Of course, we should have seen this coming. All the signs were there. Universal Orlando embracing synergy within the NBCUniversal Media company. We have been buying “Chucky” themed cake pops across the Universal Orlando Resort. Voodoo Doughnut in Orlando created a “Chucky” doughnut. Halloween Horror Nights 2022 Orlando offered a themed “Chucky” food tent selling a Good Guys Burger. In Orlando, guests got a return of the “Chucky” photo op for Halloween Horror Nights 2022. The announcement on Halloween should not have caught so many of us by surprise.
Still, both Universal Studios theme parks, in California, and Florida revealed their first house for the 2023 Halloween Horror Nights events at their respective locations. This “Chucky” house will draw inspiration from the USA and SYFY channels series of the same name. With a TV series running on NBC Universal Media’s cable channels, this announcement should have been detected way sooner.
The strangest thing about this announcement involves the timing. Why announce almost 12 months in advance? Yes, announcing Halloween day makes a nice spooky touch. Yet, what would the company gain with this plan? The most obvious answer to that question connects to promoting the TV show. Do the ratings need a few more eyeballs watching before the next season receives approval by ownership? Is this announcement to foreshadow more “Chucky” elements being used at Halloween Horror Nights? Frankly, I know nothing more than anybody else at this point.
The timing of this announcement reminds me of “Puppet Theatre: Captive Audience” being announced on Peacock streaming service almost a year before Halloween Horror Nights in 2021. Of course, in 2020, Halloween Horror Nights events were canceled due to virus conditions. I understand this very early announcement fails to be unprecedented. Yet, I hope Universal has an extensive plan to build upon this revealing of a “Chucky” house.
Universal planned to do this before this announcement based on a YouTube video created to promote this house. It looks like we should expect some more “Chucky” themed food, merchandise, and photo ops to link with this house in 2023. It sounds like Chucky wants to come out and play. Wanna Play?
Pirates & Princesses (PNP) is an independent, opinionated fan-powered news blog that covers Disney and Universal Theme Parks, Themed Entertainment and related Pop Culture from a consumer's point of view. Opinions expressed by our contributors do not necessarily reflect the views of PNP, its editors, affiliates, sponsors or advertisers. PNP is an unofficial news source and has no connection to The Walt Disney Company, NBCUniversal or any other company that we may cover.