2021 Preseason Primer

Published by September 6, 2021 Category: Chicago Haunted House Announcements

(Last Updated: 9/13/2021)

Great Caesar’s Ghost! Has it really been two years? While we gear-up annually to serve the haunted house community of Chicago since 1999, COVID-19 certainly had other plans for us and caused us to sit-out 2020. We have missed you, are definitely sick of our couches, and are beyond excited to be back! We can’t wait to join you screaming at the best attractions anywhere!

As we prepare to embark on another exciting journey this Halloween season, let’s catch-up on some news, updates, recaps, and a little preview of what to expect for 2021. Queue up the Fear Inoculum, grab two scoops of USS Butterscotch, and strap-in for one hell of a ride of the best attractions within 100 miles of Chicago. Let’s go!

The Cake

Unfortunately, there were no awards presented in 2020. Which makes the cake that much more mouth-watering in 2021! Awards include the Best New Haunted Attraction Award, the Jim Warfield Acting Award, Best Overall Haunted Attraction Award, and the official Haunted House Chicago Top 13.

Movers & Shakers

One of the biggest stories to hit our scene this season is Statesville Haunted Prison & City of the Dead in Crest Hill, Illinois, are calling this their final season. A staple in Chicago, the Midwest, and throughout the country, Statesville Haunted Prison has been fostering nightmares since 1996 and will leave an unfillable hole in our community. Don’t miss your last chance to visit this legendary attraction and relive the horrors!

Another big story that we have been following for a few years now, The Old Joliet Prison will FINALLY be opening their doors to the public. From the folks that brought you the 13th Floor Haunted House, The Old Joliet Haunted Prison will be a haunted adventure right through the REAL prison. This is certainly an intoxicating blend of real and theatrical haunting that we can’t wait to experience!

Speaking of the 13th Floor Haunted House, they have moved from Melrose Park, to a brand-new location on River Road in Schiller Park. We can’t wait to see the changes and updates to this staple on the HHC Top 13 list!

This year also brings us another new attraction to wet our appetite for screams: Killdare Haunted City in Bridgeview. Officially sponsored by the Bridgeview Park District, we are excited to see the extreme potential in-store due to the number of veteran haunters and props involved in this project!

Although it has been around for a few years, Disturbia Haunted House in Downers Grove, IL, officially is owned by the same folks that bring us Basement of the Dead Haunted House in Aurora, IL. Judging by how epic the voyage at Basement is, we can’t wait to see what lies in the shadows now!

Speaking of shadows, Midnight Terror Haunted House in Oak Lawn, IL, has released the storyline for 2021: Willow’s Nightmare. For those following this incredibly detailed saga, you won’t want to miss this new chapter to see how it unfolds!

One of the top attractions just over the border in Indiana, Haunted Hills Hospital, has officially found a new home in Crown Point, IN! With more room to roam, we’re sure that the patients can’t wait to find some new friends…

Another new concept to our area that opened in 2020, Terror in the Timbers, opened their drive-thru haunted house in Elgin, IL. Although we are excited to experience this for the first time, we are told they are adding a walking/hiking portion as well!

Dream Reapers, Asylum Experiment, and Rob Zombie’s Great American Nightmare-vet, Mike “Spike Mike” Skodacek are at the reins at Sonny Acres Haunted Barn and Hayride. While this is his second year, it will be our first year seeing his impact. If there is anything we can guarantee, it is chainsaws. Oh yes, there will be chainsaws.

Midwest Haunters Convention

Although Midwest Haunters Convention 2021 was held in Milwaukee this year, it still was an outstanding occasion! Congratulations to Abandoned Haunted House Complex who was one of the three attractions on the featured attraction tour. Also, congratulations to those poor souls who participated in the very first Screamin’ Hot Sauce Challenge! Contestants were from:

  • 13th Floor Chicago Haunted House in Schiller Park, Illinois
  • Abandoned Haunted House Complex in Mount Pleasant, Wisconsin (Finalist)
  • Basement of the Dead Haunted House in Aurora, Illinois (Finalist)
  • Hells Gate Haunted House in Lockport, Illinois
  • Massacre Haunted House in Montgomery, Illinois
  • Midnight Terror Haunted House in Oak Lawn, Illinois (Finalist)
  • Realm of Terror Haunted House in Round Lake Beach, Illinois
  • Six Flags Great America Fright Fest in Gurnee, Illinois
  • Statesville Haunted Prison & City of the Dead in Crest Hill, Illinois
  • Soul Reapers Haunted House in Wilmot, Wisconsin (Finalist)
  • Wisconsin Feargrounds in Waukesha, Wisconsin

Mark your calendars now and plan to attend Midwest Haunters Convention 2022 on June 2-5, 2022. It will be held at the Donald E. Stephens Convention Center and will feature Evil Intentions Haunted House in Elgin, IL, and 13th Floor Haunted House in Schiller Park, IL!

This is THE ultimate Halloween trade show event for operators, actors, fans, enthusiasts, and well… everyone! It will include over 60,000 square feet of exhibit space, special VIP haunted house tours, workshops, networking, parties, instructional demos, fashion shows, contests, and more! If you are reading this, this convention invitation is for YOU!

Early Birds

The monsters are chomping at the bit to sink their teeth into patrons…and opening earlier than ever before! The first out of the gate is Niles Haunted Scream Park in Niles, MI, who will be opening their doors on Friday, September 10th! Several others will be opening for the weekend of September 17th, and many more attractions will be open for the weekend of September 24th. All will be open for the weekend of October 1st and, lucky for us, there are five weekends this year!

Forever In Our Hearts

Unfortunately, all news is not good. Over this last year, we lost two amazingly creative forces in our Chicago haunted house community: John Vitiritti, one of the original owners/founders behind the legendary Dream Reapers Haunted House and owner/founder of D.E.A.D. Rising Haunted House in Crestwood, Illinois, and Jason Ciszewski, co-operator of The Catacombs of St. Pascal’s Church in Chicago, IL.

Closing Time

In further disappointing news, D.E.A.D. Rising Haunted House in Crestwood, Illinois, has announced that it will close permanently. Tour of Terror in Hebron, Indiana, has also made the choice to close permanently.

Year-round legendary haunted attraction, Raven’s Grin Inn in Mount Carroll, Illinois, is still temporary closed at this time due to COVID-19. In addition, Scream Scene Haunted House in Skokie, Illinois, McHenry Jaycees Haunted House in McHenry, Illinois, Park After Dark Haunted House in Chicago, Illinois, The Catacombs of Saint Pascal in Chicago, Illinois, Reapers Realm Haunted Attractions in Hammond, Indiana, Domum Diaboli Haunted House in Shorewood, Illinois, and Lost Souls Haunted Bus Tour are still temporarily closed due to COVID-19.

Happy Trailers

Need something more to wet your appetite for this season? Don’t already have a pool of drool? Check out these new haunted house trailers just for 2021!

  • 13th Floor Haunted House in Schiller Park, IL: Link
  • Evil Intentions Haunted House in Elgin, IL: Link
  • Fear Fest in South Beloit, IL: Link
  • Hayride of Horror in Lockport, IL: Link
  • HellsGate Haunted House in Lockport, IL: Link
  • Killdare Haunted City in Bridgeview, IL: Link
  • Midnight Terror Haunted House in Oak Lawn, IL: Link
  • Niles Haunted Scream Park in Niles, MI: Link
  • Old Joliet Haunted Prison in Joliet, IL: Link
  • Statesville Haunted Prison in Crest Hill, IL: Link
  • Terror in the Timbers in Elgin, IL: Link
  • Twisted Crypt Haunted House in Rockford, IL: Link

Get A Job!

Interested in helping to deliver the screams and nightmares we crave? Nearly all haunted attractions are in-need of staff! Check out their respective websites and social media pages for information on job fairs and instructions for applying.

Stages, Screens, and Screams

Have any energy left? Need something to do on those nights off? (Insert laughter) Here’s some fun ways to enhance your Halloween holiday season:

TV: 2020 has been a big year for the small screen, and 2021 continues the trend. What We Do In The Shadows: season 3 hit FX on September 2nd. Lucifer’s Final Season on Netflix drops on September 10th. There’s always room for cake as the Halloween Baking Championship: season 7 rises on the Food Network on the 13th. More thriller than horror, Dan Brown’s The Lost Symbol emerges on Peacock on September 16th. Back to the food, Halloween Wars: season 11 crashes into Food Network on September 19th. The third season of Creepshow crawls into Shudder on the 23rd. Fan of the Haunting at Hill House and Bly Manor? Don’t miss Midnight Mass on Netflix on September 24th. The Walking Dead is no stranger to the fall, World Beyond season 2 hits AMC+ on September 26th. Fear The Walking Dead: season 7 bites into AMC+ early on October 10th, and live on AMC on October 17th. The 32nd installment of the Simpsons Treehouse of Horror arrives on Fox on October 10th. Chucky: The Series premieres on USA Network and Syfy on October 12th. Newcomer series, I Know What You Did Last Summer is rumored to hit Amazon Prime on October 15th. Closing out the month, a new series, Behind The Monsters, creeps onto Shudder on October 25th.

In addition to those scheduled shows, here are some good ol’-fashioned standbys that start on October 1st:

Freeform 31 Nights of Halloween, AMC FearFest, Disney Channel’s Monstober, Syfy 31 Days of Halloween, and Turner Classic Movies (October Horror). Of course, don’t forget about the year-round weekly Saturday creature-feature from our friend, Svengoolie on MeTV!

Keep your eyes peeled for new series Hellraiser on Netflix, Rob Zombie’s reboot of the Munsters most likely on Peacock, and Stranger Things: season 4 on Netflix soon!

MOVIES: As horror movie fans start to crawl back into theatres, there are still big-picture events that are hitting streaming as well. The first to arrive this season is Malignant both in Theatres and HBO Max on September 10th. From the Sopranos family, The Many Saints of Newark awakes on October 1st.  Venom: Let There Be Carnage and Hotel Transylvania: Transformania also arrive to the big screen on October 1st. Thrills aplenty sneak back into our hearts with the latest installment of James Bond: No Time to Die on October 8th. The master of not dying, Michael Myers, has his latest big-screen rendezvous with Halloween Kills on October 15th. Dune digs in on October 22nd. Last Night in Soho and Antlers swoop into theatres on October 29th, as our final offering before Halloween. But, our season is not done yet… cross all the streams possible to make sure that you see Ghostbusters: Afterlife on November 19th!

MUSIC: To say that people are excited to get out of the house is an understatement. TONS of musical acts are touring now, and here’s our best to capture some of the highlights. Kicking us off, Megadeath and Lamb of God are at the Hollywood Casino Amphitheater (HCA) in Tinley Park, IL, on September 9th. 311 is at the Huntington Bank Pavilion on September 11th. Back to the HCA, Madison-rockers, Garbage, arrive on September 11th. Welcome to the Ivy: Guns N’ Roses play Wrigley Field on September 16th. The masterminds behind First to Eleven come to Subterranean with their original band, Concrete Castles also on September 16th. Want to see nearly all of your favorite musicians/bands? Riot Fest is back September 17th-19th. Sevendust comes to the Forge in Joliet on September 21st. Beartooth plays House of Blues on the 22nd. No more mister nice-guy, Alice Cooper, feeds your need at Huntington Beach on September 24th. A sold-out Ice Nine Kills chills the Forge in Joliet on September 24th. The HCA will be filled with masks as Slipknot and company close out September on the 28th. Fresh off of Riot Fest, Machine Gun Kelly plays just north of the border at the Rave in Milwaukee on October 5th. Pop Evil is at the Forge on the 3rd, and Live at 1175 in Kansasville, WI, on October 6th. Ready for another round? A Day To Remember hits the Rave on October 8th, and Aragon on October 9th. Everyday is Halloween at the Riviera on October 10th with Ministry! Black Label Society crashes the Rave on the 16th. Queue the bodies and bartender for Drowning Pool, Ill Nino, and (Hed)pe on October 15th at the Forge and the Rave on October 20th. Our final offering before Halloween comes when goth-girl, In This Moment plays the Horseshoe in Hammond on October 22nd and the Rave in Milwaukee on October 23rd.  Need something to nurse your Halloween-hangover? The mighty GWAR thrashes the Rave on November 4th, and old-school metalheads, Testament, Exodus, and Death Angel close out two nights at the Forge on November 5th and 6th.

SPORTS: The Bears and Packers play in week 6 on October 17th. Cubs and Brewers play their last series of the year September 17-19. The Blackhawks start their 2021 campaign on October 13th. The Bulls and world-champion Bucks won’t play each other until January 2022.

Hide and Seek

Haunted House Chicago is giving back to its fans and patrons even more! Throughout the season, you will want to follow us on social media channels for opportunities to win free shirts, swag, and tickets to many of the haunted attractions throughout the Chicagoland area. We will be posting our full review schedule, and encourage you to find us as we travel to over 30 different attractions. If you find us, take a picture with us, tag us, and we will reward you with free Haunted House Chicago gear! (And maybe even some free tickets to Midwest Haunters Convention!) Watch our schedule here: https://www.hauntedhousechicago.com/2021/09/2021-review-team-schedule

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We look forward to meeting you throughout this season!

With that, we thank you for reading. Keep checking HauntedHouseChicago.com for the latest updates and happenings to help make your holiday season the scariest and safest yet!

Frightfully Yours,
The Haunted House Chicago Staff/Review Team

Note: All information is correct as of the original posting of this article. Although we intend for all dates and locations to be accurate, please check/research before setting off on your journey.

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