Universal’s Halloween Horror Nights adds The Last of Us haunted house

To celebrate both the success of the HBO TV series adaptation of the video game The Last of Us (read our review HERE) and the tenth anniversary of the release of the game, Universal has announced that haunted houses based on The Last of Us will be at both their Hollywood and Orlando theme parks during this year’s Halloween Horror Nights festivities!

The Last of Us video game was developed by Naughty Dog and was set years after a fungal plague wiped out much of humanity, transforming most into vicious zombie-like monsters, the story follows Joel, who’s living in a militarized quarantine zone. He has a close relationship with Tess, who operates in the black market of this community. Together, they’ve become known by the local criminal underworld for their ruthlessness. On a mission to reclaim their stolen guns, they run into the leader of the Fireflies, a resistance group, who tasks them with smuggling a young girl named Ellie out of the zone. This mission soon becomes much more than they were prepared for. 

The game-inspired haunted house will open on September 1st at Universal Orlando Resort and September 7th at Universal Studios Hollywood. These houses will task guests with “surviving a brutal journey of carnage and mayhem alongside fellow hardened survivors and the game’s protagonists, Joel and Ellie, while navigating the Pittsburgh Quarantine Zone. Inside, fans will glimpse iconic game locations including The Hotel Grand and a labyrinth of dark and dank tunnels, and come face-to-face with terrifying Clickers, Raiders, Runners and Stalkers, as well as the band of hostile humans known as The Hunters.”

The Last of Us creative director Neil Druckmann told The Hollywood Reporter, “As a massive fan — and frequent attendee — of Halloween Horror Nights, we are honored to have The Last of Us included in this year’s lineup. It has been an incredible thrill for us at Naughty Dog to collaborate with Universal, bringing the world of the game to life, focusing on even the tiniest details that our fans know so well.“

Universal Orlando Resort’s Lora Sauls added: “We are excited to bring The Last of Us to life in a terrifying haunted house that is true to the spirit of this popular video game featuring our heroes, Joel and Ellie, Clickers and more.“

John Murdy, executive producer of Halloween Horror Nights at Universal Studios Hollywood, had this to say: “The world inside the game offers a multitude of suspenseful and horrifying opportunities to provide guests with a one-of-a-kind experience that can only be found at Halloween Horror Nights.“

Do you attend Halloween Horror Nights events? If so, will you be going through one of the Last of Us haunted houses this year? Let us know by leaving a comment below.