Blumhouse’s latest horror flick, M3GAN has received successful results at the box office since its release. With a current average rating of 94 percent from critics and 79 percent from audiences on Rotten Tomatoes, it seems like the rated PG 13+ rating didn’t affect its performance.
What’s interesting to note is that despite some similarities to other slasher horror flicks, M3GAN felt pretty tame for its murder aspects. In fact, one could theorize that this film could be a teaser of what the upcoming Five Nights at Freddy‘s film could be like once it comes out in the future.
The Five Nights At Freddy‘s movie was first announced in 2015 by Warner Bros before production was transferred to Blumhouse in 2017. For those who don’t know what this video game was about, a simple explanation is those haunted animatronics come to life after Freddy Fazbear’s Pizzaria closes for the night. It’s basically a haunted Chuck E. Cheese restaurant. These animatronics were designed to perform in front of children. But at night, they would attack the night guard until 6 am.
In M3GAN, the doll has a somewhat similar purpose. It was designed to entertain a child it’s “paired” with. It can talk, walk, sing and dance. But at night, it would go on a murder spree in order to protect the owner from harm. Unlike FNAF where it was explained that haunted angry spirits were the cause of the murders (and later the company’s founder, William Afton), M3GAN’s explanation for her killings was that there were no parameters installed on the doll when it comes to the concept of death.
At the moment, we have no information on what the FNAF film would be about. However, it was confirmed last year that Scooby Doo‘s Matthew Lillard and The Hunger Games‘ Josh Hutcherson will be cast in the film. And knowing the current trend of video game adaptations, such as The Last of Us and Cyberpunk: Edgerunners, it’s safe to assume that the movie is going to be somewhat similar to what we see in the games. I wouldn’t be surprised if it took inspiration from its spin-off novels as well.
Five Nights at Freddy‘s doesn’t seem to have an official parental rating on its Steam Page. But it is no secret that this title has attracted a young audience. In order for this film to reach its franchise’s target audience, it will need to have the same rating as M3GAN, especially since there would be children and teenagers who would want to see the film.
M3GAN managed to catch the younger audience thanks to its dancing. And it’s through that dance going viral that opened up discussions about a potential sequel, as long as the film’s box office numbers are good (and they are). I’m not saying that we need Freddy Fazbear, Chicka, and the gang to do weird and similar dance moves. But, these animatronics were designed to perform in front of customers. The producers and filmmakers need to figure out what made the M3GAN dance popular and how it can work with another murder robot film.
But I think the best idea when promoting this film when it does come out is somewhat replicate how the games did it — secret puzzles.
While it was revealed back in 2021 that Scott Cawthon, the creator of the franchise, retired. It shouldn’t be a surprise that he might have left some notes or has some sort of guidance when it comes to the film’s marketing. Especially due to the success of the other FNAF games through their promotion. The game’s teasers were either highly produced trailers or secret codes that hardcore fans had to sleuth through to get some idea about the game’s story.
I highly doubt that Blumhouse would execute something complex like hidden code on the film’s website page, especially since they’re known for making great films on a small budget. However, the marketing team could use social media, especially TikTok, could sprinkle tiny hints in the trailers to keep the audience hooked. Give a generic preview for those casual fans, but give tiny easter eggs for those who’ve been in the franchise for a long time.
But in the end, the Five Nights At Freddy‘s movie needs to have the same level of camp while also delivering the horror/slasher genre that we know and love. M3GAN knew exactly what type of film it was. It didn’t take itself too seriously while giving the audience a scare or two. Five Nights At Freddy’s is a film that can achieve the same results if done right.
The production and success of M3GAN must be seen as the building blocks on how Blumhouse could produce a screen adaptation of the huge indie horror video game franchise. It’s just up to the producers to ensure that it takes the right steps to make the future film a success.
