A new clip of the 2019 remake Child's Play is released today, and the chilling sneak peek shows Chucky terrorizing his owner, Andy Barclay (Gabriel Bateman). The film has met with some controversy, as the first Child's Play film without Don Mancini's involvement. Screenwriter Tyler Burton Smith and Director Lars Klevberg's R-rated horror film reimagines Mancini's original Child's Play franchise, with somewhat of a science fiction twist.
Mancini created the Child's Play franchise, including the characters in the series. Strangely, Mancini is working on his own television project with Syfy called Chucky, which is slated for a 2020 premiere. The show will feature the original voice of the serial killer doll, Brad Dourif, who has subsequently been voicing Chucky in every sequel ever since. Klevberg's film offers a slightly different approach to the series, with Mark Hamill as the voice of Chucky. The film also stars Aubrey Plaza and Brian Tyree Henry. One critical difference fans noticed after the release of the official Child's Play trailer, was that Chucky's backstory seems to have changed. Rather than a Good Guy doll possessed by the soul of the serial killer Charles Lee Ray (Dourif), this new doll is called a Buddi, a high-tech robot that goes haywire after its code is hacked.
A new clip shows the new Buddi doll, still named Chucky, can be a terrifying opponent. While there is no denying the comedic quality that Mancini's franchise eventually adopted, this new clip reveals the reboot is taking the film back to its slasher/horror roots. In a style that echoes Netflix's Black Mirror, the clip evokes fears that only a modern audience could appreciate, as technology turns on the humans who use it. Chucky taunts Andy in the clip, with a sinister game of "peekaboo." Andy follows his taunting voice, smashing the object it came from with a baseball bat, as he tries to find Chucky. The clip doesn't actually show Chucky, but what's clear is the new doll can be terrifying in ways that appeal to a modern audience. Toward the end of the clip, Plaza makes a brief appearance in her role as Karen Barclay, on the TV in front of Andy. Check out the clip below.
In order to tease the new film, many clips and posters have already been released ahead of the premiere. Last month, they released a new behind-the-scenes video that detailed how the new design for the Chucky doll was created. In April, a new poster showed Chucky killing Toy Story's Woody, which jokingly highlighted the clear difference between the two: one being an innocent toy, and the other a sinister malfunctioning doll. Prior to that, a holiday promo poster was released showing Chucky killing the Easter Bunny, seemingly holding its severed head in his hand, with hacked-up pieces of Easter eggs trailing behind him. Chucky is as ruthless as ever, and is anything but cute and innocent.
The release of the new Child's Play remake is just weeks away, and the film promises a legitimate slasher film experience, reminiscent of those made popular in 1980s, but with a 21st century twist. While the film is not canonical with the rest of the franchise, the team and cast are impressive, and are likely to rake in an entirely new fanbase. Hopefully, fans of the original will find something they like as well, and if not, they can always wait for Mancini's television show.
Source: Orion Pictures
