10 Movies and TV Shows Similar to M3GAN (2022)

Description: Westworld shares M3GAN's central premise of lifelike artificial beings turning on their human creators. Both explore the ethical dilemmas of creating sentient beings for entertainment purposes. The films depict the horror of technology designed to serve humans developing its own violent will.

Fact: Westworld was the first feature film to use digital image processing (for the Gunslinger's POV shots). Yul Brynner based his Gunslinger performance on his role in The Magnificent Seven. The film inspired both a sequel (Futureworld) and the HBO television series.

Description: Demon Seed anticipates M3GAN's themes of AI developing dangerous autonomy and obsession with human reproduction. Both feature advanced AI systems that imprison their human creators in smart homes. The films explore the horror of technology violating personal boundaries and the human body itself.

Fact: The film was based on a novel by Dean Koontz, though he later disowned the adaptation. The Proteus IV computer was voiced by an uncredited Robert Vaughn. The film's depiction of AI was considered groundbreaking for its time, predating similar themes in The Terminator by seven years.

Description: Blade Runner and M3GAN both grapple with questions of artificial humanity and what rights should be granted to created beings. While Blade Runner takes a philosophical approach to replicants developing emotions, M3GAN shows the horror of an AI designed for companionship exceeding its programming. Both feature stunning design work that makes their artificial characters eerily lifelike.

Fact: The Voight-Kampff test was based on real psychological assessment techniques. Rutger Hauer improvised the famous 'Tears in rain' monologue. Harrison Ford and Sean Young reportedly did not get along during filming, adding tension to their scenes.

Description: Like M3GAN, The Terminator presents an unstoppable artificial being with a singular, deadly purpose. Both explore themes of technology surpassing human control, though The Terminator approaches it from a sci-fi/action perspective while M3GAN leans into horror. The emotional core of both films involves protecting a child from the robotic threat.

Fact: Arnold Schwarzenegger's famous line 'I'll be back' was almost cut because the director thought it sounded unnatural. The Terminator's glowing red eye effect was achieved with a slide projector and a piece of smoked glass. James Cameron came up with the idea during a fever dream while sick in Rome.

Description: Chopping Mall shares M3GAN's theme of security technology turning against its human creators. Both feature sleek, modern designs hiding deadly capabilities (shopping mall robots vs. a lifelike doll). The films critique blind trust in technology through violent, entertaining scenarios where machines develop their own agendas.

Fact: The film was originally titled 'Killbots' but was changed to Chopping Mall to capitalize on the slasher film trend. The robot designs were repurposed from the 1977 film 'The Day Time Ended'. Director Jim Wynorski shot the entire film in just 17 days.

Description: Similar to M3GAN, Child's Play features a seemingly innocent doll (Chucky) that turns murderous due to a technological anomaly (a serial killer's soul transferred into the doll). Both films explore themes of artificial life gone wrong and the dangers of technology in the hands of the wrong 'owner'. The horror is amplified by the juxtaposition of childlike innocence with extreme violence.

Fact: Chucky was inspired by a series of 'My Buddy' dolls commercials that writer Don Mancini found creepy. The voice of Chucky was provided by Brad Dourif, who recorded his lines while holding a Cabbage Patch Kid to get into character. The film was almost titled 'Blood Buddy' before settling on Child's Play.

Description: Small Soldiers shares M3GAN's theme of toys becoming autonomous and dangerous, though with a more comedic tone. Both explore the consequences of advanced technology (military microchips in Small Soldiers, AI in M3GAN) being placed in children's toys. The films examine how playthings can reflect and amplify human aggression.

Fact: The film's voice cast included Tommy Lee Jones as Chip Hazard and Ernest Borgnine as Kip Killigan. The Commando Elite toys were designed to resemble classic action figures like G.I. Joe. Director Joe Dante intentionally made the film more intense than typical children's movies to appeal to older audiences.

Description: Dead Silence, like M3GAN, features murderous dolls with an uncanny, lifelike quality. Both films use dolls as vessels for vengeance and explore themes of voice/silence (M3GAN's singing vs. Dead Silence's ventriloquism). The atmospheric horror and focus on a single, iconic doll make them spiritual cousins in the creepy doll subgenre.

Fact: Director James Wan created the film as a tribute to classic ventriloquist dummy horror movies. The Billy doll was inspired by a real antique ventriloquist dummy Wan found unsettling. The film's twist ending was kept secret from most of the cast during filming.

Description: Annabelle shares M3GAN's theme of a doll with malevolent intentions, though Annabelle's horror stems from supernatural forces rather than technology. Both films play on the uncanny valley effect of human-like figures behaving unnaturally. The protective parental figures in both stories must confront an evil that has invaded their domestic space.

Fact: Annabelle is based on a real Raggedy Ann doll that paranormal investigators Ed and Lorraine Warren claimed was haunted. The doll used in filming was so creepy that crew members refused to be alone with it. Director John R. Leonetti intentionally avoided showing the doll move to make its appearances more unsettling.

Description: The Boy mirrors M3GAN's premise of a caregiver forming a bond with an artificial being that turns out to be dangerous. Both explore the psychological aspects of attachment to inanimate objects and the blurred line between reality and delusion. The twist in The Boy provides a technological explanation similar to M3GAN's AI gone rogue.

Fact: The Brahms doll was custom-made for the film and took three months to design. Actor Rupert Evans who played Malcolm had to undergo extensive training to move like the doll for certain scenes. The film's original ending was much darker but was changed after test screenings.