Commentary: ‘M3GAN 2.0’ Works On A Classic Sequel Trope
by Frank Martin
One of the most classic sequel plots in film is when the heroes and the villain from the first film are forced to team up in order to tackle an even greater threat. It is based around the old adage that “the enemy of my enemy is my friend.” Of course, the dynamics of every story and the relationship between characters is different every time depending on the context. In Thor: The Dark World, adoptive brothers Loki (Tom Hiddleston) and Thor (Chris Hemsworth) try to mend their differences so they can defeat a dark elf. In Blade 2, Blade (Wesley Snipes) worked with vampires to stop an even worse monster. In the case of M3GAN 2.0, it had M3GAN (Jenna Davis) and her creator partner up to take down an even more dangerous robot.
After the events of the first film, M3GAN’s creator, Gemma (Allison Williams), works to develop socially conscious technology that benefits all society. She believed M3GAN had been destroyed, but in reality, M3GAN had been existing in the digital space, watching Gemma and her niece, Cady (Violet McGraw), who M3GAN had been programmed to protect. However, M3GAN was forced to reveal her existence when a dangerous robot by the name of AMELIA (Ivanna Sakhno) began killing off people involved in her creation. In order to protect Cady, M3GAN and Gemma needed to work together.
Most movies that have the hero and villain team up are action films; stories dictated by a physical obstacle to overcome. Typically, horror sequels do not follow this same trend, which is why it’s unique that M3GAN 2.0 did so. Horror sequels usually have the villain returning to attack the hero again or a fresh set of victims. But this sequel actually shifts its genre in order to accommodate the plot. M3GAN and Gemma have to work together to take down AMELIA, just the same way heroes in action movies have to team up with the villain to eliminate a new threat. So M3GAN 2.0 has a lot more thriller and action vibes than its predecessor. And M3GAN is such a fascinating character that it allows the whole plot to work, genre change and all.
M3GAN 2.0 is now streaming on Peacock.
