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The “Revenge of Chucky” Scare Zone at Halloween Horror Nights Brings to Life a Sequel We’d Love to See

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One of my all-time favorite theme park attractions is the E.T. Adventure ride in Universal Studios Orlando, which has been going strong since way back in 1990. Putting you on a bicycle, just like Elliot in the film, the ride actually serves as a sequel to Steven Spielberg’s beloved classic, flying you straight out of Earth and onto E.T.’s bizarre home planet, the Green Planet.

Why am I bringing up the E.T. ride today? Because, much like that ride, the “Revenge of Chucky” attraction at Halloween Horror Nights Orlando this year immerses you in a sequel that doesn’t actually exist. Rather, the event’s “Scare Zone” builds off ideas introduced in last year’s Cult of Chucky, picking up where Don Mancini left off for a really fun new follow-up.

Cult introduced the idea of Charles Lee Ray being able to put his evil soul into multiple Good Guys dolls, and “Revenge of Chucky” expands upon that concept by having the pint-sized killer doll take over the entire Play Pals toy factory, possessing literally *all* of the toys!

Bloody Disgusting was on hand at Halloween Horror Nights to experience “Revenge of Chucky” this past weekend, which features a short one-man-show from Chucky himself, voiced and puppeted live by an unseen performer. After Chucky casts his spell, actors dressed as scary versions of various different retro toys wander through the scare zone and dish out scares.

In addition to the actors, dressed as everything from army men to an evil Cabbage Patch doll, as well as possessed Play Pals employees, the scare zone is highlighted by two stages that turn Barrel of Monkeys and the Easy Bake Oven into pure nightmare fuel. Not that Don Mancini needs any help keeping the franchise fresh and exciting, but we’d love to see THIS movie!

After attending, we talked “Revenge of Chucky” with Michael Aiello, the Senior Director of Entertainment: Creative Development for Halloween Horror Nights Orlando. He told us why the decision was made to make a sequel to Cult of Chucky rather than adapt it outright for this year’s scare zone, while also talking Mancini’s involvement in the maze’s creation.

We wanted to incorporate Chucky into the event first knowing he’s an 80’s horror icon and it fit nicely in our events overall 80’s thematic and also knowing it’s the 30th anniversary of him as a character,” Aiello explained to us. “Discovering in Cult of Chucky that he can possess other dolls, we decided to expand on that idea and bring forth the thought that he could possess all kinds of toys, growing his cult so to speak. This was in our favor as a way to offer a diverse collection of characters for our guests to encounter, because we did not want a bunch of people running around in Chucky costumes and masks.”

He continued, “We wanted to remain authentic to his scale and look and there’s only one Chucky! So he had to be a fully realized puppet that could talk to our guests and if need be initiate them into his cult as well! So this scare zone is a tangent story jumping off the Cult story beat.”

The team brainstormed all kinds of things. We’ve got some nostalgic 80’s versions of classic dolls but with our HHN filter and overlay; barrels of monkeys, operation-like games, baking ovens, toy soldiers, all of them have this 80’s flair to them. We really wanted to tap toys we grew up with as kids!

So what does Don Mancini think of “Revenge of Chucky”?

Don Mancini has been incredibly supportive, sending me and show director Blake Braswell several encouraging tweets as photos and footage have popped up online,” Aiello told us. “As has [franchise producer] David Kirschner and Universal Pictures, who have offered guidance and approval throughout this process.”

Experience “Revenge of Chucky” at Halloween Horror Nights Orlando, select nights beginning this past weekend and running straight through Halloween and up until November 3!

Writer in the horror community since 2008. Editor in Chief of Bloody Disgusting. Owns Eli Roth's prop corpse from Piranha 3D. Has four awesome cats. Still plays with toys.

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SCREAMBOX Investigates UFOs and Extraterrestrials: Several Documentaries Streaming Right Now!

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As someone who is obsessed with UFOS (or more recently known as UAPs) and the concept of extraterrestrials, I love a good documentary. Sightings have been on the rise since the 1940s, with the atomic bomb seemingly acting as a catalyst for new visitors. But what are these UFOs/UAPs? Is there an explanation or are they simply beyond our explanation? Why are they here? Who are they? How much do our governments know? The questions are endless and so are the documentaries that attempt to uncover the secrets behind decades of sightings and alleged confrontations.

Whether you’re a seasoned viewer or new to the rabbit hole, there’s always a handful of interesting documentaries to get your neurons firing and leave you with sleepless nights. SCREAMBOX is investigating with the addition of several docs, all streaming now on the Bloody Disgusting-powered service. Here’s the breakdown:

Aliens (2021): Beam into this unidentified streaming documentary for a glimpse into Extraterrestrial life. Aliens are hypothetical life forms that may occur outside Earth or that did not originate on Earth.

Aliens Uncovered: Origins (2021): Before Area 51, hidden deep in the desert, the military discovered a hidden gem that helped them create Project Bluebook.

Aliens Uncovered: ET or Man-Made (2022): The crash of Roswell wasn’t meant for New Mexico. In 1947, a neighboring state had 3 major sightings that were swept under the rug.

Aliens Uncovered: The Golden Record (2023): In the late 70s, the US government launched a message to our distant neighbors.

Roswell (2021): This high-flying documentary examines the July 1947 crash of a United States Army Air Forces balloon at a ranch near Roswell, New Mexico. Theories claim the crash was actually that of a flying saucer, but what is the truth?

Also check out:

The British UFO Files (2004): Since the 1940’s the British Government has been investigating the Flying Saucer phenomenon. High-ranking military and government personnel, speak out for the first time, offering unique eyewitness accounts and inside information.

Alien Abductions and Paranormal Sightings (2016): Amazing Footage and stories from real people as they reveal their personal encounters of being abducted by Aliens.

And do not miss Hellier (2019): A crew of paranormal researchers find themselves in a dying coal town, where a series of strange coincidences lead them to a decades-old mystery.

These documentaries join SCREAMBOX’s growing library of unique horror content, including Onyx the Fortuitous and the Talisman of Souls, Here for Blood, Terrifier 2, RoboDoc: The Creation of RoboCop, Hollywood Dreams & Nightmares: The Robert Englund Story, The Outwaters, Living with Chucky, Project Wolf Hunting, and Pennywise: The Story of IT.

Start screaming now with SCREAMBOX on iOS, Android, Apple TV, Prime Video, Roku, YouTube TV, Samsung, Comcast, Cox, and Screambox.com.

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