Child's Play

Play trailer

Child's Play

R

1988

1h 27m

Horror

Fantasy

Mystery & Thriller

Play Trailer

Watchlist

Watchlist

Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

64%

Tomatometer

95 Reviews

66%

Popcornmeter

250,000+ Ratings

Gunned down by Detective Mike Norris (Chris Sarandon), dying murderer Charles Lee Ray (Brad Dourif) uses black magic to put his soul inside a doll named Chucky -- which Karen Barclay (Catherine Hicks) then buys for her young son, Andy (Alex Vincent). When Chucky kills Andy's babysitter, the boy realizes the doll is alive and tries to warn people, but he's institutionalized. Now Karen must convince the detective of the murderous doll's intentions, before Andy becomes Chucky's next victim.

Watch on Fandango at Home

Stream Now

Critics Consensus

Child's Play occasionally stumbles across its tonal tightrope of comedy and horror, but its genuinely creepy monster and some deft direction by Tom Holland makes this chiller stand out on the shelf.

Read Critics Reviews

Donna Britt

USA Today

Jun 6

Unfortunately, [Child's] Play isn't campy or fun, either. It's not much of anything at all.

Go to Full Review

Harper Barnes

St. Louis Post-Dispatch

Jun 6

Has the marks of a cult horror hit.

Go to Full Review

Jay Carr

Boston Globe

Jun 5

Child's Play is junk fun.

Go to Full Review

Matt Brunson

Film Frenzy

Nov 17

3/4

A fast-paced horror flick that benefits from fine performances and excellent visual effects.

Go to Full Review

David Day

Horror Movie Talk

Aug 11

7/10

Well, considering that this is the movie that started one of the five most iconic slasher series of all time, I think it’s safe to say that if you enjoy slashers this is for you.

Go to Full Review

John Wooley

Tulsa World

Jun 6

3/4

Scripters Don Mancini, John Lafia and Holland himself do score points for showing that they can make at least a fairly scary movie by deft scene construction and the use of suspense rather than gore.

Go to Full Review

Read all reviews

Jhonathan

03/06/2023

Amazing movie highly recommend it

See more

Neil

03/06/2023

Classic mix of funny and sinister

See more

Jacob W

10/14/2022

A horror classic that goes too disturbingly dark with the spiritual at times, but delivers an original and entertaining film. Particularly enjoyable are the special effects, whether Chucky is played by a costumed actor or animated by impressive animatronics. The original in the famed killer doll series is still the best. Brad Dourif brings life to the character and becomes Chucky from the get go. This was the good old days when the character was supposed to be dark and scary instead of being half comedy, and when the good guys were pure and prevailed over the evil villain in the end.

See more

Daniel Pimienta

10/12/2022

Massive fan of Chucky. Was awesome watching the original in a packed theatre.

See more

Calico T

@Callum_cat Mar 8

This was one of the first horror/slasher movies I knew of at the time when I was a kid, and stuck with me to this day in a good way. Cool to see a doll not only being possessed but by an actual person and not some scary entity, either way definitely recommended if you like or scary dolls, slasher movies, and nostalgia! (?)

See more

Justin T

@RT08580778 Mar 4

Such an iconic opening scene. Wow. Great characters, especially Chucky who is a fantastic antagonist. Great casting, especially Alex Vincent who is one of the best child actors ever and actually is the age that they are playing which is so much more convincing and engaging than using someone older than they are supposed to be. There are many great sequences like the car attack and voodoo confrontation. Also the finale is relentless and very satisfying. Great fun, great entertainment, excellent iconic eighties horror.

See more

Read all reviews

Read More

Read Less

WRITE A REVIEW

EDIT REVIEW

POST RATING

Tom Holland

Director

Catherine Hicks

Karen Barclay

Chris Sarandon

Mike Norris

Alex Vincent

Andy Barclay

Brad Dourif

Charles Lee Ray

Dinah Manoff

Maggie Peterson

Child's Play: Official Clip - Charred Chucky

2:10

Child's Play: Official Clip - Batter Up!

1:09

Child's Play: Official Clip - Chucky Doesn't Need Batteries

2:05

Child's Play: Official Clip - This Is the End, Friend

2:13

Child's Play: Official Clip - Chucky Attacks Mike

1:48

Child's Play: Official Clip - Dr. Death's Voodoo

2:13

Child's Play: Official Clip - Frying the Doctor

2:06

Child's Play: Official Clip - Chucky Dies

1:42

Child's Play: Official Clip - You Can't Hurt Me

1:17

Child's Play: Official Clip - Chucky Escapes

2:01

View more videos

The Rage: Carrie 2

23%

33%

The Rage: Carrie 2

Watchlist

Child's Play 2

50%

54%

Child's Play 2

Watchlist

Child's Play 3

19%

40%

Child's Play 3

Watchlist

Pumpkinhead

51%

49%

Pumpkinhead

Watchlist

Phantasm IV: Oblivion

29%

42%

Phantasm IV: Oblivion

Watchlist

Discover more movies and TV shows.

View More

Chucky Vs. Leprechaun: Who Is the Ultimate Tiny Terror?

New Chucky and The Rock Series Planned

Horror Remakes by the Numbers: The Tomatometer Says Stick to Vampire Thrillers and Avoid 1980s Slashers

Most Evil Dolls of Cinema

22:31

The Happytime Murders' Five Favorite Films

1:07

View more videos

View more photos

Synopsis

Gunned down by Detective Mike Norris (Chris Sarandon), dying murderer Charles Lee Ray (Brad Dourif) uses black magic to put his soul inside a doll named Chucky -- which Karen Barclay (Catherine Hicks) then buys for her young son, Andy (Alex Vincent). When Chucky kills Andy's babysitter, the boy realizes the doll is alive and tries to warn people, but he's institutionalized. Now Karen must convince the detective of the murderous doll's intentions, before Andy becomes Chucky's next victim.

Director: Tom Holland
Producer: David Kirschner
Screenwriter: Don Mancini, John Lafia, Tom Holland
Distributor: Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
Production Co: United Artists
Rating: R
Genre: Horror, Fantasy, Mystery & Thriller
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Nov 9, 1988, Original
Release Date (Streaming): Nov 30, 2016
Box Office (Gross USA): $32.8M
Runtime: 1h 27m
Sound Mix: Surround

Most Popular at Home Now