Chucky, the character, has always had a bit of a God complex. So what happens when the pint-sized serial killer is plonked inside a legitimate religious setting, and is forced to confront something bigger than himself? Well, that's where Chucky season 2 comes in.
"A lot of the story takes place at this Catholic reform school where the kids get sent," franchise creator Don Mancini reveals in the new issue of SFX magazine, which features Chucky on the cover. "Why did they get sent there? You'll find out when the season begins! But yes, it's very connected to Chucky, of course."
The showrunner says he was influenced by titles such as The Omen and The Exorcist this time around. Given how heavy a theme 'possession' is to the series, it just seemed like the natural next step when the filmmaker sat down to plot out the fresh batch of episodes.
"One of the things I've liked doing over the years with the franchise is delving into different subgenres of horror, and one of my favorite subgenres of horror has always been the Catholic-based spooky horror movies," he explains. "So being able to put Chucky in that world – Chucky with priests and nuns and Chucky in a mass, in confession, intersecting all of that stuff, that was really a lot of fun. I think that people will get a kick out of that.”
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Over the years, Chucky, the franchise, has fully embraced its queer sensibilities, from Chucky and Tiffany's gender non-conforming child Glen/Glenda – who'll be played by Chilling Adventures of Sabrina star Lachlan Watson in season 2 – to the blossoming romance between Jake (Zackary Arthur), the show's lead, and Devon (Björgvin Arnarson). Away from Chucky's murderous antics, the new chapter – premiering on October 10 on USA and Syfy – will also explore the effects of religion-based prejudice on the youngsters.
"Of course they know that Catholics are not exactly down with the gays, and how does that affect [Jake and Devon's] relationship when they are now stuck in an institution that officially rejects them, officially tells them that they're wrong?" ponders Mancini. "I was raised in the Catholic Church, so that's something that I dealt with as a young gay kid.
"With season one, and the character of Jacob, it was more autobiographical than I'd ever been before. Which was a little scary, in a way. But I think it paid off because people responded to the realness of that stuff, with Jake and his father and Jake and Devon. So I wanted to continue to explore that. This is something that lots of gay kids, whether it's in the Catholic religion or whatever, a lot of religious institutions, as we know, are not down with the gays. So yeah, it's something to deal with."
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The above is just a snippet from the longer-read feature, available in the Chucky issue of SFX Magazine, which is out on newsstands now. For even more from SFX, sign up to the newsletter, sending all the latest exclusives straight to your inbox.
