Review - Five Nights at Freddy's 2 (2025)

       Hey guys, Chuck here. Five Nights at Freddy's 2 is the much anticipated sequel to the 2023 breakout hit Five Nights at Freddy's. Based on the game franchise by Scott Clayton, this movie was, once again, produced by Universal Pictures and Blumhouse, and sees the return of director Emma Tammi, and stars Josh Hutcherson, Elizabeth Lail, Piper Rubio, and Matthew Lillard, who are joined by newcomers Skeet Ulrich, McKenna Grace, Teo Briones, Freddy Carter, and Wayne Knight, with the voices of Kellen Goff, MatPat, and Megan Fox. 

      So, it's been a couple years since the events of the first movie, and while Mike Schmidt has found some peace in his life, his sister Abby is hopeful to reunite with the animatronics she befriended at Freddy's, while Vanessa Shelly is struggling to cope with the trauma she suffered years of due to her psychotic father William Afton. Meanwhile, a team of paranormal investigators are able to locate the ORIGINAL Freddy Fazbear's Pizza restaurant, with even more deadly animatronics like Marionette, Mangle, Balloon Boy, and the Toy Trio (Toy Freddy, Toy Bonnie, and Toy Chica). 

       Okay, so a few things I enjoyed about this movie. First, there are quite a few more animatronics in Five Nights at Freddy's 2 by comparison to the first one. For instance, we get the trio of Toy Freddy, Toy Bonnie, and Toy Chica, who are voiced respectively by Kellen Goff, MatPat, and Megan Fox. In addition, we also get the quartet of Withered Freddy, Bonnie, Chica, and Foxy. But, it's the likes of Mangle, Balloon Boy, and Marionette, who is the most prominent of the new animatronics. And, the design work done by Jim Henson Creature Shop on ALL of the animatronics was thoroughly fantastic. 

      Second, the performances were also really good. Josh Hutcherson and Elizabeth Lail as Mike and Vanessa were great, and Piper Rubio as Abby definitely is a much bigger player than she was in the first movie, and it certainly shows. Among the newcomers, my personal favorite was definitely Skeet Ulrich as Henry Emily. While returning in flashbacks, hallucinations, and dreams, Matthew Lillard as William Afton is just as haunting as he was in the first movie. 

      However, the plot this go around feels more bogged down with a bit more emphasis on lore building and fan service. Don't get me wrong, as someone who's followed a lot of the lore of the game franchise, I do appreciate the expansion on the lore, especially with two other new characters in the movie. However, this emphasis on lore, mostly due to the fact that franchise creator Scott Cawthon is also the screenwriter this time around, may alienate some.who aren't as familiar with the games. 

      Overall, while definitely not as good as the first movie, I think that fans of the game franchise will get the most out of Five Nights at Freddy's 2. So, I recommend it for fans, but that's it. 

       Alright guys, this is Chuck signing off, and I'll see you in the next review.