We’re now just a month away from the most highly anticipated upcoming video game adaptations of the year, at least among horror fans, with Blumhouse’s Five Nights at Freddy’s 2 set to unleash its signature animatronics on a grander scale of destruction and non-grisly murder. Following up on the excellent first trailer revealed previously, FNAF 2 dropped a chilling second promo that at long last gives us our first look at Scream vet Skeet Ulrich within this universe. And it seemingly both confirmed his character’s identity while also changing up some game lore.
Let’s get right down to the fact-building and theorizing, while those who haven’t yet seen the trailer can scroll down to find it.
Skeet Ulrich Confirmed As Henry Emily?
Though the trailer doesn’t actually come out and directly state firm facts about Skeet Ulrich when he pops up on the screen, there are seemingly enough context clues to surmise that the actor is indeed portraying the largely unseen game character Henry Emily, whose claim to fame (or infamy) is being the roboticist who created the animatronics alongside Matthew Lillard’s William Afton, and co-founded the entire Fazbear Entertainment branding. Even though it isn’t explicitly stated, there are clues evident that can support the idea.
The biggest, of course, is that he references his daughter dying in an “accident” that he later believed was the work of Afton. In the games, his daughter Charlotte, or Charlie, was indeed one of Afton’s first victims, and her soul took over the Puppet animatronic. Naturally, we also don’t get confirmation that the daughter’s name is the same as the game’s.
As well, Henry is generally depicted as wearing glasses and having disheveled facial hair, which Skeet Ulrich is rocking in the trailer. So while I’ll allow for this character to be revealed as someone other than Henry Emily, I’m going to be very annoyed if the upcoming horror movie avoids that reveal.
Henry's Accomplishments Alongside William Seem To Have Been Written Out
While this is just as up in the air as Henry Emily's confirmed identity, the scene previewed with Skeet Ulrich in the Five Nights at Freddy's 2 trailer also features several newspaper clippings that were saved over the years. The ones that show up long enough to read through their text are almost entirely about William Afton's efforts in creating the Fazbear-verse, and I didn't catch a single mention of Henry Emily's name.
In fact, the articles make it sound entirely like William Afton is a singular genius who brought all of the brainpower and stragetic angling to Fazbear Entertainment. But is that reflective of realize, or just the way journalists whitewashed the company's origin story to avoid highlighting Henry Emily losing a child. Or perhaps Afton himself ruined Herny's reputation publicly, to the point where he was retconned from the history books.
I'm anxious to learn what the real story is here, since that could be the difference between Ulrich playing a mourning father or a rage-filled former business associate AND a mourning father. The second one might have him making more of an effort to help Mike and Vanessa take Afton and his toys down for good.
Check out the PG-13-rated sequel's full trailer below.
Five Nights at Freddy's 2 will take over theaters starting on December 5.
