Van Helsing Fights the Universal Monsters at Vegas’ Universal Horror Unleashed
New details on one of the houses and its connected area at the upcoming year-round horror destination.
New details have been released for the Universal Monsters house that will be part of Universal Horror Unleashed in Las Vegas, along with the themed area that will sit alongside it.
What’s Happening:
- Universal Monsters will be one of the four main haunted houses that will be part of Universal Horror Unleashed, and some new info has been revealed about the storyline.
- In the house, you pass through the crumbling mausoleum of monster-hunter Van Helsing, before encountering the iconic Universal Monsters. Per Universal, “From the shadowy halls of Castle Dracula, to the sandy tombs guarded by The Mummy, to the crackling lab where Frankenstein and The Bride still draw breath – this haunted house resurrects the most legendary monsters of all time in one continuous nightmare."
- Adjacent to the Universal Monsters house is the themed area known as Dead Storage, which continues the overall idea that Universal Horror Unleashed exists within an abandoned production warehouse.
- Dead Storage is said to contain “chilling stunts and interactions" that consist of “a shadow-filled sanctuary with forgotten set pieces and eerie relics that have been reclaimed by night-dwelling creatures – vampires, a werewolf in mid-transformation, and others that emerge without warning."
- Past Dead Storage is The Boiler bar, which sits at the heart of the venue where all the various horror zones converge. Universal describes The Boiler as “equal parts hellish spectacle and welcome reprieve, offering guests a perfect vantage point for those seeking momentary respite while remaining immersed in the action, enjoying craft cocktails underneath a monstrous flaming machine."
- A new video was also released spotlighting the Universal Monsters house, including a look at the importance of costume and makeup design to bring the house to life (or afterlife?).
- Located at the AREA15 District in Las Vegas, the year-round Universal Horror Unleashed opens August 14.
- The other three haunted houses are Blumhouse’s The Exorcist: Believer; Texas Chainsaw Massacre; and Scarecrow: The Reaping - the last of which is based upon a concept previously introduced at Halloween Horror Nights.
Is Any Lore Connected to HHN or Epic?
- In the video, show director Nate Stevenson notes how in the Universal Monsters house “You get to follow Van Helsing as he battles all of your favorite classic monsters."
- The question is which Van Helsing and when are these events taking place? Abraham Van Helsing was the original vampire hunter from Bram Stoker’s Dracula novel and various adaptations, while other stories have included various Van Helsing family members and descendants depending on the era they’re set in.
- “He" indicates this won’t be Saskia Van Helsing, the original character created for Halloween Horror Nights’ Universal Monsters: Eternal Bloodlines haunted house in 2024 - though if they follow that house’s storyline and poor Saskia’s fate, that tracks. So is this Abraham or someone else? And are they connecting this house’s story at all to the many Universal Monsters HHN houses in recent years, which have introduced and given us variations on all sorts of classic characters, such as a vampire-hunting Bride of Frankenstein?
- Then again, Universal Horror Unleashed is opening just a few months after Epic Universe, whose Dark Universe land gives an entirely new and different spin on Universal Monsters - in a modern day setting centered around characters like a newly created updated version of Frankenstein’s Monster, along with his creator, Victoria Frankenstein. Could Victoria pop up at Universal Horror Unleashed too or do they prefer to keep her Epic-only? She’s a really compelling part of Epic and it would be pretty cool to extend her out into a larger shared universe across Universal Destinations & Experiences.
- Or, hey, maybe the Van Helsing in this story is just completely based on the Hugh Jackman action movie version! That would be a swerve!
More on Universal Horror Unleashed:
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