Matthew Lillard Teases Five Nights At Freddy’s 3 And “Luke Skywalker vs. Darth Vader” Showdown With Josh Hutcherson

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As a huge fan of the first Five Nights at Freddy’s movie – which really blew up at the box office for Blumhouse a couple of years ago – I was excited to see the sequel, Five Nights at Freddy’s 2! It’s directed by Emma Tammi, and interestingly, the story was co-written by the creator of the whole franchise, Scott Cawthon. The cast is packed with familiar faces, including Josh Hutcherson, Elizabeth Lail, Piper Rubio, and even Megan Fox! They’ve also included some fun nods to the online community with appearances by Matthew ‘MatPat’ Patrick, Kellen Goff, and Freddy Carter, alongside veterans like Skeet Ulrich and Matthew Lillard.

Inspired by the video game Five Nights at Freddy’s, the movie centers on Mike Schmidt, a security guard haunted by the pizzeria’s dark past. He must protect his little sister, Abby, from the ghosts of children murdered by William Afton, a serial killer who used the pizza place to hide his crimes. These children now inhabit the animatronic characters. While connected to the original game, the movie, particularly Five Nights at Freddy’s 2, expands the story in new ways and hints at future sequels.

Lillard recently shared that they’re hoping to make three movies in the series. He explained that a trilogy was the original idea, but whether they get to make more films depends on how well the current movie performs in cinemas.

I’m a big fan of the Five Nights at Freddy’s series, and it’s really interesting to hear how they planned things out. Apparently, when Scott Cawthon and Tammi made Five Nights at Freddy’s 2, they were already thinking about future games. That’s why you don’t see a ton of my favorite voice actor, Robert Lillard as William Afton, in that game – he mostly appears in flashbacks and dreams. As Lillard himself explained, it’s similar to how characters like Darth Vader in Star Wars or Voldemort in Harry Potter are introduced – they build up their presence over time. He admits he doesn’t have a massive role in FNaF 2, but he really loves the parts he does get to play, and honestly, so do I!

Early reviews for Five Nights at Freddy’s 2 were very negative, making a sequel seem unlikely. However, the film surprisingly became the number one movie this weekend, earning an estimated $56.5 million. While this is less than the original film’s opening weekend of $80 million, with a production budget of about $35 million, Five Nights at Freddy’s 2 is expected to be profitable. This means a third Five Nights at Freddy’s movie is now likely in development.

The movie’s end-credits scene hinted at the return of the villain, Afton, as Springtrap – a character well-known from the video games. This makes actor Josh Lillard’s idea that Afton will play a larger role in Five Nights at Freddy’s 3 seem more likely. The previous film, Five Nights at Freddy’s 2, also left some unanswered questions about Afton’s children. Vanessa, who was previously an ally to Mike, appears to be possessed by one of Afton’s victims. Meanwhile, her brother Michael remains missing and still seems determined to continue his father’s plans.

Lillard hinted that a potential sequel would feature more of his character, promising an epic showdown similar to Harry Potter versus Voldemort or Luke Skywalker versus Darth Vader. He expressed hope they’d be able to delve deeper into the story, but emphasized that the film needs to be financially successful for these plans to move forward.

The actor stated that a lot of work remains to bring audiences back to cinemas. Currently, Five Nights at Freddy’s 2 is showing in theaters.

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2025-12-07 06:48