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John Massari’s Re-Recorded Score Revealed at Night Frights LA
Killer Klowns from Outer Space is one of horror’s most prominent, bona fide classics. But what kind of horror fan does it make me that it wasn’t until Night Frights LA that I had the chance to watch it finally? I knew a lot about this film, but my general distaste for horror comedies overrode any box I needed to check to be considered a “horror fan.” When I heard that Horror Press was sponsoring a screening of Killer Klowns at Night Frights LA with composer John Massari in attendance, I figured, what better time than now to check it out!
Falling in Love with John Massari’s Killer Klowns Soundtrack
I listened to the soundtrack on the flight out to LA, and I loved it. There’s this brilliant mixture between camp and terror that brings an uncomfortable levity to it. Seeing it finally overlaid on the film just amplified how incredible an artist John Massari truly is. Getting to hear him talk about this project was truly enlightening, both as a new fan of his and as a creative.
John stated involvement in the project came on the wings of a friend. He was bopping around between commercial projects when a friend mentioned that someone they knew (the Chiodos) was making a film. So, John sent some of his compositions as an audition and eventually was able to get a (scoreless) screening of the film at Warner Bros. Studios. Music is an integral part of film, and a part of my brain can’t even fathom watching a film without a score. But it was the scene where the tent in the forest was found that solidified John’s love for this project.
Inside the Creative Process: Scoring Killer Klowns’ Marching Scene
How exactly does a composer go about their work? For John Massari, part of Killer Klowns was with him his whole life. The scene in which the klowns are marching into town would eventually be scored with a composition he wrote when he was in high school! He wrote the composition for his band, but they deemed it too jazzy and refused to play it. It would later come to light that John was awarded the composition job from that piece alone.
Massari seems like an incredibly down-to-earth guy who knows what he wants out of life. That part of his story really stuck with me. “Not everything you do is going to be accepted immediately by everyone. That doesn’t mean you have to discard it,” he said.
Crafting the Full Killer Klowns Score: References and Storytelling
When it finally came to creating the full composition for the film, it seems he had fairly free rein to do what he wanted. Although the Chiodos did stick their hands in the pot a few times. They made John aware of certain films they wanted him to avoid when pulling reference for his work. Some of these films, John clarified, are what we consider classics today. John’s final composition for the film tells a story of its own; rarely do you hear a score that tells its own front-to-end story. The spaceship, he said, was viewed as a princess’s castle while the klowns marching into town were meant to resemble tanks driving into Poland.
One of the most interesting stories John regaled was about a significant roadblock that occurred toward the end of production. Someone from the production side requested that John be the one to pay for the film’s Dolby Stereo licensing fee. Thankfully, John and the Chiodos shot that down quickly. You wouldn’t ask the cinematographer to pay for film processing fees, would you?
John Massari’s Enduring Pride in Killer Klowns from Outer Space
It’s clear that he has ALWAYS been proud of his work on Killer Klowns from Outer Space. Even when friends told him that maybe he shouldn’t tell people he worked on it. However, around 2010/2012, he noticed a shift in thought regarding the film. The sands shifted from viewing Killer Klowns as “so bad it’s good” (my words) to just a pretty darn good film. After finally getting to watch it, I agree.
Massari revealed something that got the entire crowd amped up…he’s re-recorded the score. COVID was a hell of a time for all of us. While most of us were drinking and playing video games, John was making art. He didn’t change the score; he just made it fuller. And he promises that the rescored composition still goes with the version of the film we’ve all seen and doesn’t change the overall tone or feeling.
New Killer Klowns Soundtrack and Screenings
Thankfully, there is a record company (not Waxwork) that is interested in releasing the new composition to the world. At some point, we can hope for a CD and a streaming release. But maybe there’s a chance for some limited screenings to pop up with the rescored composition!
Thanks to John Massari and the Night Frights crew for making this day and event happen. Watching Killer Klowns from Outer Space with John in attendance was a bucket list item I didn’t even know was on my list! Do yourself a favor, don’t waste 31 years of your life not seeing this movie. If you haven’t…do it!
Wake up, babe—the first announcements for Halloween Horror Nights 2026 just dropped, and they’ve got us hyped! This year marks the 35th installment of the premiere Halloween season event, and to celebrate the anniversary, HHN is bringing back not one but two of its biggest icons: Jack the Clown and Dr. Oddfellow!
Universal Creative made the announcement at this weekend’s MEGACON Orlando “Behind the Screams: Crafting 35 Years of Fear at Universal Halloween Horror Nights” panel, followed by an X post clarifying that “the forces of horror are BACK. Jack The Clown and Dr. Oddfellow return to wreak havoc together at this year’s Halloween Horror Nights” The team also revealed the name of the first house: Jack & Oddfellow: Chaos & Control.
What does the return of these two icons—historically bitter rivals—mean for guests, and what can we expect to see in the house? Read on for everything we know about HHN 35 so far, and a quick primer on the lore for the uninitiated!
Credit: Universal Halloween Horror Nights / Inside The Magic
Who is Jack the Clown?
Debuting at Halloween Horror Nights X in the year 2000, Jack the Clown was HHN’s first original icon. In the real world, he’s the result of a series of surveys conducted by the Universal team that consistently revealed clowns to be visitors’ biggest fear. But his lore within the universe of HHN is much more complicated—and sinister.
Born in the late 1800s, Jack “the Clown” Schmidt started life as a performing clown, eventually finding his way to Dr. Oddfellow’s Carnival of Thrills in the early 1900s. When local authorities realized that the traveling carnival was leaving a trail of missing children in its wake and began closing in, Jack confided his crimes to his boss, who didn’t take the news well. Not wanting the police at his door, Oddfellow murdered Jack and stuffed his body into a box, hiding him (and the dead kids’ corpses) inside a sideshow attraction.
Who is Dr. Oddfellow?
Dr. Rich Oddfellow is a fascinating character even outside of his connection with Jack. Long before getting entangled with the kiddie killer, Oddfellow was obsessed with the Zodiac, believing it held the potential to grant him power and immortality—and he wasn’t afraid to commit some twisted, ritualistic murders of his own to unlock its secrets. His quest led him deep into the jungle, where he uncovered a crystal skull that he used to create his Cane of Souls.
During their struggle, Jack managed to gouge a chunk out of his boss’s face, leaving Oddfellow with a distinctive scar on his cheek. Oddfellow would later attempt to shapeshift to hide his identity, but that scar always remained, serving as a clue for eagle-eyed park visitors. More importantly, the scuffle spilled some of Oddfellow’s immortal blood on Jack’s face, imbuing him with some of Oddfellow’s powers. This led to Jack’s resurrection when, in the 1980s, a BBC production crew unwittingly released Jack from the music box holding his spirit captive, allowing Jack to pursue a bloody path of carnage and revenge.
Halloween Horror Nights Most Long Awaited Showdown
There’s a lot more to the backstory than that, and you can find some of it on the Discover Universal Blog if you want to bone up before the event. What’s important is that Jack has appeared frequently at HHN events, often on anniversary years, with Oddfellow finally getting his lore explored in depth at HHN 32 in 2023. But the two icons have never gone head to head—until now!
What Is the “Jack & Oddfellow: Chaos & Control” House at HHN 35?
We’re still in the early days of HHN 35 announcements, but here’s what we know right now about a clash of titans 25 years in the making!
According to the official announcement from HHN, “Jack & Oddfellow: Chaos & Control” will allow guests to “witness Jack the Clown’s unholy origins, then enter Dr. Oddfellow’s wickedly twisted universe where two of the most powerful forces in horror will face off in a deathmatch of chaos versus control.” The original house will be just one part of the Infernal Carnival of Nightmares (or I.C.O.N. for short, get it?) that visitors will experience once they step through the front gates of the park.
“The haunted house is going to be wild because … basically you’re going into the box,” said Mike Aiello, Universal Orlando Resort’s senior director of Entertainment Creative Development, in an interview with USA TODAY. “You’re experiencing what Jack experienced when he got killed and shoved in there, and essentially you’re going into a realm that we call the Oddverse. And it’s in this realm that Jack and Oddfellow have this immense, epic battle.”
Will the Icons Unite? What Their Twisted Team-Up Could Mean
What starts as a feverish fight will ultimately culminate in Jack the Clown and Dr. Oddfellow teaming up to, presumably, terrorize a common enemy: us. “You’ve got a cerebral end of the spectrum [Oddfellow] and you’ve got a visceral end [Jack]—two great ideologies there in how they can affect a guest,” Aiello added. “And that is a lot of the content that we’ll be presenting this year, is under that infernal banner.”
Will Jack and Oddfellow kiss and make up at Halloween Horror Nights 35? Only time will tell.
Photo courtesy of Samantha McLaren.
When is Halloween Horror Nights 2026, when do tickets go on sale, and how much will it cost?
HHN 35 will run on select nights from August 28 to November 1, 2026. The full event calendar has yet to be released, but if previous years are anything to go by, you should expect HHN to fall Wednesday through Sunday most weeks during its run. So, if you’re planning to spend a full week at Universal Orlando or Universal Hollywood for Halloween Horror Nights, consider using Monday and Tuesday as a rest day. After all, all those late-night hikes through the Scare Zones can be hard on the old tootsies!
Halloween Horror Nights 2026 Tickets, Add-Ons, and Planning Tips
Tickets for HHN 35 have not yet been released. Based on last year’s event, we anticipate that single-night tickets and add-ons will drop sometime in late May or early June, with multi-night tickets following a few weeks later, so keep an eye on the official Halloween Horror Nights social accounts and your credit card at the ready. While exact pricing is not yet available, single-night tickets for the 2025 event at Universal Orlando Resort started at $82.99 per person, with multi-night passes starting at $199.99.
Remember: Halloween Horror Nights is a separately ticketed event, so your daily park admission or annual pass does not grant entry. You also have the option to purchase extras like Express Passes, RIP Tours, and Behind-the-Screams: Unmasking the Horror tours, all of which can enhance your experience if you’re willing to part with the benjamins. Check out our ultimate Halloween Horror Nights guide to help you start planning your 2026 trip.
HHN 35 Rumors: Potential Houses and Scare Zones for 2026
As for the other houses and Scare Zones, we can only speculate. Perhaps we’ll get another Stranger Things house to celebrate the series’ official conclusion. And with Insidious 6 scheduled to hit theaters this August, another trip into The Further may be in the cards. Watch this space, and be sure to check back for our super-scientific house rankings once the event gets underway.
We’ll see you in the fog this fall!
The World’s Largest Halloween and Horror Convention, Midsummer Scream is back this August, and this year it’s all singing, all slashing. That’s right, the iconic horror con is returning August 7-9, 2026, at the Long Beach Convention Center, with a brand new theme: horror musicals. Rocky Horror, Repo! The Genetic Opera, Phantom of the Paradise, and more will be at the center of the convention’s first-ever, musical-themed weekend.
Midsummer Scream 2026 Announces Horror Musical Theme
According to David Markland, Executive Director and Co-Founder of Midsummer Scream, “The year’s theme is for all of the theatre kids that are a huge part of the haunt and horror community…we will be honoring horror musicals of all kinds with a variety of panels, presentations, and performances all weekend.”
Matthew Lillard and Other Horror Icons Headline the Convention
The events and guests list is still being announced, but what we do know is absolutely killer. Horror legend Matthew Lillard (Scream, FNAF) will be headlining the convention, alongside Rocky Horror’s legendary Barry Bostwick and Yellowjackets’ Jasmin Savoy Brown. In addition to these guests, Repo! Director and creator (and Saw alum) Darren Lynn Bouseman will be joining Bill Mosely and Lionsgate for a 20th anniversary celebration of the iconic emo musical masterpiece.
Vendors, Haunts, and Attractions Set to Return
As usual, the convention will still host its usual 350+ incredible vendors, including Trick R’ Treat Studios, Sin City Props, Terror Films, and more. It will include the Hall of Shadows, in addition to a variety of haunt displays and attractions. Eulogy Collective, Fear Farm, and Decayed Brigade are some of the many haunts that will be there. Family friendly pumpkin patch and art exhibits, as well as The Screaming Room Film Festival, are also set to return.
Below is the full list of currently announced Haunts and vendors.
Full List of Currently Announced Haunts at Midsummer Scream 2026
- Eulogy Collective,
- Fear Farm,
- Straite to Hale Productions,
- H&L’s Realm of Horror
- The Dreich Society
- CalHauntS
- The Haunt With No Name…Yet
- Decayed Brigade
- Universal Studios Hollywood’s Halloween Horror Nights
- Knott’s Scary Farm
- Thirteenth Floor Entertainment Group (Los Angeles Haunted Hayride, The Queen Mary’s Dark Harbor, Delusion, Magic of the Jack O’Lanterns, and Festival Fright Nights at Winchester Mystery House)
- Six Flags Magic Mountain’s Fright Fest
Vendors Appearing at Midsummer Scream 2026
- The Halloween Shirt Company
- Trick or Treat Studios
- Backstitch Bruja
- Sin City Props
- Terror Films
- Small Town Weirdo
- Froggy’s Fog.
Passes are available now at midsummerscream.org
