CHUCKY Creator Says NBC’s HANNIBAL Inspired Him To Make New Series
Horror fans know the name Don Mancini. The grandfather of Chucky has been the creative force behind the Child’s Play franchise since the very beginning. However, Mancini is also responsible for writing and directing on other fan-favorite horror properties like Hannibal and Channel Zero.
In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, the creative explained how his work on the Hannibal series was somewhat responsible for his push to bring Chucky to the small screen.
Like many of us, Don Mancini was initially skeptical about the NBC Hannibal series before it even aired.
He explains:
I think I first started thinking about it when I was working on Hannibal. I was such a huge fan of that franchise, the films, the books. So, when it became a TV series I was initially skeptical. A TV series? And no Anthony Hopkins? How is this going to work?
Don quickly changed his mind after he had the chance to view the cult show which premiered back in 2013. Mancini goes on to describe how working on the show became a creative inspiration for his own franchise.
He continues by saying:
Of course, like everybody else, I was blown away. Anyway, I ended up in the Hannibal writers’ room. I really loved working on that show, and I loved working for Bryan Fuller, and learned a lot from him. I saw that one of the things that made that show so interesting and exciting was that it was kind of fan fiction written by experts. It was a sort of fanciful imagining initially.
What was Hannibal like when he was a practicing psychiatrist consulting with the FBI before anyone knew he was the big bad? That’s when I started imagining doing the same thing with Chucky, having eight hours of narrative to play with and doing it with a bunch of like-minded horror geeks and legit Chucky fanatics.
I’ve been around for quite a while now, and I meet a lot of younger people who love the franchise and who grew up on it, and so I felt, wow, if I can cultivate the excitement that they have for Chucky, in the same way I felt Bryan Fuller was able to cultivate my and the other writers’ excitement for Hannibal, we could have something really special.
The Chucky will premiere on Oct. 12 at 10 p.m. on USA and SYFY.
Chucky synopsis:
An idyllic American town is thrown into chaos after a vintage ‘Good Guy’ doll turns up at a suburban yard sale. Soon, everyone must grapple with a series of horrifying murders that begin to expose the town’s deep hypocrisies and hidden secrets. Meanwhile, friends and foes from Chucky’s past creep back into his world and threaten to expose the truth behind his mysterious origins as a seemingly ordinary child who somehow became this notorious monster.
Chucky stars Zackary Arthur, Jennifer Tilly, Fiona Dourif, Alex Vincent, Christine Elise, Devon Sawa, Lexa Doig, Teo Briones, and Brad Dourif in the voice of Chucky.
How do you feel about Chucky getting his own series? Let me know on Twitter via @joshkorngut. I’m always down to talk all things horror! Let your voice be heard in the comments below or on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram!
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