How 'M3GAN 2.0' wooed Kate Bush for that demented needle drop

USA Today

a day ago

Spoiler alert! We're discussing minor details about the new action comedy 'M3GAN 2.0' (in theaters now).
It wouldn't be a 'M3GAN' movie without a killer needle drop.
In the 2023 viral sensation, acerbic android M3GAN serenades the orphaned Cady (Violet McGraw) with a wispy rendition of 'Titanium' by David Guetta and Sia. The trailers for its big-screen follow-up, 'M3GAN 2.0,' have similarly deployed Chappell Roan and Britney Spears earworms.
But none can compare to the demented brilliance of a pivotal new sequel scene, in which M3GAN launches into 'This Woman's Work' by Kate Bush. The jarringly hilarious performance comes after a rare earnest conversation between M3GAN and Cady's roboticist aunt, Gemma (Allison Williams), who worries about her shortcomings as a parent to her young niece. M3GAN uses the tranquil pop ballad to ostensibly console her, in her own disconcerting way.
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'Being on the receiving end of 'This Woman's Work' was the most incredible experience,' Williams says with a laugh. The actress and producer helped choose the song with writer/director Gerard Johnstone.
'M3GAN being all-seeing is Gemma's biggest insecurity," Williams says. But instead of judging her, "M3GAN is like, 'No, I do see you as a parent, and I'm moved by how burdened you are by your dual identities as a mother and person who's leading this charge in tech.' Gerard's favorite thing is to set up an emotionally truthful moment that feels cathartic, and then exploding it in a way that you're not expecting.'
Gemma initially feels a newfound connection with M3GAN, but quickly grasps that the demonic doll is merely trying to manipulate her emotions through song.
'It causes Gemma to realize, 'Oh, I've done it. I've gotten sucked into the wonder of my own invention,' ' Johnstone says. 'It was a scene that was not only funny and surprising, but also hit on a lot of different levels story-wise.'
Bush wrote the tune for the 1988 movie 'She's Having a Baby,' which was used to convey a character's painful experience with childbirth. Here, the track reflects Gemma's own experiences with sacrifice and being thrust into motherhood when her sister died. To get the rights to use it in 'M3GAN 2.0,' Johnstone personally wrote a letter to the English recording icon.
'I just wanted her to know that it came from a place of me just being a huge fan,' Johnstone recalls. 'I was also fighting back suggestions that we should go with a different song that was more commercially known. I was like, 'No, this is the perfect song.' And she was so gracious. We actually filmed that scene without yet having permission and we were all just hoping we were going to get it by the time the film came out. Luckily, she came through.'
The sci-fi thriller is part of a pop-culture resurgence for the 'Wuthering Heights' chanteuse, who last released an album, '50 Words for Snow,' in 2011. Since then, her music has been featured in TV's 'Stranger Things' ('Running Up That Hill') and 'The Handmaid's Tale' ('Cloudbusting').
Bush watched the 'M3GAN 2.0' scene for herself, although 'I don't know what she thought of it,' Johnstone says. 'The (production) company gave her as much as they could to buy the song and she just gave it to charity. She's an incredible artist and it made me even more of a fan.'