By Yesssssssss. I’ve been following filmmaker Kyra Elise Gardner on TikTok and have watched the journey of her making LIVING WITH CHUCKY with rapt attention! Kyra is the daughter of special effects artist Tony Gardner, who has worked on Chucky’s F/X since SEED OF CHUCKY (2004) – he’s also done a ton of other things y’all know, including – HOCUS POCUS & THE ADDAMS FAMILY films, as well as the new CHUCKY series!
Having grown up with her father’s props around the house, Kyra has always had Chucky in her life. She’s put together a fun, nostalgic, and illuminating doc, interviewing cast members Brad Dourif, Fiona Dourif, Jennifer Tilly, Alex Vincent, Christine Elise, John Waters (!!!), and Billy Boyd (I always forget that guy voiced Glen/Glenda!). There’s plenty of screen time with Chucky creators Don Mancini and his friend and Producer, David Kirschner, who discuss the origins of everyone’s favorite Good Guys scamp, and stars Lin Shaye, Abigail Breslin, and Marlon Wayans also weigh in on the appeal of horror and why it’s such a lasting, community-gathering genre.
For an added personal touch, Kyra also interviews her father, who gets misty-eyed at having missed so much of her childhood while he was on set while at the same time, acknowledging how incredibly fortunate he has been to be able to keep working on this series and form lasting friendships with all involved.
The film is a beautiful love letter, not just to the series, but also to all the people who work to bring it to life. It takes us briefly through each film, and is filled with great stories about creating these horror classics and building a creepy doll loving horror family along the way. I’m so fucking stoked it’s out now so everyone can see it.
LIVING WITH CHICKY is currently streaming on SCREAMBOX and other VOD platforms, with a Blu-ray coming April 18.
I Love Splatter! 