Teo Briones Archives – CULTURE MIX

Review: ‘Five Nights at Freddy’s 2,’ starring Josh Hutcherson, Piper Rubio, Elizabeth Lail, Freddy Carter, Theodus Crane, Wayne Knight, Mckenna Grace and Skeet Ulrich

December 4, 2025

by Carla Hay

Toy Freddy (voiced by Kellen Goff), Elizabeth Lail, Piper Rubio and Josh Hutcherson in “Five Nights at Freddy’s 2” (Photo by Ryan Green/Universal Pictures)

Directed by Emma Tammi

Culture Representation: Taking place in 2002 (with a brief flashback to 1982), in the fictional an unnamed city in Minnesota, the horror film “Five Nights at Freddy’s 2” (a sequel to 2023’s “Five Nights at Freddy’s” and based on the “Five Nights at Freddy’s” video game franchise) features a predominantly white cast of characters (with a few African Americans, Asians and Latin people) representing the working-class and middle-class.

Culture Clash: A man and his 11-year-old sister are pulled back into the horror antics of killer animatronic robots from a defunct family entertainment restaurant called Freddy Fazbear’s Pizza.

Culture Audience: “Five Nights at Freddy’s 2” will appeal primarily to people who are fans of the “Five Nights at Freddy’s” franchise, the movie’s headliners, and poorly made, repetitive horror movies that have no surprises.

David Andrew Calvillo, Mckenna Grace and Teo Briones in “Five Nights at Freddy’s 2” (Photo by Ryan Green/Universal Pictures)

The lackluster and sloppily made horror flick “Five Nights at Freddy’s 2” only manages to confirm two truths in movies: (1) Most sequels are inferior to the original. (2) Most video game adaptations are terrible. “Five Nights at Freddy’s 2” is just a boring and more incoherent rehash of 2023’s “Five Nights at Freddy’s,” which was one of the worst horror movies released by a major studio that year.

“Five Nights at Freddy’s” was directed by Emma Tammi and written by Tami, Scott Cawthon (who created the “Five Nights at Freddy’s” video game series) and Seth Cuddeback. For “Five Nights at Freddy’s 2,” Tammi returns as director, but the screenplay was only written by Cawthon. This is clearly not a case where the creator of a video game can blame other screenwriters for making awful movie versions of the video game.

Is it necessary to see or know what happened in the first “Five Nights at Freddy’s” movie before seeing “Five Nights at Freddy’s 2”? Yes. “Five Nights at Freddy’s 2” has several references to spoiler information that was in the first “Five Nights at Freddy’s” movie. The plot of “Five Nights at Freddy’s 2” is already messy. Anyone who doesn’t know what happened in the first “Five Nights at Freddy’s” movie will be even more confused when watching “Five Nights at Freddy 2.”

“Five Nights at Freddy’s 2” (which takes place in an unnamed city in Minnesota) begins by showing a killing that took place in 1982, at a family entertainment restaurant called Freddy Fazbear’s Pizza, which is part of a chain of Freddy Fazbear’s Pizza entertainment restaurants that are similar to the real-life Chuck E. Cheese restaurant chain. (“Five Nights at Freddy’s 2” was actually filmed in Louisiana.) Freddy Fazbear’s Pizza has human-sized animatronic figures of animals, including the company mascot: a bear named Freddy Fazbear.

A girl named Charlotte (played by Audrey Lynn Marie), who’s about 11 or 12 years old, is sitting cross-legged near a trap door in the middle of a stage. Charlotte’s best friend Vanessa (played by Miriam Spumpkin) tries to coax Charlotte away from the trap door and invites Charlotte to sit with Vanessa and her friends. Vanessa tells Charlotte that Charlotte shouldn’t think that Charlotte’s deceased mother is “down there,” as in underneath the trap door. Charlotte seems sad and oblivious to what Vanessa is saying.

Charlotte continues to sit by herself when she sees a boy, who’s about 7 or 8 years old (played Logan Horwitz), being lured outside by someone dressed as a yellow rabbit. Charlotte frantically tells several adults what she just witnessed, but they are dismissive of her. Charlotte decides to take matters into her own hands and try to find the boy herself. She sees the yellow rabbit figure in the restaurant’s kitchen, with his back turned while he is using the sink. The boy is unconscious on the floor.

As Charlotte is carrying the boy out of the kitchen, the Freddy figure sees her, chases after her, and then stabs her. Charlotte staggers wounded onto the stage while the rescued boy runs back to his mother. Charlotte falls into the trap door and is next seen when a human-sized marionette figure (whose face somewhat resembles Billy the Puppet from the “Saw” movies) emerges from the trap door and is carrying Charlotte’s dead body. All the people in the room just stare in silence. It looks as phony and unconvincing as it sounds. The Marionette monster becomes one of the serial killers in “Five Nights at Freddy’s 2.”

“Five Nights at Freddy’s 2” then fast-forwards 20 years later, to 2002. Vanessa has grown up to be a local police officer named Vanessa Shelly (played by Elizabeth Lail), who has recovered from the injuries that she received in the first “Five Nights at Freddy’s” movie, which took place in the year 2000. As already revealed in the first “Five Nights at Freddy’s” movie, Vanessa is the daughter of William Afton (played by Matthew Lillard), a serial killer of children in the 1980s. William would lure his victims from Freddy Fazbear’s Pizza while he was dressed as a character named Yellow Rabbit. (It’s the same murderer who killed Charlotte.) William appears in a few hallucinations and in a brief dream sequence in “Five Nights at Freddy’s 2.”

In the first “Five Nights at Freddy’s” movie, the souls of William’s victims haunted the killer animatronic toys at Freddy Fazbear’s Pizza, which shut down back in the early 1980s, when kids started disappearing from there. A financially struggling young man named Mike Schmidt (played by Josh Hutcherson) took a job as a security guard at the shuttered and abandoned Freddy Fazbear’s Pizza. Mike’s parents are deceased, so he is the guardian of his younger sister Abby Schmidt (played by Piper Rubio), who was 9 years old in the first “Five Nights at Freddy’s” movie. Mike and Abby discovered the secrets of the animatronic toys that came to life.

Abby grew emotionally attached to the animatronic toys that included Freddy (voiced by Kellen Goff), who makes his return in “Five Nights at Freddy’s 2.” “Five Nights at Freddy’s 2″ has also has these animatronic toys that go on a murderous rampage with Freddy and The Marionette: yellow chicken Chica (voiced by Megan Fox); red pirate fox Foxy (also voiced by Goff); and blue rabbit Bonnie (voiced by Matthew Patrick). In Five Nights at Freddy’s 2,” Abby (who is now 11 years old) misses interacting with her animatronic “friends,” so she secretly attempts to revive them.

And what a coincidence: Abby (who is a student at East Lake Middle School) is learning robotics in her science class, which has a mean-spirited teacher named Mr. Berg (played by Wayne Knight), whose fate in the movie can easily be predicted. A lot of kids in the community want to go to a Fazfest event that is a morbid tribute to the animatronic toys from Freddy Fazbear’s Pizza. Mr. Berg has strictly forbidden his students from going to Fazfest, which is taking place at the same time as the East Lake Middle School science fair that Mr. Berg is requiring the students to attend. For the past three years, Mr. Berg has been the teacher of the class that wins the science fair’s competition, and he wants to win again this year.

Meanwhile, three teenagers who have a TV show called “Spectral Scoopers” (for paranormal investigations) have gone to the original Freddy Fazbear’s Pizza location (which is still run-down and abandoned) to film what they find there. The three teenagers are Lisa (played by Mckenna Grace), Rob (played by David Andrew Calvillo) and Alex (played by Teo Briones), who seem to be the only people working on this low-budget show, which is mostly likely on a public-access channel. Alex is the camera operator and Lisa and Rob are the hosts. The three teens (who are mostly generic characters) are taken to this location by a creepy guy named Michael (played by Freddy Carter), who is obviously up to no good. Michael has a secret that is eventually revealed toward the end of the movie.

“Five Nights at Freddy’s 2” has a flimsy story with many plot holes, basically showing that the murderous animatronic toys are looking for new souls to inhabit them. Therefore, the movie is just a bunch of chase scenes with some people getting killed or having their souls stolen by the serial killer toys. The movie’s visual effects aren’t very impressive. And the scares are very limp, cliché and uninteresting.

Supporting characters in “Five Nights at Freddy’s 2” include Mike’s loyal friend Jeremiah (played by Theodus Crane) and engineer Henry Emily (played by Skeet Ulrich), whose daughter Charlotte was shown murdered in the beginning of the movie. All of the movie’s cast members give mediocre performances, with Rubio making the most effort to have a relatable character. “Five Nights at Freddy’s 2” (which has a mid-credits scene that hints at an inevitable sequel) is the epitome of a lazy “cash grab” movie whose only creative accomplishment is making “Five Nights at Freddy” one of the most boring and most idiotic horror movie franchises of all time.

Universal Pictures will release “Five Nights at Freddy’s 2” in U.S. cinemas on December 5, 2025.

Review: ‘Final Destination Bloodlines,’ starring Kaitlyn Santa Juana, Teo Briones, Richard Harmon, Owen Patrick Joyner, Rya Kihlstedt, Anna Lore, Brec Bassinger and Tony Todd

May 16, 2025

by Carla Hay

Teo Briones, Tinpo Lee, Kaitlyn Santa Juana, April Amber Telek, Alex Zahara, Richard Harmon, Anna Lore and Owen Patrick Joyner in “Final Destination Bloodlines” (Photo by Eric Milner/Warner Bros. Pictures)

“Final Destination Bloodlines”

Directed by Adam Stein and Zach Lipovsky

Culture Representation: Taking place in an unnamed suburban city in New York state, in 2024 and briefly in 1969, the horror film “Final Destination Bloodlines” (the sixth movie in the “Final Destination” franchise) features a predominantly white cast of characters (with some African Americans, Asians and multiracial people) representing the working-class, middle-class and wealthy.

Culture Clash: A college student, who has psychic abilities, finds out through horific dreams and an estranged grandmother that their family is cursed to die in order of their bloodlines of the oldest person to youngest person.

Culture Audience: “Final Destination Bloodlines” will appeal primarily to people who are fans of the “Final Destination” movie series and gory supernatural horror movies that have touches of comedy.

Brec Bassinger in “Final Destination Bloodlines” (Photo courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures)

“Final Destination Bloodlines” delivers the expected scenes of gory deaths. But what makes it one of the better “Final Destination” films is the suspense and the movie’s willingness to defy a stereotypical horror movie ending. Sensitive viewers be warned: This movie is very bloody and gruesome. However, there is some effective use of comedy to lighten the mood.

Directed by Adam Stein and Zach Lipovsky, “Final Destination Bloodlines” was written by Guy Busick and Lori Evans Taylor. It’s the sixth movie in the “Final Destination” series, which began with 2000’s “Final Destination.” Each of the “Final Destination” movies is about a group of people who cheated death by escaping from an accident or disaster that killed many other people. Death finds them anyway, and each person who “escaped” is killed—almost always by a freak accident.

The previous “Final Destination” films had the groups of doomed people share something in common, such as a previous escape from death. The groups of people were either strangers and/or friends. In “Final Destination Bloodlines,” the group of people trying to escape from death are all family members who are biologically related.

“Final Destination” begins with a stunning sequence of a disaster that takes place in an unnamed suburban city in New York state in 1969. (“Final Destination Bloodlines” was actually filmed in Canada.) It’s the evening of the grand opening of a major attraction in the area: The Skyview Restaurant, a glass-enclosed upscale eatery located in a circular tower observatory that is 594 feet tall, with the restaurant located at the top. Johnny Cash’s 1963 classic song “Ring of Fire” is playing on a radio in the movie’s opening scene. The song’s title could be considered a foreshadowing what will happen to the Skyview Restaurant.

Paul Campbell (played by Max Lloyd Jones) and his girlfriend Iris (played by Brec Bassinger), who are both in their early-to-mid-20s, have arrived at the Skyview for a romantic date. Paul has brought Iris to the Skyview as a surprise. But to his dismay, Paul founds out that a guy named Jake, one of the Skyview employees who was their connection to get a restaurant reservation at this exclusive event, has just been fired. The snooty maître d’ (played by Bernard Cuffling) says there is no reservation under Paul’s name and firmly say that all of the tables are booked for the entire event.

Paul is very embarrassed but Iris is understanding. Paul tells Iris, “I wanted this night to be perfect.” Iris responds, “It is perfect because I’m with you.” Paul and Iris don’t want to leave the Skyview on its opening night, so they decide to hang out at the bar and do some dancing on the dance floor. The floor of the restaurant is made entirely of glass, so when people look down, they can see how far up they are above the ground. It’s not a good place to be if anyone easily gets vertigo.

Just like the Titanic, this launch event turns out to be a disaster. It starts with a bratty, foul-mouthed unnamed kid (played by Noah Bromley), who’s about 7 or 8 years old, who wants to throw a penny over the balcony railing, even though he’s been told by the staff not to do that. The kid does it anyway. He and everyone else don’t see that the penny gets stuck in a blade that’s part of the elevator operations.

A live band is playing the Isley Brothers’ 1959 hit “Shout” to a packed dance floor that includes Paul and Iris shimmying along to the music. The band has two singers—Evie (played by Natasha Burnett) and Chuck (played by Garfield Wilson)—who are both great at engaging the crowd. Evie has brought her son (played by Jayden Oniah) with her to work, with the implication being that she couldn’t get a babysitter for her son, who’s about 5 years old.

Earlier in the evening, Iris was feeling nauseous and walked quickly to the women’s restroom because she felt like she was going to vomit. While on a break, Evie noticed Iris looking sick near the restroom. Evie immediately figured out that Iris was feeling nauseous not because of the Skyview’s height but because of something else that Iris has been keeping a secret for a few months. Iris admits her secret to Evie and says she hasn’t told Paul yet. (Iris’ secret is exactly what you think it is.)

This review won’t go into details about what happens in the Skyview disaster, but it’s enough to say that Iris survived. About 55 years later, Iris’ granddaughter Stefani Reyes (played by Kaitlyn Santa Juana) has been having bad dreams and losing a lot of sleep because of these horrific visions, which happen at all hours of the day and night. Stefani is an overachieving college student, but she’s recently been put on academic probation because her lack of sleep has been negatively affecting her grades. If Stefani’s grades don’t improve, she could lose her college scholarship and would have to leave the school.

“Final Destination” has a lot of twists and turns that shouldn’t be revealed in advance, in order for people to get the most enjoyment out of the movie. However, it’s essential to mention that Iris Campbell (played by Gabrielle Rose) is now an elderly recluse who has been shunned by her family members because they all think she’s mentally ill and emotionally toxic. Stefani does some research about the Skyview and finds out that she has been dreaming about seeing Iris at the Skyview during its disastrous opening night. Stefani’s roommate suggests that Stefani find out as much about Iris as possible.

Iris has two children: Howard Campbell (played by Alex Zahara) and Darlene Campbell (played by Rya Kihlstedt), who are both angry and resentful of widowed Iris because she was so overprotective of them in their childhood, it was abusive. Darlene is Stefani’s mother. Howard says near the beginning of the movie that Iris was overprotective of them because Iris had an irrational fear that Howard and Darlene would die horrible and untimely deaths. According to Howard, Iris had some type of mental breakdown after Iris’ husband Paul died. Iris eventually lost custody of Howard and Darlene, who grew up in foster care.

Darlene has also been vilified as a “bad mother” for a different reason: Darlene abandoned her family when Stefani was 10 years old. After this abandonment, Darlene’s ex-husband Marty Reyes (played by Tinpo Lee, also known as Andrew Tinpo Lee) raised Stefani and Stefani’s younger brother Charlie (played by Teo Briones) as a single parent. In 2024, Stefani is about 21, while Charlie is about 17 or 18. Stefani is bitter about Darlene’s abandonment, while Charlie is more willing to forgive Darlene. It’s not spoiler information to say that Darlene comes back into her family members’ lives because of a funeral for someone in the family.

Howard is happily married to a homemaker named Brenda (played by April Amber Telek), and they have three kids together: Eldest child Erik (played by Richard Harmon), who’s in his late 20s to early 30s, is a tattooed and pierced sarcastic rebel who works at a shop where he does tattoos and piercings. Middle child Julia (played by Anna Lore), who’s in her early-to-mid 20s, is spoiled and a little bit of a “mean girl,” who seems jealous of and annoyed by Stefani, who used to have a close friendship with Julia. Youngest child Bobby (played by Owen Patrick Joyner), who’s about 17 or 18 years old, is a straight-laced people pleaser who’s a little goofy.

Stefani wants to visit Iris, but Howard and Marty refuse to tell Stefani where Iris lives. Iris lives “off the grid” somewhere, which is why Iris is hard to find. However, Brenda tells Stefani where to look to find Iris’ address. It’s how Stefani finds out where Iris lives and goes to visit this estranged grandmother. During this visit, Stefani finds out about the family curse and how death is coming for all of Iris’ biological relatives in a short period of time.

“Final Destination Bloodlines” explains in advance in what order each person is expected to be killed. Knowing who is next to be killed is not where the suspense is. The movie’s suspense is finding out how they will be killed and if they’re able to escape. Some of the possible impending deaths are just clever jump scares. Other impending deaths actually happen.

As far as horror movies go, “Final Destination Bloodlines” has better-than-average acting and visual effects. Santa Juana and Harmon are the clear standouts in the cast because Stefani and Erik have the most outspoken personalities. “Final Destination Bloodlines” is the last film for horror movie icon Tony Todd, who died of stomach cancer in 2024, when he was 69 years old. The end of the movie shows a title card saying that movie is in memory of Todd, who has a cameo role in “Final Destination Bloodlines” as a character named William John “JB” Bludworth.

“Final Destination Bloodlines” succeeds in its intentions to make the kills as squirm-inducing to watch as possible. The movie’s comic relief comes mostly from Erik, who becomes the most skeptical of the family curse. The reason for Erik’s skepticism is shown in the movie. Is “Final Destination Bloodlines” the type of movie that will win major awards? Of course not. But it’s a non-stop captivating ride for the movie’s target audience. Just be prepared to see a lot of blood and guts along the way.

Warner Bros. Pictures released “Final Destination Bloodlines” in U.S. cinemas on May 16, 2025.