Universal Fan Fest Nights: What to Expect at Universal Studios Hollywood

A guide to Universal Fan Fest Nights by Joe Tracy, editor of Theme Park Magazine

You can show up in full cosplay. The park closes to regular guests. Scooby-Doo is waiting for you on the backlot. That alone should tell you this isn’t a typical night at Universal Studios Hollywood.

Universal Fan Fest Nights returns for its second year, running on select nights from April 23 through May 16, 2026. The event is ticketed separately, after-hours only, and capped at a fraction of the park’s normal capacity. It covers six distinct “in-world” experiences, themed food from nearly every corner of the park, exclusive merchandise, and several rides that stay open late into the night.

The 2026 lineup is a significant step up from the first year. In 2025, the event leaned into nostalgia: Star Trek, Back to the Future, Dungeons & Dragons. This year, Universal has pushed deeper into anime, leaned on live entertainment, and opened up the entire studio backlot for a free-roaming mystery adventure. Here’s everything you need to know.

How the Event Works

Fan Fest Nights runs 12 nights total, spread across four weekends. Most run Thursday through Saturday, with one Friday-through-Sunday stretch mixed in.

Event dates:

• April 23-25
• May 1-3
• May 7-9
• May 14-16

Doors open at 7:30 PM. The event runs until 1:30 AM. An optional early access add-on gets you in at 6:00 PM for a 90-minute head start on the most popular experiences, including Dungeons & Dragons and the Sailor Moon film. That head start is worth serious consideration. Wait times for those two regularly exceed 2 hours once the full crowd arrives.

The Experiences

Scooby-Doo Meets the Universal Monsters: Mystery on the Backlot

This is the centerpiece of 2026, and the most ambitious thing Universal has attempted with the event so far.

Guests board the Studio Tour tram and ride out to the backlot, where they’re dropped into a mystery. The premise: you’ve been cast as an extra in a monster movie. A villain called the Phantom Director sabotages the production, releasing Frankenstein’s Monster, Dracula, Bride of Frankenstein, and the Wolf Man into the set. Scooby-Doo and the Mystery Inc. gang (Fred, Daphne, Velma, and Shaggy) are on the case, and so are you.

Each guest gets a Mystery Manual. From there, the experience is open-ended. You explore the cobblestone streets of Little Europe and the Court of Miracles at your own pace, talking to characters, gathering clues, and putting the case together. Those outdoor sets have history: Frankenstein (1931) and The Wolf Man (1941) were both filmed there.

Unlike the tighter, guided walkthroughs on the lower lot, this one gives guests actual freedom to move around. Photo opportunities with the Mystery Inc. team, the Universal Monsters, and the Mystery Machine are spread throughout.

ONE PIECE: Grand Pirate Show

One Piece was part of Fan Fest Nights in 2025, but only as a character meet-and-greet. Merchandise sold out almost immediately. The demand was obvious.

In 2026, Universal upgraded it to a full live stunt show at the WaterWorld venue, reimagined as Midori Island. The Straw Hat Crew (Luffy, Zoro, Nami, Usopp, Sanji, and Chopper) are searching the island for rare Pop Greens when the Marines show up and crash the party. Then rival pirate Buggy arrives to complicate things further.

The 20-minute show features pyrotechnics, high-energy stunt choreography, and the comedic chaos the series is known for. It was inspired by a similar production at Universal Studios Japan. For fans who felt short-changed in 2025, this is a much more substantial offering.

The Wizarding World of Harry Potter: Forbidden Forest: Search for the Hippogriff

The Wizarding World is a permanent part of the park, but Fan Fest Nights gives it something that doesn’t exist during regular hours.

Guests venture into the Forbidden Forest on a nighttime walk-through guided by a Hogwarts professor. The path is lined with magical creatures: pixies, owls, spiders, and even the Monster Book of Monsters. A series of obstacles requires guests to use spell-casting skills to push through to the end, where a Hippogriff needs rescuing.

This replaces the 2025 projection show on Hogwarts Castle. The shift to an outdoor walk-through is a meaningful change, turning a passive spectacle into one in which guests actively participate.

Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon the Miracle: Moon Palace Chapter Deluxe

This one is a first for the United States. The Sailor Moon franchise has not had a major theme park presence in North America before this.

The experience takes place inside the DreamWorks Theatre, which uses 180-degree wrap-around screens alongside motion seats, scents, and water effects. The Japanese CG anime short film, originally developed for Universal Studios Japan’s Cool Japan program, is presented here with English subtitles. Super Sailor Moon defends the Moon Palace and the Legendary Silver Crystal from a sinister enemy.

The tech in DreamWorks Theatre makes this closer to a 4D experience than a standard screening.

Dungeons & Dragons: Secrets of Waterdeep

The D&D walkthrough was the most talked-about experience at last year’s event. It’s back for 2026 with improvements.

Located in Soundstage 29, guests take on the role of Harpers, a spy network working to stop the beholder Xanathar from taking over the city of Waterdeep. Groups are divided into character classes (Rogues, Clerics, Fighters, and Wizards), each with a distinct role in the story. The experience runs in the “pulsed” format that Fan Fest has built its reputation on: groups move through separate narrative rooms, each scene playing out before the group advances, for a total runtime of about 10 to 12 minutes.

The Xanathar puppet, built by Jim Henson’s Creature Shop, is the visual highlight. Audio issues from 2025 have reportedly been addressed, with improved sound design and cleaner storytelling between rooms.

Super Nintendo World: Colorful Yoshi Celebration

Super Nintendo World adds a Fan Fest-specific layer for 2026 with colorful Yoshi characters appearing throughout the Mushroom Kingdom. Green, yellow, and purple Yoshis can be found and met across the land. It’s lighter in scope compared to the other five experiences, but it fits naturally into the overall evening.

Food and Drinks

Executive chef Julia Thrash leads the culinary program for 2026. The approach is built around shareable items spread across themed food zones throughout the park, which helps keep crowds from bottlenecking in one area.

• Sanji’s Galley (Hollywood & Dine) / ONE PIECE Luffy’s Meat on the Bone, Sanji’s Seafood Fried Rice, Franky’s Loco Moco Burger, Brook’s Spicy Katsu, Jinbe’s Watermelon Salad, and Pirate’s Bounty Funnel Cake. Desserts include the Chopper Cupcake and a Luffy’s Straw Hat mousse dome. The Grand Pirate Den nearby serves themed mocktails.
• First Roll Tavern (Lower Lot) / Dungeons & Dragons Cockatrice Hot Wings, Dragon Egg Cheesecake, Gelatinous Cube, Ranger’s Mark sandwich, and Beholder’s Brew Fondue. Alcoholic and non-alcoholic options are available. Guests must be 21+ with a valid photo ID to purchase alcohol.
• Three Broomsticks / Harry Potter Traditional British pub fare: Scotch Eggs, Welsh Rarebit, Toad in the Hole, Curry Chicken, Classic Sunday Roast, and Classic English Fish and Chips. The Hippogriff Brown Sugar & Oat Trifle is the dessert standout.
• Sailor Moon Zone / Cocina Mexicana A bento box combo meal featuring spicy tuna onigiri, a Moonlight Love Sparkle drink, and Tuxedo Mask’s Raspberry Rose Sandwich Cookie. Nearby options include a Moon Scepter Churro and Mystery Box Cupcakes.
• Toadstool Cafe / Super Nintendo World Three Yoshi smoothies prepared by Chef Toad, representing green (Apple Melon), yellow (Mango Banana), and purple (Blueberry Ube). A special drink bottle featuring the Green Yoshi is available for purchase.
• Backlot / Scooby-Doo and Universal Monsters The Super Shaggy Sandwich is an oversized club meant to be split with your own Mystery Gang. Also available: a Universal Monsters 22″ hot dog and Scooby Snacks.

A Dining Pass is available for $59. It covers two entree items and four sides, snacks, desserts, or beverages at participating locations, all on one visit date.

Merchandise

Event-branded apparel is available both inside the park and at Universal CityWalk, including a logo t-shirt ($32), zip-up hoodie ($60), reversible bucket hat ($40), and sherpa blanket ($43–$60). IP-specific items include a One Piece Spirit Jersey, Dungeons & Dragons Owlbear plush, and Yoshi headbands and “shoulder pals.”

Themed retail spaces are part of the experience. The Grand Pirate Den is the One Piece merchandise hub. The First Roll Tavern covers Dungeons & Dragons. Buying a t-shirt at Fan Fest Nights is a slightly different experience than buying one at a regular park souvenir shop.

Merchandise can also be purchased at shopuniversal.com.

Tickets

Tickets start at $74 for general admission. The full breakdown:

The Ultimate Fandom Pass makes sense for anyone planning to attend more than two or three nights. The VIP Tour includes a guided walk through all in-world experiences, a gourmet dinner, and complimentary valet.

Annual pass members can access special pricing on select general admission nights.

Rides That Stay Open

Several attractions remain open during the event, though closing times vary:

• Mario Kart: Bowser’s Challenge (closes 10:00 PM)
• Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey (closes 11:15 PM)
• Flight of the Hippogriff
• Jurassic World: The Ride (closes midnight)
• Despicable Me Minion Mayhem
• Transformers: The Ride-3D (closes 1:30 AM)
• Revenge of the Mummy: The Ride (closes 1:30 AM)
• The Simpsons Ride

The last backlot tram departs at 12:30 AM, one hour before the event ends. Guests who spend the final stretch focused on rides will likely miss the backlot experience entirely. Plan accordingly.

Cosplay

Fan Fest Nights is one of the few major theme park events that actively welcomes full-body cosplay. There are rules.

Masks that fully cover the face are not allowed. Prosthetics that obscure the eyes, nose, or mouth are prohibited. Face paint is permitted but cannot cover more than 50% of the face (measured vertically) if the guest intends to purchase alcohol. Costumes cannot exceed 25 inches wide or 80 inches tall. Prop weapons must be made of soft, non-functional materials like foam or cardboard, and anything resembling a functional firearm is not permitted.

The creative latitude is still wider than almost any other major park event in the country. Walking through a crowd at Fan Fest Nights looks like no other night in the theme park industry.

One More Thing Worth Knowing

CityWalk joins in on select nights. NBC Sports Grill & Brew is serving One Piece-themed items. Voodoo Doughnut has a Scooby-Doo menu. The Toothsome Chocolate Emporium & Savory Feast Kitchen is doing Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon offerings. Vivo Italian Kitchen is covering Dungeons & Dragons. Arriving early and eating at CityWalk first is a reasonable strategy before the 7:30 PM event doors open.

Twelve nights. Six worlds. One park. The 2026 version of Fan Fest Nights is the clearest sign yet that Universal has found something worth building on for a long time.

• What: Universal Fan Fest Nights 2026
• Where: Universal Studios Hollywood
• When: April 23-25; May 1-3; May 7-9; May 14-16, 2026 (7:30 PM – 1:30 AM)
• Tickets: universalstudioshollywood.com

Editor’s Note: I will be at opening night in Theme Park Magazine attire. If you see me, be sure to say hi. I’d love to get your take on the experience.

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About Joe Tracy

Joe Tracy, the creator, and editor of Theme Park Magazine, is a lifetime enthusiast of theme parks and immersive experiences. The publication was launched under his leadership on June 1, 2021, as a manifestation of his deep-seated love for all things themed. Joe has amassed over 20 years of expertise in both traditional print and online publishing.