Around this time last year, audiences were gearing up for the arrival of the latest video game IP to make its way onto the big screen through Universal Pictures’ Five Nights at Freddy’s. The success rate of these types of projects is always a toss-up, but Five Nights more than lived up to expectations, earning an incredibly impressive $297.1 million at the global box office despite also being made available on Peacock the same day as its theatrical release. The movie’s financial gains were just as unstoppable as its gang of child ghost-haunted animatronic characters, and it soon became Blumhouse’s highest-grossing production at the worldwide box office. For the next few months, the film’s stars, including Matthew Lillard (Scream) and Josh Hutcherson (The Hunger Games franchise), voiced their excitement about a possible sequel. Then, finally, in April, Universal and Blumhouse took the stage at CinemaCon to reveal that the movie was a go, with the release date of December 5, 2025, announced shortly after.
Last month, we brought you the exclusive scoop that Five Nights at Freddy’s 2 would start production at the end of October and now, thanks to Lillard, we have an even more official start date. During a recent chat with Perri Nemiroff on Collider Forces, Lillard said:
“So this morning, I got a text with my dates. So, my dates are the
beginning of November and another series of dates
. So, we’re going to work.
I’m really thrilled
. I think the script’s fantastic.”
Matthew Lillard Is Stoked to Get Back to Work
With nothing but gratitude, Lillard said that he and the rest of the team were ready to get on with the next chapter in what is quickly blossoming into a fan-favorite horror franchise. He told Collider:
“[
Emma Tammi
’s] great. She’s really lovely. And Josh is great. The whole cast is great, and I think we’re all excited to come back. I think
we learned a lot in the first film
. I think
the second film is going to sort of benefit from those things
. We’re all excited about where the movie is at right now.”
For those who may not remember where the entertainment industry was during October of last year, the actors’ strike was still raging on, which meant that the cast of Five Nights at Freddy’s and others celebrating their releases during that time, were unable to do any sort of promotion. Above all else, it sounds like Lillard is most excited to jump on the promo train and not only spread the gospel of Five Nights 2 but also meet an entirely new generation of fans, adding:
“The last time the movie came out, none of us could promote it because we were all in a strike, and it was on Peacock but nobody really knew what was there.
I
knew because I’m in amongst the kids every weekend. I’ll have kids in
Five Nights
gear, a spring trap, or a Freddy costume. Like I said,
it’s rounding third base and coming home in a career to have something as iconic and beloved by such a new generation
. It is a special thing that everybody is very excited about. I hear about it all the time and I am excited, as well.”
Stay tuned to Collider for more information about Five Nights at Freddy’s 2. You can watch the original now on Prime Video. Stay tuned for Lillard’s full episode of Collider Forces.
Watch On Prime Video
