History YMMV / ChildsPlay

* WheelchairWoobie: Nica has a BigSisterBully who tries to swindle her of her home out of greed and is born paraplegic [[spoiler:due to her mother getting her womb stabbed by Charles Lee Ray right before she was born]]. Then, [[spoiler:[[HeroineWithBadPublicity she]] gets [[FrameUp framed of murdering her whole family]]]]. Things only get worse in the [[Film/CultOfChucky sequel]], where she [[spoiler:learns her beloved young niece Alice died, having been killed offscreen in between the events of both films, she herself ends up being harassed and possibly ''molested'' by the doctor in the asylum, witnesses everyone else but her and Andy die and then ultimately possessed by Chucky's spirit. In the [[Series/{{Chucky}} show]], it's revealed she's FightingFromTheInside and realized Chucky had used her body to commit more murders, while her explanation to a hostage fall upon deaf ears and gets knocked out when trying to free him, causing Chucky to regain control of her. Also, she gets kidnapped by Tiffany who's developed an obsessive "love" for her. The first season ends with her drugged by Tiffany, and ''[[AnArmAndALeg her limbs being removed]]'' so the fragment of Chucky's soul within her can't fight back against Tiffany. The poor girl is at the mercy of a {{Yandere}}, has had what minuscule chance she had of going back to a relatively normal life stripped from her, and she can't do anything about it but ''scream'']].

[[folder:The film series]]

[[/folder]]

[[folder:The game show]]
* GermansLoveDavidHasselhoff: A UsefulNotes/{{German|y}} version managed a run of 17 years.
* RetroactiveRecognition: Lori Beth Denberg, Mike Maronna, Breckin Meyer, Creator/TaraReid, Creator/JeffCohen (as Jeff [=McMahon=]), and Devin Ratray gave definitions on the show.
* TheyChangedItNowItSucks: The 1982 {{pilot}}s contain a format that many feel is ''better'' than that used on the series.
[[/folder]]

* CommonKnowledge: A popular anecdote some people still tend to pass around is that [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_(doll) Robert the Doll]] was the "real-life inspiration" of Chucky, ala UsefulNotes/EdGein inspiring [[Film/{{Psycho}} Norman Bates]], [[Franchise/TheTexasChainsawMassacre Leatherface]] and [[Film/TheSilenceOfTheLambs Buffalo Bill]], when Don Mancini and the other people that worked on the project have stated time and time again that Chucky's inspirations were Talky Tina from ''Series/TheTwilightZone1959'' and various '80s toy lines like Toys/CabbagePatchKids and more overtly the [[https://i.etsystatic.com/8391511/r/il/7f7a46/3886612613/il_fullxfull.3886612613_8eeu.jpg My Buddy Doll]], without ever mentioning Robert. On the contrary, since Robert was donated to his museum in 1994 and supernatural tourist attractions tend to suffer of [[UnreliableNarrator dubious sources]], it wouldn't be shocking if the people selling Robert took inspiration from the ''Chucky'' series to add Robert Eugene Otto behaving like Andy Barclay to his backstory and then pretend that inspired the franchise when it's the other way around.

%%* EvilIsSexy: Tiffany's human form commonly gets this reaction.

** Film series: Chucky proceeds to murder his owner's babysitter because she annoys him, and hunts down, tortures and murders his old voodoo teacher to get information on how to become human again before trying to tear out his 10-year-old owner's soul and possess him. Throughout the films, Chucky commits many more murders [[ForTheEvulz for his own amusement]] and replaces blanks with real ammo at a military camp war games training solely to enjoy the chaos. Even when the films briefly turned comedic, Chucky remained heartless as ever, [[TilMurderDoUsPart murdering his own wife]] when she tried to leave him, with no remorse. When ''Film/CurseOfChucky'' brought the series back to horror, Chucky sends himself to unsuspecting families to destroy them and was revealed, as Charles Lee Ray, to have even stabbed a pregnant woman to cripple her unborn daughter after she rejected his [[StalkerWithACrush advances]]. Despite [[LaughablyEvil his sense of humor]], Chucky has always remained a sadistic, murderous monster and has only grown worse over time.

* WheelchairWoobie: Nica has a BigSisterBully who tries to swindle her of her home out of greed and is born paraplegic [[spoiler:due to her mother getting her womb stabbed by Charles Lee Ray right before she was born]]. Then, [[spoiler:[[HeroineWithBadPublicity she]] gets [[FrameUp framed of murdering her whole family]]]]. Things only get worse in the [[Film/CultOfChucky sequel]], where she [[spoiler:learns her beloved young niece Alice died, having been killed offscreen in between the events of both films, she herself ends up being harassed and possibly ''molested'' by the doctor in the asylum, witnesses everyone else but her and Andy die and then ultimately possessed by Chucky's spirit. In the [[Series/{{Chucky}} show]], it's revealed she's FightingFromTheInside and realized Chucky had used her body to commit more murders, while her explanation to a hostage fall upon deaf ears and gets knocked out when trying to free him, causing Chucky to regain control of her. Also, she gets kidnapped by Tiffany who's developed an obsessive “love” for her. The first season ends with her drugged by Tiffany, and ''[[AnArmAndALeg her limbs being removed]]'' so the fragment of Chucky’s soul within her can’t fight back against Tiffany. The poor girl is at the mercy of a {{Yandere}}, has had any chance of going back to a relatively normal life stripped from her, and she can’t do anything about it but ''scream'']].

* LGBTFanbase: While the series [[BuryYourGays isn't perfect in terms of representation]], its numerous LGBTQ+ characters, several of them sympathetic, have attracted a sizeable queer fanbase. It helps that creator Don Mancini is gay himself and has steadily introduced more queer subtext into the films starting with ''Child's Play III''.

* CompleteMonster: [[Characters/ChildsPlayChucky Chucky himself]] was originally [[GunmanWithThreeNames Charles Lee Ray]], aka the notorious "[[SerialKiller Lakeshore Strangler]]". Killed by police, he used HollywoodVoodoo to transfer his soul into a [[CreepyDoll Good Guy Doll]] and [[KillerDoll continues to kill]] on both the big screen and the small screen.
** Film series: Chucky proceeds to murder his owner's babysitter because she annoys him, and hunts down, tortures and murders his old voodoo teacher to get information on how to become human again before trying to tear out his 10-year-old owner's soul and possess him. Throughout the films, Chucky commits many more murders [[ForTheEvulz for his own amusement]] and replaces blanks with real ammo at a military camp war games training solely to enjoy the chaos. Even when the films briefly turned comedic, Chucky remained heartless as ever, [[TilMurderDoUsPart murdering his own wife]] when she tried to leave him, with no remorse. When ''Film/CurseOfChucky'' brought the series back to horror, Chucky sends himself to unsuspecting families to destroy them and was revealed, as Charles Lee Ray, to have even stabbed a pregnant woman to cripple her unborn daughter after she rejected his [[StalkerWithACrush advances]]. Despite [[LaughablyEvil his sense of humor]], Chucky has always remained a sadistic, murderous monster and has only grown worse over time.
** ''Series/{{Chucky}}'': [[EnfantTerrible As a boy]], Charles Lee Ray [[{{Matricide}} killed his own mother]] to impress an active serial killer. Returning to Hackensack, Chucky [[FalseFriend falsely befriends]] Jake Wheeler and tries to [[TheCorrupter corrupt him]] into murdering Lexi Cross, ultimately taking the matter into his own hands at the cost of inadvertently starting a house fire with several partygoers inside. Chucky murders Junior's mother and successfully perfects his Voodoo spell when he drove Junior to kill his father. He reveals his plan to massacre an audience at a charity event before distributing 72 possessed Good Guy Dolls nationwide with more bloodshed in mind, all to [[FameThroughInfamy immortalize his depraved legacy]] as the worst serial killer in US history.

* LGBTFanbase: While the series [[BuryYourGays isn't perfect in terms of representation]], its numerous LGBTQ+ characters, several of them sympathetic, have attracted a sizeable queer fanbase.

* UncannyValley: The dolls consistently evoke this thanks to their exaggerated faces and mixes of realistic anatomy and plastic parts.

* PoorMansSubstitute: Despite borrowing almost no elements from each other, compositions for ''2, Bride, Seed, Curse'' and the remake emulate [[Music/DannyElfman Danny Elfman's work]] in their own ways.

* CompleteMonster: [[Characters/ChildsPlayChucky Charles Lee Ray]], later known as [[KillerDoll Chucky]], was a notorious SerialKiller when alive, and in death has used HollywoodVoodoo to possess a doll to escape his fate. Chucky proceeds to murder his owner's babysitter because she annoys him, and hunts down, tortures and murders his old voodoo teacher to get information on how to become human again before trying to tear out his ten year old owner's soul and possess him. Throughout the films, Chucky commits many more murders [[ForTheEvulz for his own amusement]] and replaces blanks with real ammo at a military camp war games training solely to enjoy the chaos. Even when the films briefly turned comedic, Chucky remained heartless as ever, murdering his own wife when she tried to leave him, with no remorse. When ''Film/CurseOfChucky'' brought the series back to horror, Chucky sends himself to unsuspecting families to destroy them and was revealed, as Charles Lee Ray, to have even stabbed a pregnant woman to cripple her unborn daughter after she rejected his [[StalkerWithACrush advances]]. Despite his sense of humor, Chucky has always remained a sadistic, murderous monster and has only grown worse over time.

!!''Child's Play'' Works with their own YMMV pages:

* ''YMMV/{{Chucky}}''

Franchise-wide:

[[foldercontrol]]

[[folder:The film series]]
* BillingDisplacement: In spite of portraying the lead character, Creator/BradDourif has never received top billing in any of the films nor the TV series. Instead, he either gets an "[[AndStarring And]]" credit or is billed second to Creator/JenniferTilly.
* BrokenBase:
** Does the series work better as straight-faced horror or BlackComedy? Even among fans who like both approaches, there's no consensus on an ideal balance of the two.
** Does Chucky work better as a comedic, FauxAffablyEvil slasher, or a straightforward killer who happens to be a doll? Which interpretation a fan prefers tends to influence their favorite films too.

[[folder:The Game Show]]

* JerksAreWorseThanVillains: In the franchise's WorldOfJerkass, all of Chucky's {{Asshole Victim}}s are much more hated than Chucky himself, making their deaths either cathartic and indifferent for the audience.

** Film series: Chucky proceeds to murder his owner's babysitter because she annoys him, and hunts down, tortures and murders his old voodoo teacher to get information on how to become human again before trying to tear out his 10-year-old owner's soul and possess him. Throughout the films, Chucky commits many more murders [[ForTheEvulz for his own amusement]] and replaces blanks with real ammo at a military camp war games training solely to enjoy the chaos. Even when the films briefly turned comedic, Chucky remained heartless as ever, murdering his own wife when she tried to leave him, with no remorse. When ''Film/CurseOfChucky'' brought the series back to horror, Chucky sends himself to unsuspecting families to destroy them and was revealed, as Charles Lee Ray, to have even stabbed a pregnant woman to cripple her unborn daughter after she rejected his [[StalkerWithACrush advances]]. Despite his sense of humor, Chucky has always remained a sadistic, murderous monster and has only grown worse over time.
** ''Series/{{Chucky}}'': [[EnfantTerrible As a boy]], Charles Lee Ray killed his own mother to impress an active serial killer. Returning to Hackensack, Chucky [[FalseFriend falsely befriends]] Jake Wheeler and tries to [[TheCorrupter corrupt him]] into murdering Lexi Cross, ultimately taking the matter into his own hands at the cost of inadvertently starting a house fire with several partygoers inside. Chucky murders Junior's mother and successfully perfects his Voodoo spell when he drove Junior to kill his father. He reveals his plan to massacre an audience at a charity event before distributing 72 possessed Good Guy Dolls nationwide with more bloodshed in mind, all to [[FameThroughInfamy immortalize his depraved legacy]] as the worst serial killer in US history.

* WheelchairWoobie: Nica has a BigSisterBully who tries to swindle her of her home out of greed and is born paraplegic [[spoiler:due to her mother getting her womb stabbed by Charles Lee Ray right before she was born]]. Then, [[spoiler:[[HeroineWithBadPublicity she]] gets [[FrameUp framed of murder]]]]. Things only get worse in the [[Film/CultOfChucky sequel]], where she [[spoiler:learns her beloved young niece Alice died, having been killed offscreen in between the events of both films, she herself ends up being harassed and possibly ''molested'' by the doctor in the asylum, witnesses everyone else but her and Andy die and then ultimately possessed by Chucky's spirit. In the [[Series/{{Chucky}} show]], it's revealed she's FightingFromTheInside and realized Chucky had used her body to commit more murders, while her explanation to a hostage fall upon deaf ears and gets knocked out when trying to free him, causing Chucky to regain control of her]].

* DracoInLeatherPants: Some viewers see Chucky as an AntiHero or AntiVillain. While several of his targets were AssholeVictims, he's still always been a sadistic SerialKiller who: has targeted innocent people (e.g. [[spoiler:''his [[{{Matricide}} own mother]] and he tried to do the same to [[OffingTheOffspring his own child]]'']]), ruined Andy and Nica's lives, etc.

* CompleteMonster: Charles Lee Ray, later known as the killer doll Chucky, was a notorious {{serial killer}} when alive, and in death has used [[HollywoodVoodoo voodoo]] to [[CreepyDoll possess a doll]] to escape his fate. Chucky proceeds to murder his owner's babysitter because she annoys him, and hunts down, tortures and murders his old voodoo teacher to get information on how to become human again before trying to tear out his six-year-old owner's soul and possess him. Throughout the films, Chucky commits many more murders for his [[ForTheEvulz own amusement]] and replaces blanks with real ammo at a military camp war games training solely to enjoy the chaos. Even when the films briefly turned comedic, Chucky remained heartless as ever, murdering his own wife when she tried to leave him, with no remorse. When ''Curse of Chucky'' brought the series back to its more straightforward horror roots, Chucky sends himself to unsuspecting families to ruin them and was revealed, as Charles Lee Ray, to have even stabbed a pregnant woman to cripple her unborn daughter after she rejected his [[StalkerWithACrush advances]]. Despite his sense of humor, Chucky has always remained a sadistic, murderous brute who destroys everything he touches, and has only grown worse over time.