It’s always interesting to see how a studio responds when a poorly reviewed movie makes a killing. The first Five Nights at Freddy’s is an inert bore for anyone not already invested in the video game franchise, but it’s also Blumhouse’s highest-grossing film ever, despite a simultaneous streaming release. A sequel was inevitable – and, with it, an opportunity to do things differently.
Five Nights at Freddy’s 2 is certainly different, I’ll give it that. It’s far more ambitious with both the storytelling and scares, and sports a noticeable jump in production value. But this sequel is a convoluted mess of ideas and bad instincts, merely trading the original’s sin for another. It squanders what tension it manages to generate in favor of building out a world that only feels smaller the more it tries to expand.
Five Nights At Freddy’s 2 Drowns In Its Own Lore
Attempting to synopsize this film is liable to leave you winded, splintered as it is. Mike (Josh Hutcherson), Abby (Piper Rubio), and Vanessa (Elizabeth Lail) are attempting to adjust to more normal lives after surviving the events of the first film, which, having finally solved his brother’s case, is proving easiest for Mike. Abby is adjusting well at school, but still misses her ghost friends; Mike has told her the animatronics are broken and has promised to fix them, but seems to be hiding the truth from her. Vanessa has physically recovered from standing up to her serial killer father (Matthew Lillard), but remains thoroughly traumatized. In one of FNAF 2‘s best sequences, she even tries out Mike’s technique of confronting her demons through dreams.
But her past is destined to resurface. The film opens with an ’80s flashback to the flagship Freddy Fazbear’s Pizza, revealing the first movie’s location was merely a franchise. This restaurant boasted a special, spindly animatronic called the Marionette, which wirelessly controlled the others during their performances. After a girl named Charlotte quite publicly died there, it became the first Freddy’s to close, and now, 20 years later, her ghost is stirring. When her murderous agenda puts Abby in her path, our heroes once again find themselves in grave danger.
This is just the streamlined version of FNAF 2‘s story. There’s plenty more to keep track of – Abby’s robotics competition sideplot; a shifty new security guard; Skeet Ulrich as Charlotte’s conspiratorial father – and the clutter hurts the movie. It plays less like a complex web of characters than someone trying to cram in as much detail as they can, with no concern for the shape and flow of the story. More time is spent on ominously vague conversations than fleshing out, say, Charlotte’s motivations, which end up feeling embarrassingly rushed.
In terms of fear factor, the animatronics are a mixed bag. The Marionette is the one clear success, sporting both a clever design and a tendency to rush the camera jump-scare style, which is done just the right amount of times. The returning characters get a techy upgrade along with the new setting, but the slow, shiny, thudding machines just aren’t frightening, especially once outside the confines of the pizzeria. In several scenes, they register as so non-threatening that it becomes impossible to take the movie seriously, even when things get violent.
Frustratingly, Five Nights at Freddy’s 2 is also guilty of showing its own potential. Acknowledging how the first movie was embraced by the games’ young fanbase, the sequel includes an in-world revival of Freddy’s popularity, fueled by snippets of what happened to Mike and Abby making it into the press. For a while, it feels like the film might be turned over to the kids, who are all preparing for a costumed event called Fazfest. This promised a compelling setting, where the children are made vulnerable by their own fandom, but alas, this storyline is ultimately tossed aside to make way for the next aggressively signposted Easter egg.
Outside a few effective moments, there’s very little to recommend about FNAF 2 for those who would like more than a multimillion-dollar vehicle for game lore. The dialogue is clunky and almost universally awkwardly performed, much more so than in the first movie. The tonal mix of horror and silliness feels more jarring than complementary, and the filmmaking, which could accomplish so much just by sticking to genre fundamentals, is often egregiously sedate.
By the movie’s plot-heavy climax, I had long since lost the battle to stay engaged. Let’s hope the third time’s the charm for this franchise.
- Release Date
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December 5, 2025
- Director
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Emma Tammi
- Writers
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Scott Cawthon
- Producers
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Jason Blum, Scott Cawthon
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Matthew Lillard
William Afton
