Film

Five Nights at Freddy’s 2 gets first horrifying trailer

Jul 24
Written by Alastair James

Five Nights at Freddy’s 2 (Universal Pictures)

Five Nights at Freddy's 2 (Universal Pictures)

The creepy animatronics are back in Five Nights at Freddy’s 2, and they’re just as horrifying as ever.

The sequel to the 2023 horror phenomenon, based on the games of the same name, got its first trailer on Thursday (24 July) and it sees Josh Hutcherson and Elizabeth Lail come up against Freddy, Bonnie, Chica, and Foxy once again.

The trailer opens with a bunch of teens exploring the abandoned Freddy Fazbear’s Pizza place. But it’s not long before the horrors start revealing themselves. At the same time, ex-security guard, Mike (Hutcherson) and police officer, Vanessa (Lail) try to move on from the events of Five Nights at Freddy’s.

One year on from the first film, the events have inspired a local festival Fazfest. “But when Abby (Piper Rubio) sneaks out to reconnect with Freddy, Bonnie, Chica, and Foxy, it will set into motion a terrifying series of events, revealing dark secrets about the true origin of Freddy’s, and unleashing a long-forgotten horror hidden away for decades,” a synopsis for the film reads.

Josh Hutcherson in Five Nights at Freddy's 2 — Josh Hutcherson in Five Nights at Freddy’s 2 (Universal Pictures)

As well as Hutcherson and Lail, Five Nights at Freddy’s 2 also sees Theodus Crane and Matthew Lillard return as Jeremiah and killer William Afton respectively. Joining them will be Freddy Carter, Wayne Knight, Mckenna Grace, and horror icon Skeet Ulrich.

Returning to direct is Emma Tammi with a script written by Scott Cawthorn, the creator of the game series. The Texas-born video games developer is a controversial figure given his past political donations to the Republican Party. This also included some to Donald Trump’s failed 2020 election campaign.

Cawthorn’s doubling down on his political stance attracted criticism from the game’s LGBTQ+ fans. Ultimately, Cawthorn decided to step away from active game development as a result.

The same fans were upset earlier this year when it was announced that Dead by Daylight, which also has a strong LGBTQ+ following, would be introduce characters from the Five Nights at Freddy’s game in an update. Some, not all, have argued that Dead by Daylight is inadvertently supporting anti-LGBTQ+ sentiment by collaborating with Cawthorn and his horror series.