STACK #253 November 2025

MOVIE FEATURE

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NEXT GEN NIGHTMARE: M3GAN 2.0 GENRE: Sci-fi horror RUN TIME: 2hrs The murderous doll who captivated pop culture in 2023 is back – and this time she's not alone. Left: Allison Williams and Violet McGraw. Below: Director Gerard Johnstone with M3GAN.

S et two years after marvel of artificial intelligence M3GAN went rogue, Allison Williams reprises her role as the killer doll’s creator Gemma. Gemma has since become a high-profile author and advocate for government oversight of A.I., while her 14-year-old niece Cady has grown into a rebellious teenager. Meanwhile, a new deadly doll poses a major threat: a military android called AMELIA, built using M3GAN tech. Director Gerard Johnstone was overwhelmed by the response to the M3GAN movies. “To be honest, I thought I was making a career-ending goofy puppet movie

for the longest time,” he admits. “We could never have anticipated the reaction to her and how she became this crazy unexpected hero, even though she was the villain. It is a testament to something about the character of M3GAN. It's bigger than the movies. She is bigger than all of us.” Williams echoes those sentiments. “Everyone makes movies with the best of intentions. You're hoping for a movie that will hit the pop cultural moment in the bullseye. There is no guarantee that will happen,” she says. “But the first inkling we had

that M3GAN was in good hands with the

theatrical, larger than-life, almost like a Bond villain,”

public was when images of her started to emerge into the world. The memes started instantly, and we were just like, ‘YES!’” Joining the M3GAN 2.0 cast is Kiwi comic Jemaine Clement as arrogant tech billionaire Alton Appleton, who thinks Gemma’s exosuit could be the next world changing invention – if she can get over her A.I. aversion. The team couldn’t wait to work with the Flight of the Conchords star. “With the character of Appleton, we wanted someone with a big personality – a bit

says Johnstone. Williams eagerly signed on to the Clement fan club. “Jemaine is quietly the king of New Zealand, I think,” she jokes.

“Jemaine is so deeply funny that just when he walks onto set, people start to have trouble keeping it together. And then once he starts talking, it's impossible.” Gill Pringle

• M3GAN 2.0 is out Nov 5

IF YOU LIKE THIS, YOU’LL LOVE THESE:

M3GAN, Five Nights at Freddy’s, Imaginary, Afraid

BOUND BY LOVE, TOGETHER GENRE: Horror RUN TIME: 1h 42m Hollywood star couple Alison Brie and Dave Franco’s fifth film Together is quite literally one of the most twisted movies of all time.

Y es, it’s called Together – and it’s also their fifth film… together. To bring this beautifully grotesque story to life, they spent several months in Melbourne, filming at Docklands Studios and on location in the Dandenong Ranges at Olinda. The brainchild of Melbourne director Michael Shanks, the film tells the story of a couple who relocate from the city to a rural home, with hopes of a new start. When they fall into a sinkhole while walking through the woods behind their house, they make contact with a strange substance, which binds itself to them. Soon, the effect of the infection has them physically attracted to one another, threatening to completely bound their flesh. It’s the type of body horror once popular in

Left: Director Michael Shanks with Alison Brie and Dave Franco. Above: Alison and Dave.

the ‘70s and ‘80s from horror directors like David Cronenberg ( The Brood ) and Brian Yuzna ( Society ), and now it’s given a fresh, contemporary twist.

anxieties of commitment writ large. It’s about co-dependency, monogamy, romances, and resentments, and that at a certain point, can we truly tell where one life ends and our other half’s begins?” Glenn Cochrane

For Michael Shanks, the concept stemmed from his own experience with love and co dependency. “Most simply, this is a film about how falling in love transforms you. I’ve been with my partner for over 15 years and, having met at ‘schoolies’, I’ve never been an adult without her in my life and vice versa. For as long as I can remember, we’ve lived in the same house, had the same friends, eaten the same food, breathed the same air. “This is a film about the potential horror of sharing a life with someone; the lingering

While living in Melbourne, Alison Brie and Dave Franco became regulars at various cafes in the Fitzroy area.

FUN FACT

• Together is out Nov 12

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The Substance, Speak No Evil, Bring Her Back, Immaculate

26 NOVEMBER 2025

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