Start gnawing a waffle and plotting your trip to Universal Orlando Resort — a coy tweet from the theme park makes it sound like they are going to unveil a Stranger Things ride, as reported by Hitc. That’s exciting enough to climb out of the sensory deprivation bath and start looking at flights to Florida.
As fans binge this month’s Season 4 drop and count the moments on the grandfather clock until Part II releases on July 1, this cool hint comes at a perfect time. On June 3, Universal Orlando Resort tweeted a photo of the lighthouse for the current Islands of Adventure ride. Photoshopped next to it is that ominous clock with the words, ‘This can’t be good.’
But it can be…
Or, this could just be a teaser for the park’s separately ticketed Halloween Horror Nights. A Stranger Things attraction has been part of those October events in the past. In 2018, a themed maze let visitors experience aspects of the show, and in 2019 that expanded to multiple mazes based on Seasons 2 and 3, as reported by Screenrant. Those mazes gave visitors a ‘face to face experience with a horrifying monster and ferocious Demodogs’ and let them explore Chief Hopper’s cabin and the Starcourt Mall, among others. This year's webpage for the HHN events does not mention a Stranger Things attraction (yet?).
But we super wicked hope that this tweet refers to more than just the Halloween Horror Nights, and that a full-on permanent, immersive Upside Down experience (like this one in New York) is in the works. We’d even be running up that hill to ride that ride, with no problem.
In other (or related?) news, Universal Orlando will be opening its new theme park Epic Universe in 2025, reputed to be immersive and innovative, including a Super Nintendo World attraction. There are rumors about other popular movies/books being turned into attractions as well.