Orlando, FL — Universal Orlando has announced Stranger Things: Return to Hawkins, a nighttime lagoon show at Halloween Horror Nights 35, staged on the Universal Studios Florida lagoon. The show is a 10th-anniversary tribute to the Netflix series that spans all five seasons of Stranger Things. It is included with standard HHN event admission.
The announcement came July 15 on Halloween Horror Nights’ official social channels. The on-park copy reads: “The music. The monsters. The memories. In this show, tune in to a special WSQK broadcast and relive your favorite moments from five seasons of Stranger Things.” A follow-up reply from the @HorrorNightsORL account confirmed the show is staged on the Universal Studios Florida lagoon.
What Universal has confirmed about the show
Per Netflix’s Tudum, which serves as Universal’s licensing partner on the Stranger Things IP, the show uses water screens to project memorable scenes from throughout the series, projection mapping on Universal Studios Florida buildings to recreate Hawkins locations, dynamic lighting, and audio pulled directly from the series’ original score.
The show frames itself as a broadcast from WSQK, an in-universe radio station callback to the series’ 1980s Indiana setting. That framing threads the “five seasons” tribute together as a single radio broadcast experience.
What Universal is saying
Jason Horne, assistant director of entertainment creative development at Universal Orlando Resort, spoke to Netflix’s Tudum about the show. “The all-new lagoon show Stranger Things: Return to Hawkins invites fans to relive iconic moments and celebrate beloved characters from the hit series as we pay tribute to one of the most popular franchises of the past decade,” Horne said.
Horne also spoke to how the lagoon staging shapes the show. “What makes our lagoon spectacular so special is the ability to bring stories to life on an epic scale,” Horne said. “One of my favorites is seeing Hawkins’s locations recreated through stunning projection mapping across the park’s buildings.”
Universal is framing this as a first for the HHN lagoon show format. Per Horne: “This is the first time we’ve built an entire lagoon show around a single franchise, so we’re incredibly excited to bring it to life.”
The Stranger Things Season 5 haunted house is separate
Stranger Things: Return to Hawkins joins a previously announced Stranger Things Season 5 haunted house, which Universal Orlando confirmed for both Halloween Horror Nights Orlando and Halloween Horror Nights Hollywood on June 17. The lagoon show and the haunted house are distinct experiences.
Halloween Horror Nights 35 event details
Halloween Horror Nights 35 runs 48 select nights from August 28 through November 1, 2026, at Universal Studios Florida. The event’s overarching theme is Infernal Carnival of Nightmares, led by returning icons Jack the Clown and Dr. Oddfellow. Universal has confirmed 10 all-new haunted houses across the run.
Stranger Things: Return to Hawkins is included with standard event admission. Universal has not published showtimes or the number of performances per night.
For a full ticket breakdown, see HAN’s Halloween Horror Nights tickets guide. For the full HHN 35 lineup as it develops, see HAN’s HHN 2026 Orlando coverage.
