Author: Chris Glass

September 30, 2015 – In this episode, Chris Glass hosts a roundtable discussion with Jonathan Green and Jon Fu about their recent trip to Universal Studios Singapore. Audio Direct download: September 29, 2015 PodcastiTunes link: (035) September 29, 2015 Podcast Chris Glass Chris Glass is an editor for Inside Universal. Chris is a Los Angeles native who grew up visiting the best theme parks in the world, but that wasn’t enough. Whenever he has the chance, he flees the comfort of Southern California to see what the rest of the world has to offer, and is always happy to return…

August 18, 2015 – If you followed the site at all over the weekend on Twitter, you would have seen a flurry of posts about the Halloween Horror Nights panel revealing the newest maze for 2015, Halloween: Michael Myers Comes Home Maze. It stands to mention that ScareLA doesn’t exist solely as a means to promote HHN. There were plenty more events, shows, attractions and fun going on there and in this article we’ll veer from the normal Universal Studios-themed articles and delve into all that ScareLA has to offer. There’s a lot of aspects to Halloween, that run the…

July 16, 2015 – Hot on the heels of the first maze announcement a few days ago, Insidious: Return to the Further has been revealed as the next maze in the Halloween Horror Nights 2015 lineup, inspired by Insidious: Chapter 3 which debuted in theaters last month. Insidious: Chapter 3 is a prequel to the exisiting films in the supernatural horror franchise about a seance going wrong. The franchise was last seen at Halloween Horror Nights back in 2013 as Insidious: Into the Further. You can see our coverage of that maze here alongside Universal’s official press release below. As…

July 7, 2015 – Over the weekend, guests at Universal Studios Hollywood were greeted with a new Jurassic Park-themed meet and greet, building on the tremendous success of Jurassic World, currently in theaters. While the encounter recently debuted in Orlando in May of this year and Singapore many years back, it was finally time for Hollywood’s turn for their take at a Velociraptor meet and greet. Currently the meet and greet takes place down in the Lower Lot, just outside of the splash zone from Jurassic Park The Ride. Running nearly the full span of the operating day, with short…

June 5, 2015 – Earlier this week, AECOM released their 2014 Theme Index which measures attendance numbers from theme parks around the world. Since 2010, Universal Studios Hollywood has experienced steady growth with the addition of the wildly successful King Kong 360 3-D and attendance continues to grow today with the 5-year transformation of the park. In 2014 Universal Studios Hollywood’s percentage gain ranked 4th in the world with an 11% increase in attendance; a 676,000 guest increase from the previous year. The boost was attributed to the new Despicable Me: Minion Mayhem ride and Super Silly Fun Land interactive…

June 2, 2015 – After a long period of expectation, and monitoring construction, today Universal Studios Hollywood has officially announced an opening date for The Wizarding World of Harry Potter. Opening Spring 2016, the star attraction will be Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey, but this time, following a recent surprise announcement in Japan, it will now be in 3D, with guests donning Quidditch-themed goggles. The 3D version may be new for the Forbidden Journey, but those familiar with the franchise will remember that Escape from Gringott’s, recently opened in Diagon Alley in Universal Orlando, is in 3D as well.…

May 11, 2015 – First on Inside Universal – Soundstages 22, 23, 24 and 25 will likely close in the coming months, Inside Universal has learned. The space is likely to be transferred to the theme park for future use. At this moment, the status of Soundstages 22, 23, 24, and 25 are contingent on CBS’ television series CSI. According to Variety, the status of CSI is still unknown – with some Hollywood observers suggesting a truncated series finale or a television movie. When CSI does conclude, it is unlikely that Universal will rent out Soundstage 22, 23, 24 and…

May 5, 2015 – This Saturday, Universal was back at MEND for their annual ‘Christmas in Spring’ charity event. The event name is deliberate, and is part of Universal’s desire to bring attention at the need to give to charity outside of the holiday season at the end of year. Taking place on a hot day in Pacoima, 1,000 low-income families visited the M.E.N.D. center to be greeted by all kinds of food and entertainment. In addition to providing a huge amount of meals (600 pounds of chicken, 600 pounds of salad, and over 1,000 desserts served), there was a…

April 20, 2015 – Inside Universal has learned that Stop & Play, located at the far east end of CityWalk, has closed with no replacement currently announced. With the recent opening of Springfield, it seems prime time for other quick adjustments around the property right before the summer season begins. Pink’s was closed down in the park to be replaced by the unique Plaza Grill. And earlier, Gamestop in CityWalk closed, with Things From Another World moving into their new spot. Following that, American Express opened up in a newly vacant spot. As the name suggests, Stop & Play was…

April 1, 2015 – In preparation for the Studio Tour and the theme park’s continuing fiftieth anniversary celebration, we would like to take the time to point out the top 10 StarWays that make up Universal Studios Hollywood. If 10 sounds likes a tall order, it is. But sit back, take in the vistas, and see if your own list matches up with ours. #10 – Jurassic Parking Jr. To kick off our list, we start with a hidden treasure. First impressions mean a lot at the park and this StarWay has it in spades. You get fresh out of…