The next big horror franchise to get the reboot treatment is Child's Play. Over the weekend at WonderCon it was revealed that the new voice of the killer doll will be none other than Mark Hamill. The remake is currently a somewhat controversial project, but the announcement of Hamill's involvement has received a major endorsement from the co-writer and director of the original film, Tom Holland, who took to Twitter to call the casting a "smart movie."
While Chucky might not be quite in the same league as horror icons like Jason Voorhees or Freddy Krueger, the homicidal little doll certainly has a devoted fan base, which has been enjoying new Chucky films right up until recently. It's only been two years since the last film in the franchise was released, making the reboot a somewhat surprising decision for many.
Don Mancini, who originally created the character, and co-wrote the screenplay for the first film with Holland, has made it clear that he's less than thrilled with the remake. He's currently working on his own Child's Play TV series, but since he doesn't own the rights to the original movie, the remake is moving forward without him.
Tom Holland, not the Spider-Man guy, who also directed the original Fright Night and wrote Psycho II, has largely remained quiet regarding his feelings about the Child's Play remake. His endorsement of Mark Hamill isn't necessarily an endorsement of the project as a whole. One can certainly agree with a casting choice, even in a movie that you don't care for overall.
And it's unlikely many will take issue with this casting choice. While Mark Hamill will forever be known first as Luke Skywalker, the second thing that he's known for is his career as a voice actor. His most famous role in that regard is as the Joker in Batman: The Animated Series, which he has gone on to continue in numerous other Batman video games, animated movies, and other series.
Hamill is a great voice actor and there's little doubt he'll create a unique and interesting character with the new Chucky. The trailers haven't given us that good a look at the crazed doll, and his voice was obviously being kept back for a major reveal. Now that we have it, perhaps we'll get a new trailer soon that lets us hear Chucky's new voice.
Fans, especially those that strongly support Child's Play creator Tom Mancini, are likely still withholding judgement. Many like Jennifer Tilly who co-starred in several of the Child's Play sequels, have come out very publicly against the remake. Will the new Chucky be able to sway any of them to give the new movie a chance? We'll have to wait and see.
