Universal Orlando’s Halloween Horror Nights officially opened with their annual Premium Scream Night on Thursday, Aug. 21. Tickets for premier night include unlimited food and non-alcoholic drinks, plus select mocktails. I had the opportunity to attend, and here’s my honest review of the Premium Scream Night 2025.
Houses
This year, HHN amped up the scares and gore with houses based on franchises such as Five Nights at Freddy’s and the Jason Universe. My personal favorites included Terrifier, Five Nights at Freddy’s, and El Artista: A Spanish Haunting.
One of the most anticipated houses was Terrifier due to the violent, disgusting nature of the film, as well as the innovative twist to the house. Halloween Horror Nights creators gave guests an option of which ending they wished to face, wet or dry. The wet ending left guests covered in a cascade of “blood.” I would recommend bringing a poncho to those who choose the wet path. The dry ending was a little longer than the wet; however, it was met with strong, unpleasant smells.
For fans of the popular horror franchise, Five Nights at Freddy’s is another highly anticipated house this year. Universal partnered with the Jim Henson Company to create larger-than-life replicas of Freddy and the gang. The house itself took you into Freddy Fazbear’s Pizzeria with singing animatronics. For any fans of the video game series, this house will definitely meet expectations.
In my opinion, the most underrated house is El Artista: A Spanish Haunting. Visually, the house is beautiful, with elements of Spanish architecture that transport you to the 19th century. My favorite element of the house was the flying gargoyle and its surprise appearance overhead.
A few honorable mentions are Fallout, which combines elements from both the TV series and the video game. Also, the Horrors of the Wyatt Sicks was unique in its theming, based on the wrestling group. As someone unfamiliar with the concept, I was not really looking forward to the house, but I was impressed with how unique the theming was.
Food
Premier night was the perfect way to try out most of the food that is offered at the event. Overall, I thought that there were more hits than misses, but there were definitely items I am inclined to try again.
The Fallout Pickle Bucket Baked Chicken was an unexpected hit, with the rich buffalo chicken dip pairing perfectly with the tangy breaded pickles.
Five Nights at Freddy’s brought another unusual dish: Why Not Have Both Pizza & Pasta? This pasta-topped pizza was jarring to look at, but the flavors were overwhelming because of the garlic crust and juicy meatballs.
The Jason Universe gave us elotes, a fire-grilled corn. I went ahead and tried the cotija cheese and Tajin-topped elotes, which was a perfect mix of spicy from the Tajin and sweet from the corn.
The biggest disappointment of the night in terms of food was the Birria Ramen at The Cat Lady of Crooked Lane Booth. It was so salty that the bowl was inedible, which was a bummer because it was the one dish I was looking forward to all night.
Scare Zones
I thought that the scare zones overall were pretty good, but the winner for me was The Cat Lady of Crooked Lane. Not only was the walk through something of a nightmare with human-sized cats, but you got to see the Cat Lady and her cottage. Across from her house was a mini haunted house with cats jumping out at you in a dark tunnel, decorated with balls of yarn and cat collars. The trees above the scare zone were ornamented in jack-o-lanterns, symbolizing the Cat Lady’s Halloween curse.
A unique scare zone was the Masquerade: Dance with Death, as vampires walked through the zone waiting for their next victim to join. While I didn’t find it particularly scary, I thought the costuming itself was attractive as the Victorian-style ballgowns were a stunning addition.
Although we have seen the Mutations: Toxic Twenties style scare zone in the past, it is always a favorite for me as the sets transport you back to the 1920s. I enjoyed the newspaper stand as it had a surprise jump scare attached. The storytelling of the zone carried the appeal for me, as you saw the crashed car that started the spill and the panic from the BuzzCon employee as he tried to handle a PR nightmare.
Premier Night 2025 was an exciting night that was definitely worth the cost. With tickets around $300, it gives Halloween Horror Nights enjoyers a first look into the event, complete with unlimited food and non-alcoholic drinks. Additionally, premier night guests get staggered entrances into the houses to get all of the scares. Check out these top seven tips for the event as a whole.