Universal Studios Hollywood is cooking up a new experience for theme park enthusiasts called Fan Fest Nights where guests will be able to enjoy immersive experiences from Star Trek, Back to the Future, Dungeons & Dragons, One Piece, Jujutsu Kaisen, Harry Potter, Nintendo, and so much more.
Universal Fan Fest Nights will take place from April 25 – May 18 and, as part of IGN Fan Fest, we had the chance to chat with Stephen Siercks, the Senior Director of Entertainment at Universal Studios Hollywood, all about what fans can expect from this brand-new, one-of-a-kind event you won’t want to miss.
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IGN: So, Stephen, first off, I want to welcome you to IGN Fan Fest. Obviously, it has no relation to Universal Studios Hollywood’s Fan Fest Nights. I really want to talk about what Fan Fest Nights is. I believe someone once said that it’s as if San Diego Comic-Con gave birth to a baby with Halloween Horror Nights.
Stephen Siercks: Exactly. We’re really excited to be bringing the fandoms of sci-fi, gaming, anime, and fantasy to Universal Studios Hollywood this spring for Fan Fest Nights. And that’s really what this is. It’s bringing all of those fandoms and genres to life just like we do with Halloween Horror Nights, and we’re excited to continue that storied legacy of dropping our guests into these environments, letting them explore it, and further tell the stories of each of these different brands.
What sparked the idea to bring in these other properties for fans to enjoy in the evening? Was it as simple as let’s take what we’re doing with Halloween Horror Nights and see if we can adapt it to some of our other properties?
Siercks: That’s exactly it. We wanted to build from the legacy that has been built around Halloween Horror Nights for the last several decades and be able to bring that to these other fandoms. Our fans were asking for more and we certainly wanted to deliver more in terms of these immersive in-world experiences and the celebrations that go around them.
And you’ve got quite an impressive list of brands and IP, including Star Trek, Back to the Future, Dungeons & Dragons, One Piece, Jujutsu Kaisen, Harry Potter, and Nintendo. So, I’d love it if you could walk us through what we can expect from each one of those properties, starting with Star Trek.
Siercks: Sure. We’re going to have Star Trek Red Alert, which is a story-based walkthrough attraction where guests are invited to board the Enterprise D and take an exclusive tour of the ship. However, in typical fashion, something goes horribly wrong and you’re immediately thrust into the action. During your journey through the Enterprise D, you’ll get to visit iconic environments like the sickbay, the engineering room, turbo lifts, and, of course, the bridge.
Oh, and it’s not just any bridge of the Enterprise D, it’s an actual screen-used version that was first built for Picard. Through a great partnership with Paramount, we’re able to make something that is truly authentic.
That’s one of the things that I love about what you all do, you have access to these incredible items that you can bring into the theme park for fans to actually experience. With that being said, I’m guessing there’s going to be DeLorean there with the Back to the Future experience?
Siercks: Oh, yes, for sure. And to talk about something that is so uniquely Universal, we’re going to be able to bring our guests to Courthouse Square. Guests will get off the tram tour and experience the sets where the magic happened 40 years ago for the original filming of Back to the Future. We’re bringing it back to life through light set dressing, characters, and photo opportunities. And yes, the time machine will be there.
What about Enchantment of the Sea?
Siercks: We couldn’t do Back to the Future without doing a recreation of the Enchantment Under the Sea prom. It will be as though the prom spilled out into Courthouse Square, and we’ll have a band onstage and Marty will actually get up there every once in a while and rock out on guitar for our guests.
Are we going to see anyone go back to the future in the time machine?
Siercks: Oh, oh, yes.
Are we going to see that be recreated?
Siercks: We’re doing an environmental recreation of the epic finale. So, everything from the lightning strike all the way to when the time machine goes back to the future for the last time will be celebrated several times throughout the night down at Courthouse Square.
So, should I dress the part though? Should I find my grandparents’ old, 1950s suits and whatnot?
Siercks: Yes, yes. So, cosplay is a huge part of Fan Fest Nights. And we’re really encouraging our guests to come dressed up and celebrate alongside each other. We know that those who have an affinity for these genres have such a strong community around them, so, we’re also creating space for us to celebrate the fans throughout Fan Fest Nights too.
To do that, we’ll have a block party festival at our Universal Plaza where we’ll have cosplay, celebrations, trivia contests, fan meetups, and more.
Now, let’s talk about some fantasy. I want to know about Dungeons & Dragons.
Siercks: Dungeons and Dragons: Secrets of Waterdeep. This one is very exciting. Similar to Star Trek, it’s a story-based attraction that will send groups of people on a traditional quest. So, for a casual D&D fan, something has been stolen and we’re there to help find it. For those who are a bit deeper into the Dungeons & Dragons lore, you’re going to find iconic characters, environments, and some of the setups that will really make you appreciate the experience that much more.
We’re members of the Waterdeep clan and Xanathar the Beholder, one of the big bads of D&D, has stolen a Dragonstaff and we’re being recruited to help find it. Along the way, we encounter dragons, we get to solve a puzzle, and ultimately, we get face-to-face with Xanathar the Beholder. This will be really special because we actually partnered with Jim Henson’s Creature Shop to build this 12-foot puppeted character that our guests are going to be able to meet as they work to resolve the conflict, steal that Dragonstaff back, and return the town of Waterdeep back to normal.
Now, for our anime fans, you have One Piece and Jujutsu Kaisen. I’d love to know what we can expect from those?
Siercks: For One Piece, we’re developing a fan zone concept. Where Halloween Horror Nights has scare zones, fan Fest Nights has fan zones. It’s going to be taking over a street and there will be character meet and greets, scenic photo opportunities, and more throughout the night.
Jujutsu Kaisen, on the other hand, is taking residence in our DreamWorks Theatre space where we’re able to bring some content from Cool Japan and Universal Studios Japan and debut it here in Hollywood for Fan Fest Nights. It’s going to be a multisensory media-based experience for our guests based on the lore and story of Jujutsu Kaisen.
Ooh, it’s going to be exciting. Now, let’s talk about two properties that already have a presence at Universal Studios Hollywood – Harry Potter and Nintendo. Let’s start with Harry Potter. What can we anticipate from that magical world?
Siercks: Well, you nailed it on the head. What we want to do with Wizarding World of Harry Potter is that as soon as you cross through the town gate of Hogsmeade, you immediately feel as if something new, unique, and different is happening.
To accomplish that, we’re bringing two new experiences for Fan Fest Nights. The first one is the debut of Hogwarts Always, which is the latest projection mapping experience on Hogwarts Castle that debuted at Universal Orlando last year and will now happen at Universal Studios Hollywood for Fan Fest Nights.
The second one is taking an experience that was developed first for Universal Studios Japan – the Magical Creatures – and bringing them here to Hollywood as well. So, guests will be able to meet their favorite magical creatures like the Niffler and a baby dragon. We’re also debuting a brand new magical creature, the Occamy, which is developed exclusively for Universal Studios Hollywood.
Oh, wow. That sounds amazing. The Niffler in particular excites me a lot. Okay, next. What can we anticipate from Nintendo?
Siercks: Gaming’s a big part of Fan Fest Nights and, as you know, Super Nintendo World is something that we’ve been able to debut and have our guests experience on a day-to-day basis. So, in a similar fashion to the Wizarding World of Harry Potter, we want something new, unique, and exclusive to be happening as soon as you walk through the Warp Pipe. So, we’re very excited to debut Yoshi as a brand new meet-and-greet character for our guests at Fan Fest Nights.
And to help introduce and celebrate Yoshi, we’re creating a few different activations throughout the night, including a fun scavenger hunt activity. Guests will be invited to find five hidden eggs throughout the land and, once they find them all, they’ll get exclusive access to a multicolored Yoshi meet and greet.
Additionally, guests can look forward to some drone moments that will be taken to the skies above Super Nintendo World as well.
So, how close should we get to Yoshi? Because you know what happens if you get too close… I really don’t want to get eaten and turned into an egg.
Siercks: No. He’s lovable. He’s playful. He’s a fan favorite.
Now, onto exclusive merch! Can you talk to us about the items that you’ll have at Universal Fan Fest Nights?
Siercks: So, we’ve got some great offerings here from an assortment of our different brands. We’ve got some merch around Yoshi, Jujutsu Kaisen, Back to the Future, and so much more.
Speaking of which, Back to the Future is celebrating its 40th anniversary, so what better time and place and moment to celebrate this film with a Destination Hill Valley experience at Courthouse Square?
When I attended the press day, some people thought different experiences would happen on different nights. However, I think you can enjoy each and every one no matter what night you go, right?
Siercks: It’s a really important point that all of our guests will be able to experience everything we talked about each and every single night. So, all of the different genres, all of the different brands, and all of the different fandoms will be celebrated each and every night of Fan Fest Nights.
Amazing. And what are the dates one more time?
Siercks: Universal Fan Fest Nights opens April 25th and runs for 12 nights through the middle of May.
Yes. And you’ve got your anime, your sci-fi, your fantasy, your video games, and so much more.
Stephen, thank you so much for telling us a little bit more about Fan Fest Nights right here on IGN’s Fan Fest. No relation, please don’t sue us.
Siercks: Fan Fest meets Fan Fest Nights. We love it and we look forward to seeing you at Universal Studios Hollywood this spring.
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For more, check out everything else happening at IGN Fan Fest.
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