Now that Epic has opened and the media circus around the new park has started to settle down, Universal has finally given Halloween Horror Nights fans the first glimpse at one of the IPs here for the new season, with a social media post late last night that introduced fans to a long-beloved franchise. No stranger to partnering with video game producers to bring digital scares to life, Universal’s first licensed IP this year is one that fans have been talking about for years, finally coming to life in the middle of this spooktacular event. That’s right, folks! Five Nights at Freddy’s is finally coming to Halloween Horror Nights.
Across social media last night, Halloween Horror Nights’ official channels posted up a short teaser for what’s to come. On Twitter and Instagram, guests got the first real announcement of the season (not counting their very mean April Fool’s Day joke!) with the promise of more details on the way, revealing that Five Nights at Freddy’s would be coming to both Hollywood and Orlando for Halloween Horror Nights this year.
This comes after several years of having Five Nights at Freddy’s indirectly featured at Halloween Horror Nights – primarily in Hollywood – since the movie came out in 2023. Five Nights at Freddy’s had not been featured as a house or scarezone at either event, but was given the spotlight in an exhibition that allowed guests the opportunity to view the Jim Henson puppets that were featured in the movie.
Blumhouse, the horror-focused production studio that was behind the 2023 film, has had a long and varied history with Halloween Horror Nights, which has featured many of its properties over the years. From houses to scarezones, Blumhouse has become a staple presence at the park during the Halloween season, giving guests scares from famous franchises such as Insidious, The Purge, The Exorcist, and several other Blumhouse originals, like Freaky, Black Phone, Happy Death Day, and now the faz-tastic Fight Nights at Freddy’s franchise.
This announcement for Five Nights at Freddy’s comes hot on the heels of Universal Pictures dropping the first trailer for the movie’s sequel, which was also released yesterday and met with huge fanfare from fans of the franchise.
While Universal has not yet disclosed what they will be doing with the Five Nights at Freddy’s franchise, it stands to be a brilliant marketing move that many guests will enjoy; with the movie’s release date of December 5th, FNAF’s presence at Halloween Horror Nights for two months prior to the film’s debut could prove to be an expert-level marketing decision, introducing Five Nights at Freddy’s to an audience that may not be intimately familiar with Mike, Vanessa, or the animatronics that serve as the main characters in both the games and the movies.
Regardless, Five Nights at Freddy’s has been a long-anticipated IP for Halloween Horror Nights, with fans practically begging for brand integration since before the original movie debuted.
The original game, which debuted on PC gaming platforms like Steam and Desura in 2014, has sold approximately 2.3 million copies according to Gamelytic, with a score of “very positive” over nearly 47,000 lifetime reviews on Steam. Considered one of the most successful independently developed “indie” games ever produced, Five Nights at Freddy’s has a strong existing base of loyal fans who have followed the franchise across seventeen games, over forty books and anthologies, and at least five original tabletop games – among much, much more FNAF fanculture – to create one of the biggest names in horror gaming over the years.
Now, with Blumhouse and the Jim Henson company giving life to these beloved homicidal robots on the silver screen, the Five Nights at Freddy’s franchise is finally gearing up for the night shift at Halloween Horror Nights.
Check back soon, as Theme Park Shark will continue to bring you information about Five Nights at Freddy’s and all things Halloween Horror Nights! In the meantime, check out Theme Park Shark on your favorite social media platform, like Twitter, TikTok, Instagram, and YouTube, and expect to see plenty of footage from Theme Park Shark as we explore all the horrors that Universal has in store, as well as theme park news from Disney, Universal, and theme parks from all across the world!
