Josh Hutcherson calls 'Five Nights at Freddy's 2' 'scarier' than the original, with 'different animatronics introduced'

Josh Hutcherson has given some insight into the ‘Five Nights at Freddy’s 2’ sequel, saying “it’s going to be scarier” than the first film.

“It’s a lot bigger; the stakes are higher,” Hutcherson told Esquire. “More and more animatronics are being introduced, different animatronics are introduced and the world opens up in a big way.

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He added: “We’re currently finding the balance between building this world and expanding it in a really cool way, while also making sure the characters stay really grounded. That’s something that I really think we all fought for in the first movie, because this world that was created in “Five Nights at Freddy’s” is so extravagant. It’s so over-the-top and wacky, in a way, that finding the emotional truth of the characters was going to be what was going to work.

“Five Nights at Freddy’s,” which debuted in October 2023, became one of the year’s box office hits with nearly $300 million worldwide against a reported budget of $20 million. , despite the opening day and date on Peacock. The sequel, which would follow the events of the second video game in the “FNAF” franchise, is scheduled to hit theaters on December 5, 2025.

“I think the fans are going to fall for it,” Hutcherson said of the sequel. “It’s going to be a lot of fun with the source. In fact, it’s also going to be scarier.

Directed by Emma Tammi (who returns for the sequel), “Five Nights at Freddy’s” follows Mike (Hutcherson), a security guard working at the graveyard of Freddy Fazbear’s Pizza, an abandoned arcade restaurant. Mike, whose younger brother was kidnapped as a child, soon learns that the pizzeria’s cuddly mascots are actually murderous robots controlled by “ghost children” and he must save his younger sister Abby before she become the next victim.

As the video game franchise has a total of 21 titles (10 mainline games and various spinoffs), the source material is vast for additional movie sequels. Asked by Esquire if he would return for more “FNAF” films after the second, Hutcherson replied, “You never know. I mean, I love working in this world. Emma Tammi, our director, is phenomenal, and with my character, Mike, I think the possibilities are endless. This could have a very long run and it could be a lot of fun, but at this point we’re focused on the second movie. We’ll see what happens next.

“Five Nights at Freddy’s 2” comes from Universal Pictures and Blumhouse Productions.

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