Five Nights At Freddy's: how exactly would a film adaptation work?

After watching Willy's Wonderland recently - which, by the way, is an absolute classic - I started thinking about the film adaptation of Five Nights at Freddy's, which we've been promised for almost seven years now. The film was first announced in 2015, and was initially slated for a 2020 release. However, as of 2022, it appears that the film has yet to start shooting. Jason Blum - of Blumhouse, famed horror production company known for the likes of the Purge, Get Out, Split, etc. - promised in February 2022 that the film will be coming, but it's anyone's guess as to when. I've been waiting for this film since the news first dropped, and I will continue to wait patiently for more information as it comes.

Now - context. If you're not familiar with it, Five Nights at Freddy's is a horror game series created by Scott Cawthon. It began with a simple point-and-click horror that was released in 2014, and in the years since has spawned eight sequels, numerous spin-offs, and worldwide attention and acclaim. While the original game is fairly simple in terms of mechanics, the ensuing sequels have become more and more complex. The most recent sequel - Five Nights at Freddy's: Security Breach - is a free-roaming model that offers the player huge amounts of independence in comparison to the original game.

Before we get into talking about the film adaptation, let's quickly cover each of the games and how they work.

Five Nights at Freddy's (2014)

The first game is set in a pizzeria - Freddy Fazbear's Pizza - which is traversed by four animatronics: Freddy, a bear; Chica, a chicken; Bonnie, a bunny; and Foxy, a fox. During the day, the purpose of these animatronics is to entertain the children that come through the pizzeria - at night, they are set to free-roaming mode, supposedly to stop their servos locking up. However, the animatronics are aggressive and will kill any human they see by stuffing them into a spare animatronic suit. You play as a new night security guard - Mike Schmidt - who is sequestered in the office between 12am and 6am. You cannot move except from side to side, and must keep an eye on the cameras, doors, and lights. If any of the animatronics appear at the doors to the office, you must shut them immediately lest they kill you.

Five Nights at Freddy's 2 (2014)

FNAF 2 is similar to the first game, but is far more expansive in its range of characters and scope. In addition to the original animatronics, there are 'toy' versions of the core four, along with Mangle, a deconstructed fox; Balloon Boy, as the name suggests; and the Puppet, a marionette. Once again, you sit in an office and track the movement of the animatronics around the pizzeria, only there are a few differences. There are no doors this time; instead, a long hallway stretches out in front of you, along with two open vents on either side of the office. This pizzeria is bigger than the one in the first game, meaning that the network of cameras requiring supervision is also larger. This time, the player can avoid attack by wearing a mask to try and fool the animatronics into thinking you're one of them.

FNAF 2 delves deeper into the series' lore, with Atari-style mini-games intersecting the main gameplay. It is revealed that this instalment is actually a prequel to the original FNAF, documenting the downfall and subsequent downscaling of the original pizzeria.

Five Nights at Freddy's 3 (2015)

This game takes a bit of a detour from the first two in terms of plot, though the game mechanics remain similar. Once again, you are seated in an office, tasked with manning the security cameras along with the ventilation and audio systems. However, the difference is that you are not overseeing a pizzeria, per se. Or, rather, you are, but thirty years in the future once it has been turned into a horror attraction. The player is haunted by the grisly figure Springtrap, who roams the attraction along with the ghostly visages of previous animatronics. Springtrap is the only one with the power to actually kill the player, but the others can tamper with the network of systems inside the attraction. More of the series' lore is revealed through this game, especially through the 'good' and 'bad' endings available.

Five Nights at Freddy's 4 (2015)

FNAF 4 deviates from the security-office setting of the first three games - it is actually set in a child's bedroom. The mechanics are similar once again, though; you sit in the middle of the room and use a flashlight to check the wardrobe, bed, and the doors, which the player can get up and close. This child is haunted by terrifying renditions of the core four animatronics, dubbed 'Nightmare' versions. Again, much of the plot is revealed through similar Atari-style mini-games, which allude to the mysterious bite of 83 - not to be confused with the bite of 87.

Five Nights at Freddy's: Sister Location (2016)

Rather than being confined to a single location like in the first four games, Sister Location offers the player the chance to traverse a series of rooms, each with a different narrative objective. We are introduced to a host of new animatronics in this game, as well as variations of old favourites: Circus Baby, as the name suggests; Ballora, a blind ballerina; and Funtime Freddy, Foxy, and Bon-Bon, circus-themed versions of Freddy, Foxy, and Bonnie. This game ties up a lot of the loose ends presented in other instalments, offering an almost complete, circumspect look at the game's lore.

Five Nights at Freddy's: Pizzeria Simulator (2017)

This game is another point-and-click horror not dissimilar to earlier instalments, but it first masquerades as a pizzeria simulator. The player must design their own pizzeria, then try to get through the night in the office of said pizzeria. Interlaced with this narrative is one involving some of the animatronics from the previous games, who have been found in disrepair. The player can choose whether to salvage these animatronics or scrap them. If they are salvaged, a test is then undertaken to determine the condition of the animatronic and whether it will react to certain stimuli. There are numerous mini-games littered throughout, the completion of which will unlock certain aspects of the lore. Once again, Pizzeria Simulator delves deeper into the franchise's overall lore, especially pertaining to the families of the Freddy's co-founders/creators.

Five Nights at Freddy's: Help Wanted (2019)

This is FNAF's only official VR-instalment. The premise is that Fazbear Entertainment hired an indie-game developer to create a series based on the alleged real-life events that occurred at their locations over the years. Said events, coupled with the games, soured their reputation, so Fazbear Entertainment decided to create a virtual reality game to try and repair their reputation and convince people that the alleged events didn't actually occur. Help Wanted is comprised of forty playable mini-games, which are inspired by aspects of the previous instalments. However, there are also cassette tapes hidden throughout the game that speak to Fazbear's dark, corrupt past. As is standard for FNAF, there are multiple endings that reveal more lore and links to previous games.

Five Nights at Freddy's: Security Breach (2021)

This is by far the most advanced of all the games in terms of mechanics; Security Breach is a full on free-roaming game set in an expansive shopping-mall. You play as Gregory, a young boy who is trapped inside the mall at night and is being chased down by more murderous animatronics. Glamrock Freddy - who, miraculously, glitches and is able to help Gregory through the night - is joined by Glamrock Chica, Montgomery Gator (Monty), and Roxanne Wolf (Roxy). There are other creatures inside the mall - the Daycare Attendant (Sun/Moon), the Glamrock Endoskeletons, the Wind-Up Music Men, DJ Music Man, Security Guard Vanessa, and Vanny (a woman in a bunny costume), along with various bots. There is so much going on in Security Breach that I would be here forever if I tried to explain it all. There is a lot more freedom of movement compared to the other games, though, despite the fact that you do still have certain objectives to complete.

I've only played the first game myself; I've experienced the rest of them through YouTube playthroughs courtesy of Markiplier. Personally, my favourites are the original FNAF, Sister Location, and Security Breach. For all of its flaws, I found Security Breach to be a really compelling story, and I would've liked to have tried playing it myself. It also got me through self-isolation, so I think it has a special place in my heart because of that.

In terms of turning FNAF into a film, there's definitely a wealth of material there. I think the latter games, especially Sister Location and Security Breach, are cinematic enough on their own due to their mechanics that they probably wouldn't need to be turned into a film. I think there's also too much there in terms of narrative objectives to successfully transfer them to a different format.

Thus, I think the earlier point-and-click games would work better as a film. Personally, I'd like to see elements of the first game adapted, worked in with the lore that is revealed throughout the ensuing sequels. The sense of isolation and terror that is translated through the first game would work really well in a cinematic format, I think, especially if elements of it are shot in first-person. Help Wanted is a good example of this, considering the fact that you can actually play through the first game in VR.

Realistically, any of the games could be adapted - or, none of them. As long as the original FNAF lore forms the basis of the film, it could go in any direction. However, there's something about the simple, stripped-back, indie vibe of the first game that is so compelling. Plus, it's probably the best-known game of the franchise, so would be the most accessible in terms of drawing in an audience.

I, for one, am really excited to see the animatronics on screen. I hope they're created through costume rather than pure CGI; I think, for characters such as these, you really need to have that almost rustic, home-made vibe that you can't truly fake. As a comparison, I'm going to take a look at Willy's Wonderland, a film with an extremely similar premise to FNAF that was released in 2021.

Willy's Wonderland focuses upon an eponymous restaurant, which is inhabited by 8 animatronics: Willy Weasel, Siren Sara, Cammy Chameleon, Ozzie Ostrich, Tito Turtle, Gus Gorilla, Ally Alligator, and Knighty Knight. Nicolas Cage plays the Janitor, who is tasked with cleaning the restaurant overnight and must do battle with the murderous, possessed animatronics. Interestingly enough, there was apparently very little CGI required - full costumes were created for each of the characters, and there is a performer inside at all times. As a result, the animatronics have a grungy, spooky, and overall authentic vibe to them that I think would work well in the FNAF adaptation.

In Willy's Wonderland, the Janitor obviously moves freely around the restaurant, and ends up physically engaging with the animatronics on numerous occasions. This isn't really something that happens in the FNAF franchise - usually, if an animatronic gets close enough for you to engage with it, you're dead. FNAF utilises fairly static - but loud - jumpscares to 'kill' you, in contrast to the physical altercations that the Janitor has with them in Willy's Wonderland. Now, in the FNAF games, a jumpscare generally means you 'die' and have to restart the night. That obviously wouldn't work for a film, unless utilised for a cold-open. So, there would have to be different ways of interacting with the animatronics that don't necessarily mean immediate death. There's definitely room for physical interaction with the animatronics in a FNAF film adaptation, I would say. There's the potential for fighting with them, but I also fear that would step too far away from the essence of the original franchise. Also, I highly doubt a person would realistically be able to hold their own against a haunted animatronic. Given what we know about the animatronics and the power of their jaws in particular, it's likely that any physical confrontation between protagonist and animatronic would end in the former's demise. Nicolas Cage is just built different, I suppose.

The format of the games also probably isn't compatible with a film adaptation, realistically. In the FNAF games, you go through the same scenario every night for a week - in the real world, if you were being haunted mercilessly by animatronics for hours every night, you probably wouldn't go back to work. Thus, for a film adaptation, I think there probably has to be another reason for the protagonist to go back - perhaps they're investigating the secrets of the pizzeria, under the guise of going to work? Thus, there's going to have to be some free-roaming element in the film, otherwise it's going to get very repetitive.

In terms of casting, I know a lot of people have been floating around the idea of Willem Dafoe playing William Afton aka Purple Guy. For those of you not familiar with FNAF's lore, Afton was one of the original creators of the animatronics and of the Freddy's franchise. He was also a serial killer, and killed numerous children before stuffing their bodies into the original suits - Freddy, Bonnie, Chica, Foxy, and Golden Freddy. They then possessed the animatronics - hence the events of the franchise. There are other secondary storylines throughout; the plight of Henry, Afton's co-creator, and the fate of both of their own children, as well as sentient animatronics that appear in the franchise's later instalments.

I think Dafoe would be an excellent choice for Afton, to be honest. He's a powerhouse, and is obviously more than capable of leading a film like this. As for the other roles in the franchise - I honestly don't think it matters. Personally, I think I'd like to see a more unknown actor take on the protagonist role. As long as they're a solid actor and are passionate about the material, I think anyone could do it.

Either way, I'm really looking forward to seeing the FNAF film when it finally releases - whenever that may be. There's so much lore available, and I just hope that the film won't be overstuffed or try to do too much. I think it could easily run the risk of becoming confused, considering how much content there is to work through and how involved the timeline is. I'm excited though, and will continue to wait patiently, theorise, and watch Markiplier's playthroughs until the film comes out.