Second ‘Universal Horror Unleashed’ to Open Across from Bally’s Chicago Casino

• Universal has announced its second “Universal Horror Unleashed” attraction
• It’s set to open in 2027 across the street from Bally’s Casino in Chicago

Comcast NBCUniversal is plans to build a second “Universal Horror Unleashed” attraction right across the street from Bally’s Chicago Casino, which is slated to open in the Windy City’s River West neighborhood in September 2026.

This will be Universal’s second permanent horror attraction outside a theme park. Its first is set to open this August in Las Vegas’ AREA15 Immersive Entertainment District.

The new franchise builds on Universal’s famed “Halloween Horror Nights” event at its two US theme parks.

Chicago’s version will be 4,000 feet larger than Las Vegas’, occupying the 114,000 square-foot former Chicago Tribune Distribution Center at 700 W. Chicago Ave.

That’s the same site that was set to be demolished for a mixed-use development from Canadian developer Onni Group’s called Halsted Landing. Due to various community and union concerns, that project was shelved, though Universal’s lease extends only until 2037, so the project could be revived.

When Chicago’s “Universal Horror Unleashed” opens sometime in 2027, it will be directly across the street from Bally’s. The $1.4 casino project, which has been beset by several challenges, is currently under construction in the 940,000 square-foot former Chicago Tribune Freedom Center. That’s the 30-acre facility where the newspaper was printed from 1981 until 2020.

A temporary version of the casino, with 34,000 square feet of gaming space, opened in September 2023 — inside the Medinah Temple at 600 N. Wabash Ave. — to begin generating tax revenue for the city.

Scaring Up Business

The two new additions to the River West community — which runs along the north bank of the Chicago River — are expected to transform the neighborhood from a hodgepodge of former industrial warehouses, vacant lots and residential loft conversions into an entertainment destination.

Though success may seem guaranteed, Disney already failed to make a go of its DisneyQuest virtual theme park, which closed just two years after opening in 1999 in River West.