One of the Five Nights at Freddy's designers revealed he had one big concern when working on the film's animatronics.
The FNAF movie is a few weeks away from its theatrical debut, bringing the world of Scott Cawthon's cult-hit video game franchise to theaters for the first time.
With the franchise being known for its murderous haunted band of Chuck E. Cheese-style animatronics, getting this bloodthirsty band ready for the big screen was key for the FNAF creative team.
This meant building full-size practical costumes for Freddy Fazbear and his decrepit band of animals, which was almost certainly quite the process.
One Concern for the FNAF Movie's Creatures
Speaking in a new interview, Five Nights at Freddy's designer Robert Bennett revealed one of the worries he had when crafting the terrifying team of animatronics at the heart of the film.
Bennett told SFX Magazine his "biggest concern" was "getting humans in [the] costumes" of Freddy Fazbear and his super-sized robotic band:
"My biggest concern was getting humans in these costumes. When you go to Chuck E. Cheese, the animatronics are big. So with these animatronics, in order to have a presence on set and with the actors, they had to be fairly big."
"The real trick [was] finding the right materials that can last the entire length of the shoot," the FNAF designer added while remarking it was also important to make sure they were also "light and durable" for the actors who had to wear them:
"The real trick is finding the right materials that can last the entire length of the shoot, but are also light and durable. Then just the logistics of getting them dressed and suited up and turned on and working every day. Those were the biggest challenges."
Bennet remembers fondly that while building these animatronics they would have "the actors, and anyone who was new, come in" for a "little show-and-tell:"
"Everyone loved them. Our little workshop was right outside the main door of the set and we’d always have the actors, and anyone who was new, come in. Almost every other day we’d have to do a little show-and-tell for whoever was visiting. Josh Hutcherson came in a couple of times and looked at everything."
Even franchise creator Scott Cawthorn got to see them during production, telling Bennett they were "exactly what [he] wanted them to look like" when he first envisioned the game:
"Scott Cawthon, when he came down, he was there about a week before we started filming, and he was so grateful: 'This is exactly what I wanted them to look like. This is what I imagined they would look like.' It’s Scott that you want to make happy, and I think the fact that he was so impressed with everything made the work worthwhile."
Did the FNAF Movie Nail its Animatronics?
Judging from the marketing and everything shown off from the FNAF movie it certainly looks like the Bennet and the rest of the creative team knocked it out of the park when it comes to these animatronic costumes.
While they do look a little silly and unsettling, that is sort of the point. Ever since Five Nights at Freddy's 2014 debut, the franchise has been all about the icons of one's childhood turning on them.
The FNAF team knows what they have with these animatronic designs it seems.
The full costumes have been on display at multiple activations for the film, including one The Direct had the chance to attend back in September, showing off every horrifying detail of these haunted murderous mascots.
Whether the look of these colorful characters is any indication of the quality of the overall film remains to be seen.
Recent news regarding the movie's review release plan has some worried. But, for now, fans will just have to wait to see if Five Nights at Freddy's is the next great horror blockbuster or just a sideshow attraction that should go the way of Freddy Fazbear's Pizzeria.
The FNAF movie comes to theaters and Peacock on Friday, October 27.
