hang out at Finnegans before the event so security issues aren't a concern, but don't want to get in trouble or anything. Has anybody ever brought a monopod into the UTH tours? I know the description says no Tripods and I know that some people (aka people who take pictures 100x better than mine) will take 30+ minutes to set up, frame, and adjust settings for a single shot. I have really shaky hands, HATE how a flash washes out photos, and am looking for a solution for using my wide angle lens (f/3.5) for the tours. I see plenty of awesome inside the house pictures...is there some super secret time/situation where they do lights on walkthroughs? I'm assuming they're from a media preview event or something, but figured it couldn't hurt to ask. I'm not "that guy" that wants to interfere with the event and scareactors for pictures...which is why I want to bring in a tripod/monopod to try to be able to take cool pics from a distance. Thanks for any info in advance (and hope this helps some other people too)!

That looks cool with it cut out of the wall with what looks like a red gel/filter set up. Assume it will be back lit causing it to look pretty damn awesome! Or possibly to make it look like it's fire if they have a combo of white and yellow lights alternating/flickering through the filter.

If you're going to have access to Universal during the day (ie have park tickets for that day), you can do the holding pen thing. Not sure if it's called Stay and Scream or something special. Basically, if you go to Finnegans when the park is getting ready to close to transition over to HHN you're golden. You can hang out at the bar/restaurant or in the streets by the Blues Brothers show. They come around and scan your HHN ticket to verify it's valid for that night, and then give you a wrist band. They typically let you out of the area a few minutes before they open the gates...but you don't have to go through security and then swipping your tickets/fingerprints which always has issues. So you get right into the park and can usually do like 3 houses without having to wait any longer than 10min per house. Some houses don't open until after the event already starts and stuff. Read up on the forums as there's TONS of info on it. But that's your best bet for getting in as soon as possible.

Unless they erected a fake snowglobe that was 100 feet wide and 100 feet tall and encased the whole tent. That would be one hell of a facade I agree it shouldn't be in a tent...but I would also agree that no house should be, but something has to give. Regarding the temperature, if they were to make the SS be 15 degrees where it's uncomfortable and you're literally freezing and feeling like the characters in the movie, that would be one thing...but to just make it slightly cooler seems like a waste of money. I'd rather have them spend on the props and costumes, instead of an electric bill that air conditions a huge soundstage. The fake snow falling is a must. Of course, this is IF we even get the house. That's still TBD.

If you can go to a themepark, with 10s of thousands of other people, wait in line for an hour, and then walk through a house bumping and grinding the person both in front and behind you in a conga line and that somehow keeps you "in the zone" and the temperature, in Florida, "takes you out of the experience" you have issues. Sorry, but this argument makes me laugh every single year. Like you'd be able to think you're in a fantasy land, in a blizzard, isolated and alone, and unable to escape...with thousands of other guests, employees with flashlights, and bright red EXIT signs...but it's the fact that it's 82 degrees in the maze versus 70 degrees that makes it "suck".

As much as I'm looking forward to this house, there is no way in hell it will be more horrifying than this! I wish this was a joke, but it's a real thing

After Arsik_22's post, I downloaded the Frequent Fear Podcast and gave it a listen (while multitasking at work so I'm sure I missed some good bits). The big takeaway I got about Halloween (and this is SLIGHTLY spoilerish if you're really sensitive to that): The house begins in the bedroom that Michael crashes through the window/door and falls at the end of the first movie. We will then "walk through that window" and "eventually" make our way to Haddonfield Memorial Hospital where a huge facade will be built in the middle of the house. Aiello seemed particularly interested in the "imprint of Michael in the grass" so I wouldn't be the least bit surprised if there's a room with a grass patch in the middle (probably roped off with police line tape or something) with an imprint in it. He also then says they are doing some "theatrics" of the fire scene from the end of the film. Also, I'm pretty sure he said something about having "Loomis shoot at Myers again this year" so that was an interesting bit with all the speculation about no guns appearing at this year's event. Link to podcast: http://frequentfear.libsyn.com/

I think people are over reacting the term "megahouse" or "uberhouse". Before it's meant more rooms or more scareactors so it could mean anything...and it's pretty much here to stay. It might be mega because it has the biggest facade ever...or it has the most puppets ever...or is 300 sq ft bigger...or has a section with a second floor...whatever. The super mega uber mondo extravaganza house is here to stay. Whatever record they choose to one up each year is fine by me and it really doesn't matter which house it is. My guess would be AHS if that's coming (I have yet to watch a second of the show) and it will probably be 2 rooms per season or whatever bringing it up to 12 rooms which is 2 more than usual and therefor "uber". But nothing major.

And now the real fun begins Time to start sending pics to my group...

I could be wrong (I don't eat, sleep, and dream HHN like many here) but that's a marketing construct that they've used some years to engage the public and keep them active leading up to the event so they feel engaged and inclined to buy tickets. It's inspired games, houses, and other things at the event itself.....but as of right now, don't think it's been used at all for this year. And hints that have been dropped lead one to believe that there won't be much of an interactive experience leading up to the event this year.

Yeah, I realized my Analysis was a little Critical while I was typing it It just reminded me of back in the VHS days where companies would re-release movies with a new title. Like take some generic horror movie with a serial killer, and re-name it Shocker 5: The Chair. Or take some cheap ass direct to video T&A movie and pay National Lampoon's a few bucks to let you put that in front of the title fooling you into thinking you're getting something good like Vacation. If you're going to do a movie, let alone one with umpteen sequels, say what it is. I'm THRILLED to have it and loved the movie (I think the claustrophobic feel and the general un-ease most people have with a hospital were brilliant) just didn't like the subtitle. Edit - Yes, I'm still bitter for renting those movies thinking they were something else. For all the millennials here: Yes, renting movies used to be a thing. Damn I'm old....

It's a great title...if it were an original spin on the Halloween franchise...or a best of. It would be like naming the other IPs "TCM: Leatherface Awakens" or "The Exorcist: The Possession of Regan". Nothing bad about them, but if you're doing a house for a particular film, changing the name to anything but the title is a bit of a cop out and I hope it's not a trend. From what we've heard, if ANY IP were to have a made up subtitle it should be the Exorcist because it's "going off script" and interpreting some scenes for the house. (I could be wrong, but I think Dracula Untold had a subtitle too...but it wasn't even released yet so I didn't really care. ha ha ha) It was confusing when it was announced and I think a lot of people will be mad that it was a misleading trick and they'll feel like "It was just the second movie" or "Wasn't last year's maze in Haddonfield? Wasn't hell already there?".