Chucky (Brad Dourif) has been a longtime horror villain since 1988. He is often listed among the most famous and iconic horror villains - however, unlike his villainous counterparts, Chucky has gone through many changes over his years in the horror genre. , from a completely serious killer in his early years to almost a parody in his later years. Nose Chucky The series just wrapped up its second season and we’re seeing more sides to the character than ever before. Sure, he’s still the same cold-blooded, witty little horror we know and love, but the series has brought even more sides to the character than we’ve ever seen.
long history
Chucky first began to terrorize the public back in 1988. Child Game. The film, of course, spawned several sequels - and, most interestingly, several versions of the main character. His character arc throughout the first three Child Game the films are a gradual rise to the more campy and bawdy persona for which he has become known. Bride of Chucky took both the character and the franchise in a whole new direction by bringing in Tiffany Valentine (Jennifer Tilly) and introducing the cheesy, witty Chucky we know and love.
Bride followed Offspring of Chucky which only expanded on the absurdity that was presented earlier and even gave us Chucky as a father figure. It’s a silly arc in the franchise, but there’s no denying the cultural impact the two films had on character development. Curse of Chucky as well as Cult of Chucky followed Seed (althoughCurse came out nine years later) and, interestingly, brought the franchise back to its more strictly horror roots. This pair of films were more moody, focused more on characters and story, and took a more serious approach, just like the original film.
Return to Form
Chucky can now be seen terrorizing the small screen, a move that was smart and plays to the strengths of a character who is a little terrifying all the time. Eight episodes where Chucky just messes around with people? It’s right in his lane, and it’s very interesting. While he has definitely gone through a lot of changes and evolved throughout the film franchise, he especially shines in the show’s two seasons (so far) and consistently shows more sides to him than we’ve ever seen before.
The first season of the show starts with Chucky having the same dynamic with Jake (Zachary Arthur) like he did with Andy (Alex Vincent) - behaves nicely and seems to be nothing unusual. Until Jake checks his battery pack and realizes he doesn’t have one. So it’s a twisted little mind game with a doll that acts like it wants to protect Jake, but of course we know it doesn’t. He quickly brainwashes Jake, saying that he only kills those who deserve it and hurts Jake - even briefly convincing him to kill Lexie (Alyvia Alyn Lind). It’s a classic mind game of Chucky trying to get others to do his dirty work for him and is fun to watch given the fact that his original confidant is much older than Andy and therefore harder to convince and confuse. Though not for lack of trying.
There is also a second Chucky who reveals himself in a twist, being hunted by Andy and Kyle (Christine Elise) all the way to South Carolina. This isn’t the first time we’ve dealt with multiple versions of the doll, and as the show will soon show, it won’t be the last. Tiffany (posing as Jennifer Tilly) informs the city of Hackensack that she has 72 Nice Guy dolls ready to be donated to hospitals across the country. With the (unknown) help of Junior (Theo Briones), Chucky is able to complete a voodoo spell that brings all 72 dolls to life.
Talking about Tiffany, she’s holding NikaFiona Dourif) in captivity, as she was previously possessed by Chucky in Cult and continues to be under his spell. Fiona Dourif’s work portraying both characters is phenomenal and she seamlessly switches between Nika and Chucky. It may also be the season’s most dangerous version of Chucky, as he controls the human body, and that’s really all he wanted throughout the franchise. There’s a lot more at stake in Nicky’s body, and so far we’ve seen very little of the human Chucky and what that might entail.
Abundance Chucky
The show’s second season proved to be a head-turner as we were properly introduced to three of the 72 Good Guy dolls introduced in the first season. Andy rides off a cliff to actually end Chucky’s reign of terror, but of course he doesn’t. be, and the aforementioned three dolls survived the crash. Interestingly, this gives us three completely different versions of the character.
Scout Chucky
First, there is “Scout” Chucky, who is sent to the Incarnate Lord, where Devon (Bjorgvin Arnarson), Lexi and Jake are sent. After one of the nuns succumbs to a heart attack caused by Chucky, the kids realize that Chucky is on the loose at the school and set out to hunt him down. They soon discover that this Chucky is only there to gather information on them, earning him the nickname Scout. To get this information from him, he is brainwashed. Unfortunately for the kids, this only erases his memories and he can’t provide any information, but it gives us an incredible side of Chucky that has never been explored before.
Scout Chucky is infantile. He hugs, tells cute jokes and sings songs - he is exactly what the Good Guy dolls were originally intended to be. However, his innocence is short-lived as he soon develops an identity crisis of sorts after Devon blames him for the death of his mother and the rest of the victims in the first season. Jake, however, sees the good in him and chooses to have him baptized with the help of Nadine (Bella Higginbotham). But again, due to his roots coming from pure evil, he eventually returns to the habits behind him and kills the fly without any adverse reaction. He is still aware that his existence is linked to evil, and after confusing Nadine’s words, he pushes her out the window to her death. Although short-lived, this is one of the most dynamic versions of Chucky we’ve ever seen. It’s also one of the funniest moments as it’s completely weird to see him act so cute and feel completely wrong for the character. Naturally, his time on the show is short, but it’s an interesting and never-before-seen take on Chucky that was fun to explore.
Buff Chucky
A second Chucky is brought to the school, but unlike the first, this Chucky is muscular and burly, with a low, derisive voice. He quickly counts the number of victims as O’Malley’s father (Ian D. Clark) and Trevor (Jordan Kronis) - killing the last of the two by punching a hole in his chest, thereby demonstrating his terrible superpower. He was soon poisoned by Colonel Chucky, but there’s no denying Chucky’s Buff was a fun addition despite his minimal screen time. Chucky has always had unnatural strength considering he’s a doll, but we’ve never seen him this tough and strong. He’s done a lot in previous films that you just have to suspend your distrust with, but this version of the doll seems much more in line with some of his past antics. Plus, his look is so unlike anything we’ve seen in the franchise.
Colonel Chucky
The Colonel is the latest version of Chucky we meet and is the meanest and most grotesque of them all. After surviving the crash, he hired the remaining Chucks to bring Andy back to a secluded cabin near the school. In the end, he killed all the remaining Chakas and scattered their parts throughout the forest. He spends a year torturing Andy, gradually removing pieces of his flesh while he is still alive. It is revealed that Colonel Chucky was the one who sent Scout Chucky to gather information, and he was also the one who sent Buff Chucky after he could no longer contact Scout. This version of Chucky really plays up the sadistic ways we’ve seen him dabble in, but never gets to the point where he hooks up with Andy this season. We’ve never seen Chucky torture someone for so long and it’s scary to see it now.
With every new Chucky we get a new part of Charles Lee Ray
With each new version of Chucky revealed, it seems like a separate part of Charles Lee Ray’s soul is shared between them - as if each Chucky represents the only part of him that has never been fully revealed. The Scout retains the grace that the Good Guy dolls were supposed to have, as well as the friendliness he initially showed towards Andy. Chucky’s buff showcases the brutality and love of violence that was evident from the start but developed over the course of the films. The Colonel seems to be the pure evil that overwhelmingly makes up Chucky as a whole.
As unusual as the concept of multiple Chucks may have initially seemed, the show has brilliantly played with it and cleverly given us so many new sides to the character that bode well and provides complete entertainment and intrigue. The movies have certainly become classics and will forever be loved, but the series might just be the best version of it we’ve ever seen. This helped turn Chucky into a more modernized version of himself that draws in new audiences while staying true to and expanding on his roots. This only proves that Chucky will always be a mainstay of the horror genre.
Source: Collider
