Child's Play 2019 introduced the world to a new take on Chucky but did it set up a potential Bride for the killer doll? The original Child's Play found a serial killer, played by Brad Dourif (Deadwood), transferring his soul into a doll via a little voodoo before he dies, and then trying to transfer out before he becomes permanently trapped. The first movie was a surprisingly suspenseful thriller that made good use of its central premise.
Chucky soon joined the pantheon of horror icons like Freddy Krueger or Halloween's Michael Myers. The series appeared to come to an end after the lukewarm reception to 1991's Child's Play 3, which came a mere nine months from the previous entry. Like any good horror franchise it found a way to reinvent itself, with later sequels jumping genres from meta-comedy to gothic horror. The 2019 remake reimagines the original concept, with the new Chucky being a defective A.I. doll who turns to murder to protect his owner Andy. Mark Hamill (Batman: The Animated Series) provides the voice for Chucky's upgrade.
Child's Play 2019 leaves the door wide open for another entry but did it subtly tease a Bride Of Chucky-style sequel?
The Final Buddi 2 Doll Isn't Revealed
The blackly comic finale of the new Child's Play takes place in a supermarket that's about to launch the Buddi 2, which is an updated version of Chucky's design. Chucky has hacked a number of these dolls to act as his minions and equipped drones with razor blades, so he locks down the store and starts murdering the shoppers trapped inside.
One interesting thing to note is the movie mentions five versions of the Buddi 2. There's a blonde and ginger Buddi, a POC Buddi, and a bear version, but curiously, the fifth variant isn't revealed. It would make logical sense for this model to be a female Buddi but for whatever reason, the movie keeps this vague.
Bride Of Chucky Is Arguably The Most Popular Entry
Following the success of Scream in the mid 1990s a number of dormant franchises got a new lease on life, including Halloween: H20 and Jason X. Bride Of Chucky from 1998 introduced Tiffany (Jennifer Tilly), a former girlfriend of Chucky in his old life who soon ends up in a doll's body herself. Bride was a funny, gory and energetic sequel, and introduced a number of iconic elements to the series, including Chucky's scarred face and Tiffany herself.
In addition to being the highest grossing of the series Bride Of Chucky is arguably the most popular entry too. It would make sense for a sequel to Child's Play 2019 to go this route, and it's possible the absence of the fifth Buddi doll is building to this reveal in a future sequel.
A Child's Play Sequel May Not Be Legally Allowed To Use Bride
One potential barrier to Child's Play 2 heading in this direction is a slightly messy rights issue. The franchise is currently split in two, with original creator Don Mancini - who wrote all seven prior movies and directed three - currently working on a Chucky TV series for SYFY. That show will take place in the original continuity, while the remake charts a different path and was only allowed to draw from the original movie and none of the sequels.
The restrictions on what was allowed to be used in the remake were so tight, a major death scene had to be altered so it wouldn't resemble a kill from a Child's Play sequel. If that's the case, then unless the producers of the reboot negotiate to use characters from Bride Of Chucky for a sequel, they may not be able to introduce a female Buddi. That may also be a reason the fifth Buddi doll wasn't revealed in the finale.