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Forbes
8 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Forbes
What Happens During ‘M3GAN 2.0' End Credits And How Possible Is A Sequel?
"Megan 2.0" partial poster. M3GAN 2.0 — the sequel to the 2022 horror hit M3GAN — has footage in the end credits. What happens during the end credits and does it mean anything for another sequel? M3GAN 2.0 opens in theaters nationwide on Friday. The official summary for the film reads, 'Two years after M3GAN, a marvel of artificial intelligence, went rogue and embarked on a murderous (and impeccably choreographed) rampage and was subsequently destroyed, M3GAN's creator Gemma (Allison Williams) has become a high-profile author and advocate for government oversight of AI. "Meanwhile, Gemma's niece Cady (Violet McGraw), now 14, has become a teenager, rebelling against Gemma's overprotective rules. Unbeknownst to them, the underlying tech for M3GAN has been stolen and misused by a powerful defense contractor to create a military-grade weapon known as Amelia (Ivanna Sakhno), the ultimate killer infiltration spy. "But as Amelia's self-awareness increases, she becomes decidedly less interested in taking orders from humans. Or in keeping them around. With the future of human existence on the line, Gemma realizes that the only option is to resurrect M3GAN (Amie Donald, voiced by Jenna Davis) and give her a few upgrades, making her faster, stronger and more lethal. As their paths collide, the original AI icon is about to meet her match.' Directed by Gerard Johnstone, M3GAN 2.0 also stars Brian Jordan Alvarez, Jen Van Epps, Aristotle Athari, Timm Sharp and Jemaine Clement. Note: Spoilers about the ending and end credits are revealed in the next section. What Footage Is Featured During The End Credits Of M3GAN 2.0? End-credits or post-credits scenes generally wrap up loose ends from a scene from earlier in a film — like Brad Pitt's F1: The Movie does — or they can set up a potential sequel. In the case of M3GAN 2.0, there is no post-credits scene and the end credits only show highlights from 2022's M3GAN and the new film, along with a silhouette of M3GAN the AI robot dancing. As for the future of M3GAN the AI android, the sequel makes it clear that the program can function as a disembodied robot no matter how mangled its mechanic makeup gets. As such, there's really no reason to stay in your seats to watch the end credits because there's really no substance to them. Even though there are no scenes in 2.0 that set up another M3GAN (M3GAN 3.0, perhaps?), another movie in the series is in all likelihood something that Universal Pictures executives are considering. M3GAN was a big moneymaker for the studio in 2022 — it made $182 million worldwide against a $12 million budget before prints and advertising, according to The Hollywood Reporter, so they'll no doubt be tempted for a third film depending on how well M3GAN 2.0 does. M3GAN 2.0 is projected by Universal (via THR) to earn $20 million domestically in its opening weekend frame against a $15 million production budget before P&A, which is cheap by Hollywood standards for a major release (Deadline, however, reported that the budget was $25 million, which is still a low number). So, as long as Universal makes enough money to justify another M3GAN film, director Gerard Johnstone is game to make more. The director told THR recently that as AI technology continues to evolve, it will help foster future screen stories. 'I would not be surprised if there's another five of these movies, Johnstone told THR. 'So, who knows, maybe I'll come back for the fifth one.' Lucky for Johnstone, franchise star Allison Williams wants to see more M3GAN movies, too. "We have big aspirations of big dreams, and I certainly don't feel like I'm done making these movies with these people and this tonal landscape and the subject matter,' Williams told THR recently. 'So, yeah, I have been dreaming of a third, for sure.' M3GAN 2.0 opens in theaters nationwide on Friday.
New York Times
a day ago
- Entertainment
- New York Times
Amie Donald Has the Moves as the Killer Robot in ‘M3gan 2.0'
Onscreen, Amie Donald is best known for her role as the killer robot M3gan in the sci-fi horror franchise. But, in real life, Donald, 15, spends a majority of her days in the idyllic, sun-soaked setting of lushly forested New Zealand, where kiwi roam and she's apt to take a bush walk outside her parents' home in Papakura, a suburb in South Auckland. 'I really enjoy all the nature here,' she said on a video call from the house on a recent morning. Her long red hair fell in beachy waves as sunlight danced on her white sweater. Framed photos of her and her parents and older brother filled the walls behind her. Donald is about the furthest you could get from the cutthroat killer robot returning in the new sequel, 'M3gan 2.0.' For one thing, she smiles far too much. Other people, she said, would describe her as 'very caring.' She wasn't a fan of horror films until landing 'M3gan' — though she's since started watching them with her father, and now counts 'It' and 'The Purge' among her favorites. 'I love them so much,' she said. M3gan, the robot that becomes frighteningly protective of a young girl named Cady, was Donald's first role in a film, following her TV debut as Maya Monkey, an acrobatic girl with simian features, in Netflix's postapocalyptic series 'Sweet Tooth.' Want all of The Times? Subscribe.
Wall Street Journal
a day ago
- Entertainment
- Wall Street Journal
‘M3gan 2.0' Review: Another Bot Walks, Talks, and Wants World Domination
Sure, 'M3gan,' the robot who looks like a homicidal Olsen sister, murdered some people in the 2023 comedy-horror film, but she had her reasons. 'I was upset!' she, or rather her disembodied operating system, cries in the sequel. She explains that she was just a kid back then, and is completely trustworthy now. Please, could someone load her software into another robo-body? Please? Pleeease? In 'M3gan 2.0,' her wary inventor, Gemma (Allison Williams), doesn't quite believe her but also doesn't have much choice. A successor bot, Amelia (Ivanna Sakhno), which unlike the previous figure looks exactly like a human, is not only a military-grade fighter but has also managed to use her seductive wiles to hack into the systems overseen by a billionaire tech lord (Jemaine Clement). Using cloud computing, Amelia can essentially control everything on the grid, from traffic lights to ATMs. In a 'Terminator 2' twist, then, the impish M3gan (acted by Amie Donald, with a voice by Jenna Davis) switches sides and joins the ranks of the good guys in an effort to stop a more technologically advanced rival. At least, that's what the movie's heroes hope: M3gan can be a bit fickle.
Forbes
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- Forbes
‘M3GAN 2.0' Reviews: Is AI Robot Sequel Programmed For Success?
M3GAN (Amie Donald, voiced by Jenna Davis) in "M3GAN 2.0." M3GAN 2.0 — the sequel to the 2022 horror hit starring Allison Williams — is new in theaters this week. Read on to find out what critics have to say about the movie. Directed by M3GAN filmmaker Gerard Johnstone, M3GAN 2.0 plays in Thursday previews before opening in theaters nationwide on Friday. The official summary for M3GAN 2.0 reads, 'Two years after M3GAN, a marvel of artificial intelligence, went rogue and embarked on a murderous (and impeccably choreographed) rampage and was subsequently destroyed, M3GAN's creator Gemma (Williams) has become a high-profile author and advocate for government oversight of A.I. "Meanwhile, Gemma's niece Cady (Violet McGraw), now 14, has become a teenager, rebelling against Gemma's overprotective rules. Unbeknownst to them, the underlying tech for M3GAN has been stolen and misused by a powerful defense contractor to create a military-grade weapon known as Amelia (Ivanna Sakhno), the ultimate killer infiltration spy. "But as Amelia's self-awareness increases, she becomes decidedly less interested in taking orders from humans. Or in keeping them around. With the future of human existence on the line, Gemma realizes that the only option is to resurrect M3GAN (Amie Donald, voiced by Jenna Davis) and give her a few upgrades, making her faster, stronger, and more lethal. As their paths collide, the original AI icon is about to meet her match.' M3GAN 2.0 also stars Brian Jordan Alvarez and Jen Van Epps, who return from the 2022 film as Gemma's tech team members Cole and Tess. New to the cast for the sequel are Aristotle Athari, Timm Sharp and Jemaine Clement. The review embargo for M3GAN 2.0 was lifted on Wednesday. As of the publication of this article, the film has earned a 62% 'fresh' rating from Rotten Tomatoes critics based on 61 reviews. RT's Critics Consensus and Popcornmeter score from verified user ratings is still pending. What Do Individual Critics Have To Say About 'M3GAN 2.0'? John Nugent of Empire Magazine is among the top critics on Rotten Tomatoes who gave M3GAN 2.0, writing, 'M3GAN 2.0 is more absurd, self-aware silliness: a riot of timely tech paranoia, with almost no horror but a ton of successful comedy. Slay, queen!' Robbie Colin of the Daily Telegraph (UK) also got a charge out of M3GAN 2.0, writing on RT, 'This uproarious (if not especially scary) sequel has the measure of the task at hand's silliness, and leans into it with infectious glee.' The film also received a 'fresh' rating on RT from Clarissa Loughrey of the Independent (UK), who writes, 'M3GAN 2.0 is, admittedly, a pretty bizarre conflagration of tones and ideas. But so were most of the Child's Play films ... and the rollercoaster effect of never quite knowing what genre [Gerard] Johnstone might pull from next is a key part of the fun.' On the flip side, David Fear of Rolling Stone gives M3GAN 2.0 a 'rotten' review on RT, writing, 'Her model is 2.0. The overbaked, underwhelming, narratively restless movie itself is 0.0 percent watchable.' David Rooney of The Hollywood Reporter also gives M3GAN 2.0 a 'rotten' review on RT, writing in his summary, 'A convoluted mishmash with shades of Terminator 2: Judgment Day, Mission: Impossible and the Austin Powers franchise. There are amusing moments reminiscent of the original, but in terms of tone and coherence, the movie loses its way.' Alison Foreman of IndieWire isn't a fan of M3GAN 2.0, either, writing in his 'rotten' review on RT, 'M3GAN's greatest asset was never her heart, but her lack of one. It's somewhat baffling, then, that she is easily the most likable character in a lineup of algorithmically hateable humans.' Rated PG-13, M3GAN 2.0 plays in Thursday previews before opening in theaters nationwide on Friday.
Irish Times
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Irish Times
M3gan 2.0 review: An absolutely terrible and woeful sequel
M3GAN 2.0 Director : Gerard Johnstone Cert : 15A Genre : Science fiction horror Starring : Allison Williams, Violet McGraw, Amie Donald, Jenna Davis, Brian Jordan Alvarez, Ivanna Sakhno Running Time : 2 hrs Oh no. The sequel to M3gan is absolutely t3rribl3. It's as if nobody involved with that 2023 cybershocker – Gerard Johnstone returns to directing duties – has any idea what made it such a hilarious blast. Yes, the movie had things to say about the dangers of robotics and the threat of artificial intelligence . But those observations were at the level of 'that stuff sucks, man!'. M3gan was, more than anything else, a possessed-doll movie in the vein of Chucky, Annabelle or Dead of Night. The laughs came from contrasting the doll's cute subservience with her taste for hugely creative carnage. [ M3gan: An AI doll - what could possibly go wrong? Opens in new window ] About 20 minutes into the woeful sequel it becomes clear what is going on: these people think they are making Terminator 2: Judgment Day. This is partly down to a borderline-apocalyptic plot involving the advance of a robot takeover; it is more to do with the pitting of a now-largely benign M3gan against a more advanced model of her own kind. READ MORE The original got her acronym from 'Model 3 generative android'. Amelia (no number, no fun) gets hers from 'autonomous military engagement logistics and infiltration android'. Some defence contractor designs her as a sort of ambulatory weapon without realising – have you never seen a movie, dude? – that she is bound to use her powers in an attempted AI overthrow. Such mayhem results. Meanwhile, Cady (Violet McGraw), the young girl whom M3gan once violently protected, is living in high-tech normality with her computer boffin mom (Allison Williams). After one thing or another, those veterans of the first film find themselves uneasily allied with the now-reformed Model 3 against her boring, boring, boring successor. M3gan had a beautifully simple concept that was pumped up just enough to justify a taut feature. Not only has that been jettisoned for this spaghetti of confusion, but the central character has been largely neutered to make way for a generic cyborg that would barely pass muster as baddie in a suburban pantomime. The best joke in the film – referencing one of Kate Bush's best songs – almost slips away because it is too easy to believe that the comically exaggerated mawkishness is the sort of thing that might be meant sincerely in a film this terrible. That is never a good sign. In cinemas from Friday, June 27th
