Guide to ‘Jimmy Fallon’s Tonightmares’ haunted maze with video, now open in New York City
A Jimmy Fallon haunted maze called “Tonightmares” is now open inside Rockefeller Center in New York City for Halloween season 2024.
Updated Sept. 21, 2024 with video; original version published Aug. 16, 2024.
This page may contain affiliate links. If you choose to purchase after clicking a link, we may receive a commission at no extra cost to you.
What is ‘Jimmy Fallon’s Tonightmares’?
“Jimmy Fallon’s Tonightmares” is a haunted maze attraction inside Rockefeller Center in New York City. “Tonightmares” opened on Sept. 20, 2024 and was created by NBCUniversal. Steeped in the lore and comedy bits of “The Tonight Show starring Jimmy Fallon,” the haunted maze features 10 rooms, each materializing one of Fallon’s nightmares.
Dates and hours: “Tonightmares” is open nightly (except Mondays) from Sept. 20 – Oct. 31, 2024 from 5-11 p.m.
Location: The haunted maze is located on the rink level of Rockefeller Center — not-so-coincidentally the same building where NBC films “The Tonight Show” (along with “Saturday Night Live,” “Late Night with Seth Meyers,” and “The Kelly Clarkson Show”).
Meet the monsters
Scare actors from “Tonightmares” appeared on broadcasts of “The Tonight Show” to tease the new attraction.
First, an alien plotted their attack on Jimmy.
The following night, a serial killer seemingly murdered Hashtag the Panda.
This trend continued for the successive week, with a new foe visiting “The Tonight Show” each evening in the days leading up to the grand opening of “Tonightmares.”
From the designers of Halloween Horror Nights
“Tonightmares” was designed by the same creatives behind Halloween Horror Nights (HHN) at Universal theme parks. The attraction is a collaboration among NBCUniversal’s Global Franchise Management group and RWS Global (a design firm whose portfolio includes Howl-O-Scream at SeaWorld Orlando and Fright Fest at Six Flags parks, among other projects).
“Each year, we bring Halloween to life in new and exciting ways across NBCUniversal through Halloween-themed content and experiences,” said David O’Connor, president of franchise management & brand strategy at NBCUniversal. “Whether it’s expressed in our theme parks or through film and television, we’re building on our rich horror legacy and we’re thrilled to support Jimmy Fallon to pair his true fandom of the holiday with the expertise of our company to create this one-of-a-kind experience.”
Photo by Blake Taylor
Universal is specifically using the phrase “haunted maze” to describe “Jimmy Fallon’s Tonightmares.” Typically the company refers to the HHN attractions as “haunted houses.” The “Tonightmares” experience is about 10 minutes long. A typical HHN haunted house takes about 3-4 minutes to walk through.
Fallon: ‘We’ve been working on this for years’
Fallon announced “Tonightmares” on Aug. 15, 2024 episode of “The Tonight Show.”
“We’ve been working on this for years,” Fallon told the studio audience. “It’s been so fun putting this together. These guys know how to do it. It is nuts.”
“’Tonightmares’ has got everything you need to get supremely frightened this Halloween,” said Fallon. “I’m not saying it has killer scarecrows, brain-hungry zombies, and an abandoned gas station in the middle of nowhere. But … it has … killer scarecrows, brain-hungry zombies, and an abandoned gas station in the middle of nowhere. Spoiler alert.”
During his Sept. 4, 2024 broadcast, Fallon referred to “Tonightmares” as “one of the best things we’ve ever done.”
“Tonightmares” isn’t Fallon’s first experiential attraction with Universal. A simulator ride, Race Through New York starring Jimmy Fallon, opened at Universal Studios Florida in 2017.
Video overview and review of ‘Tonightmares’
Rebekah and Steve from On the Scene Adventures attended the opening night of “Tonightmares” for Attractions Magazine. Take a look inside the full experience and hear their thoughts on the new attraction in our new video:
Tickets to ‘Jimmy Fallon’s Tonightmares’ haunted maze
Tickets for the “Jimmy Fallon’s Tonightmares” haunted maze start at $37 and are available online. Tickets are not available onsite at Rockefeller Center and must be purchased online.
“Tonightmares” tickets are sold through Fever, the same company behind Beetlejuice Beetlejuice: The Afterlife Experience, now open in Hollywood, Calif.
This year’s Halloween Horror Nights at Universal parks in Florida and California spotlight “A Quiet Place,” “M3GAN,” and more horror favorites alongside original stories from Universal Creative. The company is also at work on Universal Horror Unleashed, a year-round haunt attraction coming to Area15 in Las Vegas, Nev.
Rockefeller Center — aka 30 Rockefeller Plaza, or simply 30 Rock — is home to a number of tourist attractions. Check out our previous coverage of visiting the Top of the Rock observation deck and getting tickets to “Saturday Night Live.”
More Attractions Magazine stories:
Follow us:
No matter where you want to go, our trusted partner MEI-Travel will handle the planning so you can focus on the memories. They offer free vacation-planning services and have nearly 20 years of experience creating memorable vacations. Visit MEI-Travel for a fee-free, no-obligation quote today.
