M3GAN 2.0 (2025) Universal/Sci-Fi-Action RT: 119 minutes Rated PG-13 (strong violent content, bloody images, some strong language, sexual material, brief drug references) Director: Gerard Johnstone Screenplay: Gerard Johnstone Music: Chris Bacon Cinematography: Toby Oliver Release date: June 27, 2025 (US) Cast: Allison Williams, Violet McGraw, Amie Donald, Jenna Davis, Brian Jordan Alvarez, Jen Van Epps, Ivanna Sakhno, Aristotle Athari, Timm Sharp, Jemaine Clement.
Rating: ***
While exiting the theater after seeing the first M3GAN, I commented to my friend that if they made a sequel, a good title would be M3GAN 2.0. It appears that great minds think alike.
As indicated by the title, the sequel is an upgrade of sorts. Instead of a mere rehash, the makers of M3GAN 2.0 take it up a notch by turning it into an action movie. It’s a lot like Terminator 2 in that the killer robot doll is now the heroine. Like Arnold Schwarzenegger’s T-800, she’s now on the side of good trying to help take down an advanced version of herself, a military robot named AMELIA (Autonomous Military Engagement Logistics and Infiltration Android). Of course, there are a few trust issues on the part of her creator, robot designer Gemma (Williams, Get Out).
In the two years since the events of the first movie, Gemma has become an advocate for the regulation of AI. She delivers lectures about the dangers of technology and limiting children’s exposure to it. She still works with the same team, Tess (Epps) and Cole (Alvarez, English Teacher), only now they build things that won’t pose a threat. One night, the feds show up. It seems that AMELIA (Sakhno, Pacific Rim: Uprising) is tracking down and killing everybody that had something to do with her creation. Gemma and her niece Cady (McGraw, The Haunting of Hill House) are next on the list. It seems that somebody got a hold of the specs for M3GAN and used them for AMELIA.
Feeling responsible, Gemma decides to do what she can to stop AMELIA. She can’t do it alone though. Fortunately, M3GAN hasn’t gone completely away. She’s been around all this time, lurking behind the scenes, waiting for the right moment to reveal herself. This is that moment. She offers to help Gemma take down AMELIA, but she’ll need a physical body for that. This is where the trust issues come into play. At first, Gemma puts M3GAN into some small device that looks like a Teletubbie. Eventually and at the urging of Cady, she gives her a total upgrade. Now M3GAN is ready to kick some butt!
So what’s AMELIA’s endgame besides the destruction of the human race? She’s after some device called “The Black Box”. It could just as easily be called the MacGuffin. If she gets her hands on it, everybody is f***ed. It’s up to M3GAN to make sure that doesn’t happen.
It would have easy for writer-director Gerard Johnstone (he directed the first M3GAN) to follow the example of Child’s Play 2 and simply bring M3GAN back to go after Gemma and Cady again. He doesn’t do that. Instead, he takes M3GAN 2.0 in a different direction. It’s action all the way. In addition to T2, there’s a scene that recalls Total Recall. PLUS, and this is my personal favorite, he utilizes the Talking Villain thing from the James Bond movies. That’s when the bad guy takes the time to explain his nefarious plan to the hero under the assumption he’s about to be killed. That’s what happens here to Gemma. It brought an amused smile to my face. It’s nice to see a cliché used correctly.
Once again, Amie Donald does a great job as M3GAN with Jenna Davis providing the voice. She has the right physicality for the role which is good because M3GAN 2.0 is even more demanding in this area. M3GAN has to run, jump and fight, both humans and a robot. She also gets to dance again, this time in front of a cheering crowd. Sakhno oozes pure malevolence as AMELIA, an unstoppable force capable of just about anything. She racks up a decent body count while M3GAN reins it in (just like Arnie in T2!).
The humans do a good job too in M3GAN 2.0. Williams is effective as the aunt still trying to navigate motherhood while keeping up with her careers (she also wrote a book about AI). When the s*** hits the fan again, she tries to deal with it while keeping Cady safe. McGraw is even better as the traumatized preteen who’s now obsessed with Steven Seagal movies. She has an Above the Law poster hanging in her school locker, how cool is that? She’s learning aikido which comes in handy when dealing with a bully. Former SNL cast member Aristotle Athari shows up as Gemma’s pretentious boyfriend Christian (pronounced Chris-ti- an). Jemaine Clement (What We Do in the Shadows) is sufficiently slimy as a tech billionaire trying to convince Gemma to come work for him. It’s okay, AMELIA takes care of that jerk.
I enjoyed M3GAN 2.0 very much. It’s fun and thrilling. There’s a cool scene where Gemma speeds through town, in a car controlled by M3GAN, to get home to Cady when AMELIA poses a threat. It’s a sweet ride and it goes super-fast. The only thing that keeps the movie from greatness is that it gets a little heavy-handed with its message about AI and its misuse. Aside from that, M3GAN 2.0 is great fun. How can I possibly dislike a movie with a line like “Hold onto your vaginas.”? I wouldn’t mind if they made a third movie. They could call it M3GAN 3.0?
