I have been told by certifiable weirdos that M3GAN, the first movie coming out of a newly formed pact between Jason Blum and James Wan, has got the goods. Based on one whispered report, the latest iteration of the Evil Doll genre is more deranged than it looks. And, frankly, it looks deranged!
The setup to M3GAN is a bit like Steven Spielberg’s A.I.: Get Out’s Allison Williams stars as Gemma, a toy-company roboticist who brings her latest creation, M3GAN, home for her recently orphaned niece. The doll is part play thing, part babysitter, but M3GAN’s protective instincts go full HAL 9000 and, well, all hell breaks loose.
Directed by Gerard Johnstone (Housebound) and written by Akela Cooper (Malignant, The Nun 2), M3GAN hopes to defy the Bad January Movies curse to give horror fiends something to chew on through the cold winter by also defying genre convention. Yes, the trailer promises some ridiculous kills in the slasher vein, but there are just as many comedy beats sprinkled throughout. If Malignant is any indication, we should expect something slightly more unhinged than a Child’s Play redux.
M3GAN hits theaters on Jan. 6, 2023.