Child's Play (2019 film)

Child's Play is an upcoming American slasher film directed by Lars Klevberg and written by Tyler Burton Smith. It serves as a remake and reboot of the 1988 film of the same name, following a plot similar to the original film. It stars Aubrey Plaza, Gabriel Bateman, Brian Tyree Henry, Tim Matheson, and Mark Hamill as the voice of Chucky.

The film was officially announced in July 2018, a modern version of Child's Play that was in development at Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer without the involvement of franchise creator Don Mancini or Brad Dourif. Lars Klevberg and writer Tyler Burton Smith signed on as director and screenwriter, respectively, alongside It producers Seth Grahame-Smith and David Katzenberg.

The film is scheduled to be released in the United States on June 21, 2019, by Orion Pictures through the United Artists Releasing joint-venture, making it the first Child's Play film since the original 1988 movie not to be produced or distributed by Universal Pictures.

Premise
""The story follows a mother named Karen (Aubrey Plaza) who gives her son Andy (Gabriel Bateman) a toy robotic doll, Chucky (voiced by Mark Hamill), though both aren't aware of its evil side.""

Cast

 * Gabriel Bateman as Andy Barclay, a lonely 13-year-old boy who comes into the possession of a murderous doll.
 * Mark Hamill as the voice of Chucky, a murderous Buddi doll who attempts to kill the Barclays. In this version, Klevberg said the doll would be an "out-of-control robot doll" rather than a possessed doll by Charles Lee Ray in the original franchise, a version of which was previously voiced by Hamill in an episode of Robot Chicken.
 * Aubrey Plaza as Karen Barclay, Andy’s mother.
 * Brian Tyree Henry as Detective Mike Norris, a detective investigating a mysterious string of murders.
 * Tim Matheson as Henry Kaslan, founder and CEO of Kaslan Corp, the company that manufactures the Buddi doll.
 * Marlon Kazadi as Omar Norris, Andy's best friend and son of Mike Norris.
 * Ty Consiglio as Pugg, Andy's friend.
 * Beatrice Kitsos as Falyn, Andy's friend.
 * Anantjot S. Aneja as Chris, Andy's friend.
 * Nicole Anthony as Detective Willis, Norris' partner.
 * Carlease Burke as Doreen
 * Amber Taylor as Shane's Daughter
 * Kenneth Tynan as Jonga Burger Dude
 * Michael Bardach as Homeless Man
 * JC Meredith as Cab Driver

Development
In 2008, Don Mancini and David Kirschner spoke of a reboot of the franchise, which was originally going to be a "straightforward horror" written and directed by Mancini. Brad Dourif was expected return as the voice of Chucky. In a subsequent interview, Mancini described the remake as a darker and scarier retelling of the original film, but one that, while having new twists and turns, would not stray too far from the original concept. At a 2009 horror convention, Dourif confirmed his role in the remake. The film was canceled after the negative reception of similar remakes such as A Nightmare on Elm Street and Friday the 13th.

On July 3, 2018, it was announced that a modern-day version of Child's Play, a reboot, was in development at Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, with a different creative team than the original film series. Lars Klevberg signed on as director, with a script by Tyler Burton Smith (of Polaroid and Quantum Break fame, respectively). It and It: Chapter Two collaborative team Seth Grahame-Smith and David Katzenberg will serve as producers.

In December 2018, in a guest appearance on the Post Mortem with Mick Garris Podcast, series creator/writer/director Mancini criticized the remake, remarking that Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, as rights holder for the original film, can do what they please with the property. When asked if he and fellow franchise producer Kirschner would have any involvement, he said: "We said no thank you, because we have our ongoing thriving business with Chucky. Obviously my feelings were hurt... And I did create the character and nurture the franchise for three [...] decades. So when someone says, Oh yeah, we would love to have your name on the film... it was hard not to feel like I was being patronized. They just wanted our approval. Which I strenuously denied them."

Casting
The same month that the project was announced, Liv Tyler was revealed as having been considered for a role in the film. In September 2018, Aubrey Plaza, Brian Tyree Henry and Gabriel Bateman joined the cast. In November 2018, Ty Consiglio and Beatrice Kitsos joined the cast.

In March 2019, actor Mark Hamill announced that he joined the cast to voice Chucky in the film. Grahame-Smith elaborated on Hamill's casting in an interview with Entertainment Weekly, saying:

"We asked, thinking there was no way it would ever happen, and he said, 'Yes.' He was the first choice, a big swing, and it just happened. [...] I mean, first of all, to have an icon reimagining an iconic character is an incredible gift, and to have an actor and a voice performer who is as celebrated as Mark Hamill, and as gifted as he is, I mean it's incredible. He's taking on this challenge with a huge amount of energy and really come at it in a very serious way. And it's really something to watch him create a character, and sort of embody it, and I get to sit there and watch Mark Hamill record. It's just incredible."

Filming
Principal photography began on September 17 and wrapped on November 8, 2018, in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. Reshoots occurred on December 15-16 and in April 2019.

Visual effects
MastersFX, a visual effects company, took six weeks to prepare and assemble seven practical animatronic puppets, each with interchangeable arms and heads that performed a variety of required actions on set. With some help from Pixomondo, who will be providing the CGI for the film.

Music
On April 10, 2019, it was announced that Bear McCreary would be composing the score. In a statement, McCreary revealed that he was partially creating the film's music through a "toy orchestra" inspired by "Chucky’s toy-store origins" with toy pianos, hurdy gurdies, accordions, plastic guitars and otamatones.

Marketing
The first official image of Chucky was released on September 21, 2018. The teaser poster was released on November 12, 2018, revealing that for the film's adaptation the Good Guys dolls will be called Buddi, referencing the My Buddy doll that influenced the character's original design. A WiFi symbol over the "i" in "Buddi" teases the character's hi-tech functions in the film, being similar to robot toys, such as Furby and RoboSapien. Orion Pictures launched a marketing website, for the fictional Kaslan Corp, ahead of the film's release. The first trailer was released on February 8, 2019 to coincide with the release of The Prodigy.

The film's theatrical poster was released on April 17, 2019 and the second trailer on April 18, 2019. On April 30, 2019, a poster was revealed that parodies the teaser poster for Toy Story 4, featuring Chucky with a bloodied shoe, walking away from the remains of Sheriff Woody. This was followed by a second poster revealed on May 21, 2019, in which Chucky's hand is shown roasting the back half of Slinky Dog over a fire. Both films are slated for release on June 21, 2019. On May 16, 2019, a behind-the-scenes video was uploaded to Orion Pictures' YouTube channel, which shows how Chucky was brought to life for the film.

Release
The film is scheduled to be released in the United States on June 21, 2019. It will be the first film from Orion Pictures to be released through United Artists Releasing.

Future
At WonderCon, Grahame-Smith said that if this film does well, they would love to make more sequels.