There’s a New CHILD’S PLAY Documentary in the Works

Released in 1988, Child’s Play made a horror icon out of a diminutive devil doll named Chucky and has gone on to become one of horror’s most storied franchises. Directed by Tom Holland from a screenplay penned by Don Mancini, Child’s Play stars Chris Sarandon, Catherine Hicks, Alex Vincent, and Brad Dourif as the voice of Chucky.

Also Read: Amber Alert Issued in Texas for CHILD’S PLAY’s Chucky & Glen–No Really!

Synopsis:
Gunned down by Detective Mike Norris (Chris Sarandon), dying murderer Charles Lee Ray (Brad Dourif) uses black magic to put his soul inside a doll named Chucky — which Karen Barclay (Catherine Hicks) then buys for her young son, Andy (Alex Vincent). When Chucky kills Andy’s babysitter, the boy realizes the doll is alive and tries to warn people, but he’s institutionalized. Now Karen must convince the detective of the murderous doll’s intentions before Andy becomes Chucky’s next victim.

Child’s Play would spawn 6 sequels, a reboot, and there’s a TV series called Chucky gearing up to hit Syfy and USA this fall.

Now, master effects artist Tony Gardner (Return of the Living Dead, DarkmanAliens) and his daughter Kyra Gardner are hoping to release a new Child’s Play documentary–and you can help!

“I am fundraising in order to afford clip and music rights licensing for my feature film documentary on the Child’s Play franchise titled, Living With Chucky,” Kyra Garner says on the film’s GoFundMe Page. “This is also to finish our post-production work on the film, such as sound mixing, color grading, and creating a chain of title for the movie. All in the hopes for distribution to a streaming service this October.”

She continues, “I grew up in the film and was raised by a parent prominent in the horror genre. For me, fake dead bodies, puppets, and monsters were part of the family. My dad, Tony Gardner, is a special effects makeup artist and his work has always had a huge impact on me. He’s done all kinds of things from Return of the Living Dead, to DarkmanAliens, 127 Hours, The Addams Family, Hocus Pocus, and more. But most importantly he came onto the Child’s Play franchise when I was four years old to create the killer doll Chucky.

“Long story short, Chucky has been at the helm of my childhood and I consider him to be my little (older) brother. During my sophomore year at film school at Florida State University, I decided to make a documentary on growing up alongside the Child’s Play franchise called, “The Dollhouse.” The film opened at and premiered for Cult of Chucky at film festivals such as Toronto After Dark and Fright Fest. It was such an amazing experience for me that I am so grateful to have. Eventually, NBCUniversal ended up purchasing and distributing the seven-minute short onto the Cult of Chucky and box set DVD bonus features.

“I had over eight hours of interview footage with actors and crew from the Childs Play franchise. And felt that a seven-minute short on a cult horror franchise that has lasted over thirty years just didn’t do it justice. Considering I had so much footage already, I decided to film more interviews with other cast members in my spare time throughout the rest of college such as Jennifer Tilly and Alex Vincent. After graduating I sought out remaining cast members that were based in Los Angeles and sat down to edit the feature length film – intending to go to the film festival circuit with the documentary.”

You can read more about the project (and contribute to its completion, if you are so inclined, HERE.

Also Read: Jennifer Tilly Shares Cast Photos from the Set of CHUCKY!

Are you a fan of the Child’s Play franchise? Let us know in the comments below or on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram! You can also carry on the convo with me personally on Twitter @josh_millican. Dread Central is now on Google News!

Share: 
Tags:

Categorized:

Sign up for The Harbinger a Dread Central Newsletter