Rod Serling’s The Twilight Zone was an ingenious series that set the precedent for many modern horror concepts. The “Living Doll” episode with Talky Tina set the bar high for scary, sentient dolls. The mother who buys the doll is even named Annabelle, which is the name of the sinister doll from James Wan’s The Conjuring universe. From Fats in Anthony Hopkins’ starrer Magic (1978) to Chucky in Child’s Play (1988), creepy dolls often deliver effective scares. The latest entry in the dolls-gone-amok canon will be M3gan.
Though M3Gan is PG-13, it isn’t short on scares. Gerard Johnstone directed the darkly humorous, yet chilling film. He has one feature under his belt prior to this and that’s the eerie Housebound (2014). James Wan developed the story with Akela Cooper, who wrote the screenplay. Akela also wrote the screenplay for 2021’s hit Malignant, a story she developed with James Wan and Ingrid Bisu.
Akela, a USC grad and Missouri native, recently took some time to talk with us about writing the story of the killer android and her appreciation for horror.
On Working with James Wan and Getting M3gan Produced
I’ve been a fan of James Wan for years. It’s an honor to work with him. I love Saw, Dead Silence, and The Conjuring horror space. I actually wrote M3gan before I wrote Malignant. I had been working in TV for a while. While I was working on Season One of Luke Cage. I wrote two spec features, which my reps liked. They got me a general meeting with Atomic Monster, Wan’s production company. They told me they wanted an updated Child’s Play meets Chopping Mall, They also wanted an American Doll come to life. I pitched them, they liked my pitch. We went to James. I wrote a treatment that Blumhouse picked up.
Akela Cooper
On Horror Novelists Who Inspire Her
I’m a big Stephen King fan. Christine and Cycle of the Werewolf are two of my favorites by him. I like that book by Octavia Butler about vampires, Fledgling, Bentley Little. R.L. Stine’s Goosebumps series and Fear Street series. I’m in the process of adapting A. Lee Martinez’s Monster into a tv series. I partnered with Don Cheadle’s company for the project.
On What Makes Dolls So Creepy
It’s uncanny valley. I’ve never liked those humanoid creatures! And a ventriloquist’s dummy? Just no!
What Drives M3gan?
Her programming. There’s a sympathetic angle to her, though.
Favorite Toys Growing Up
I had Muppet Babies. Teddy Ruxpin. The My Buddy doll.
On Why Comedy Goes Hand-in-Hand with Horror
They both require setup and release. When you ramp up tension, there’s often a moment of comedy just before.
M3gan (Amie Donald) and Cady (Violet McGraw) Photo courtesy Universal Pictures
On Writing Television vs Features
Working in a writers’ room prepares you for being collaborative, which is something you can take into feature writing. In television, you also have to be good with note taking and getting your voice across. Features are contained, whereas with television you’re telling an ongoing story. I’m using a different muscle when I’m writing 45 to 50 pages as opposed to 90 to 100. I like to focus on story build-up and making sure a character is emotionally believable and that the story’s world is believable. My style is bonkers!
On Quirky Writing Habits That She Has
When I’m working on personal stuff, I hand write outlines. This helps me think. When I’m writing by hand, more ideas come to me. I also snack a lot. Gummy Bears are my favorites. I also can’t write without music of some kind. I usually create a playlist that suits the project.
On Her First Writing Job
My first writing job was in television, for Grimm. I had been a research assistant on Jericho and a writers’ assistant on Dexter.
On a Fictional Horror Character She’d Like to Have a Drink With
David from Adam Wingard’s The Guest. He seems like he’d be fun to talk to…!
On Biggest Writing Lesson Learned
I’ve gained confidence in myself, and I know I can do it. Many writers have Imposter Syndrome. I’ve worked through that. I know that my idea was good enough and people can trust me to develop a project in a timely fashion. I completed the first draft of M3gan in four to six weeks. I did a lot of research for M3gan, Malignant and the upcoming The Nun 2. I’m not a Catholic, so I had to discover some of the terminology and watch Exorcist type movies. I’m not a roboticist, so there was a woman involved in STEM who walked me through what would make M3gan function.
