Universal Translator – Earl the Squirrel

A cute squirrel in a red hunter’s cap is the official mascot of Universal Orlando’s holiday festivities. But who is this character? What is their origin story and can I meet them? Learn all about Earl the Squirrel in this Universal Translator.

Earl the Squirrel is the official mascot of Holidays at Universal Orlando; he appears on shirts, plush, and even has a walk-around character suit. The legend of Earl goes like this: one year the Universal Studios Florida team noticed that their Christmas tree lights kept malfunctioning. Despite all their best efforts to diagnose the problem, they never found an issue, until a small squirrel popped its head out of the tree.

Universal found their culprit and named it Earl. Earl stepped out of the tree and into the role of Universal Studios Florida’s holiday mascot in 2020 with a feature in the Tribute Store. A walk-around character was added in 2021. Earl meets daily in Universal Studios Florida during the Holidays at Universal Orlando. And every year a small squirrel on a pneumatic piston is placed in the Christmas tree so you can see how Earl peeked his head out in the past.

Translation complete. Stay tuned next week for another edition of Universal Translator!