When my 11-year-old daughters announced they wanted to skip the traditional Halloween costumes this year and dress up as M3GAN, I was baffled.
A doll? For Halloween? I’m not a fan of horror films, so I had no idea who M3GAN was, but when I asked them to show me, I discovered a new kind of Halloween terror.
M3GAN, I soon learned, is far from your typical doll. She’s a life-like android with a chilling mission — to wreak havoc and commit murder. It's unsettling how these dolls have evolved. What used to be innocent toys are now the things of nightmares.
Over the 20th century, the depiction of dolls in cinema shifted from sweet companions to menacing murderers.
The 1980s saw the rise of killer dolls in movies like “Child’s Play”, with Chucky becoming an iconic figure.
Films like “Dolls” and “Puppet Master” continued the trend, with their puppets and toys gaining disturbingly human traits.
“Child’s Play” introduced the terrifying idea of a doll with a human soul trapped inside. Chucky’s ongoing legacy — there’s even a new movie planned for 2026 — continues to captivate and horrify society.
Then there’s “Annabelle”, a seemingly lifeless doll that only occasionally moves her head, silently preying on her victims’ minds. She sits still but never allows you to feel safe.
But today, the world of horror dolls has been taken to the next level with M3GAN.
Using advanced artificial intelligence, she eerily mimics human behaviour with an unsettling accuracy.
As AI evolves rapidly, the line between fantasy and reality blurs, and perhaps these living dolls aren’t as far from existence as we think. For children growing up in this tech-driven world, the idea of toys coming to life doesn’t just belong in a Halloween film anymore; it’s a haunting thought that could become all too real.
As Halloween approaches, my daughters’ fascination with these figures makes me wonder — are they attracted to the thrill of fear, or are these dolls reflecting something more profound about the era they’re growing up in?
Through these dolls, the world of horror has found its way into our homes, and perhaps this year, into our Halloween costumes.
IOL Lifestyle