It’s time to get ready to “Really Go There” as Universal Studios Hollywood prepares to soon welcome guests to the inaugural Universal Fan Fest Nights – a brand-new after-hours event designed to take fandom to the next level by transporting guests into numerous immersive in-world experiences tapping into the genres of sci-fi, fantasy, gaming, and anime.
The event begins Friday, April 25, and will run on select nights through Sunday, May 18, 2025 (April 25-27, May 2-4, May 9-11, and May 16-18). Tickets are now available for purchase on the Universal Fan Fest Nights website, notably including – among numerous other ticket options similar to those offered for Halloween Horror Nights – an Ultimate Fandom Pass for fans interested in taking in the many immersive experiences across multiple event nights, as well as a Fan Fest Nights VIP Tour offering.
Inside Universal was recently invited for a sneak peek presentation providing an overview of all the exciting entertainment elements that await fans at the event, as well as a preview of the themed food menu and merchandise offerings that will be available, so be warned of spoilers ahead.
Scott Strobl, Executive Vice President and General Manager of Universal Studios Hollywood, introduced the presentation with a note that the Universal Studios Hollywood creative team has been working to develop Universal Fan Fest Nights for several years now with the goal of launching a new fan-first, authentic immersive experience that is uniquely Universal to last for generations.
Likening the event to a combination of many of the familiar elements of Halloween Horror Nights and Comic Con, Universal Fan Fest Nights will allow guests to step into all the worlds of Star Trek, Back to the Future, Dungeons & Dragons, One Piece, and Jujutsu Kaisen each event night, alongside getting the opportunity to enjoy new special additions unique to the event in The Wizarding World of Harry Potter and Super Nintendo World.
Some of the many celebratory activations designed to fully immerse guests in the worlds of the franchises featured at the event include a variety of live entertainment and interactive experiences throughout the theme park, cosplay and photo opportunities, themed food offerings, and new unique merchandise for sale, as visible below.
In addition, select theme park attractions will remain open during the event, including Mario Kart: Bowser’s Challenge, Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey, Flight of the Hippogriff, Jurassic World: The Ride, Despicable Me: Minion Mayhem, Revenge of the Mummy: The Ride, and The Simpsons Ride.
Now, we will take an inside look at the specifics of what guests and fans alike can expect to experience at Universal Fan Fest Nights, diving into the details of “Star Trek: Red Alert”, “Back to the Future: Destination Hill Valley”, “Dungeons & Dragons: Secrets of Waterdeep”, “One Piece: Grand Pirate Gathering”, “Jujutsu Kaisen: Hunger of the Cursed”, and the new additions at The Wizarding World of Harry Potter and in “Super Nintendo World: Let’s Go, Yoshi!”.
Star Trek: Red Alert
Star Trek: Red Alert will provide a pulsed, story-based walk-through experience for guests to experience in groups as they are transported into an immersive adventure in the year 2403 aboard the U.S.S. Enterprise NCC-1701-D on a mission to prevent an interstellar threat just as an otherworldly entity begins to wreak havoc on the ship.
As the chaos begins, guests will find themselves navigating iconic Star Trek environments as they venture further into the ship laden with themed performers, special effects, audio-visual effects, and multi-sensory activations, ranging from the ship’s engineering room and transporter pads to the ultimate soul of the Starship Enterprise, the bridge, as they attempt to restore peace aboard the ship. It was noted in the presentation that the bridge is a truly screen-used original set piece featured in the third and final season of Star Trek: Picard, built through Universal Studios Hollywood’s partnership with Paramount to bring the Star Trek universe to life in this immersive guest experience.
For a clearer idea of the schematics of the walk-through to offer an appreciation of its scale and scope, guests will first enter the Starfleet Museum where they will be greeted with a pre-show, head to a shuttle station, find themselves in the sickbay, navigate to the control room, head into a turbo lift, traverse through the bridge, head to a transporter pad, and eventually be transported back to Earth in a uniquely Star Trek fashion to be revealed with the debut of the event. This brand-new, original experience undoubtedly promises an unforgettable adventure for both fans and casual guests to enjoy.
Back to the Future: Destination Hill Valley
Back to the Future: Destination Hill Valley will whisk guests back in time to Courthouse Square in 1955 Hill Valley for a nostalgic story-based experience featuring many of the iconic characters from Back to the Future. Guests will climb aboard the Studio Tour “Fan Tram” and be greeted by Doc Brown as they begin their time travel adventure on the way to a thoroughly decorated Courthouse Square on the Universal backlot that will allow guests to feel like they are walking in the footsteps of Marty McFly when he first travels back in time in the film.
While immersed in the scenery of Courthouse Square, fans will have the opportunity to interact with a variety of characters – even including Doc Brown’s beloved dog, Einstein – and experience recreations of some iconic scenes from the film that will occur multiple times each event night, including the Enchantment Under the Sea dance with a live band that Marty McFly himself will occasionally play along with, as well as the film’s epic finale when Doc Brown sends Marty back to the future, featuring special lighting and audio effects to make guests truly believe that the famous lightning storm from the film is brewing around them.
Dungeons & Dragons: Secrets of Waterdeep
Inspired by the “World’s Greatest Roleplaying Game”, Dungeons & Dragons: Secrets of Waterdeep will provide guests with a truly epic experience as they are transported into the fantastic world of D&D. With the story anchored in the Sword Coast in the town of Waterdeep, guests will get the opportunity to join the Harpers – a heroic spy network – to help foil a plot by the legendary beholder Xanathar in order to save all of Waterdeep.
While navigating this unique immersive experience, guests will traverse across seven different themed rooms located in Soundstage 15, beginning with a preshow that leads them to “The Quest Unveiled”, through “Marketplace Mayhem”, to “The Tunnel Divide”, through “The Rune Rumble”, into an “Illuminated Passage”, and finally to “Xanathar’s Lair” before at last emerging victorious, though of course, with many surprises promised along the way.
Of particular note is that to bring Xanathar to life in this experience, Universal Studios Hollywood is collaborating with Jim Henson’s Creature Shop – a world-renowned innovator in animatronics, puppetry, and digital animation for over 40 years – to create an interactive figure built with authenticity to the character.
One Piece: Grand Pirate Gathering
One Piece: Grand Pirate Gathering will provide guests with a unique experience inspired by the global hit anime series, One Piece, that follows the adventures of Monkey D. Luffy and his Straw Hat Crew as they pursue their quest to find “One Piece” – the legendary treasure of Gol D. Roger, the former King of the Pirates.
Similar to how Halloween Horror Nights has scare zones, Universal Fan Fest Nights will have “Fan Zones”, providing guests with the opportunity to join the Straw Hat Crew as they venture through an interactive immersive experience on the Upper Lot that includes iconic visuals and environments from the series, uplifting meet and greet opportunities with a variety of characters, and themed interactive photo ops.
Jujutsu Kaisen: Hunger of the Cursed
Jujutsu Kaisen: Hunger of the Cursed will immerse guests in the world of high school student Yuji Itadori after he is forced to become the host of a powerful curse and subsequently joins Tokyo Jujutsu High School – an organization that fights such curses.
Located in the DreamWorks Theatre, this epic experience will take guests on a film-based adventure making its debut in the United States after initially premiering at Universal Studios Japan in 2022.
The Wizarding World of Harry Potter
New to add to the immersion of the Wizarding World in the spirit of fandom for Universal Fan Fest Nights, guests will have the opportunity to enjoy all-new magical creature interactions in Hogsmeade, including the ability to meet a baby Niffler and a baby dragon – as seen in Universal Studios Japan – as well as the debut of the first grand Occamy creature interaction to be featured in any Universal park.
Additionally, the centerpiece of the immersive Wizarding World experience unique to Universal Fan Fest Nights will be the Hollywood debut of the Hogwarts Always light projection show against the backdrop of Hogwarts castle, featuring stunning visuals designed to take guests on a journey through the memorable moments of a school year at Hogwarts.
Super Nintendo World: Let’s Go, Yoshi!
Carrying on the spirit of taking the park’s themed lands to the next level of immersion at Universal Fan Fest Nights, Super Nintendo World will see the debut of a brand-new Yoshi meet and greet character within the land during event nights.
To celebrate Yoshi’s arrival, guests can participate in a scavenger hunt throughout the land to locate all five colorful Yoshi eggs. Upon completing this quest, guests will be rewarded with the unique opportunity to meet a multicolored Yoshi. Moreover, special drone moments will illuminate the sky throughout the night to add to the ambiance for guests to enjoy.
Block Party
Last but not least, Universal Plaza will be transformed into a block party every event night for guests to participate in additional photo ops and fans to have the opportunity to engage in cosplay meetups. Live music will also be featured to help keep the fun spirit going all night long.
Themed Foods
As part of our sneak preview of Universal Fan Fest Nights, Inside Universal was also invited to sample a variety of the themed foods that will be available for purchase at the event. While we will provide a more in-depth review of everything we sampled in a future podcast episode, some of our notable favorites were the Beholder’s Brew Fondue – a delicious cheese fondue paired with sourdough bread – as well as Franky’s Cola Barbacoa – barbacoa meat served with pickled onion and star-shaped pineapple bites in a tortilla.
You will find a full photo overview of all the new food and beverage options to be featured at the event in the gallery at the end of this article.
We sincerely thank Universal Studios Hollywood for inviting us out for this exciting preview of the many captivating experiences guests will soon be able to enjoy every event night at Universal Fan Fest Nights, running on select nights from April 25 to May 18. It is truly exciting to see Universal Studios Hollywood embark on creating so many unique after-hours experiences centered around live entertainment that are sure to elevate the immersion of the guest experience to a new level, and we look forward to experiencing it all in its entirety soon.
Tickets are now on sale.
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