Syfy Had No Problem With The Gory 'Chucky' Season Finale

Editor's note: Spoilers below for the season finale of "Chucky".

This season of Syfy's "Chucky" series has rocked for the fences.

Narratively, the season took our teenagers from Hackensack, New Jersey to the Catholic school that murderer-turned-living-doll Charles Lee Ray (voiced by Brad Dourif) attended as a child. And after a season filled with child murders, an exploding priest, and a meta-plot about the possession of Jennifer Tilly (by a character played by Jennifer Tilly), series creator Don Mancini has took the characters homecoming for a Hackensack Christmas season finale with Episode 8, “Chucky Actually.”

As Mancini told IndieWire via Zoom, the finale was the cornerstone of a season that attempted to be experimental with the narrative TV format. “I wanted to play with the structure and expectations of the [final] episode format,” he said. Since Season 1 ended with Chucky's Halloween episode, Mancini wanted to contrast that with a Season 2 finale set at Christmas. "I've always wanted to do a big thing with Chucky for Christmas, so this was our opportunity to do it and see Chucky decorate the halls."

The finale is also meant to create additional suspense. Episode 7, "He Has Rise, Indeed", saw the characters in great peril. You'd think the finale gives them a chance to relax and reflect - it doesn't.

"It's our brand, being a little experimental sometimes. What's the point of having a TV show if you can't play a little?" Mancini said. That meant going big with the ending of Season 2, culminating in "Chucky Actually" featuring the bloodiest murder the show (and the "Chucky" franchise) had ever undertaken. Mayor Michelle Cross (Barbara Alyn Woods) comes downstairs to investigate a strange noise, only to have Chucky use a chainsaw to cut her in half. It's a long and grotesque sequence, but to hear Mancini talk about it, the Syfy network absolutely did not hesitate.

"Chucky"

Rafy/SYFY

He said that while there were no concerns about the show's violence, there was some hesitation from the network that the meta-humor and narrative experiences might be too weird. For example, this season's episode "Death on Denial" focused on Tiffany Valentine (in Jennifer Tilly's body) trying to keep those who actually know Jennifer Tilly from finding out that Tiffany is impersonating her. "'Death on Denial' was a treat for all of us just to have these other actors come in and do something weird," Mancini said.

So far, Mancini has planned the show for at least five seasons, and he can also see a world where the series is set alongside new movies in the "Chucky" verse. "If the opportunity arose", Mancini would be ready to do double duty.

A world where Chucky is on screens large and small would certainly do a lot to give the character some respect...