‘M3gan’ and the other target hidden behind his horror movie costume

Devilish dolls have always been a horror movie classic. Not only because it is the result of our worst nightmares, but also because of how extremely tempting it is for marketing to sell and show off its fearsome protagonists in stores, as has been seen with characters like Chucky or Annabelle. But now the genre seems to go a step further with m3ganthe new and successful film of Blumhouse Pictures (the night of the devil, the night of atonement) about a doll designed by artificial intelligence that unleashes horror within a family. And it is that this new commitment to horror and science-fiction cinema seems to have proposed an objective for which many titles seem to be currently fighting.. And everything indicates that she has achieved it.

Nowadays, as well reflected in series like merlin with his famous dance sequence, a key to success in the audiovisual sector seems to lie in virality in networks like TikTok. In other words, in creating an iconic scene that drives viewers crazy, that tempts them to recreate it, modify it or share it. And that’s just what we found in m3gan, a film that from its first advances did not hesitate to warn that it was ready to burst the net with a doll that meets all the requirements to devastate the public. In fact, the impetus to achieve viral diffusion is so great that part of its terrifying side has even been chosen to be set aside, which seems to be nothing more than a mere disguise.

Looking at its first trailer, it does not go unnoticed that, in addition to showing a lavish design of the M3gan doll with features that move between the creepy and affectionate and that are ideal for selling merchandising, is full of dances and music designed to create content on TikTok. You just have to see the strange and hypnotic movements of its protagonist or the accompaniment with the song It’s Nice to Have a Friend of Taylor Swiftone of the artists of the moment whose themes are very common in content on networks.

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But it has not only been a matter of the trailer, because those responsible for m3ganthe production company Blumhouse and Universal Pictures, They have carried out various promotional events, publicizing the film through the dances of its protagonist. For example, her official Twitter account published on January 2 how a group of dancers dressed as the fearsome doll appeared by surprise at halftime of a soccer match, an event where they danced on the grass urging the public to replicate their movements. In fact, in the images released, it can be seen that the stadium screens focused on people imitating the dance in the stands, thus encouraging this idea to generate virality.

We saw the same thing at its premiere, where a photocall was organized with guests performing the aforementioned dance or another group of dancers was hired to offer this show in the projection room. And it is that the objective of M3gan is not so much to sell us the film as a terrifying experience, but as a viral phenomenon that must be added. There is nothing more to see than its age rating is PG-13 years in the United States or B in Mexico, which is to say that this is a product suitable for all adolescent audiences that prioritizes reaching a wide audience rather than offering something terrifying and strong. If not, the ideal would have been to make an R-rated film for adults.

With such a campaign The goal of achieving a viral trend on TikTok and creating buzz on networks has been more than achieved. And all you have to do is enter hashtags like #m3ganmovie to find out. The non-stop videos of people from all over the world imitating the dance, retracing the scene from the trailer or doing funny montages with the doll exemplify it perfectly, as do the almost 300 million views that accumulates this trend.

Also, also has been a box office success. After his first weekend m3gan grossed $45 million worldwide, an immense achievement considering its budget of only $12 million, and it does so in a landscape where Avatar: Path of Water It’s taking everything in theaters. And it seems clear that this marketing campaign focused on virality is paying off and creating another iconic horror character that comes to compete with dolls like Chucky or Annabelle.

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