Killer dolls have been tormenting their owners for decades, most notably those unlucky enough to encounter the likes of Chucky or Annabelle, but in 2022 the genre entered the AI age with M3GAN (Model 3 Generative Android), which elevated things to a whole new level and was so successful that the sequel, M3GAN 2.0, is hitting theatres next year.
Universal Pictures describes the original this way: “M3GAN is a marvel of artificial intelligence, a life-like doll programmed to be a child’s greatest companion and a parent’s greatest ally. Designed by brilliant toy-company roboticist Gemma (Allison Williams), M3GAN can listen, watch and learn as she becomes friend and teacher, playmate, and protector for the child she is bonded to. When Gemma suddenly becomes the caretaker of her orphaned 8-year-old niece, Cady (Violet McGraw), Gemma’s unsure and unprepared to be a parent. Under intense pressure at work, Gemma decides to pair her M3GAN prototype with Cady in an attempt to resolve both problems—a decision that will have unimaginable consequences as M3GAN becomes increasingly violent and self-aware.”
Made for just $12 million, M3GAN grossed $180 million at the global box office, the film having obviously connected with the audience in a major way. As far as actress Allison Williams, who plays Gemma, is concerned, that’s due to a number of factors.
“Our director, Gerard Johnstone, struck this incredibly specific tone,” she offers while attending New York Comic-Con in October, “and to the great credit of the Universal in-house marketing machine, they captured that in the trailer. But we were still, like, ‘We hope people get her. She’s a very specific vibe. She’s like that friend who’s says, ‘I’ll kill him if he’s mean to you.’ You’re laughing and she’s like, ‘No, I will,’ and suddenly you’re, like, ‘I believe you.’
“When the trailer came out and people got her energy,” she adds, “and the meme started showing up, we were just so psyched, because we realized, ‘Okay, she’s in good hands. People understand. And then the movie came out and people had so much fun with the ‘M3GAN dance’ and her energy and it’s just been such a joy. It truly is such a fun movie.”
Who is starring in ‘M3GAN 2.0’?
Returning from the original M3GAN are Allison Williams as Gemma, Violet McGraw as Cady, Jenna Davis as the voice of M3GAN, Amie Donald as the non-animatronic version of M3GAN, Brian Jordan Alvarez as Cole and Jen Van Epps as Tess. New additions are Ivanna Sakhno, Timm Sharp, Aristotle Athari and Jermaine Clement.
Who are the creative people involved with ‘M3GAN 2.0’?
There are many familiar behind-the-scenes names on the sequel, among them director Gerard Johnstone, screenwriter Akela Cooper, producers Jason Blum and James Wan and horror movie production companies Blumhouse, Atomic Monster and Divide/Conquer.
What is ‘M3GAN 2.0’ about?
The filmmakers are keeping plot details for the sequel under wraps, but that hasn’t stopped fans from conjecturing. Some have theorized that M3GAN will return with enhanced abilities to spread her consciousness to other devices or forms of technology, in essence creating a kind of “hive mind” that will put more people at risk.
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Although defeated in the first film, some believe that there have been hidden copies of her data patterns left behind that will reform in such a way that it will allow for her revival, which in turn will provide the means for her to seek vengeance against Cady and Gemma. This, of course, would represent a complete turn from the first film, with Cady going from a semi-friend to M3GAN’s foe.
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Perhaps taking a cue from the Terminator films, there are some who believe a newer model of M3GAN (hence the 2.0 in the title) who is more powerful than the first will be created, but the original is brought back online to help Gemma and Cady defeat her.
Whatever direction they go in, we’re less than a year away from knowing the answer.
When does ‘M3GAN 2.0’ come out?
Although M3GAN 2.0 was originally scheduled for a January 17, 2025 release, it was initially postponed to May 16, 2025 and, finally, June 27, 2025.
Allison Williams dishes on the scariest part of making M3GAN movies
Allison Williams, who also serves as an executive producer of the M3GAN films, notes that lessons learned from the first film were carried over to the second, but one thing that remained the same was the spooky element of M3GAN herself.
“Animatronics are temperamental and high maintenance,” she laughs, “and this one is kind of a diva. Sometimes when M3GAN rolls onto set, the vibe shifts in the room and it gets much spookier. But it was fun to do the second film. We know how to do it, so now we can have a little bit more fun with it and make it bigger and more expansive.
“But behind the scenes,” Williams elaborates, “the creepiest parts are just M3GAN in repose — wherever she’s being held, it’s scary. M3GAN has her own tent — of course she does. She’s, like, ‘I will not be with everybody else, I need my own space.’ But M3GAN with her costume, without her costume, M3GAN with a body or just a head — any version of M3GAN is just terrifying. And if you look at it for too long, you’re like, ‘That’s going to move. I’m going to keep walking.’”
M3GAN is horror without CG
One point that Williams makes is that despite what many people may believe, M3GAN is not created with computer-generated imagery (CGI), the effects instead being created practically — meaning live on set — with the use of the aforementioned animatronic (in other words, mechanical device).
“I was, like, ‘No one’s going to believe that this is just the way she looks in real life,’ because it looks hyper-real,” she says. “That is a practical animatronic. She’s scary ass, bossy and it’s so much easier to act with than a tennis ball against green screen. Of course, when someone comes over and puts lube on her eyeball so she can blink, that breaks the reality for me a little bit.”
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A message from M3GAN
While M3GAN herself couldn’t make it to New York Comic-Con, she did appear in a brief video clip that was pretty chilling.
“Hi, New York Comic-Con,” she says so innocently that it’s actually menacing. “Miss me? Sorry I couldn’t be there, because I’m slaying on set for my killer new film M3GAN 2.0. I’ve been upgraded. See you nerds in June.”
