James Wan, 48, Claims the 'M3GAN' Spin-Off Will Be "More Adult"

With M3GAN 2.0 currently playing in theaters, the sequel to the 2022 hit, fans have high hopes for what comes next: the upcoming M3GAN spin-off, SOULM8TE. Scheduled for early next year, the follow-up was announced in development in June 2024, with Kate Dolan directing and rewriting the screenplay, based on a previous draft written by Rafael Jordan. Furthermore, M3GAN co-producer James Wan will return in the same capacity through his company Atomic Monster, and unsurprisingly, he has grand plans for SOULM8TE, which he recently shared with EW, teasing a more grown-up perspective.

In SOULM8TE, slated to release in theaters in January 2026, David Rysdahl plays a man who acquires an artificially intelligent android to cope with the loss of his recently deceased wife. He attempts to create a truly sentient partner but inadvertently turns a supposedly harmless love-bot into a deadly soulmate. Evil Dead Rise star Lily Sullivan portrays the android, while Claudia Doumit and Oliver Cooper also appear. Jason Blum co-produces under Blumhouse Productions, like in M3GAN and its sequel.

Speaking about the R-rated erotic thriller, which was already shot in New Zealand and is now in post-production, Wan compared it to its predecessor, M3GAN, noting the differences viewers should expect, saying:

“M3GAN, obviously, dabbles in the PG-13 world, the younger demographic. We always felt like there might be a more adult story to tell, and that’s really what SOULM8TE is. SOULM8TE is basically set in the same AI world but seen through a more grown-up perspective, one that embraces all the great erotic thrillers from the ’90s. It’s like Fatal Attraction but with robots.”

‘SOULM8TE’ Is as Darkly Humorous as ‘M3GAN’

Wan had even more to tease about SOULM8TE, which, according to him, still has “that darkest sense of humor” from the main M3GAN movies. He also admitted to the challenge of replicating “that sassiness that M3GAN has,” adding that the plan is definitely not to repeat their past work with the original, as it “has fully staked a claim to that style of humor.”

Allison Williams, who stars in both M3GAN and M3GAN 2.0 and serves as an executive producer on SOULM8TE, also provided an update on the spin-off, particularly the storyline, saying:

“It’s already happening in parts of the world. These (companion-type sex-bots) exist. So it felt irresistible to then say, if a M3GAN existed in our world, someone would take that tech and put it in the form of a female-bodied person whose sole purpose on the planet is to pleasure a person. We extrapolate from there.”

SOULM8TE is set to land in theaters in 2026. Stay tuned to Collider for future details about the production. In the meantime, catch up on M3GAN 2.0, now playing in theaters.