‘Back To The Future’ Headlines ‘Fan First And Authentic’ Fan Fest Nights

Spanning sci-fi, fantasy, gaming, and anime, led by iconic, and in many cases, multibillion-dollar franchises including Back to the Future, Star Trek, and Harry Potter, the all-new, after-hours event Fan Fest Nights at Universal Studios Hollywood is a dream come true for so many of us.

“The goal with Fan Fest Nights was to create guiding principles for the event experience. We wanted to be fan first and authentic, meaning that we wanted to service the fans who have extreme fandom for these genres, as well as celebrating the communities that have an affinity for them,” explains Stephen Siercks, Senior Director, Entertainment Production, Universal Studios Hollywood at the launch of the inaugural seasonal event.

“By authentic, we mean that we continue building on the legacy of delivering these authentic experiences that are uniquely Universal. We’re using a foundation set by events like Halloween Horror Nights to build upon the level of immersion and storytelling through all facets of the event.”

Fan Fest Nights will take place on select nights kicking off on Friday, April 25, 2025. The seasonal event from the creators of Halloween Horror Nights includes immersive experiences, celebratory moments, themed food, and exclusive merchandise that takes fandom to a whole new level. Tickets are on sale now.

“Our team has been working on this for several years. A lot has gone into establishing these IPs, generating them, and coming up with a brand,” enthuses Scott Strobl, Executive Vice President & General Manager at Universal Studios Hollywood. “I’ve explained this to a few different people over time, and the best way, if you’re trying to explain it in a couple of sentences, is that if you know Halloween Horror Nights, and you love the immersion that we create with these IPs and Halloween Horror Nights, it’s like Halloween Horror Nights and Comic-Con had a baby.”

The event will include Back to the Future, Star Trek, and Harry Potter, as well as Nintendo’s Super Mario World, Dungeons and Dragons, and anime IPs One Piece and Jujutsu Kaisen.

“It is going to be over the top amazing,” Strobl continues. “I think the thing that’s going to be so cool about it is you are going to have a chance to literally step into these worlds, be a part of them, and experience them in a way that you probably haven’t had before.”

Fan Fest Nights will take place across the Upper Lot, Lower Lot, and part of the Backlot area of Universal Studios Hollywood, even utilizing sound stages. One of those will house Dungeons and Dragons: Secrets of Waterdeep. This immersive adventure experience involves collaborating with Jim Henson’s Creature Shop to create the legendary beholder Xanathar, which is currently under construction.

Fan Fest Nights Is Headlined By ‘Back To The Future’ And ‘Star Trek’ Experiences

Arguably, the jewels in the crown of Fan Fest Nights are Star Trek: Red Alert and Back to the Future: Destination Hill Valley. The latter brings the classic 1980s movie to life in a way many fans of the film have only dreamed of until now.

“Destination Hill Valley invites guests to time travel back to 1955 to experience a celebratory recreation of Courthouse Square in the space where it was first created on our very own backlot here at Universal Studios Hollywood. The fans have been asking for this, and we’re here to deliver it,” Siercks reveals. “You’re going to be able to step foot into Courthouse Square and experience it as Marty did for the first time back in 1955, but first, you have to board the Studio Tour in our Upper Lot and make your way down to the Lower Lot where Doc Brown gets on the screen says, ‘We have to get this tram up to 88 miles an hour because we’ve got to get back to the future.’ When you get off the tram just before Courthouse Square, we really want you to experience Hill Valley like Marty McFly did for the first time.”

“As you round the corner into Courthouse Square, hearing Mr. Sandman play in the background, you’ll be able to walk in the footsteps of Marty McFly. How are you going to do it? Light set dressing, vehicles authentic from the film, and the ability to dot characters around the space will provide these experiential values that we are looking forward to developing as part of this experience. Characters will also appear throughout the night, providing new and unique story-based guest interactions. You can follow your favorite character as their story unfolds each hour, even including Einstein the dog.”

“It wouldn’t be a Courthouse Square Back to the Future experience without the celebratory recreation of the Enchantment Under the Sea prom, so we’re going to be assuming that the prom spilled out in Courthouse Square, a band will be playing and Marty McFly might jump up on stage and rock out himself throughout the night as well. Watch out every so often for sounds and lighting of a storm coming over Courthouse Square, kicking off an environmental recreation of the epic finale, when the DeLorean Time Machine went back to the future for the last time in the first film.”

As With ‘Back To The Future,‘ Fan Fest Nights Boldly Brings ‘Star Trek‘ To Life In A New Way

Star Trek: Red Alert will take guests into the heart of the franchise, with a concept reminiscent of the classic Klingon Encounter and Borg Invasion 4D attractions at the shuttered Star Trek: The Experience attraction in Las Vegas.

“We’re working directly with Paramount to create a brand new story while anchoring it in a very iconic and familiar environment. It’s also a new type of walk-through attraction,” Siercks explains to invited guests. “We’re calling it a pulsed, story-based experience, which allows us to take in environments like never before. We experience this attraction in groups while the story unfolds around us through each scene. This results in a longer, more developed experience for our guests. We live in the Picard era of the franchise.”

“We’ve been invited to an exclusive tour of the Enterprise-D that is on display and the Starfleet Museum. It’s an amazing way of connecting the legacy of Star Trek with the latest iterations as well. We’re able to develop these environments, experiences, stories, and characters in a way that allows them to evolve as you progress through. However, it wouldn’t be named Red Alert without some action, so as we board this tour, an otherworldly entity starts to wreak havoc. As the chaos ensues, we continue moving deeper into the ship through iconic environments like the Shuttle Bay, Sick Bay, and Control Room. Then, ultimately, we need to make an escape through the Turbo Lift so we get that experience as well, and just what we think is everything is safe, we get redirected, and all of a sudden, the doors open, and we’re on the bridge of the Enterprise-D.”

Not only is what guests will see a recreation of the bridge of Enterprise-D, but it’s a screen-used version created for the Picard series. “Guests are going to be able to set foot in the same space that iconic characters and actors did,” Siercks adds.

Elsewhere, The Wizarding World of Harry Potter will offer magical creature interactions, including the opportunity to meet a Niffler, a Baby Dragon, previously only available at Universal Studios Japan, and grand Occamy. The centerpiece of the experience will feature the visually spectacular Hogwarts Always light projection show designed to take guests on a journey through a school year at Hogwarts. Until now, that has only been staged at Universal Orlando Resort. At Super Nintendo World, Let’s Go, Yoshi will offer a brand new meet and greet with fan-favorite Yoshi and a scavenger hunt to locate all five colorful Yoshi eggs. There will also be celebratory drone moments that will illuminate the night sky.

Of course, exclusive merch, food, and drink are being created for Fan Fest Nights. “We’re going to really lean into both our food and retail and have that as an integral part, so you’re really going to be able to actually taste and feel and touch these worlds and understand them,” Strobl adds.

While the offering is already comprehensive, creating bucket list moments for fans, don’t be surprised if further announcements are made between now and April.