Greenlighting a sequel to 2023’s “Five Nights at Freddy’s” — the mega-popular horror film based on Scott Cawthon’s hit video game franchise — was a no-brainer. After all, the first picture grossed nearly $300 million worldwide, despite mostly poor reviews and a day-and-date release on Peacock. Propelled by a teen-friendly PG-13 rating and the game’s cultish fan base, it became producer Blumhouse’s most successful release, besting company record-holders such as “Get Out,” “Split” and 2018’s “Halloween.”
But “no-brainer” takes on a dual meaning when it comes to “Five Nights at Freddy’s 2,” a laughably cheesy, empty-headed follow-up that makes the mediocre prior film shine in comparison.
For the uninitiated, the first movie follows the career-challenged Mike (Josh Hutcherson), who lands a last-ditch job as overnight security guard at Freddy Fazbear’s Pizza, an abandoned Chuck E. Cheese-like joint. Turns out, the place houses a group of homicidal animatronic mascots — bear Freddy, rabbit Bonnie, chicken Chica and fox Foxy — possessed by the ghosts of murdered children. Mike unravels the restaurant’s mystery with the help of Vanessa (Elizabeth Lail), an attractive cop whose father, William (Matthew Lillard), is revealed to be a serial killer with ties to Mike. In addition, Mike must protect his withdrawn 10-year-old sister, Abby (Piper Rubio), from the mascots, whom she has weirdly befriended.
With me so far?
The sequel opens in 1982 at the original flagship Freddy’s location, a site never mentioned in the first film. There, a child named Charlotte (Audrey Lynn-Marie) is killed during a birthday party after attempting to warn a criminally dismissive group of parents that another youngster is missing. We’re also introduced to Marionette, a powerful puppet said to control the other robots through some early form of Wi-Fi. (OK, whatever.)
Flash-forward 20 years to after the end of the previous film. Mike, Vanessa and Abby (Hutcherson, Lail and Rubio reprise their roles) are trying to move on after the murderous events of the past. Mike’s apparently unemployed again (and still incapable of a close shave); Vanessa remains traumatized by her father’s violent death and the quirky Abby is missing her schizy animatronic “friends” (the ever-protective Mike tells her they are “broken”).
But after a team of ghost hunters (led by Mckenna Grace’s Lisa) meets a grisly end while filming at the long-closed Freddy’s, the animatronics enlist Abby’s help to set them free. Are they using her? Maybe, but they also seem to trust her, unlike their lethal disdain for the town’s parents and other intrusive adults.
A wave of robotic mayhem follows, embroiling Mike, Vanessa and other locals in a series of messy if thrill-free set pieces at the flagship Freddy’s, several homes and Abby’s school, where an inexplicably cruel teacher (a scenery-chewing Wayne Knight) thwarts her participation in a coveted science fair. Bad move, Teach!
Meanwhile, creepy-looking Marionette is now host to Charlotte’s vengeful spirit, while the spider-like Mangle puppet (the toy version of Foxy) does its share of ambushing, the shuttered pizzeria’s night guard (Freddy Carter) can’t be trusted and Skeet Ulrich pops in as Charlotte’s grieving dad. Lillard (Ulrich’s “Scream” co-star, for trivia buffs) returns as the brutal William, but only in a nightmare sequence.
Unlike the prior installment, which had three credited writers (including director Emma Tammi, back at the helm here), the new movie was scripted solely by Cawthorn, proving to be his own worst enemy. Saddled with a mishmash of Freddy’s-verse lore, clunky exposition and pancake-flat dialogue, the narrative becomes careless and convoluted. Logic is ditched for franchise callbacks and Easter eggs, dubious subplots and laying track for the inevitable next sequel.
Director Tammi is certainly hamstrung by the slapdash script. Still, the pacing lags and she rarely builds much tension or fright beyond several predictable jump scares (though a few will grab you). Subpar acting and cringey line deliveries further bury the picture.
As for the animatronics, Jim Henson’s Creature Shop has taken obvious care and skill in re-creating the film’s lumbering robots and evoking their game origins. But in the context of a horror movie, even a milder one aimed at younger viewers, they too often come off as silly and toothless.
This one’s for die-hards only.
‘Five Nights at Freddy’s 2’
Rated: PG-13, for violent content, terror and some language
Running time: 1 hour, 44 minutes
Playing: In wide release Friday, Dec. 5
