Chucky Returns: What We Know About The New TV Series — And Why We Can’t Get Enough of Child’s Play
I look at what we know so far about the new series and take a look back at the history of horror’s biggest icon…
It’s hard to believe that one of the biggest horror icons of all time — Chucky — landed on our screens over 30 years ago. Nobody could have predicted, when screenwriter and director Don Mancini came up with the Child’s Play story, that the film and its subsequent franchise would have had such a cultural impact on the horror genre.
Every horror fan knows the story of Child’s Play: character Andy Barclay (played by actor Alex Vincent) celebrates his birthday with an unexpected gift from his mother — a Good Guy’s doll. Little does Andy and his mother know, the ginger, freckled doll is possessed by the dark energy of a recently deceased serial killer who practised occult magic, in order to put his soul into the doll. It sounds crazy, but what follows is 87 minutes of dark, creepy and unimaginable terror. The film was a huge success — grossing $44 million against the $9 million film budget.
The story could have ended there, and would likely still have remained a firm film-favourite, but thankfully for dedicated fans of the world famous series, director Tom Holland and Don Mancini pushed the boundaries of the story and eventually we saw a whopping seven further Child’s Play movies, during which we had the addition of actress Jennifer Tilly and Fiona Dourif to the cast.
With Jennifer Tilly’s enigmatic, charismatic and sultry performance as Tiffany in the film series, fans had found in her a new character that matches the popularity of Chucky himself. Tilly often steals the limelight from Chucky on screen, playing the killer femme fatale who causes as much death and destruction as the evil ginger doll does.
To the later series, with the addition of actress Fiona Dourif (daughter to Brad Dourif, who voices Chucky), we have a powerful counterpart to Tiffany’s dark side in her wonderful performance as character Nica Pierce.
New Series
Fans were delighted when it was announced earlier this year that Chucky was getting his own live-action TV show. To be aired on the Syfy and USA Channels at the later end of 2021, the show is said to focus on a Good Guy’s doll that turns up at a local yard sale. Actor Devon Sawa has been added to the cast, alongside the staples of the franchise — Alex Vincent, Jennifer Tilly, Brad Dourif and Fiona Dourif.
The show is said to consist of eight episodes, with movie legend Don Mancini involved in writing, producing and directing the project. According to an article on SyFy Wire, the show
“….aims to hit the reset button by returning the franchise to its 1980s classic horror roots. The plot finds a vintage Chucky doll in small-town America, where “a series of horrifying murders” throws a sleepy town into chaos, while throwing back the veil on the community’s “hypocrisies and secrets.”
Due to the impact of Covid, the show’s filming was delayed, but the series is still expected to hit screens in 2021.
What can we expect from the show?
We will revisit the classic characters from the film franchise, with the addition of much-loved actor Devon Sawa (who starred in the lead role of the original Final Destination movie).
The storyline is rumoured to explore more deeply the history and roots of serial killer Charles Lee Ray and his murder-spree days as the Lakeshore Strangler.
In an interview with Bloody Disgusting, Mancini said,
“We are going dark, darker than ever before. It’s going to be very creepy. With this TV show, our mission has been to preserve the straightforward scariness of the original film or the first couple of films.”
Whatever is thrown into the mix for the promised new Child’s Play series, the show is certainly much anticipated by fans.
Over the years, Chucky has become an icon of the genre and it’s easy to see why. It has the perfect mix of creepiness, gore and jump-scares. Child’s Play has rightfully earned its place as one of the best in horror. If the films are anything to go by, the upcoming TV series will be unlikely to disappoint.
