Six Flags taking Fright Fest to extreme with ‘Saw,’ ‘The Conjuring,’ ‘Stranger Things’

Six Flags Entertainment is taking its fan-favorite Halloween event to the next level this year with the debut of Fright Fest Extreme – Presented By SNICKERS at two of its parks.

Building on last year’s “Saw” and “The Conjuring” experiences at Six Flags Magic Mountain in Southern California and Six Flags Great Adventure in New Jersey, those same parks are getting a complete Fright Fest overhaul, going heavy on intellectual property.

“I think Halloween turns the world upside down, and these Halloween movies are thrill rides, so it just became like the perfect fit for us,” Edithann Ramey, Six Flags’ chief commercial officer and “Chief Fright Officer,” told USA TODAY. “It's our busiest time of the year across the whole nation, and so we did want to invest big on making them the most exciting they can be.”

The world’s largest regional theme park operator is also expanding Fright Fest offerings at other parks across North America. Here’s what fans can expect.

What will Fright Fest Extreme include?

Six Flags Great Adventure and Six Flags Magic Mountain will get the most intellectual property theming.

“Visitors … will step into a world where nightmarish creatures inspired by legendary horror brands come to life with Lionsgate and Twisted Pictures’ ‘SAW’ franchise, Netflix’s ‘Stranger Things’ and ‘Army of the Dead,’ Warner Bros. Discovery’s ‘The Conjuring,’ ‘Annabelle’ and ‘The Nun,’ and Legendary Entertainment’s ‘Trick ‘r Treat,'” Six Flags announced Tuesday. “Guests at Six Flags Great Adventure will also be treated to a new experience from Legendary Entertainment’s ‘Texas Chainsaw Massacre’ while visitors to Six Flags Mexico will have access to a special exclusive maze based on the bestselling comic series (DCeased) from DC Comics.”

Over the summer, Six Flags will announce additional IP offerings at other parks.

“The idea is to make it big across the United States, across all of our parks,” Ramey said. “This year we'll have seven or eight parks that have it. Next year, more will have it. So it's going to be something that gets incorporated throughout our whole system.”

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How scary will Fright Fest Extreme be?

Fright Fest Extreme is designed to scare.

“There's a fanatic of Halloween, a real true thrill seeker that we want to delight,” Ramey said. “When we began this project, I literally went online and Googled the top Halloween franchises in America.” She wanted to understand what excited these fans and also appeal to a wide range of guests.

“Like ‘Saw’ is all about like getting killed maybe two minutes into the film and your head's exploding. That's one spectrum of it,” she said. “And then the other is ‘Stranger Things,’ which has this beautiful ’80s vibe and this storyline and this mass appeal …  There's a little bit of everything for everybody.”

The event will also feature creepy decor, outdoor mazes designed to make guests feel like they could really get lost in them, roving scare actors aiming to catch guests off guard, themed food and drinks, and roller coasters for a different kind of thrill.

What are the dates for Fright Fest Extreme?

Fright Fest Extreme will be held across 32 nights between Sept. 7 through Nov. 3 at both Six Flags Magic Mountain and Six Flags Great Adventure.

It’ll be the longest Fright Fest season ever for Six Flags Magic Mountain, which will host the event on select Thursdays through Sundays. Six Flags Great Adventure’s Fright Fest Extreme will run on select Wednesdays through Sundays.

Ramey says fans may want to come back multiple times throughout the season.

“Several of the houses have like choose your own experience, and after you go, you're going to want to do that again and again,” she said.

How much are tickets to Fright Fest Extreme?

Fright Fest Extreme will be a separately ticketed event not included with regular park admission. Prices vary by date and ticket type.

Single-night tickets include entry to all haunted houses. They start at $49 for Six Flags Great Adventure and $75 for Six Flags Magic Mountain as part of a three-day flash sale launched Tuesday.

Gold, Platinum and Diamond Season Pass holders, Six Plus members and Legacy members with a valid pass can get into the event for free but will have to pay a separate fee to enter haunted houses.

An express upgrade will also be available for purchase to cut waits.

“We also have spent some time thinking about the lines, and so when you're lining up to go into the maze, what are some of the sensory things that can be happening as you line up?” Ramey said. “Showing maybe a little bit of the film, or showing you some pictures of the film, or even having some scares along the way so (waiting in) line isn't as awful as you think it would be.”

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Six Flags Fright Fest is going extreme with ‘Saw,’ ‘Stranger Things’