Universal Is Getting A Brand New Event In Fan Fest Nights. Everything We Know From Star Trek To Back To The Future

When you buy through links on our articles, Future and its syndication partners may earn a commission.

Universal Orlando Resort and Universal Studios Hollywood are two theme parks that any fan should visit any chance they get, but everybody knows that there is one event Universal does that is the pinnacle of its year, Halloween Horror Nights. Every year a variety of franchises, most not normally part of the park, get their own dedicated spooky experiences.

Unfortunately, the other nine months of the year that HHN isn’t running, there’s nothing else quite like it, at least until now. Bring on Universal Studios Hollywood’s Fan Fest Nights.

Last year Universal Studios Hollywood announced a new after-hours hard ticket event called Fan Fest Nights. While we were told that the event would include popular franchises like Star Trek, Back to the Future, and Dungeons & Dragons, we didn’t really know what the event would be like.

Now, Universal has confirmed that Fan Fest Nights will resemble Halloween Horror Nights — at least, in structure — as different parts of the park will be dedicated to different franchises, with large themed areas guests can walk through or simply hang out in. Here’s a breakdown of what you’ll find.

Star Trek: Red Alert

Star Trek has to be one of the biggest franchises in the world that doesn’t have a significant theme park presence. But Star Trek: Red Alert sounds just like what fans would love to see. Including giving fans a chance to truly stand on the bridge of the Enterprise.

This will be a walk-through attraction, similar to an HHN house. The story is set in the Star Trek: Picard era and will see guests visiting the Starfleet museum that appeared in Picard Season 3. While guests are “touring” the ship an alien entity attacks, leading to guests moving through various well-known sets, including a rebuilt version of the Enterprise-D bridge as seen in Picard. Guests will leave by beaming out. Universal is teasing that particular effect, so we can’t wait to see how it works.

Back to the Future: Destination Hill Valley

It’s remarkable how popular Back to the Future still is today considering that no sequels or reboots have ever been released. Perhaps part of the reason for its continued life is the fact that Universal Parks have kept Back to the Future at front of mind. You can see the Delorean and meet Doc Brown at Universal Orlando and the Hill Valley Clocktower set from the original Back to the Future is still visible every day as part of Universal’s Studio Tour.

That set will be the centerpiece of Back to the Future: Destination Hill Valley. The “Fan Tram” will take guests down to the set, where a recreation of 1955 Hill Valley will be on hand, including characters, music, and more. Guests aren’t usually allowed to walk around the backlot like this, so this one will be special.

Dungeons & Dragons: Secrets Of Waterdeep

Dungeons & Dragons is a game that requires players to use their imagination, but that will be less necessary with Secrets of Waterdeep. The walkthrough attraction will see guests join the Harpers, the network of spies, and foil a plot by the gangster beholder named Xanathar. The high point of this is likely to be Xanathar himself, as the multi-eyed monster will be brought to life through a creation from the Henson Creature Shop.

As a D&D fan who has DM’d games using Xanathar before, I can’t wait to see him come to life. It’s the closest thing to a sequel to Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves, I’m likely to get.

One Piece: Grand Pirate Gathering

One of the most fun elements of Halloween Horror Nights are the scarezones. The areas are wide open spaces built to different themes that guests can simply walk around at their leisure, meeting characters, getting photos, or just enjoying the vibes. One Piece: Grand Pirate Gathering will bring the iconic anime to life in this same way, letting guests become part of the pirate world.

Jujutsu Kaisen: Hunger of the Cursed

Another popular anime will also be represented at Fan Fest Nights. Jujutsu Kaisen: Hunger of the Cursed is a film that has previously only been available to see at Universal Studios Japan. During Fan Fest Nights the Dreamworks Theater, which normally shows a Kung-Fu Panda 3D movie, will screen this popular movie experience instead.

Wizarding World Of Harry Potter

Fan Fest Nights Fun isn’t limited to brand new experiences as some of Universal Studios Hollywood’s most popular lands are also getting in on the fun. The Wizarding World of Harry Potter will be open during the event and will give guests the ability to meet several of Newt Scamander’s favorite magical creatures, including a Niffler, a baby dragon, and grand Occamy. In addition, Hogwarts Always — a projection show that takes place on Hogwarts castle that debuted at Universal Orlando Resort last year — will debut in the West Coast Park.

Super Nintendo World: Let’s Go, Yoshi

The newest addition to Universal Studios Hollywood is Super Nintendo World, and while most of the core characters in the world of Super Mario can be found there, one that has been conspicuous by his absence is Yoshi. The character has his own attraction at Universal Studios Japan and he will have one at Epic Universe’s Super Nintendo World, but due to space limitations, there’s no Yoshi in Hollywood.

The little dino will make his debut during Fan Fest Nights, and will be available for meet-and-greet opportunities. A new game, which will see guests hunt for Yoshi eggs, will be available, and “celebratory drone moments” will be taking place throughout the night.

Food And Merchandise

Of course, it wouldn’t be a theme park if there weren’t plenty of food and merchandise opportunities on hand. Each of the new elements of Fan Fest Nights will also have its own themed food and merchandise to help fans complete the experience.

Fan Fest Nights will run every Friday, Saturday and Sunday Night from April 25 to May 18. Tickets are on sale now. It’s a fairly limited event, but if it’s a success then we can assume that like Halloween Horror Nights before it, it will simply continue to get bigger and better in the years to come.