San Francisco, CA — Terror Vault returns to The San Francisco Mint in 2026 with a new production titled Slashed: Return to Hellville, announced by producer Into The Dark. The 2026 event marks a return to the Hellville storyline that Terror Vault has previously explored and continues the venue’s annual run of fully produced, immersive theatrical horror experiences staged inside the historic 1874 San Francisco Mint. Exact dates, ticket prices, and additional programming details for 2026 have not been announced.
What is confirmed for 2026
- Theme: Slashed: Return to Hellville.
- Location: The San Francisco Mint, 88 5th Street, San Francisco (Mid-Market).
- Producer: Into The Dark, with creative work from Peaches Christ, David Flower Productions, and Non Plus Ultra.
- Actor’s Workshop: Sunday, August 16, 2026 from 1 to 5 p.m. at The San Francisco Mint. The workshop is for prospective cast members ahead of the 2026 run.
What Terror Vault has not yet announced for 2026
- Opening and closing dates for the 2026 run.
- Ticket pricing and on-sale date.
- The full show synopsis and cast reveal.
- Any additional programming beyond the main immersive experience.
- Whether the two-part experience format from prior years continues.
The Terror Vault Experience
Terror Vault is a fully produced, immersive theatrical horror experience staged inside The San Francisco Mint, the historic 1874 Old United States Mint building at Fifth and Mission in Mid-Market, San Francisco. The building, known locally as “The Granite Lady,” is a National Historic Landmark and one of the few structures in the area to survive the 1906 earthquake. Each year’s production is a 60- to 70-minute linear, story-driven walkthrough that combines haunted-attraction, theatrical-show, and escape-room elements into a single guest experience.
Terror Vault is produced under the Into The Dark banner by a three-way creative partnership. Joshua Grannell, better known as San Francisco drag icon Peaches Christ, is co-founder, writer, and lead performer. David Flower Productions, run by David Flower, produces immersive theater and horror experiences and handles set and production design. Non Plus Ultra operates The San Francisco Mint as an event venue and manages its logistics and operations. Each production employs more than 100 local performers and technicians.
Timed entry runs every 15 minutes with groups of up to 12. The event is 18-and-up with a valid ID; guests 13 through 17 are admitted with a parent or legal guardian. Terror Vault operates the Fang Bang, a 1980s New Wave and goth vampire pop-up bar built in the mint’s vaults, which is open to the public during show hours with no cover.
The experience combines comedy, horror, jump scares, and what the Haunted Attraction Association has called an “outrageousness that has garnered a local cult-like following.”
2024 OSCARES Established Haunt winner
Terror Vault won the 2024 OSCARES Board of Directors Award for Established Haunt from the Haunted Attraction Association, recognizing its 2023 production. The OSCARES are the highest juried honors in the haunted attraction industry, presented annually at TransWorld’s Halloween & Attractions Show. The 2024 win noted the two-part format Terror Vault used that year, a pre-show “Fang Bang” segment before guests entered the main production, “The Initiation.”
Terror Vault production history
Terror Vault has produced a new original show at The San Francisco Mint every Halloween since its 2018 debut, except in 2020 (COVID). 2025’s HEXED was billed as the event’s seventh year.
- 2018: Terror Vault (inaugural prison-themed season) + Dead Zone: Zombie Tag
- 2019: Terror Vault (season 2, prison-themed) + Apocalypse zombie escape room
- 2020: No full show due to COVID
- 2021: The Immortal Reckoning
- 2022: The Summoning
- 2023: The Initiation (OSCARES Established Haunt winner)
- 2024: Fatal Abduction
- 2025: HEXED (seventh year)
- 2026: Slashed: Return to Hellville (announced as an homage to 1980s slasher films)
The 2026 subtitle “Return to Hellville” signals a return to a storyline Terror Vault has explored in a prior production, though Into The Dark has not yet detailed how the 2026 production connects to the earlier work.
Where Terror Vault fits in the California Halloween market
Terror Vault is San Francisco’s premier fully-produced immersive theater Halloween event and one of the few haunt-adjacent events in California built around a single site-specific location that cannot be replicated elsewhere. The San Francisco Mint’s granite basement, vault rooms, and historic upper floors provide a permanent, purpose-built stage that no theme park or seasonal outdoor haunt can match.
The event’s positioning is distinct from Southern California’s theme park haunts and from Northern California’s other major haunt attractions. It shares a fully-produced immersive theater DNA with Festival Fright Nights at Winchester Mystery House, which stages a similar narrative-driven walk-through inside a historic Bay Area property. Terror Vault differs from Pirates of Emerson, the East Bay professional haunt centered on scare-actor mazes, and from the theme park Halloween events including Fright Fest at Six Flags Magic Mountain and Knott’s Scary Farm.
Within San Francisco proper, Terror Vault is the anchor Halloween event.
What to watch for 2026
- Full dates and pricing announcement: Terror Vault typically announces its production run in late summer for a September or October opening. Watch the Terror Vault website and Into The Dark’s Instagram for the 2026 reveal.
- Cast and creative reveals: Terror Vault publishes annual cast and creative pages ahead of each run. The 2026 versions are expected in the weeks ahead.
- Actor’s Workshop on August 16: Prospective cast members interested in performing in the 2026 production can attend the workshop at The San Francisco Mint from 1 to 5 p.m.
HAN will update this guide with the confirmed 2026 dates, ticket structure, and show details as they drop.
Event details
- Event: Terror Vault 2026: Slashed: Return to Hellville
- Producer: Into The Dark (Peaches Christ, David Flower Productions, Non Plus Ultra)
- Location: The San Francisco Mint, 88 5th Street, San Francisco, CA 94103
- Dates: To be announced
- Actor’s Workshop: Sunday, August 16, 2026, 1 to 5 p.m., The San Francisco Mint
- Website: terrorvault.com
