One of the many posters for the FNAF movie depicting one of its main characters, Freddy Fazbear.

After 9 years of creation, 10 video games, and even a horror attraction, the “Five Nights at Freddy’s” (FNAF) franchise has reached new levels. The company recently released its own movie: “Five Nights at Freddy’s,” this October. After a season full of popular new movies like Barbie, Oppenheimer, and Saw X, FNAF has made $78 million in ticket sales in the U.S. and Canada through Thursday to Sunday according to the New York Times. Although many people bought tickets to see the new movie, the film is receiving some criticism regarding its accuracy.

The FNAF game’s puzzle-like lore is loved and studied by many people on the internet, with fans going so far as to create entire videos attempting to fully piece the lore together. However, in the rendition of the movie, the lore is not completely accurate to the game’s smaller details. Some fans may be bothered by the minor changes in character backstory or the relationships between animatronics and people. According to reviewers of the movie, long-time fans see the inaccuracies, but are elated that the movie was even made at all.

In the games, the animatronics are normally portrayed as very robotic, having the same actions and emotions throughout the whole series. Though in the movie, they are given deeper backstories and emotions which makes the lore more digestible for newer fans of the franchise. Allowing the audience to see the complexity of these animatronics gives them the answer to  questions tied to the games, as certain pieces of information are better understood from an emotional standpoint rather than through hypothetical theorizing. This is very helpful as newer FNAF lovers can have a difficult time sifting through countless YouTube lore videos, so the visual aspect of the characters’ personalities make the lore simpler to comprehend.

Another reason for this movies success seems to be the actors who star in the movie, as it includes fan-favorites such as Josh Hutcherson from “The Hunger Games,” Matthew Lillard from “Scooby Doo,” and other Internet personalities featured like MatPat and CoryxKenshin. According to reviews left on the movie, Hutcherson and Lillard were great fits for Mike Schmidt and William Afton respectively, while MatPat’s minor role was exciting to watch. 

In all, the FNAF movie was nothing but exciting from the perspective of long-time franchise lovers. The main idea of the movie was easily understood as the plot progressed, even if it was not completely accurate. Movies have different requirements than video games in order to make them visually appealing and enjoyable, which is something viewers should consider before watching. While this movie can feel a little cringey, anyone who loves the franchise should give the FNAF movie the chance it deserves.