Chucky creator Don Mancini rejected an offer from MGM to executive produce the upcoming Child’s Play reboot. Mancini has joked about the remake in the past, but now it seems there is genuine frustration from him. MGM announced the Child’s Play reboot over the summer, and since then the film has locked down its cast and production on the project has begun. The film will feature a technologically advanced Buddi doll, and while no one from the original classic is involved, this new film will have a similar plot.

Child’s Play was released back in 1988, and would go on to spawn six sequels. The film focused on Andy Barclay (Alex Vincent), a young boy who receives a seemingly innocent doll named Chucky. The doll was, in fact, possessed by serial killer Charles Lee Ray (Brad Dourif). Chucky would go on to become a well recognized name in the horror genre, joining the likes of Michael Myers, Freddy Krueger, and Jason Voorhees. As the series progressed, the titles ditched the Child’s Play name, and would just reference Chucky.

Mancini recently appeared on the podcast Post Mortem and revealed that MGM reached out to him for potential involvement in the reboot. Mancini’s most recent work with the franchise has been 2013’s Curse of Chucky, and last year’s Cult of Chucky. Mancini has been involved with the series for 30 years, and has written and directed the past two entries. He feels that MGM’s offer was disrespectful, and was their way of seeking his approval. Mancini stated:

Fans of the series can expect Chucky’s origins to be changed a bit for the upcoming film. The cast of the reboot includes Aubrey Plaza, Brian Tyree Henry, and Gabriel Bateman. There has been no word on who will be voicing Chucky this time around since Dourif will remain as the voice for Mancini’s adaptations including the upcoming Child’s Play TV show. Plaza will be portraying Karen Barclay, the mother of Andy Barclay, who will be played by Gabriel Bateman. Detective Mike Norris will be portrayed by Brian Tyree Henry, and fans of the original know that this character’s altercation with Charles Lee Ray birthed everyone’s favorite killer doll.

“MGM retained the rights to the first movie, so they’re rebooting that. They asked producer David Kirschner and I if we wanted to be executive producers. We said no thank you, because we have our ongoing thriving business with Chucky. Obviously my feelings were hurt. Ya know, I had just done two movies… forgive me if I sound defensive, they were both at 83 percent on Rotten Tomatoes. Even though they didn’t get theatrical releases, they were well regarded. And I did create the character and nurture the franchise for three fucking decades.”

For a long time, Chucky was the only horror icon left to not fall victim to the reboot treatment, but that has now changed. Mancini’s frustrations toward the project are understandable since he has been handling the series for quite some time. While some fans remain on the fence about this reboot it will be interesting to see what MGM cooks up. For those who have no interest in the film, they can look forward to the TV series being worked on, which will involve Mancini and others from the original continuity.

More: Child’s Play Remake Launches Site Promoting New Chucky Doll

Source: Post Mortem

  • Childs Play Release Date: 2019-06-21