Is Chucky Still Out There, or Did Child’s Play 2 Vanish Into a Black Hole of Horror History?
Added on October 27, 2025 inEntertainment News Cards, Movie News Cards
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Ever wonder what cosmic chaos it takes to almost kill off a killer doll franchise before it really even gets started? Well, today’s tale is stormier than a Mercury retrograde on Halloween night! Chucky—our favorite pint-sized psychopath—was ready to come back with a vengeance in Child’s Play 2, but fate, studio politics, and a dash of Spielberg magic had other plans. Imagine a horror sequel so close to being axed because the new studio overlords had moral compasses spinning like a weathervane in a tornado, all while a secret script lurked in the shadows that could’ve twisted the entire franchise into a gothic asylum escape saga. Spoiler alert: it didn’t, and thank goodness it didn’t! Pull up a chair, pour yourself something sharp (but not as sharp as Chucky’s ruler), and let’s dive into how this sequel pulled itself from the brink, giving us more than just nightmares—it gave us a legend. Ready for the bloody details? LEARN MORE
Chucky is supposed to be your friend to the end. But his first sequel was almost the end of his franchise before it even began. Not because it was a bad film, nor because it wasn’t financially successful. Rather, because of a studio acquisition by a company who didn’t want their image marred by a red headed murder doll with a filthy mouth or horror in general. Today’s movie is a sequel that helped birth a franchise, almost fumbled that franchise, only to pack up and move their stuff across town to a studio built by the monsters of old. With the help of none other than Steven Spielberg. Death, disfigurement, and mutilation. A new horror icon, and a secret script from the scribe of Pumpkinhead that could have changed the course of the entire franchise as we know it. This is what happened to Child’s Play 2.
In the mid-80s, United Artists bought the rights to Don Mancini’s original Child’s Play script specifically because they saw sequel potential in the concept. Mainstays like Michael Myers and Jason Voorhees were on their fourth and seventh movies by 1988 and it was time for a new boogeyman to start cranking out sequels. When Child’s Play became one of the company’s most profitable films in recent memory, work on Child’s Play 2 began immediately. Literally within the week.
A lot of how Child’s Play 2 came together stemmed directly from experiences working on the first film, both good and bad. Original director, Fright Night’s Tom Holland, was offered the chance to return and politely declined. Likely in part due to his disagreements with producers and other writers while working on the inaugural classic. Meanwhile, Child’s Play writers Don Mancini and John Lafia had forged a friendship with each other and producer David Kirschner during the battles they faced on the first run. Lafia had originally thrown his hat in the ring for director of Child’s Play but was passed over due to lack of experience. This time, with a couple episodes of Freddy’s Nightmares and feature film The Blue Iguana under his belt, he was given the green light to direct and once again co-write with Mancini. Everything seemed great between the trio but behind the scenes, the studio commissioned Pumpkinhead writer Mark Patrick Carducci (and possibly others) to pen his own version as well. Just in case Mancini and Lafia proved to be unable to quickly get an approval worthy script ready with a built-in release date just two years away.
Not a lot is known about Carducci’s script other than that it was said to be darker, more gothic, and feature Andy committed to an insane asylum in the aftermath of the 1988 film. It sounds like it could have been a bit of a Dream Warriors type situation where Andy and some other children in the hospital band together to escape Chucky via underground tunnels. Had MGM and United Artist’s chosen Carducci’s script; Mancini may have never continued his work on the franchise he’s helped steward ever since. This would have effectively changed every bit of the Child’s Play franchise as we know it to be. If that would have been better or worse in the long run could be up for debate (we all saw Seed of Chucky). But one thing is for certain…this particular sequel turned out pretty damn good.
The original plans for Child’s Play 2 were to bring back both Andy Barclay, his mother Karen, and Detective Norris. In fact, the script’s opening scene took place in a court room where we actually see her being committed to a Psychological Institute rather than being quickly informed of it via exposition. The way this is handled in the film kind of reminds you a bit of Scream VI and the script’s explanation for the absence of Sidney Prescott with Gale stating, “She deserves her happy ending” and the plot dutifully moving on. The scene was cut for budgetary reasons, but ironically, Catherine Hicks was still a regular on set due to her husband Kevin Yagher once again handling the animatronics. They would end up using this courtroom scene for the ending of 2013’s Curse of Chucky instead. Bride of Chucky would also benefit from another unused Child’s Play 2 script moment that featured Chucky’s remains stored next to Michael Myers and Jason Voorhees in police evidence.
Seven drafts later (including one which took place during Christmas), the script was ready to go. It would pair returning Andy actor Alex Vincent with actress Christine Elise as his older foster sister, Kyle. Elise ended up beating out the likes of Kirsty Swanson and Shannen Doherty for the role. And you can see why. The actress feels like a Friday the 13th sequel victim with her over the top style and attitude. Specifically Violet from Friday the 13th: A New Beginning. But she has the personality and spunk of a capable final girl who can protect Andy while going toe to toe with Chuck. Much like Rachel from Halloween 4 and 5, it always felt like Kyle should’ve returned as a franchise mainstay. For what it’s worth, she did return years later in seven episodes of the Syfy series Chucky. Andy and Kyle would pair off against the returning voice of the legend Brad Dourif as Charles Lee Ray.
In the movie, Andy is tormented by Chucky and a new group of adults who once again refuse to believe him. Including Sparkle Motion’s own Beth Grant. Who dies by….the dull blade on a ruler? It’s a great kill none the less. Also cast were Jenny Agutter as Foster Mom and Gerrit Graham as extremely punchable Foster Dad. He never does anything specifically awful to Andy, he’s just the ultimate Step-dick archetype. Not to forget the perfectly slimy butt kissing business man Mattson, played by Greg Germann.
Speaking of squirrely uptight business buttholes in suits, Child’s Play 2 was cancelled by United Artists a week into pre-production due to their potential murder and execution by a company called Qintex. This new company had been set to take over management of Kirschner and the entirety of UA once their $1.5 billion dollar deal went through. During negotiations, Qintex (stupid name by the way) allegedly informed UA that they wanted the film dumped from their release schedule on moral grounds. They didn’t want to be associated with the horror genre now, nor in the future. Regardless of how much money the previous film made. If you ever need a refresher on how the rest of Hollywood stuck their nose up at the horror genre in years past, this is a pretty good one.
What sucked about the situation was that UA agreed to this nonsense. What was hilarious about the situation is that after all that, the deal fell through anyway. What will have you rolling on the floor full blown giggling is that the same morally superior guy who ran Qintex turned out to be a financial criminal, escaping on his high horse to Spain in hiding because he owed a whopping $700 million dollars in personal debt. Tell us again how righteous you are, Chris.
Finally, Kirschner bought back the rights to his franchise and aimed to take Chucky elsewhere. There was a mini bidding war breaking out for those who weren’t too good to dabble in the dark arts, but it was a call on behalf of famed director Steven Spielberg to Kirschner that convinced them to join forces with Universal. The rest is history.
The production would begin in Southern California in 1989 and last for ten weeks. Establishing shots were gathered in Chicago, while a warehouse in Valencia, California was converted into the Nickelodeon-esque factory seen in the end of the film. If you’ve ever noticed a strange Tim Burton like quality to the feel of Child’s Play 2, it’s likely due to newly hired cinematographer Stefan Czapsky. Whether it’s the foster parents creepy house or the factory in the final set piece, it was no surprise to find out that Czapsky would also end up as the director of photography of such works as Edward Scissorhands and Batman Returns.
When it came to the most important part of production…Chucky, obviously…Kevin Yagher was brought back to handle the animatronics after his stellar work on the first film. In between movies, he worked on a little show called Tales from the Crypt and aided in the creation of the one and only Cryptkeeper. Something that would give him more confidence and ideas when returning to the Chuckster. While Lafia was against the idea of bringing back little person Ed Gale to supplement the tougher shots of Chucky in action, the studio hired him anyway as an insurance policy in case shooting got behind. Something that due to Lafia’s constant pursuit of perfection (including filming a car parking scene NINETEEN times) was a constant threat. In the end though, they only needed to use Gale for two scenes. Meanwhile, it was decided that Yagher, with Lafia present as well, would helm second unit directorial duties at night to accommodate the time consuming task and all that comes with bringing Chucky to life.
Fun fact, if you’ve ever noticed that starting with this sequel, it seems like Chucky drags out certain words a little longer? It’s because they learned between films to purposefully slow down his voice to make it easier for the words to match up with Chucky’s animatronic face. A double stroke of good luck, as the slow draw adds a unique and sometimes hilarious effect to some of Chuck’s best insults.
Even the sound of Child’s Play 2 is a step above many films in the franchise. The Crow composer Graeme Revell crafted an ahead of its time score with a weight to it, usually reserved for bigger box office epics. To get the job, Revell lied to producers that he had worked with a large size orchestra before, knowing darn well he hadn’t. And it’s a good thing he did.
For marketing, a 1-900 number was set up for fans to call that would spout off pre-recorded Chucky lines. The number received 40,000 phone calls within three weeks. The fever pitch for Chucky was at an all time high. Backed by a slew of positive test screenings and the feeling at Universal that the studio had a massive hit on their hands.
Child’s Play 2 finally debuted worldwide on November 9, 1990, a week after Jacob’s Ladder and a week before Rocky V, The Rescuers Down Under, and Home Alone. It opened up number one on its opening weekend to the tune of over $11 million dollars. Well above its predecessor. However, it would ultimately make less than the first Child’s Play, likely due to strong competition in the follow up weeks that included the aforementioned films as well as Dances with Wolves, Predator 2, and Misery. They really don’t make ’em like they did in the 90s, folks.
Child’s Play 2 would still be considered a success, pulling in over $35 million total. Which, is over $86 million adjusted for inflation today. Critically, I mean….how did you expect a killer doll movie sequel to go over with critics in 1990? The film received your typical offended and glasses pushing takes as well as some arguments it wasn’t as good nor original as the first film. Over time though, as they often do, takes have changed for many, and it’s become one of the favorites among fans of the franchise. Including this one. Oh and by the way helped spawn a franchise that like Chucky, has proven to be seemingly unkillable. That, my friends, is what happened to Child’s Play 2. The best sequel in the franchise? You tell us in the comments below! Thanks for watching.
A couple of the previous episodes of this show can be seen below. To see more, head over to our JoBlo Horror Originals YouTube channel – and subscribe while you’re there!
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