Spoiler-Free Review of “Five Nights at Freddy’s 2” in Theaters: An Underwhelming Sequel

*This is a spoiler-free review so feel free to read on!*

“Are you ready to start the show?”

Five Nights at Freddy’s 2 released in theaters on December 5th 2025. Based on the popular video game, the horror film stars Josh Hutcherson, Elizabeth Lail, Piper Rubio, Mckenna Grace, Skeet Ulrich and Matthew Lillard. The film runs for an hour and forty-five minutes.

After the horrific events at Freddy Fazbear’s Pizzeria, Mike, Abby, and Vanessa learn that a new threat has emerged at the original Freddy’s, threatening to destroy them all.

Here is the trailer:

Five Nights at Freddy’s 2 is an exhausting sequel with little charm, but it does feature two legendary scream kings on the big screen. Is it worthy of YOUR next watch? Let’s find out…

The Pros:

Images courtesy of Universal Pictures

Billy and Stu are back! Well…kind of.

Look, I’ll take what I can get! I really didn’t enjoy the first film that much, but I was happy that Matthew Lillard was in it. The only reason I showed up to see the second one was to witness both Matthew Lillard AND Skeet Ulrich on screen. I mean…talk about a dream come true!

Sure…they needed more screen time, but it was fun seeing them both in this even though I’m pretty sure that the majority of the audience (kids under 14) had no idea who they were.

A cool new addition.

I thought the addition of the Marionette worked well for the most part. This movie didn’t have any major scares to it, but the creepy factor was there and I think that she was a cool character to explore. Things would have felt completely stale if we were just dealing with the same exact characters again so there’s that.

Unfortunately the pros stop here…

The Cons:

Images courtesy of Universal Pictures

Forced character side plots…

This is one of those sequels that would have benefited from a completely new cast. Having Mike, Vanessa, and Abby back in the mix may have seemed like a good idea, but the execution didn’t come across well. Everything felt exhausting, boring, and drawn out. Every major plot point had a convenient solution and I lost the partial investment I had in these characters from the first film.

Silly scares.

I know this is more of a kid-friendly horror film, but it’s still horror so I would have liked a few more authentic scares. The jump scares felt gimmicky and I think they wasted the potential of the Marionette. The reveals at the end felt so desperate and I honestly couldn’t wait for this to be over. I sprinted out of the theater…

So am I in or out?

Images courtesy of Universal Pictures

Unfortunately I’m out on this one…

Five Nights at Freddy’s 2 exhausts everything from the original film, proving to be a completely unnecessary sequel with not much to say at all…

Sure, there were a few fun moments and I loved seeing Lillard and Ulrich in this, but this was lacking in some major fun.

I hope you enjoyed the review and feel free to post your own thoughts and theories on Five Nights at Freddy’s 2 in the comments section below. Thanks so much for reading and happy viewing!

Best,

Amy Koto, TV Fanatic Girl

DON’T TAKE THE JOB…

It was only supposed to be temporary…but when Olivia Crewe accepts a new position that seems too good to be true, she soon discovers that twelve other girls previously had the same job as her. Only none of them lasted for more than thirty days. No notice. Nothing…right before they mysteriously disappeared without a trace.

My supernatural thriller Girl Number Thirteen is out now! I hope you enjoy!

Girl Number Thirteen is available here!

**If you enjoyed this blog, I would love it if you would click the follow button on your way out to subscribe.  Thanks for your support!

Spoiler-Free Review of “Five Nights at Freddy’s” on Peacock: Welcome Back to Horror, Matthew Lillard!

*This is a spoiler-free review so feel free to read on!*

“I have a job for you…”

Five Nights at Freddy’s released in theaters and on Peacock on October 27th 2023. Based on the popular video game, the horror film stars Josh Hutcherson, Elizabeth Lail, Piper Rubio, and Matthew Lillard. The film runs for an hour and forty-nine minutes.

A security guard with a troubled past takes a job at Freddy Fazbear’s Pizzeria, quickly learning that the performing animatronics may have a few dangerous tricks up their sleeves.

Here is the trailer:

Five Nights at Freddy’s has some fun moments for fans of the video game, but it ultimately takes itself too seriously instead of indulging in some needed camp. Is it worthy of YOUR next watch? Let’s find out…

The Pros:

Images courtesy of Peacock

All hail, Matthew Lillard!

It’s no secret that I’m a huge fan of Matthew Lillard and that Stu Macher from Scream is one of my all-time favorite horror characters. I was thrilled to see him in this one and he was the main reason why I tuned in. He delivered his role perfectly. I hope he appears in some more horror films soon because he’s always a blast to watch.

Josh Hutcherson from The Hunger Games did a solid job as well with what he was given and I truly believed the bond between his character and his little sister, which helped me invest in this film a little bit more.

Images courtesy of Peacock

Impressive design on the animatronics.

I was worried that they would seem outrageous and really silly, but I was personally impressed by the animatronics coming to life on screen.

I also thought that this film was a nice step up from kids horror. Pre-teens will probably love certain parts of this film and I think that it’s a fun introduction to the horror genre. I’d recommend kids under twelve watching it with supervision, however.

The Cons:

Images courtesy of Peacock

Too much set-up…

I could have personally done without the repetitive flashbacks and dragged out set-up in the beginning. This film wasn’t scary at all and it tried to be like too many other films. It would have benefited from some campy, ridiculous fun, which would have been pure B movie magic gold, but this route was very forgettable.

Willy’s Wonderland did a much better job of this…

The pacing was also really sluggish at times and the dialogue was uninspiring. I’d say that wouldn’t really matter if we had some inventive kills in the mix or some dry humor, but everything was really watered down.

So am I in or out?

Images courtesy of Peacock

I’m 50/50 on this one…

Five Nights at Freddy’s takes a safe and mostly bland route instead of just having fun with this material. There were some entertaining moments sprinkled into the mix, but I’m not sure that I would watch this again.

I hope you enjoyed the review and feel free to post your own thoughts and theories on Five Nights at Freddy’s in the comments section below. Thanks so much for reading and happy viewing!

Best,

Amy Koto, TV Fanatic Girl

DON’T TAKE THE JOB…

It was only supposed to be temporary…but when Olivia Crewe accepts a new position that seems too good to be true, she soon discovers that twelve other girls previously had the same job as her. Only none of them lasted for more than thirty days. No notice. Nothing…right before they mysteriously disappeared without a trace.

My supernatural thriller Girl Number Thirteen is out now! I hope you enjoy!

Girl Number Thirteen is available here!

**If you enjoyed this blog, I would love it if you would click the follow button on your way out to subscribe.  Thanks for your support!