The Chucky Panel at #NYCC
SyFy and USA made the most of their time at New York Comic Con 2021. You could not escape the presence of the murderous doll at the Jacob Javitz Center. From the massive ice cream truck experience right when you entered the show floor to a non-stop loop of Chuck advertisements and voice overs playing in the building with all the panels, there was no mistaking anyone else for the main character at the convention.
NYCC held the world premiere screening of the first episode of the new Chucky series, which airs on SyFy and USA at 10pm on Tuesday nights. I knew once my press credentials were confirmed I had to be there. I arrived early, was given my licensed Chucky face mask, and had a seat near the front.
This crowd was here for the horror, too. There were plenty of horror movie t-shirts and cosplays throughout the venue. A crowd warmup game on the Empire Stage saw the contestants quickly realize the easy road to winning audience support was impersonating iconic horror movie characters. The crowd went wild when the MC announced that Jennifer Tilly and Don Mancini were backstage for the screening, and a few other people were snuck in when the lights went out to watch with the audience for that extra surprise factor.
This crowd went off for the show, as they should. Chucky has that it factor. We’ve had slasher shows, continuations of horror franchises, and violent horror series before. The difference here is Chucky feels like the Child’s Play films in the best way possible.
If you ever have the chance to see Jennifer Tilly or Don Mancini live, I highly encourage you to do so. They are a dynamic duo onstage and know how to make the most of a convention appearance. Both of them have a lot of love for the Child’s Play series and really understand what the fans like.
Tilly served as the host of the panel, interviewing first Don Mancini then series stars Zackary Arthur and Alex Vincent about their experience with the franchise. There was just such a sense of joy about the whole thing. This was a celebration of decades of work to build a fanbase strong enough to justify a full on television series. I haven’t felt this at ease at a large premiere panel since the old Fangoria Weekend of Horror conventions in Secaucus, NJ. Those were the days.
There are two big takeaways from the panel. First, this series builds on the existing Child’s Play franchise. Everything from the original film through Cult of Chucky is fair game for the series. The panel couldn’t confirm all the specific characters, but the crowd was constantly told to “stay tuned” when certain names were mentioned. Episode two is already going to acknowledge Chucky and Tiffany’s genderfluid child Glen/Glenda. We also know that Tilly is back (Tiffany was another “stay tuned”) and Alex Vincent already had a scene as Andy on the telephone.
The second big takeaway is perspective. Don Mancini is a gay horror filmmaker. He specifically set out for Chucky to have a gay middle school protagonist for representation. He wants to make the horror series he wishes he had growing up, which is a recurring theme in his work. Mancini knows that the world is a more accepting place of the LGBTQIA2S+ community in 2021 than it was when he was growing up, and he hopes that more young people are accepting of queer people and queer characters they encounter in their lives.
Judging by the overwhelmingly positive response to the first episode, I think his hopes are well founded. Critics and audiences alike seem to recognize what the Chucky series is and are praising it by those standards. It is extremely well produced horror with a defined voice. The NYCC panel is why I’m committing to reviewing the entire series. I know how excited Mancini is for the horror fans to see his new show and I trust his vision.
Chucky airs Tuesday Nights at 10pm on SyFy and USA.
***
