Matthew Lillard Teases Villainous Return in Five Nights at Freddy's 2

The Villainous Reveal and Lillard's Enthusiasm

Following the movie's blockbuster success, Matthew Lillard is teasing his villainous return in Five Nights at Freddy's 2. The Scream and Scooby-Doo alum starred in the adaptation of the horror video game franchise as Steve Raglan, a career counselor who gets Josh Hutcherson's Mike the job of night security guard at the eponymous family entertainment center. It's revealed in the movie's final act that Raglan is actually William Afton, founder of Freddy Fazbear's Pizza and a serial killer who murdered various children and stuffed their bodies in the restaurant's animatronic suits, now controlling their souls as they possess the suits.

Matthew Lillard as Steve Raglan on the Phone in Five Nights at Freddy's

In honor of the movie's home media release, Screen Rant interviewed Lillard to break down Five Nights at Freddy's. When asked about his return for a potential Five Nights at Freddy's 2, the star was enthusiastic about his chances to bring back the villainous Afton for the sequel, pointing to his character's ominous promise that 'I always come back', while simultaneously sharing his joy to be part of a major franchise later in his career. See what Lillard shared below:

Matthew Lillard looking over his shoulder in Scream

One of the things I was surprised about is that I sort of fell in love with the costume work. I really found it exciting to explore working within that huge body. In drama school, you do these things called mask exercises, and so it was like this big moving mask exercise. So I really enjoyed that. I would love to obviously continue that when he's spring trapped, but I'm hoping to find other elements in the movies. Hopefully they make more movies. One would assume they would, but I hope to find more opportunities for him to be out of the spring trap costume. But we'll see. We'll see.

Spring Bonnie holds up a knife in the Five Nights at Freddy's movie.

It is definitely nice to make the sequel. If they make a sequel. But it's definitely nice to know that if they're going to make a sequel, the line's, 'I always come back.' That's part of the IP, so I am always coming back. That makes me super happy. In all honesty, as an actor, your career ebbs and flows and nobody goes straight up except for Tom Cruise. And it's nice at this juncture in my life to start a franchise in my early fifties that hopefully will take me through the next 10 years of my life. And yeah, it's just nice to have that in a career.

Spring Bonnie walks through an archway in Freddy Fazbear's Pizza.

Lillard's FNAF 2 Return Can Make Up For Scream's Missed Opportunity

Prior to the movie's release, Lillard had seemingly confirmed major plans for his character in Five Nights at Freddy's, revealing that he had signed a three-picture deal with Blumhouse and Universal, despite no sequel being confirmed as of yet. This indication further excited fans of the star as it marked his first major return to the horror genre in almost a decade, with his last appearance being in the comedic-skewing Bloodsucking Bastards in 2015. That was similarly an exciting return for many as it came after a major hiatus from the genre following his iconic turns in the original Scream and Thir13en Ghosts.

William Afton is Crushed By his Springlock Suit in the Five Nights at Freddy’s Movie

With his return in Five Nights at Freddy's 2, however, the sequel can take advantage of one of Scream's biggest missed opportunities by allowing Lillard to continue playing an eccentric horror villain. Theories have swirled for years about Stu's return within the slasher franchise, particularly that of Scream VI, which saw much of its marketing seemingly tease his potential appearance, only for it to not come to be. Lillard himself has expressed in the past that his character survived having a TV dropped on his face in the 1996 Wes Craven classic, while franchise creator Kevin Williamson has even shared his thoughts on how Stu could return in the future:

I mean, I would say never, but I have always been wrong when I do. There's always that twin brother theory.

The Potential of Five Nights at Freddy's 2

While the sequel may not have been confirmed as of the time of writing, it does seem very likely that Blumhouse will move forward with Five Nights at Freddy's 2. In spite of its negative critical reviews, the first movie became the indie studio's highest-grossing movie to date, bringing in over $293 million, even with its simultaneous streaming premiere, which also broke Peacock's viewership records. Given how vital Afton is to the central lore of the Five Nights at Freddy's games, it will be interesting to see how the sequel looks to expand on the character, be it through flashbacks or his spirit properly possessing the Springtrap suit.