Credit: SyFy/IMDBAs we inch closer and closer to official announcements for this year’s Halloween Horror Nights at Universal Orlando Resort, one burning question has yet to be answered… who is the icon going to be?
Halloween Horror Nights is Universal Orlando Resort’s annual Halloween event, considered to be one of the premiere haunted attractions in the country. This year’s event promises ten haunted houses, five scare zones, and spine-chilling entertainment. Tickets went on sale at the end of March, and fans are already buzzing over the potential house and scare zone themes.
So far, we only have confirmation of one house – at the end of the 2022 event, Universal immediately announced that the SyFy television show Chucky, which premiered in 2021 and is based on the Child’s Play film series, would be the theme of the first house. The killer doll has made many appearances at Halloween Horror Nights before and is a fan-favorite, so could we see more from Chucky beyond a haunted house?
For most years of the event, Halloween Horror Nights has had a character or concept serve as the “icon” of the event. The icon is the master of scaremonies, appearing on advertising and merchandise, as well as being found throughout the Park during the event. They usually have at least one house or scarezone themed around the icon, and often more. Most icons are Universal’s original invention, with horrifying character concepts like The Caretaker, The Director, The Usher, The Storyteller, and more creating legendary nightmares that add to the event’s legacy. In fact, many HHN anniversary years celebrate all of the event’s previous icons, like Halloween Horror Nights 30 in 2021.
So, could Chucky be taking the throne as this year’s Icon? It wouldn’t be surprising. Although most Icons are original concepts by Universal, film characters have been used before. At HHN 17 in 2007, Freddy Kreuger, Jason Voorhees, and Leatherface shared the spotlight as the event icons. Seeing as they were very quick to announce the Chucky house, it seems as if Universal has big plans for the killer doll.
However, there are a lot of other rumored IPs that could be joining the ranks this year. Two big rumors are houses based on the hit HBO show The Last of Us and another installment of The Horrors of Blumhouse starring M3gan from the 2022 film of the same name. While there’s not really an icon-able character from The Last of Us (Joel Miller would be a strange pick), it’s possible Universal could spin the concept into the event’s theme as they did for Stranger Things in 2018. As for M3gan, we have a hard time believing she would overthrow the already-established killer doll that is Chucky, but it’s possible she could share the spotlight.
There’s always the chance that Universal has an original Icon in the works. Who knows what kind of horrifying character they could be creating? With that, there’s always the chance of Universal’s favorite wildcard – Jack the Clown. Jack was the first-ever original icon of Halloween Horror Nights in 2000, and he and his sidekick, Chance, have returned as the icons for multiple event years. Jack is the #1 fan favorite Icon by a longshot and even served as the Icon for the giant anniversary year that was Halloween Horror Nights 30. Even though he’s served so recently, fans love him so much that he could always make a return.
Who do you want this year’s Halloween Horror Nights Icon to be?