Warning: Spoilers for “Five Nights at Freddy’s” 

The “Five Nights at Freddy’s” video game franchise took the world by storm after its initial release in 2014, and nine years later it’s once again causing an uproar at the release of the first FNAF movie.  

The FNAF movie has been a long time coming and many fans, such as myself, have been waiting to see the game’s creepy, animatronic and mysterious lore brought to the big screen. While it was initially announced in 2015 that a movie would be made by Warner Bros. Pictures with Gil Kenan as director and co-writer, multiple delays caused the project to ultimately be handed to Jason Blum’s Blumhouse Productions and Emma Tammi as director in 2022. 

I saw the movie two days after its Oct. 29 theatrical release and let me just say, I was not disappointed. First off, going to the movies for this was an experience compared to just a simple movie viewing. It’s something I love that is being brought back with movie culture, how people are dressing up for “Barbie” or “Oppenheimer” and the recent “Taylor Swift Eras Tour” movie. 

My friends and I all dressed up as some of the famous characters: Freddy, Foxy, Chica and Bonnie. Many other fans did the same and it felt like the entire FNAF fandom globally connected on this front; I saw many videos and pictures all over the internet of fans showing their love and respect for the franchise with either super complex or cute costumes. 

As a long-time fan and watcher of many, many playthroughs or theory videos on YouTube, I could tell the movie was made by people who genuinely care and love the franchise as much as the fans do. 

Their attention to detail was extremely acute with the layout of the pizzeria itself, the design of the animatronics and the nods to the lore with easter eggs planted throughout the movie, such as the phrase “It’s me” being spotted throughout the film. Not to mention the guest stars included well-known FNAF fanatic YouTubers such as MatPat and CoryxKenshin whom fans like me have been watching for years. 

I truly did almost scream in my seat when MatPat said his classic “It’s just a theory” line he always ends his videos on. What would have made it better is if self-appointed FNAF playthrough YouTuber king Markiplier had been able to be in the movie as well. 

I only have two critiques for the movie. First off, I really do wish they had gone with the original storyline from the games regarding the antagonist William Afton and his three children’s tragic stories.

I would have loved to see the original story play out on the screen and see the Bite of ‘83 in full action, where Afton’s youngest son goes into a coma after being bit by one of the animatronics, thus kickstarting the other murders and ghosts that the game touches on. I still think they did a good job with this different story approach they’re taking and I was aware that the movies were going to be based on the FNAF books, which don’t perfectly align with the video games. 

Still, I wanted so badly to watch the story I pieced together growing up unfold in a movie. However, there are supposed sequels scheduled to take place, so maybe they’ll include more of the video game lore in those movies. Either way, I’m interested to see the direction they take the film and am curious if they plan to keep the storyline of Afton’s business partner, Henry Emily. 

My second critique is that I wish there had been one really good jumpscare with one of the original animatronics. While there were suspenseful and scary moments and about three jump scares with Balloon Boy (who is from the FNAF 2 game), I was so hyped to see one of those classic jumping-at-the-screen scares that are synonymous with the game and its popularity. 

Again, this could easily be fixed during the production of the sequels.  

 Going back to the positives, I think the costume designers deserve huge props and applause for the dedication and beauty of the animatronics. The costumes used in the movie truly did look identical to the ones in the game; it really does display the care and love the filmmakers had for this production. 

I also thought it was super cool and on-brand that at least one of the animatronics was actually real. While Chica, Bonnie and Freddy were costumes worn by actors, Foxy was a true animatronic that took about six puppeteers to control. 

The impressiveness of this film and the way it played on screen truly took me aback after learning about it and gave me an appreciation for the production staff. 

Overall, “Five Nights at Freddy’s” was a solid movie. I think some people criticized it a little too hard and are ignoring the obvious appreciation for the video game and the fanbase that was put into the film. 

I can’t wait to see the next installment of this franchise and see more love for it come about. As Afton said many times in the games and now in the movie, “I always come back.”