The Conjuring is one horror franchise that keeps expanding due to the public’s infatuation with its creepy characters. Annabelle was briefly introduced in The Conjuring (2013) before receiving her first spin-off film in 2014 and Annabelle: Creation in 2017. The Conjuring 2 laid the groundwork for The Nun, which is slated for release in 2018. Another character, The Crooked Man, will meet the masses sometime in 2019. The way New Line Cinema births standalone films for its most popular characters got me thinking… Would you go to the movies, pop corn and all, and sit through a movie that completely centered around Tiffany the Killer Doll?
Fresh off the successes of Jim Carrey movie Liar Liar and romantic comedy Music from Another Room, Jennifer Tilly booked the role of Tiffany and officially hit the big screen on October 16, 1998 in Bride of Chucky. The fourth entry in the Child’s Play Series, Bride of Chucky saw Chucky’s former beau break his remains out of an evidence vault, stitch him together with new parts, and reenact the spell that places his soul in the Good Guy Doll. After a lovers quarrel, Chucky murders Tiffany and places her soul in the body of a female doll. Together, they go on the hunt for Heart of Damballa so they can live again in new bodies. In 2004’s Seed of Chucky, Chucky and Tiffany are urban legends and a movie is being made about their reign of terror. Tiffany plans to place her soul in the body of Jennifer Tilly – in an Inception-type move – so she can get pregnant and give birth to a baby that’ll ultimately host the soul of her child with Chucky, Glenn. Tiffany actually ends up succeeding and by the end of Curse of Chucky in 2013, we see that she was maintaining these endeavors.
From a monetary perspective, Tiffany breathed life into the Child’s Play Series at just the right time. The red haired devil was dying at the box office and ticket sales were dwindling. Child’s Play grossed $33,250,000 in 1988. Child’s Play 2 managed to gross $28,500,000 in 1990. And Child’s Play 3 only took in $15,000,000 in ticket sales in 1991. With Tiffany introduced into the scheme of things, Bride of Chucky became the second highest grossing entry in the series with $32,400,000 in ticket sales. Or maybe it was due to the 7 year hiatus because when Seed of Chucky came along, that entry only made $17,000,000 at the box office. Fast forward to 2013 and Curse of Chucky, the series’ first straight to DVD installment, earned $3,500,000 in DVD purchased against a budget of $6,000,000 – and that’s not even taking streams, downloads and on demand purchases into account.
Also speaking from a money making standpoint, Tiffany’s popularity has manifested its own merchandise line. Looking online, I was able to find Tiffany the Killer Doll Funko Pop Vinyls, Halloween costumes, shoes and hair-bows, and life size replicas that Spencers seems to make a million different versions of. And who doesn’t find some level of enjoyment in Tiffany? I know she’s not as popular as Chucky, but she’s definitely a uniquely damaged character. Unlike Chucky, she feels remorse for her actions at certain times. Hell, Tiffany is even labeled by some journalists as a feminist and a hopeless romantic while at the same time maintaining a whorish quality and a short temper that leads to destruction and death. She’s a blonde bombshell with a bigger bang that dynamite. But would you watch a movie with her as the central villain?
The seventh movie in the series, Cult of Chucky, is officially hitting DVD and VOD retailers on October 3, 2017. Since I am planning on buying the new movie that week and since Cult of Chucky premiered at Fright Fest several weeks ago, I’ve taken extra precautions in ensuring I don’t stumble across any spoilers. However, it is common knowledge that Jennifery Tilly – hence Tiffany – will appear in the new film. Now, four appearances deep, do you think we’ll ever get a Tiffany spin-off movie? Do you think she could survive on her own? Would you spend money to see it? It’s discussion time! Comment on this article or on Facebook and Twitter and let me know what you think.
