After originally being set for a Halloween-based production, Five Nights at Freddy’s 2 is aiming to get cameras rolling in November. After the first movie became Blumhouse’s highest-grossing movie to date, development on a sequel slowly unfurled in late 2023 and early 2024, with the studio confirming it was moving ahead with co-writer/director Emma Tammi returning alongside stars Josh Hutcherson and Matthew Lillard. Both Lillard and Hutcherson previously indicated Five Nights at Freddy’s 2 would begin filming in October 2024, while Blumhouse set the sequel for a December 2025 release.
During a recent interview with Collider, Lillard offered an update on the highly anticipated Five Nights at Freddy’s 2. In addition to confirming that he will begin filming on the sequel a little later than he previously thought by starting production in November, the star also offered a promising update on the movie’s script, assuring that “we learned a lot in the first film” and shared his confidence that the sequel will improve on it. See what Lillard shared below:
So this morning, I got a text with my dates. So, my dates are the beginning of November and another series of dates. So, we’re going to work. I’m really thrilled. I think the script’s fantastic. [Tammi’s] great. She’s really lovely. And Josh is great. The whole cast is great, and I think we’re all excited to come back. I think we learned a lot in the first film. I think the second film is going to sort of benefit from those things. We’re all excited about where the movie is at right now.
What This Means For Five Nights At Freddy’s 2
The Team Know There Were Some Missteps In The Original Movie
Lillard’s excitement about returning suggests that Tammi and the creative team behind Five Nights at Freddy’s 2 have learned from the mistakes behind the original movie. Though the 2023 game adaptation was a hit with audiences, it did cap off Blumhouse’s year of hits with critics by being the studio’s second-straight critical disappointment after The Exorcist: Believer. See how Five Nights at Freddy’s compared to Blumhouse’s other 2023 releases on Rotten Tomatoes and at the box office in the chart below:
|
Title |
RT Critics Score |
RT Audience Score |
Box Office |
|---|---|---|---|
|
M3GAN |
93% |
78% |
$181 Million |
|
Sick |
85% |
73% |
N/A (Streaming Release) |
|
There’s Something Wrong with the Children |
62% |
26% |
N/A (Streaming Release) |
|
Unseen |
82% |
67% |
N/A (Streaming Release) |
|
Insidious: The Red Door |
39% |
70% |
$189.1 Million |
|
The Passenger |
81% |
73% |
N/A (Streaming Release) |
|
Totally Killer |
87% |
77% |
N/A (Streaming Release) |
|
The Exorcist: Believer |
22% |
59% |
$137 Million |
|
Five Nights at Freddy’s |
32% |
87% |
$297.1 Million |
Despite the various promised fixes to the original movie, the biggest point of curiosity for audiences as of now is how Five Nights at Freddy’s 2‘s story will tap into the games. Tammi previously said it was possible that the sequel would adapt Scott Cawthon’s second game, though considering Hutcherson’s Mike was not part of the sequel game’s story, it does seem likely that the creative team will instead have to pull elements from it and other games to continue building out the world.
It Should Be A Fun Follow-Up
Regardless of what critics end up thinking about the sequel, Lillard’s comments certainly point towards Five Nights at Freddy’s really expanding on the promise of the first movie’s success. While audiences were generally enthused by the movie’s Easter eggs and recreation of the possessed animatronics, there were some who lamented the lack of jump scares from the games, and if Lillard’s assurances of lessons being learned from the original are true, I certainly hope the movie can live up to the thrills of the games.
Source: Collider