It’s never too soon for the fog! We are not even two months into 2022, but Universal Orlando looks to already be preparing for Halloween Horror Nights. This annual event takes the company many months to organize so it is no surprise to see them already prepping.

New permits for 4 different common haunted house locations were recently filed with Orange County, and notice of commencements list the contractors that will be working on these projects. Let’s talk about what we can learn from the permits, as well as some of the rumors for house locations, in today’s breaking news update.

Photo: Universal Orlando

Universal Orlando has not yet announced details or dates for this year’s Halloween Horror Nights, the 31st year of the event. New permits, that were filed with Orange County last week and posted publicly just yesterday, show that interior work is about to begin in Soundstages 24A and 24B, as well as Sprung Tents 1 and 2.

Soundstage 24 housed “HHN Icons: Captured” and “Revenge of the Tooth Fairy” during last year’s event, while Sprung Tent 1 was home to “Puppet Theatre: Captive Audience” and Sprung Tent 2 was home to “The Wicked Growth: Realm of the Pumpkin.”

While the permits themselves are scarce on details, only describing the work as “Interior Alteration,” the notice of commencements filed with the Orange County Comptroller do list the contractors for some of the first work to be done.

The soundstage notices list “Fake Productions LLC” as the contractor. According to their official Facebook page, they’ve had a hand in haunted houses for Halloween Horror Nights for years, including developing scenic elements for last year’s Beetlejuice house.

Beetlejuice house scenic element by Fake Productions, Photo shared by Fake Productions

With construction expected to be ongoing at the former home of Shrek 4-D, it is assumed that the event will not be able to utilize that spot for a house in 2022. It is rumored to return, however, after the new Shrek 4-D replacement opens, presumably next year.

This year’s event is also rumored to be missing the MIB Tent location, which may be removed while the Fear Factor Live stage is demolished in the coming months. This has not yet been confirmed, but if true, they will need to find alternative locations if they are to keep up with 9 or 10 haunted house locations in 2022.

One option, (which seems strange to me,) that has been rumored as being considered, is to use the queue AND the ride path for Fast and Furious: Supercharged as a temporary house location. This would mean that that attraction would be closed seasonally for the duration of the event, as well as some time leading up to it while the house is constructed inside.

If the Fear Factor Live stage is demolished, as permits seem to indicate, the event will also be left without that option as a show venue. Other options still include Animal Actors stage, (which has not been utilized for HHN in quite some time,) as well as the former Blue Man Group stage. The latter was used during the holidays for the Grinchmas show, so we know the company isn’t opposed to utilizing it for special events.

Photo: Universal Orlando

Stay tuned for more Halloween Horror Nights news and rumors as it happens in 2022. If you’re feeling nostalgic for last year’s event, check out Souvenir Scents for incredible recreations of the Puppet Theatre and Wicked Growth house scents that are one-hundred percent spot on. Use promo code PARKSTOP to save 15% on your order too!

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