The Five Nights at Freddy’s movie: Smash Hit or Ultimate Disappointment?
A genre-breaking zeitgeist of the mid-2010’s, the famous point and click horror game Five Nights at Freddy’s has recently seen the release of a movie rendition. Initially announced in 2015, just a year after the game’s debut, the film has racked up anticipation amongst new and old fans alike. Intended to be a “movie for the fans,” this film’s target was not just general audiences, but long-term members of the fandom. Despite this goal, based on shared social media opinions, that may not have been achieved as planned.
Already facing problems since its conception, the film saw disagreements with plotlines, issues with rights, constant rewrites, and cancellation by its former studio, Warner Brothers. Taken on by another studio, Blumhouse, known for its smash hits in the psychological thriller category, such as Get Out, Insidious, and M3gan, the film was set to release in 2020. With almost 8 years left, fans began speculating and placing expectations upon the contents and execution of this movie. So, how did it do?
In terms of initial monetary earnings, the Five Nights at Freddy’s movie has exceeded its opponents, becoming a huge success in the box office. As of opening weekend, the movie has already made around $78 million dollars in the US, trampling other video game to screen adaptations, and trotting behind the Super Mario Brothers movie. Standing upon the title of highest grossing horror opening weekend of this year, one would think that the production has most elements going for it. If not success, what is the main failing factor of this film?
It is evident that the vice of this movie lies within its contents. Apparently created with the intent of impressing a devoted cult-following, it is of no surprise that fans are disappointed with what they are given. Each year after the announcement of the movie, at least one to two new Five Nights at Freddy’s games came out, changing the trajectory of the overarching story and the media that the fandom would then produce in response. On top of that, considering that Blumhouse was involved with the co-production of the film, fans understandably expected a horror-packed thriller like their other famous works. Juxtaposing this was a colorful, warm-hearted, and even slightly corny comedy style horror film. The complex, dark, and stomach-churning tale of missing children, twisted families, and disturbing secrets from the original games wasn’t exactly translated as most viewers would have hoped. Instead, producers took the setting of the games, and used pieces of it to produce a more comprehensive and fun film for a broader audience.
Despite the neglect of the original story, Blumhouse and Scott Cawthon- the original dev of the game -were able to put on a decent adaptation of Five Nights at Freddy’s, earning a typical and less than modest profit.